Revue Starlight is a Japanese media franchise created in 2017 by Bushiroad and Nelke Planning. It primarily consists of a musical, performed between September 22 and 24, 2017 at the AiiA 2.5 Theater Tokyo and a 12-episode animetelevision series by Kinema Citrus which aired between July and September 2018. It has received three manga adaptations, all of which began serialization in January 2018. A smartphone game titled Shōjo Kageki Revue Starlight: Re LIVE, developed by Ateam, launched in October 2018. A spin-off anime has been announced. A compilation film was slated to be released in May 29, 2020, but was delayed to August 7, 2020 due to COVID-19. A brand-new film has been announced.
Plot
At the Seisho Music Academy, the 99th Graduating Class is rehearsing for the annual production of the theatrical play, Starlight. Behind the scenes, however, an underground "Revue Starlight" audition, orchestrated by a talking giraffe, pits the students against each other in stage battles in order to shine as the top star. Karen Aijō, upon being reunited with her childhood friend Hikari Kagura, comes across these auditions and battles to become the top star alongside Hikari.
Characters
Seisho Music Academy
An elite academy known for its long history of participating in stage performances, as well as a respected institution. ;Karen Aijō ;Hikari Kagura ;Maya Tendō ;Claudine Saijō ;Mahiru Tsuyuzaki ;Junna Hoshimi ;Nana Daiba ;Futaba Isurugi ;Kaoruko Hanayagi
Rinmeikan Girls School
A school which used to be one of top best, but now is on the verge of complete decline. A group of stage girls there have decided to fight and prevents it from final closure and regain its position back. ;Tamao Tomoe ;Rui Akikaze ;Ichie Otonashi ;Yuyuko Tanaka ;Fumi Yumeōji
A relatively new school and has been stereotyped negatively for its frequent technological involvement on music and lack of successful stage girl performances. The stage girls of the school is determined to change the image. ;Aruru Otsuki ;Misora Kanō ;Tsukasa Ebisu ;Lalafin Nonomiya ;Shizuha Kochō
Siegfeld Institute of Music
A school with a great reputation for having impressive infrastructure, good curriculum and diverse staff. The school is a major rival of Seisho. Five major students there are referred as Edels. ;Akira Yukishiro ;Michiru Ōtori ;Yachiyo Tsuruhime ;Liu Meifan ;Shiori Yumeōji
Seiran General Arts Institute
A school introduced in the stage play THE LIVE #2 Transition. ;Koharu Yanagi ;Suzu Minase ;Hisame Honami ;Kyōko Yakumo
Royal Academy of Theatrical Actors
The prestigious British performing arts academy where Hikari Kagura used to study before she lost the final revue. ;Judy Knightley ;Rosalie Addams ;Elizabeth Blethyn ;Aishwarya Shetty
Other
;Giraffe ;Chitose Tsuruhime
Media
Stage plays
The series began as a stage play performed at the AiiA 2.5 Theater in Tokyo. The first performances, titled Shōjo Kageki Revue Starlight: The LIVE #1 were held from September 22 to 24, 2017, and a re-run titled Shōjo Kageki Revue Starlight: The LIVE #1 revival took place from January 6 to 8, 2018. A new stage play titled Shōjo Kageki Revue Starlight: The LIVE #2 Transition was performed at The Galaxy Theatre in Shinagawa from October 13 to 21, 2018, and a re-run titled Shōjo Kageki Revue Starlight: The LIVE #2 Revival was performed at the Maihama Amphitheater in Chiba from July 12 to 15, 2019.
Manga
A manga adaptation of the musical drawn by Tsubaki Ayasaki, titled Butai Revue Starlight: Show Must Go On, and a 4-panel manga series by Makimaki Mawaru, Yonkoma Starlight, both began serialization in Bushiroad's Monthly Bushiroad magazine from January 6, 2018. A third manga written by Kanata Nakamura and illustrated by Sora Goto, Shōjo Kageki Revue Starlight Overture, began serialization in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki G's Comic magazine from January 30, 2018.
Anime
A 12-episode anime television series by Kinema Citrus aired in Japan between July 12 and September 27, 2018. The series is directed by Tomohiro Furukawa with series composition by Tatsuto Higuchi and character design by Hiroyuki Saita. The series was released on three Blu-ray Disc/DVD volumes, each containing additional original video animation shorts, between October 24, 2018 and February 27, 2019. The opening theme is "Hoshi no Dialogue", while the ending theme is "Fly Me to the Star", both performed by Starlight 99-gumi, the series' voice actors. Sentai Filmworks has licensed the anime and is streaming the series on Hidive with English, Portuguese and Spanish subtitles, and is also dubbed in English. MVM Entertainment acquired the distribution rights for the UK and Ireland via Sentai Filmworks. A spin-off comedy series, titled Shōjo Konto All-Starlight, was announced on March 31, 2019.
Title
Original air date
Films
On November 3, 2019, during the "Revue Starlight 3rd StarLive 'Starry Diamond" concert, it was announced that the series will receive two new films. The first is a compilation film titled Rondo Rondo Rondo that was slated to premiere in May 29, 2020 but was delayed to August 7, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The second is a brand-new anime film.
Game
A Japan-only smartphone game titled Shōjo Kageki Revue Starlight -Re LIVE- developed by Ateam and Bushiroad was released for Android devices on October 22, 2018, and an iOS version was released on October 28. This game features a new story that differs from the anime series, and features 24 characters from 4 different acting schools, including the nine main characters from the anime, and features gacha gameplay elements. A worldwide version of the game, localized into English, Korean, and Traditional Chinese, was released on April 22, 2019.
