AKB Kagekidan: ∞・Infinity (AKB歌劇団「∞・Infinity」) is a 2009 musical written by Hiroi Ouji and starring members of the Japanese female idol group, AKB48.
The synopsis is about a high school student, Maria, who meets a vampire named Ruka who claims she is his long lost lover, and Maria is torn between her normal life and an eternity to be with Ruka.
The main characters, Ruka and Maria, were double casted, and both pairs would perform different days. The two pairs were Akimoto Sayaka as Ruka with Takahashi Minami as Maria, and Miyazawa Sae as Ruka with Kashiwagi Yuki as Maria.
The show ran from October 30th, 2009, to November 8th, and a DVD was released in March 6th, 2010.
- Amnesiac Lover: Maria to Ruka.
- Beach Episode: One scene in Act 1 has some of the girls in the dance team Maria leads skipping practice to have fun at the beach.
- Bifauxnen: Both actors for Ruka, Sayaka and Sae, are both considered boyish in the AKB group. Sayaka is considered more manly due to her sharp facial features and deep voice she uses when portraying Ruka, while Sae is more of a younger Bishounen type with softer expressions and features.
- Sae is also known for having done danso (girls crossdressing as men) in various TV programs in the 48 group.
- Big Bad: James Knight, the leader of the vampire hunters who have been in search for Ruka for centuries.
- By the Eyes of the Blind: Maria is the only one able to visibly see Ruka, with the exception of the two maids(who might not be human, who knows?) and the vampire hunters, who have Mica glasses which allow them to see him.
- Cape Swish: Akimoto Sayaka's Ruka does this. A LOT.
- Character Tics: When Sae portrays Ruka, he bites his bottom lip whenever he becomes nervous or emotional.
- Similarly, Yuki's Maria purses her lips when she's nervous.
- Continuation: Due to there never being a sequel to "Infinity", many AKB fanfiction writers have written their own continuations to the story.
- In the AKB 1/149 dating sim game, one situation in Miyazawa Sae's route features Sae and Yuki performing a scene from a non-canon/fictional sequel "AKB Kagekidan 2: 「fiction」", which takes place after the first Kagekidan. The kiss scene, however, was interrupted when Sae goes to the player and offers them the red rose she was holding during the scene. Of course, however, the sequel musical never came to be.
- Crosscast Role: Ruka is a male in the play, but the actors who play him are both female.
- "Do It Yourself" Theme Tune: Not only is the title song "Infinity" sung by the two leading members, but almost the ENTIRE musical consists of songs by AKB.
- Downer Ending: At the end of the play, when Ruka visits Maria in her home, he is stabbed by the hunters with a silver stake. As he slowly dies, Maria demands that he bites her so she can find him after being reborn. They kiss one last time and Ruka bites her before he disappears, leaving only a blue rose.
- Filler: The beach scene in Act 1 seemed to have no relation to anything in the main plot. However, in the scene right after, the girls were scolded for skipping dance practice, since the final dance competition is coming up, and it is very important to them. Other than that, there was nothing specific related to the musical's story.
- Hopeless with Tech: Ruka has NO clue how to use a cell phone.
- Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: With the Sayaka x Minami pair only (because Takamina is the shortest member of AKB, and Sayaka is one of the tallest), Ruka towers over Maria.
- Humans Are the Real Monsters: Ruka implies to the hunters that he is no different from any human, even so far as to asking if they see themselves as monsters.
- I See Them, Too: Maria is the only human who is able to visibly see Ruka without Mica glasses.
- Intermission: There is an intermission between Acts 1 & 2, with the twin maids opening with a song-and-dance routine with a few backup dancers, and after a few short comedy acts, closes back with the same song to start the second Act.
- Japanese Politeness: After Ruka introduces himself, Maria proceeds to give a full self-introduction of herself (which is interrupted when Ruka embraces her.)Ruka: I'm Ruka.Maria: I'm Takajima Maria, third year at Seijoshi Academy. Only child. My favorite food is strawberries. Captain of the dance club...
- Love Hurts: Maria's love for Ruka, as well as her love for her friends, makes it difficult for her to decide if she wants to stay with Ruka or her friends. When her friends try to save her from Ruka, the arguing sides finally cause her to break down and cry, which forces Ruka to let Maria go.
- Mind over Matter: Ruka has this power; he uses it to save Maria from a few delinquent men who were hitting on her, on the vampire hunters, and even on Maria's friends when they try to rescue her from Ruka. However, in this situation, instead of pushing the girl's back with an unseen force, he merely makes them unable to move from their spot.
- Not So Stoic: After letting Maria go, Ruka has a minor outburst in front of the maids. When he is alone, he begins to cry.
- He also cries in front of Maria after being stabbed by James Knight, as he was heartbroken for making Maria cry and not being able to be with her, as he promised they would be together forever.
- Older Than They Look: While already implied Ruka met Maria 250 years ago in the first act of the play, in the second act, it is stated by the hunters that vampires can live for over one-thousand years, and Ruka himself is actually several centuries older. The hunters are actually a Family Business, and have been on the search for Ruka for a very long time.
- Power of Friendship: To the vampire hunters, it's (apparently) the only thing able to stop a vampire's Power of Love.
- Reincarnation Romance: Maria was Ruka's lover in a past life, 250 years ago.
- At the end of the play, as Ruka dies in Maria's arms, she asks him to make her a vampire so she can spend eternity searching for him after being reborn.
- Star-Crossed Lovers: The two met and fell in love 250 years ago, but were separated. Ruka found Maria and wanted so much to be with her, but eventually let her go when she cried because she was unable to choose between him and her normal life. And even after all that, when Ruka comes to see her, he is killed by the hunters. He bites Maria and makes her immortal so she can search for him when he is reborn. Since there was never a sequel to "Infinity", it is unaware whether their love reached a happy ending.
- Shrinking Violet: Yuki's Maria is portrayed as this, as she seems a bit timid when approached by the two delinquent men and is somewhat reluctant in confronting Ruka about when he kissed her after they first met. At the end of Act 2, she gains more confidence as she knows her love towards Ruka is true.
- Silly Rabbit, Romance Is for Kids!: It is implied in the lyrics to the song "Infinity" that Maria has given up on feeling love or experiencing romance.However I doubt loveEven the strongest promises of love will someday appear faded
- Something about a Rose: After Ruka gives Maria the blue rose, it becomes a significant part of the play and their story. There are moments where they hold the rose close and stare at it longingly.
- Ruka also says that the rose is unable to wilt, and will bloom for all eternity, which could reflect on Ruka and Maria's eternal love.
- The Hero Dies: Ruka is stabbed by James Knight with a silver stake as he holds Maria.
- The Tragic Rose: While the eternally blooming blue rose is a symbol of Ruka and Maria's love, one of Maria's friends says in the beginning of the play that "a blue rose means you can't meet someone again" and its English meaning is "impossible".
- Tsundere: Takamina's Maria is portrayed as this, as she seems a bit more cold towards Ruka than Yuki's Maria. This tsundere trait, however, only goes on until the end of Act 1.
- Wardrobe Malfunction: During the last scene in Act 1, Ruka (played by Sayaka in this performance) accidentally pulled her long cape off her right shoulder. She didn't mind it, however, and it remained secure around her left shoulder while still looking good.
- You Can See Me?: Ruka is not at all surprised that Maria can see him, since their love is true, but he is very much surprised as the hunters have developed Mica glasses, which allow them to see him. This causes conflict between Ruka and the hunters.
- James Knight also states that a vampires silhouette can be seen in a mirror. After being informed this, Maria's friends see Ruka's figure in the mirror when they invade his home to save Maria.
