The world premiere of the second episode is set for 2 July at the Anime Expo.
The upcoming period drama anime “The World is Dancing” is set to debut on HIDIVE on 29 June, 2026, ahead of the original premiere set for 2 July. The second episode of the series will premiere on 2 July at Anime Expo 2026. HIDIVE will stream the anime in the USA, Canada, and also overseas in countries like Australia and New Zealand.
The World is Dancing
Premiere date: 29 June, 2026
Animation studio: CygamesPictures
Streaming service: HIDIVE
When will The World is Dancing premiere on HIDIVE?
Although the series is set to premiere on 2 July, 2026, HIDIVE will begin streaming the first episode on 29 June. Set in 14th century Japan, the anime takes us on a colourful journey with a boy obsessed with finding a new way to express himself through rhythm and movement.
Who are the cast and staff members of The World is Dancing?
The cast members of the anime so far include:
- Yugiri Hanamori as Oniyasha
- Simba Tsuchiya as Ishiya
- Maaya Uchida as Kogane
- Romi Park as Masujiro
- Katsuyuki Konishi as Kanoami
- Haruki Ishiya as Junigorou
- Sakurai Takahiro as Ashikaga Yoshimitsu
- Hideta Nobuo as Nijo Yoshimasa
- Mamiko Noto as Goko
- Inori Minase as Chiharu
- Hatsuki Seto as Satsuki
- Yoji Matsuda as Inuo
- Miyuki Sawashiro as Shirabyoshi
Toshimasa Kuroyanagi directs the anime at CygamesPictures, with Keigo Sasaki designing the characters. Sawako Kawamitsu handles series composition and script. Daisuke Shinoda is composing the music.
Other staff members are:
- Assistant director: Shuhei Fuchimoto
- Sub-character designer: Iori Hisatake
- Prop designer: Odashi
- Art directors: Hiromasa Ogura, Kazuhiro Inoue
- Art designer: Mamio Ogawa
- Noh movement: Reijirou Tsumura
- Noh supervisor: Kohei Kawaguchi
- Choreography: Kaiji Moriyama, Mikiko Kawamura
- Historical supervisor: Katsuyuki Shimizu
- Colour designer: Naoko Satou, Kumiko Naruke
- 3D director: Yoshinori Nakano
- Sound director: Yukio Nagasaki
What is The World is Dancing about?
The anime is based on a manga series written and illustrated by Kazuto Mihara. It was published in Kodansha’s Morning magazine from March 2021 to October 2022. The story is a fictional account of the life of Zaemi Motokiyo/Oniyasha, a pivotal figure in the Japanese Noh drama form’s development in the 14th century.
Kodansha publishes the manga in English and describes the story as:
Born into a life of acting and dance with a traveling theatre troupe in 14th-century Japan, 12-year old Oniyasha has one problem-he doesn’t know what the point of any of it is. Why must I step with the left foot here instead of the right? Why is one performance good and another, bad? Why do people dance at all? It all seems perfectly arbitrary, until a chance encounter in a run-down shack sets him down a path to revolutionizing the art form and influencing much of Japanese culture to come.