The Story of the Boy Who Would One Day Be Known as Zeami: 'The World Is Dancing' Confirmed for Otakon 2026 in Washington, D.C.

Special panel featuring Simba Tsuchiya, Toshimasa Kuroyanagi, and Mizoguchi KAN
Autograph session with Simba Tsuchiya and Toshimasa Kuroyanagi also planned!

The World Is Dancing, currently available to HIDIVE subscribers throughout the U.S. and Canada aswell as in key overseas markets including Australia and New Zealand since June 29, will be featuredat Otakon 2026, taking place from Friday, July 31 to Sunday, August 2, 2026 at the Walter E.Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., USA.

Set in a turbulent era of constant conflict, this work follows the intensely curious and beautiful boyOniyasha (CV: Yumiri Hanamori) as he meets people, laughs, cries, confronts his own weaknesses,and shapes a new form of dance in an impermanent world. It is a "dancing story" spanning 600 years,exploring what might have happened when the man who would later create Noh—Zeami—was stillcalled Oniyasha.
The anime is produced by the animation studio Cypic (Umamusume: Cinderella Gray, The SummerHikaru Died). The series is directed by Toshimasa Kuroyanagi, known for his work on the TV animeThe Great Passage, the animated film Love Me, Love Me Not, and both the TV and theatrical versionsof the Backflip!! series.
The series recently won a Special Award at the Short Shorts Film Festival, drawing immenseattention for its outstanding quality.

Otakon is an annual U.S. convention celebrating Asian pop culture and its fandom, including anime,manga, music, film, and games. Founded in 1994, the convention has been held at the Walter E.Washington Convention Center since 2017.

At the event, a special panel will be held featuring Simba Tsuchiya, the voice of Ishiya, DirectorToshimasa Kuroyanagi, and Animation Producer Mizoguchi KAN. The panel will share the world ofthe series with fans, including the creative challenges of depicting Noh and Sarugaku throughanimation, behind-the-scenes insights from production, and episodes related to the characters andrecording sessions.
An autograph session with Simba Tsuchiya and Director Toshimasa Kuroyanagi is also planned.Details regarding participation and timing will be announced at a later date.

Otakon 2026 Overview
Event Name: Otakon 2026
Dates: Friday, July 31 - Sunday, August 2, 2026
Venue: Walter E. Washington Convention Center
Location: 801 Mount Vernon Place NW, Washington, DC 20001, USA
Official Website: https://Otakon.com/

Otakon 2026 “The World Is Dancing” Special Panel Overview

▼The World Is Dancing Special Talk Event
Date & Time: Friday, July 31, 2026, 10:15-11:15 AM *All times are local time.
Details:
・Special appearance by anime cast and staff
Panel Session Guests:
Simba Tsuchiya (Voice of Ishiya), Toshimasa Kuroyanagi (Director), Mizoguchi KAN (Animation Producer) *Honorifics omitted

▼The World Is Dancing Episodes 6 World Premiere Screening + Q&A
Date & Time: Saturday, August 1, 2026, 10:15-11:15 AM *All times are local time.
Details:
・World premiere screening of Episode 6
・Special appearance by anime cast and staff
Panel Session Guests:
Simba Tsuchiya (Voice of Ishiya), Toshimasa Kuroyanagi (Director), Mizoguchi KAN (Animation Producer) *Honorifics omitted

*Event details are subject to change or cancellation without notice.
*Date/time, panelists, and content are subject to change. Please check the official Otakon website for the latest information.

Simba Tsuchiya and Toshimasa Kuroyanagi Autograph Session
An autograph session with Simba Tsuchiya, the voice of Ishiya, and Director Toshimasa Kuroyanagi is also planned during Otakon 2026.
Details regarding the date, participation method, and eligibility requirements will be announced at a later date.
*Details are subject to change without prior notice.

■About The World Is Dancing
Follow “The World Is Dancing” on Social Media:
Official Website: https://sh-anime.shochiku.co.jp/worldisdancing-anime
Official X: https://x.com/wid_anime (@wid_anime)

Streaming Information:
Streaming from June 29, will be available to all HIDIVE subscribers throughout the U.S. and Canada as well as in key overseas markets including Australia and New Zealand.
(Check other platform details at the Official Website).

INTRODUCTION:
One does not need dance to live.

In 1374, during the turbulent age when the Northern and Southern Courts were locked in conflict, the Northern Court's shogun, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, was becoming an increasingly dominant force.

Born the son of Kan'ami, head of the Kanze troupe of sarugaku performers, Oniyasha drifts through his days with a hazy question lodged in his heart: Why do people dance? His spirit remains clouded, until the day he encounters a dance that is truly “good.”

Curious, sensitive, and strikingly beautiful, the boy meets people, laughs, cries, confronts his own weaknesses, and slowly begins to shape a new form of dance for a world steeped in impermanence.

Kazuto Mihara's groundbreaking Noh themed manga from Morning finally comes to life as an anime, filled with scenes that stir the heart and dynamic movement and chanting that can only be expressed through animation.

Directed by Toshimasa Kuroyanagi (The Great Passage, Backflip!!) and animated by Cypic (Uma Musume: Cinderella Gray, The Summer Hikaru Died), this series showcases top tier animation supported by a standout cast.

This is a story shaped by dance that may have unfolded when the boy who would one day create Noh—Zeami—was still known as Oniyasha, carried across 600 years to the present.

STORY:
In 1374, amid the turmoil of the Northern and Southern Courts' long running conflict, a boy namedOniyasha is born into a family of sarugaku theater performers. He spends his days in a kind of quietgloom, haunted by a simple but persistent question: Why do people dance? Then, one day, hewitnesses a dance that he feels to be “good”—and everything begins to change. This is the story of thebeautiful young boy who would one day shape the art of Noh and be remembered as Zeami.

Cast & Staff:
CastYumiri Hanamori, Simba Tsuchiya, Maaya Uchida, Romi Park, Takahiro Sakurai, Katsuyuki Konishi,Yōji Matsuda,Nobuo Tobita, Inori Minase, Miyuki Sawashiro,Haruki Ishiya, Hazuki Seto

Staff
Based on the manga “The World Is Dancing” by Kazuto Mihara originally serialized in the weekly MORNING magazine published by Kodansha Ltd.
Director: Toshimasa Kuroyanagi
Character Design: Keigo Sasaki
Series Composition/Script: Sawako Kawamitsu
Sub Director: Shūhei Fuchimoto
Sub Character Design: Iori Hisatake
Prop Design: Odashi
Art Setting: Mamio Ogawa
Art Director: Hiromasa Ogura, Kazuhiro Inoue
Color Design: Naoko Satō, Kumiko Naruke
3D Supervisor: Yoshinori Nakano
Director of Photography: Yūtarō Kikuchi
Editing: Daisuke Hiraki
Sound Director: Yukio Nagasaki
Music: Daisuke Shinoda
Opening theme song: Macaroni Empitsu “shusho” (TOY'S FACTORY)
Ending theme song: hockrockb "Unnamed Flower" (TOY'S FACTORY)
Calligraphy/Title Lettering: Satoshi Nemoto
Noh Choreography: Tsumura Reijiro
Choreography: Kaiji Moriyama, Mikiko Kawamura
Noh Supervision: Kōhei Kawaguchi
History Supervision: Katsuyuki Shimizu
Animation Producer: Mizoguchi KAN
Animation Production: Cypic