Kotaro Yanagi

Infobox actor
name = Yanagi Kotaro


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birthdate = birth date and age|1985|12|21
birthplace = Berlin, Germany
deathdate =
deathplace =
othername =
occupation = Actor, Model
yearsactive = 2002 - Present
spouse =
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children =
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website =

nihongo|Kotaro Yanagi|柳 浩太郎|Yanagi Kōtarō is a young Japanese actor who plays in various movies, dramas, and stage events. He's most commonly referred to as "Yanagi", although he sometimes shortens it to "Yana" or "Nagi.". He is also part of a young men's stage acting troupe, D-Boys, which perform in various skit-like performances, and is currently the group's sub-leader.

Statistics

Yanagi was born on December 21 1985, in Berlin, Germany however he is ethnically 100% Japanese. Yanagi stayed in Germany until he was 3 years old until he and his family moved to Japan where he attended kindergarten, Yanagi stayed in Japan until the first semester of elementary school, however, due to his father's work, he and his family moved to India. Until third grade, Yanagi stayed with his parents and attended a nearby school. However, from fourth to sixth grade he attended an American boarding school further away, which is where he learned English. Yanagi's family moved back to Japan where he finished school.

He is fluent in both English and Japanese. Yanagi measures approximately 165 cm tall and weighs 53 kg.

Roles

Yanagi is a member of the young men's stage acting troupe, D-Boys, which plays in various skit-like performances, and he is the troupe's sub-leader. He acted in the web drama, "Hice Cool!"『冲绳男孩 』, and had a supporting role in the movie "Aa~! Izakaya Puroresu"『あゝ！一軒家プロレス』, a wrestling film, as well as the drama "Rocket Boys". He also acted in his D-Boys troupe's TV drama "DD-Boys." His first major film role is as the otaku lead character in "Chikan Otoko"『痴漢男』, based on of a book by the same name. He has also acted in a short drama in 2007 named "Puzzle"『パズル』, where he played a prominent role with a couple of other D-boys.

At the beginning 2007 he appeared as the main character in the musical "Cooky Clown" (ミュージカル『Cooky Clown). In March of the same year, he partcipated as a guest in "Out of Order".

As Ryoma Echizen in The Prince of Tennis Musicals

His most famous role, however, was as the tennis prodigy Ryoma Echizen in the "Prince of Tennis" musical series, Tenimyu. During his run in the musicals, he was able to work with fellow D-Boys members Yuya Endo (whom he shared the role with), Masaki Kaji, Hiroki Suzuki, Osamu Adachi, Hirofumi Araki, Masato Wada, and former members Yuu Shirota and Yamazaki Ichitaro. After recovering from his accident (see below), he continued to play his role along with the second generation Seigaku cast (which featured most of the D-Boy members). On March 29th, 2006, Yanagi graduated from the role after his performance in "Dream Live 3rd" and has so far been the longest serving actor to play Echizen. Since his graduation, the role of Echizen has been played by Dori Sakurada, and currently by Shougo Sakamoto.

Other work

Yanagi recently starred in the stage play 'Taikan Kisetsu' (Cornflakes), alongside former Hyouteimyu cast member Kawaii Ryunosuke. In January 2008 he also starred as one of the main characters in the play 'Sohji'.

Yanagi can currently be seen as the lead character in the drama 'Tadashii Ouji no Tsukurikata' (How to Create the Ideal Prince), shown on Tv Tokyo. His co-stars include Hiroki Aiba, Takiguchi Yukihiro, Kiriyama Renn and Takeda Kouhei. (Two D-Boys members in the drama with smaller roles, Kumai Kohei and Nakagawa Shingo).

Accident

After leaving a rehearsal for "Remarkable 1st Match: Fudomine", less than two weeks before it was due to open, Yanagi was hit by a car. He had extensive damage to his body and vocal cords and was unconscious for two weeks. Doctors predicted he would be bedridden for the rest of his life. After waking up, Yanagi weighed around 30 kg and was unable to get up at all.

However, Yanagi was able to make a miraculous recovery and is currently strong enough to act again, although he had difficulty with his dancing and singing. His recovery time prevented him from playing in "Remarkable 1st" and the next two "Prince of Tennis" musicals (in which he was replaced by J-pop singer Kimeru and Yuya Endo, respectively).

He was able to come back for the "Side Fudomine" musical where he shared the role of Echizen with Endo, but he only acted in stand still scenes while Endo did the dancing and tennis match choreography. He did not appear in the "Side Yamabuki" musical. After Endo graduated from the musicals after "Dream Live 2nd" (in which he and Yanagi again shared the role), Yanagi continued playing Echizen for three more shows; although he played the tennis matches, his movements were still slow, and many of the dancing skits he was in had limited choreography so he could keep up with the rest of the cast, and vice versa for them.

Because of his accident, Yanagi wasn't able to join his fellow castmates in the "Prince of Tennis" live film adaptation. At the same time, the directors wanted to cast someone younger for the role, as Yanagi was 20 years old at the time. Actor Kanata Hongo was cast as the movie's Echizen.

Kimeru, who was close friends with Yanagi, was struck hard by the accident that when he released his third single, "OVERLAP" (a theme song for the anime Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters), he also dedicated its coupling song, "OATH IN THE STORM", to Yanagi.

Miscellaneous

Yanagi's hobbies are hanging with friends and karaoke. His major skills, as he personally states, are "street dancing, lock dancing, and pantomime." His dream was to become a professional dancer, however his dancing skills were impeded by his injuries from his accident.

Merchandise

Yanagi has an Idol DVD released called YA-NA-GI. Beforehand, he has also released a photobook titled "20-2", shortly before he was involved in the accident.

Also, Yanagi released his newest photobook/album titled "NAGILAND" in September 2007.

tage work

TENIMYU: THE PRINCE OF TENNIS MUSICAL SERIES (as Ryoma Echizen)
*"The Prince of Tennis Musical" (2003)
*"The Prince of Tennis Musical": Side Fudomine ~Special Match~ (alongside fellow D-Boy Yuya Endo, who also played Echizen) (In Winter of 2004-2005)
*"The Prince of Tennis Musical": Dream Live 2nd (he again shared the role with Endo) (2005)
*"The Prince of Tennis Musical": The Imperial Match Hyotei Gakuen (2005)
*"The Prince of Tennis Musical": The Imperial Match Hyotei Gakuen in Winter (In Winter of 2005-2006)
*"The Prince of Tennis Musical": Dream Live 3rd (2006)

References

* [http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9F%B3%E6%B5%A9%E5%A4%AA%E9%83%8E Wikipedia Japanese article on 柳浩太郎]
* [http://community.livejournal.com/20_2_eighteen 20_2_Eighteen]
* [http://blog.watanabepro.co.jp/yanagikotaro/ Yanagi's blog]

External links

* [http://blog.watanabepro.co.jp/yanagikotaro/ Yanagi Kotarou's weblog]
* [http://www.d-boys.com/index.php D-Boys Official Page]
* [http://www.mmv.co.jp/products/flyer/tennis_musical/ The Prince of Tennis Musical Official Page]