TOKYO-- August 09, 2022 -- NTT Corporation (President: Akira Shimada, “NTT”) and Shochiku Co., Ltd. (President & CEO: Junichi Sakamoto) have announced “Cho Kabuki 2022 Powered by NTT” sponsored by Shochiku, with the first act starring Shido Nakamura's digital twin, “Shido Twin.” The debut of Shido Twin showcases NTT’s research and development of a computer that reproduces people as digital twins and is the first step in the social implementation of this new technology. We hope you will come and witness the birth of Shido Nakamura reproduced as a digital twin.

Created in collaboration with Shochiku Co., Ltd., the Shido Twin autonomously reproduces the gestures of Shido Nakamura, who plays the leading role in Cho-kabuki, using the body motion generation technology of Another Me.　

Another Me is a technology born out of NTT’s Digital Twin Computing[1] concept. With Another Me, we aim to allow individuals to create an “alternative self” in the digital space, dramatically increasing the opportunities to flourish and grow by transcending the constraints of the real world, to play an active role in society, and to share the results of their own experiences with others.

“Cho Kabuki” has been co-produced by Shochiku Co., Ltd. and Dwango Co., Ltd. since 2016 and held annually as part of the Niconico Chokaigi festival. Cho Kabuki is a brand-new kabuki experience that combines kabuki―a traditional Japanese theatre form with a 400-year history―and NTT’s cutting-edge ICT technology. This year’s performance incorporates the latest ICT technology, including the “Telephone Shop”[2] NTT’s “Kirari!”, and the experiment has gained acclaim for expanding the possibilities of theater.