Yuzuru Hanyu Notte Stellata


Yuzuru Hanyu Notte Stellata is an annual ensemble ice show led by Japanese figure skater and two-time Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu, and organized by Nippon TV and its local station Miyagi TV. The show is a commemoration event of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, also known as the "Great East Japan Earthquake" or "3.11", and is held on three days in March at Sekisui Heim Super Arena in Rifu, Miyagi, which served as a morgue at the time of the disaster. The show has a duration of 90 minutes and features a cast of international professional skaters as well as a special guest from another sport or performing art field, teaming up for new unique collaborations with figure skating.
Notte Stellata is named after Hanyu's exhibition program "Notte Stellata (The Swan)", which he has been skating as a tribute to the victims of the disaster on various occasions, including the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. Having experienced the earthquake and tsunami himself in his hometown of Sendai in Miyagi on March11, 2011, Hanyu has since participated in multiple charity shows and made significant contributions to the reconstruction of the affected areas. The Notte Stellata show, inaugurated in 2023, is a production with the aim to further support the reconstruction and economic revitalization of the region as well as disaster prevention measures for the future.
The show is broadcast on the Japanese subscription channel CS Nittele Plus, screened live at cinemas in Japan and overseas, and distributed on the streaming service Hulu Japan. Recordings of the show's 2023 and 2024 editions were released on DVD and Blu-ray disc. In December, 2025, a recording of the 2025 edition was announced to be released in March 2026. The event is sponsored by Tōwa Pharmaceutical, the Japanese travel agency JTB, the Japanese ticketing platform eplus, and the local event and concert production company GIP. In 2023, it was also supported by Kosé's skincare and cosmetics brand Sekkisei. In 2025 and 2026, Tōwa Pharmaceutical became the event’s title sponsor.

Background

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami

The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, also known as the "Great East Japan Earthquake" or "3.11", was a 9.0–9.1 submarine megathrust earthquake which occurred on March11, 2011, in the Pacific Ocean east of the Tōhoku region. It was the most powerful earthquake recorded in Japan, triggering large tsunami waves of over 39m run-up height, which affected a 2000km of coast and caused widespread damage, including the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Among the most severely affected prefectures were Miyagi, Fukushima, Iwate, Ibaraki, and Chiba. As of December 2023, the disaster cost 19,702 people's lives in north-east Japan and, according to the World Bank, it is estimated to be the most expensive natural disaster in history with nearly US$300 billion being spent on rebuilding by 2023. More than 200,000 people were forced to live in temporary housings or permanently relocate as of 2015. In February 2024, 13 years after the earthquake, their number was still 29,328 according to an official report by the Reconstruction Agency. Despite the evacuation order being lifted, as of early 2023 only 1% of Fukushima's population from the special reconstruction zones had returned to their homes. The disaster has caused serious damage to the local economy, including its traditional fish market.
Japanese figure skater and two-time Olympic champion Yuzuru Hanyu was 16 years old and practicing at his local ice rink, when the earthquake hit his hometown of Sendai, one of the most severely damaged cities by the disaster in 2011. He spent the following days at an evacuation center with his family, experiencing a blackout on the night of the disaster: "It turned pitch black just like that and the electricity was out. It was so dark in the city, but I remember thinking how bright the stars were then." Hanyu has since participated in multiple charity shows and made significant contributions to the reconstruction of the affected areas. At the annual ice show Yuzuru Hanyu Notte Stellata, for the first time in his career, he got the opportunity to perform in front of an audience on March11 to commemorate the events and pay tribute to the victims the disaster: "I want this to be about everyone's remembrance of 3.11, like what they thought when they were looking up at the sky that evening. I want this to be an opportunity to bring people together."

"Notte Stellata" exhibition program

The show's title "notte stellata" is inspired by Hanyu's exhibition program "Notte Stellata (The Swan)", performed by the operatic pop trio Il Volo with lyrics by Tony Renis. The song is based on le cygne, the 13th and penultimate movement of The Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saëns. The music piece was suggested to Hanyu by Russian figure skating coach Tatiana Tarasova, and the program was choreographed by David Wilson from Canada.
"Notte Stellata" is a reflection of Hanyu's memories of the starry sky on the night of the disaster. It was debuted at the exhibition gala of the 2016 Skate Canada and performed by Hanyu at all major international figure skating events, including the 2017 World Championships, 2018 Winter Olympics, and the 2019–20 Grand Prix Final. He also presented the program at the 2018 edition of the annual charity event on Nippon TV, paying tribute to the victims of the earthquake, and skated it as the final act of his solo ice show Gift in 2023, the first skating event at Tokyo Dome, in front of a record audience of 35,000 spectators. At the 2018 Winter Olympics, Australian sports commentator and former competitive figure skater, Belinda Noonan, notably praised Hanyu's "Notte Stellata" performance, remarking:

Global concept and structure of the show

Notte Stellata is the first ensemble ice show with Hanyu as chairperson since the launch of his professional career, featuring a cast of international professional skaters with Jason Brown, Shae-Lynn Bourne-Turok, Satoko Miyahara, Akiko Suzuki, Keiji Tanaka, Takahito Mura, Rika Hongo, and hula hoop skater Violetta Afanasieva. Since 2024, Javier Fernández joined the cast. The cast also includes guests from fields outside figure skating.
The event is held on three consecutive days, with each show lasting 90 to 120 minutes. The shows are opened by Hanyu with a performance to "Notte Stellata", followed by a group performance of the cast and individual programs by the invited skaters. The first half concludes with a collaboration between Hanyu and the guest performer. The show finale is a group skate to "" by Misia.
The inaugural event held in 2023, included Japanese gymnast and three-time Olympic champion Kohei Uchimura, merging the sports of artistic gymnastics and figure skating for the first time. Canadian David Wilson created the choreography for the show. The first half was concluded with a collaboration between Hanyu on the ice and Kohei Uchimura on the floor to the music piece "Conquest of Paradise" by Vangelis. The second half of the show was opened with a group number by Hongo, Suzuki, Bourne-Turok, and Mura to the song "Dynamite" from the K-pop band BTS. During the program, a dance performance of Hanyu was shown on screen and on the ice surface using projection mapping technology. A total of 20 programs was performed, closing with Hanyu's exhibition program to "", in which he expressed his thoughts on the reconstruction.
On December 11th, 2025, a new installment of Notte Stellata was announced. The event will be held on March 7th, 8th, and 9th, 2026. The guest performer will be the . This performance will mark 15 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, and it will be the 4th consecutive installment of this annual event.

Collaborations with special guests

Kohei Uchimura (2023)

The two athletes were taking turns in performing, Hanyu presenting multiple jumps and a cartwheel, and Uchimura showing four consecutive whips with a layout somersault among other elements. They finished the program with a synchronized sit spin and double leg circle rotation as well as a side-by-side quad toe loop and double twisting back layout. For Uchimura's pommel horse exercises, a mushroom trainer was installed in front of the floor apparatus.

Mao Daichi (2024)

Mao Daichi, Japanese actress and former top star of the famed all-female troupe Takarazuka Revue, collaborated with Hanyu for the performance of Carmina Burana. The collaboration was like a stage performance on ice.
On the stage, Daichi played the Goddess of Destiny and Hanyu, on the ice, portrayed an innocent boy who moves freely exploring the world until the Goddess of Destiny takes control of him. Hanyu explained, " as the boy grows up, the Goddess of Destiny appears to him and he becomes trapped in his destiny. In the end, he accepts his fate and submits to his destiny, but moves forward driven by his own will."

Mansai Nomura (2025)

Yuzuru Hanyu and top noh theatre artist Mansai Nomura collaborated for the first time in an unprecedented performance that combined figure skating and kyōgen. Hanyu, Nomura and the ensemble skaters performed "MANSAI Bolero," originally created by Nomura as a dedication to "requiem and rebirth" following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. Nomura’s performance on a noh stage set in the middle of the ice rink seamlessly intertwined with Hanyu’s skating, beautifully enhanced by an elegant traditional Japanese attire with long sleeves. Hanyu performed a graceful dance to the melody of Maurice Ravel's Boléro and to the foot-stomping rhythm of Mansai.
At the start of the second part of the event, Hanyu and Nomura performed SEIMEI, Hanyu’s signature program with which he won his second olympic gold medal. Nomura appeared on an elevated stage dressed as Abe no Seimei, the character from the film Onmyoji, in which he starred. In a film-like scene, Nomura incanted, "Heaven. Earth. Man." and "Appear, Yuzuru Hanyu. Swiftly by law." At that moment, Hanyu emerged as shikigami. Mansai dashed along the rinkside stopping to dance and chant incantations that connected with Hanyu performance on the ice. Following the Olympic composition of the program, Hanyu executed a perfect quadruple Salchow and a flawless combination jump following a quadruple toe loop, and showed off a highly polished performance.

Attendance and accessibility

The Sekisui Heim Super Arena is located in Rifu near Hanyu's hometown of Sendai and served as a morgue at the time of the disaster in 2011. The venue was sold out with an attendance of 6,000 spectators per day in 2023 and 6,100 in 2024. and tickets were again distributed by lottery sale with prices ranging from 15,000 to 29,000 yen. All three days of the show were screened live at movie theaters in Japan as well as overseas in Hong Kong and Taiwan. In addition, they were aired live nationally on the subscription streaming platform Hulu Japan, and were broadcast on CS Nittele Plus on March31, 2023. An extended version with behind-the-scenes footage was broadcast on April23 on the same channel. DVD and Blu-Ray disc for the 2023 show were released on February9, 2024. The event was sponsored by Kose's skincare and cosmetics brand Sekkisei, Towa Pharmaceutical, and the Japanese travel agency JTB. The 2025 event, sponsored by Towa Pharmaceutical, JTB, and the Japanese ticketing service eplus, saw total attendance rise to 6,256 spectators.

Cast

Figure skaters
Guest artists

Set lists

2023

First half
  1. Yuzuru Hanyu – "Notte Stellata (The Swan)"
  2. Group opening – "Twinkling Stars of Hope"
  3. Rika Hongo – "The Prayer"
  4. Takahito Mura – ""
  5. Shae-Lynn Bourne-Turok – "Firedance"
  6. Keiji Tanaka – "Memories (The Prophet)"
  7. Violetta Afanasieva – "The Lost Voices"
  8. Jason Brown – "Melancholy"
  9. Satoko Miyahara – Gnossienne No. 1
  10. Hanyu / Uchimura – "Conquest of Paradise"
Second half
  2. Bourne-Turok / Hongo / Mura / Suzuki – "Dynamite"
  3. Keiji Tanaka – Somewhere in Time
  4. Violetta Afanasieva – "Hope"
  5. Jason Brown – "The Impossible Dream"
  6. Satoko Miyahara – "Stabat Mater"
  7. Akiko Suzuki – Claire de lune
  8. Hongo / Mura – "Singin' in the Rain"
  9. Kohei Uchimura – Floor exercise
  10. Yuzuru Hanyu – ""
  11. Group finale – " (Song of Hope)"
  12. Show finale – ""

2024

First half
  1. Yuzuru Hanyu – "Notte Stellata "
  2. Group opening – "Twinkling Stars of Hope"
  3. Rika Hongo – "True Colours"
  4. Takahito Mura – West Side Story
  5. Shae-Lynn Bourne-Turok – "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)"
  6. Keiji Tanaka – "Hope"
  7. Violetta Afanasieva – "Last Dance"
  8. Jason Brown – "Adiós"
  9. Satoko Miyahara – "Voilà"
  10. Javier Fernández – "Puttin' On the Ritz"
  11. Hanyu / Daichi – Carmina Burana
Second half
  2. Bourne-Turok / Hongo / Mura / Suzuki / Tanaka – "Permission to Dance"
  3. Violetta Afanasieva – "The Light Shall Never Fade"
  4. Jason Brown – "You Raise Me Up"
  5. Satoko Miyahara – "One Last Dance"
  6. Javier Fernández – "Prometo"
  7. Mura / Tanaka – Saturday Night Fever
  8. Akiko Suzuki – "Love Dance"
  9. Mao Daichi – Guys and Dolls / Anything Goes
  10. Yuzuru Hanyu – "Danny Boy"
  11. Group finale – " "
  12. Show finale – ""

2025

First half
  1. Yuzuru Hanyu – "Notte Stellata "
  2. Group opening – "Twinkling Stars of Hope"
  3. Rika Hongo – "Sparrow"
  4. Takahito Mura – "Starting Over"
  5. Keiji Tanaka – "The Loneliest"
  6. Violetta Afanasieva – "Breathe Underwater"
  7. Jason Brown – "Spiegel im Spiegel"
  8. Javier Fernández – "Prometo"
  9. Collaboration: MANSAI Bolero × notte stellata –
Second half
  2. Collaboration: Yuzuru Hanyu x Mansai Nomura – "SEIMEI"
  3. Violetta Afanasieva – "Sing"
  4. Akiko Suzuki – "Songs My Mother Taught Me"
  5. Jason Brown – "The Legend of Tarzan"
  6. Satoko Miyahara – "Walking in the Air"
  7. Shae-Lynn Bourne – "BOM BOM BOM"
  8. Javier Fernández – "Puttin' On the Ritz"
  9. Yuzuru Hanyu – ""
  10. Group finale – " "
  11. Show finale – "Dance Hall"