Echoes of Life tour 2024-25

[TallyT]

From Max Ambesi's account, pictures of the rink and audience. And tonight's second night is again sold out and is being streamed to China.

It has been announced that Hiroshima Day 2 (5/1) will be broadcast live on CS Asahi 2.

 

[Magill]

SMG Great Sports Media providing the paid livestream for China of Yuzuru"s Echoes of Life show has released a short promo video from the prime night for those curious to get the feel of the show hidden behind the paywall. It helps to showcase not just the beauty of his skating but of the production as well - Yuzu is standing in the spotlight in the shape of the heart in which his double shadow is dancing. So simple and so touching!
And for those curious of the story behind the script, there is a great review article from German Figure Skating magazine, Pirouette, published online with some great pics and probably to go in print in their January edition (in German, but easily translatable to English by an online tool, and some of us here speak German anyway ). The story as written by Yuzuru has also been published as a book in English and in Japanese under the same title to accompany the show.

Echoes Of Life - Wie Klänge die Welt verändern

Rund 14.000 Zuschauer strömten in die Saitama Super Arena in der Präfektur Saitama, um das Eröffnungsevent von Yuzuru Hanyus „Echoes Of Life“-Tour, dem dritten Kapitel…

steadyhq.com

 

[Magill]

Yuzuru's third and last solo show in the packed up Saitama Super Arena today was a great success again with fans from 33 countries in attendance! The last time the Worlds were kept here in 2023, Saitama was not sold out even for one day which shows how huge this arena is and how difficult the trick is, especially on a weekday, and 2 out of 3 Yuzu sold-out shows were on weekdays.
If anyone had any doubts who still is the biggest star of the sport, well, the selling numbers do not lie, 42,000 audience in 3 shows is hard to even come close to
And this is not counting international paid livestreams, cinema viewing and Japanese TV live and delayed broadcasts....
Fans could see today the flawless iconic Olympic routine to Chopin's Ballad No.1 skated by a 30-year-old skater and the new and beloved Goliath program was performed by Yuzuru wearing a black long raincoat, just like he did when he first showed it off-the-ice in his YouTube channel last year.

 

[TallyT]

The Saitama shows were spellbinding. Now it goes to a smaller rink at Hiroshima, which is already reporting an economic uptick (hotel bookings especially) for the days Echoes will be there, so any last minute resale tickets or extras (with restricted view) made available will be fought over. Anyone who wants one should watch social media.

 

[Magill]

The Saitama shows were spellbinding. Now it goes to a smaller rink at Hiroshima, which is already reporting an economic uptick (hotel bookings especially) for the days Echoes will be there, so any last minute resale tickets or extras (with restricted view) made available will be fought over. Anyone who wants one should watch social media.

.... for info but not for the tickets. These should only be bought from official sources i.e the official resale facility where you can return your tickets so that somebody else can buy them. The tickets are named and IDs were checked in Saitama and there is a good chance it will be the same in Hiroshima to prevent illegal trading and absurd "second hand" prices.
And yes, Hiroshima reported the highest increase in year to year hotel bookings for the New Year holiday period in all Japan, attributed partly to the development of a better hotel base, and partly to Yuzu shows which brought a magnet to actually fill this hotel base up with guests
Hanyuconomy again...

 

[Magill]

And here it comes, as expected. An important notice for Yuzuru's Echoes of Life Hiroshima ticket holders. They are reminded that tickets are named, and ID checks and mandatory wristbands to be worn after checks will be introduced there, too, just like they were for Saitama performances. As these measures have been mainly targeting prevention of reselling tickets for sky-high prices as was the case, I tend to believe Hiroshima shows are selling pretty great as this issue comes up only when demand is higher than supply. No wonder. Hiroshima Green Arena is of course smaller than Saitama Super Arena which is one of the largest in the world. If this issue came up for Saitama, it is bound to come for Hiroshima, too. BTW, Re_Pray also premiered in Saitama so it seems selling out this beautiful giant has become Yuzuru's favourite regular pastime

So if you go to one of Hiroshima shows, please remember to bring your ID with your photo. If you cannot come and wish to resell your ticket, you can do it only by returning it to the official pool when it will be officially resold and the customer's name on the ticket will be changed. Same for buying. Tickets resold in other ways will not be honoured.

More detailed info and the list of accepted IDs on the show's official X account linked below and on its website.

 

[TallyT]

Re Echoes, the news agency nikkansports reported that "at least 400,000 fans in China alone watched the paid live broadcast" of the first day (China also had day 2 broadcast). Then add the live audience, cinemas, Japanese watching and world stream...

羽生結弦さん、ほぼ倍増170分の独演で30歳の進化証明「脂が乗ってくる」中国40万人超視聴 - スポーツ : 日刊スポーツ

フィギュアスケート男子の冬季五輪2連覇王者、プロ転向3年目の羽生結弦さんが30歳の誕生日を迎えた7日、さいたまスーパーアリーナで単独アイスショーの全国ツアー「… - 日刊スポーツ新聞社のニュースサイト、ニッカンスポーツ・コム（nikkansports.com）

www.nikkansports.com

 

[TallyT]

The archive viewing of Echoes of Life Day 1 is now available, with tickets from Beyond Live

Beyond LIVE

The beginning of a new performance culture A new video concert, Beyond LIVE that combines artist performance with various graphics and technologies is coming. Connecting the world in real time, the stage unfolds to 6 billion audiences. Meet the stage created by fans and artists together via Live...

beyondlive.com

 

[Magill]

Yuzuru's Echoes of Life performance in Saitama Day 3 (i.e. of 11 December) which was not streamed live neither on TV nor on any of the livestreams will be broadcast this coming Saturday December 21 at 7 pm on TV Asahi CS 1 so if you have access or can have access, enjoy!

 

[Wynter]

Yuzuru's Echoes of Life performance in Saitama Day 3 (i.e. of 11 December) which was not streamed live neither on TV nor on any of the livestreams will be broadcast this coming Saturday December 21 at 7 pm on TV Asahi CS 1 so if you have access or can have access, enjoy!

Ah, I’m glad TV Asahi doesn’t wait for long to stream the Day-3.

Day-3 is the cleanest performance from all 3 days of Saitama (a fall on 3Lo during the piano medley, I think because he was distracted and over-rotated it).

He gestured for the fans to scream during Mass Destruction (the fans obliged of course) and the clean Ballade too.

 

[Magill]

Ah, I’m glad TV Asahi doesn’t wait for long to stream the Day-3.

Day-3 is the cleanest performance from all 3 days of Saitama (a fall on 3Lo during the piano medley, I think because he was distracted and over-rotated it).

He gestured for the fans to scream during Mass Destruction (the fans obliged of course) and the clean Ballade too.

Yes, many people felt performance-wise it was the best of the three Echoes of Life shows in Saitama and were sad it was not streamed live.
But here it comes, on the pre-Christmas Saturday's prime time, at 7 pm!

Presents come early this season

 

[Magill]

A great review of Echoes of Life show has just been published today on AIPS website's front page! This is the website of the International Sport Press Association (this is what AIPS stands for) - the same global media union whose members - sport journalists from all over the world - recently voted Yuzu 6th best male athlete of the last 100 years across all sports! Since then AIPS clearly watch for news of him and inform on his whereabouts from time to time!
This review is not by any sport journalist though, but by Constanza Rizzacasa d'Orsogna, a cultural reporter and columnist for Italy's leading daily Corriere della Sera. She recently interviewed Yuzu for her paper and was asked then to write a short personal essay on him for AIPS website on that occasion, several weeks ago (they provide links to both, the short essay and the interview, at the bottom of the page , below the review itself). Now she's contributed a full scale review of the show as seen by a renown culture writer and expert! She starts her review with this:
"A new form of art from Japan that transcends figure skating, fusing together skating, cinema, storytelling, commentary, music, dancing, and more. In his second tour, “Yuzuru Hanyu ICE STORY 3rd - Echoes of Life”, which debuted at Saitama Super Arena, north of Central Tokyo, on December 7 (the day of his 30th birthday), Yuzuru Hanyu’s vision for his figure skating is clear."
Wow! Yuzu is really perceived as so much more than just an athlete by now! Figure skating community can be really proud of him! Enjoy reading!

Yuzuru Hanyu and the meaning of life. A record-breaking ice show

www.aipsmedia.com

 

[Magill]

Great news! Worldwide livestream for Yuzuru's Echoes of Life from Hiroshima, second day, on January 5, has just been announced by BeyondLive, as expected, but it is always happy news! Plus SMG Great Sports livestream of two Saitama performances for China was such a success that Hiroshima show will not only be livestreamed online but also broadcast in cinemas in mainland China, too, just like in Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan!
All this alongside TV broadcasts of both days for Japan on TV Asahi CS1!
I hope Notte Stellata just announced yesterday for March will also get a livestream outside of Japan

 

[TallyT]

I think anyone who missed a ticket for the Hiroshima show itself may want to travel to China for the live cinema...

 

[DizzyFrenchie]

I think anyone who missed a ticket for the Hiroshima show itself may want to travel to China for the live cinema...

I would bet that all these seats are already sold out! But they also have a streaming on Douyin.

 

[Magill]

I think anyone who missed a ticket for the Hiroshima show itself may want to travel to China for the live cinema...

I must admit this new cinema facility in Shanghai looks absolutely amazing!!! I wonder how it works actually, as I have never been to a broadcast in a facility with a 360 degree screen (just to some digital painting exhibitions in the new technology which use this type of 360 screens, but then this is a different thing altogether)? Have you, anyone here? The viewer's experience must be completely out of this world! So, so great they have decided to hold Yuzuru's newest show's live viewing broadcast there! Thank you to the organizers and congratulations to Yuzu and his Chinese fans !!!


I also wonder if they are going to do it for Chiba, too, as it seems the ticket sales went amazing and there is none left by now apart from those annotated or with restricted view, and those which people who cannot go will submit for reselling, of course.

 

[Magill]

In the meantime, Telasa which is the TV Asahi's VOD service platform, started to broadcast multi-cam versions of Yuzuru's Echoes of Life on Monday. It ranked second in the general viewership ranking on Tuesday, right between two famous anime series. The next day it was right at the top, no 1 position, above the two of them
It shows how popular Yuzu is not just with his devoted fans but with casual TV viewers as well, as this kind of result could not be achieved without involvement of the so called general public and casual viewers. Not around two anime series which are so popular.
The news and Telasa's promo video below.

 

[Magill]

I came across this amazing review of Echoes of Life from the perspective of C.G. Jung, posted on X in 6 subsequent parts - as subsequent replies to this post. I think you need to open the post on X to read the whole thing but it is truly very insightful and interesting,
Jung is one of those psychologists Yuzu himself pointed to as his inspiration and someone he did read a lot (the other one was Adler) so it feels like a very legitimate analysis. Enjoy and get inspired!
PS For those who have not seen the show - The Poem of Everyone's Soul is the last program closing the show.
https://x.com/BlueFeather9999/status/1873333885700022360

 

[Magill]

.... and the TV Asahi broadcast of the January 5 show is advertised with huge posters at the Tokyo Station and at the Hiroshima Station right now.
It is truly amazing to have the most commercially successful ice show be so truly artistic at the same time, have so deep cultural connotations and being interpreted from so many different viewpoints (see the post above for a splendid example of the latter)!
No wonder after Echoes premiered in Saitama on December 7 Yuzu was called the "Akira Kurosawa of figure skating"

 

[Magill]

.... and the TV Asahi broadcast of the January 5 show is advertised with huge posters at the Tokyo Station and at the Hiroshima Station right now.
It is truly amazing to have the most commercially successful ice show be so truly artistic at the same time, have so deep cultural connotations and being interpreted from so many different viewpoints (see the post above for a splendid example of the latter)!
No wonder after Echoes premiered in Saitama on December 7 Yuzu was called the "Akira Kurosawa of figure skating"

... and talking about reviews, here's the newest one, from Italian Fantasy Magazine (it is originally in Italian but you can easily translate it with an online translator tool in your browser). On the side panel, you can see links to some earlier reviews of the previous Yuzuru shows, GIFT and Re_Pray, in the same magazine, if you feel like going back the memory lane.
Again, not a figure skating magazine, and not even a sport-focused one. And not Japanese at all. Coming from the heart of Europe and the home of the coming Olympics. It shows exactly how Yuzuru's appeal is reaching beyond borders to different segments of the general audience .

Yuzuru Hanyu crea un mondo postapocalittico per il tour Echoes of Life ∂ FantasyMagazine.it

Seconda tappa per Echoes of Life, il tour fantascientifico di Yuzuru Hanyu. Una delle date dello spettacolo sarà visibile in livestream anche dall'Italia. - Leggi tutto l'articolo e guarda il video su FantasyMagazine.it

www.fantasymagazine.it