Kotaro Yanagi
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Kotaro Yanagi | |
|---|---|
| 柳 浩太郎 | |
| Born | December 21, 1985 |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, model |
| Years active | 2002-2014 |
Kotaro Yanagi (柳 浩太郎, Yanagi Kōtarō) (born December 21, 1985) is a Japanese actor. He is part of the D-BOYS actor group.
Early life
Yanagi was born on December 21, 1985, in Berlin, Germany. He lived in Germany for three years before moving back with his family to Japan. His family moved to India for work, and he lived there for three years. However, in the fourth grade, he attended an American boarding school. Yanagi's family moved back to Japan where he finished school.
Career
D-BOYS
Yanagi is a member of the young men's stage acting troupe, D-BOYS, which act in skit-like performances. He acted in the web drama, Hice Cool! (Template:Lang-ja), and had a supporting role in the movie Aa~! Izakaya Puroresu (Template:Lang-ja), a wrestling film. He also acted in the drama Rocket Boys. Yanagi acted in the D-BOYS TV drama DD-Boys.[1] His first major film role is as the otaku lead character in Chikan Otoko (Template:Lang-ja) In 2007, Yanagi acted in a drama named Puzzle(Template:Lang-ja), where he played a prominent role with a couple of other D-boys.
In 2007, he appeared as the main character in the musical Cooky Clown (Template:Lang-ja). In March of the same year, he participated as a guest in "Out of Order".
Musicals
Yanagi's most famous role, is as the tennis prodigy and lead protagonist Ryoma Echizen in the Prince of Tennis musical series.[2] During his run in the musicals, he worked with other D-BOYS members such as Yuya Endo, Masaki Kaji, Hiroki Suzuki, Osamu Adachi, Hirofumi Araki, Masato Wada, Yuu Shirota, and Yamazaki Ichitaro.
In 2003, after leaving a rehearsal for Remarkable 1st Match: Fudomine, Yanagi was involved in a car accident. He had extensive damage to his body and vocal cords and was in a coma for two weeks.[3] As a result of the accident, Yanagi now walks with a permanent limp, his voice is forever changed, and his speech pattern is slightly slurred.[citation needed]
After recovering, he continued to play his role along with the second generation Seigaku cast, which featured most of the D-BOYS members. On March 29, 2006, Yanagi graduated from the role after his performance in Dream Live 3rd.
Yanagi reprised his role as Echizen[when?] and reunited with the 1st generation Seigaku cast to perform in Tenimyu's Dream Live 7th to celebrate the end of Tenimyu's first season.
Yanagi recently starred in the stage play Taikan Kisetsu. He is currently the lead character in the drama Tadashii Ōji no Tsukurikata.
In November 2014, Yanagi announced he was taking a long-term hiatus due his health.[3]
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004–2005 | Aa~! Izakaya Puroresu | movie | |
| 2005 | Chikan Otoko | movie | |
| 2006 | Rocket Boys | TV Tokyo | |
| DD-Boys | as himself | ||
| 2007 | Puzzle | TV Asahi | |
| 2008 | Tadashii Oji no Tsukurikata | Shinozaki Tatsuya | TV Tokyo |
| 2009 | Ikemen Bank the Movie | Nashitaro Kanezoko | movie |
Theatre
| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| The Prince of Tennis Musical | 2003 |
| The Prince of Tennis Musical: Side Fudomine ~Special Match~ | 2004–2005 |
| The Prince of Tennis Musical: Dream Live 2nd | 2005 |
| The Prince of Tennis Musical: The Imperial Match Hyotei Gakuen | 2005 |
| The Prince of Tennis Musical: The Imperial Match Hyotei Gakuen in Winter | 2005–2006 |
| The Prince of Tennis Musical: Dream Live 3rd | 2006 |
| D-BOYS STAGE | 2007 |
| D-BOYS STAGE: The Last Game | 2008 |
| The Prince of Tennis Musical: Dream Live 7th | 2010 |
| The Prince of Tennis Musical: Dream Live | 2013 |
References
- ^ "-俳優集団D-BOYS OFFICIAL SITE-". www.d-boys.com. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
- ^ "マーベラス公式ウェブサイト - MARVELOUS!". マーベラス公式ウェブサイト - MARVELOUS! (in Japanese). Retrieved 2019-07-16.
- ^ a b Nelkin, Sarah (2014-11-10). "Prince of Tennis Musical Actor Kōtarō Yanagi Takes Long-Term Hiatus Due to Health". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2018-08-28.