is a Japanese

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

and former leading ''otokoyaku'' (男役, "male role") of

Takarazuka Revue The is a Japanese all-female musical theatre troupe based in Takarazuka, Hyōgo, Takarazuka, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. Women play all roles in lavish, Broadway theatre, Broadway-style productions of musicals and stories adapted from films, nov ...

Biography

Asumi Rio was born on June 26, 1985, in

Shizuoka, Shizuoka is the capital city of Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, and the prefecture's second-largest city in both population and area. It has been populated since prehistoric times. the city had an estimated population of 677,867 in 106,087 households, and a ...

, Japan. Asumi participated in many sports and arts growing up. She did swimming from the age of 1 until she was in elementary school, as well as ballet from the age of 3, and piano and calligraphy from the age of 4. She entered a private middle school, where in her third year a ballet friend of hers lent her a video of a performance by the Moon Troupe of Takarazuka Revue. After watching it, she became obsessed with Takarazuka and begged her parents to let her take the entry exam for the Takarazuka Music School. Her parents initially wouldn't allow her to attempt the exam. She later locked herself in her room for 3 days and 3 nights, crying until she started running a fever. Eventually, her parents let her take the exam, and she passed on the first try.

Career

Asumi joined Takarazuka Music School in 2001. She graduated and debuted in Takarazuka Revue in 2003 as part of the 89th class. She initially belonged to the Moon Troupe (''Tsukigumi'') as an ''otokoyaku'' (男役, male role), but she later transferred to Flower Troupe (''Hanagumi''), in 2013. She became the Top Star of Flower Troupe in 2014, where she stayed for 5 years up until her retirement from the company in 2019. Asumi Rio officially retired from Takarazuka on November 24, 2019, after being in the company for 16 years. During her time with the revue, she performed in musicals including ''Elisabeth'', in which she performed many times in many different roles, her most notable being that of the male lead, Death, which she performed in the 2009 shinko (newcomers performance), and again in 2014 as a Top Star. She also performed as the lead in other musicals such as ''

Me and My Girl ''Me and My Girl'' is a musical with music by Noel Gay and its original book and lyrics by Douglas Furber and L. Arthur Rose. The story, set in the late 1930s, tells of an unapologetically unrefined Cockney gentleman named Bill Snibson, wh ...

'' and the classic manga ''

The Poe Clan is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Moto Hagio. It was initially serialized in the List of manga magazines, manga magazines ''Betsucomi, Bessatsu Shōjo Comic'' and ''Sho-Comi, Shūkan Shōjo Comic'' from 1972 to 1976, whi ...

'' in 2018. Three months after her retirement from Takarazuka, it was revealed that she had signed with one of Japan's biggest talent agencies,

Ken-On is a talent management company in Japan. It was founded in October 1979. It is located in Roppongi. Subsidiaries * Ken-On Incorporated * Ken Kikaku Incorporated * MC Cabin Music Publishing * RAD Japan * Taisuke Management * Pin-ups Artists Ac ...

, and was opening a fan-club. In May 2020, it was announced Asumi would be the voice actress for ''

Mulan Hua Mulan () is a legendary Chinese folk heroine from the Northern and Southern dynasties era (4th to 6th century Common Era, CE) of Chinese history. Scholar, Scholars generally consider Mulan to be a fictional character. Hua Mulan is depicte ...

'' in the live-action movie. Towards the end of 2020, she appeared on the NHK morning drama '' Ochoyan'' for a period of time. In January and February 2021, Asumi Rio reprised her role as Edgar Portsnell in a new staging of ''

''. Asumi also was announced as the lead for the musical ''Mademoiselle Mozart'' in October 2021. She also made several TV appearances in 2021, including, Ao no SP, Konto ga Hajimaru, and was a Friday host for the month of June on the morning TV show ''ZIP!''. In this same year, she also had an 8 episode hulu special called Asumi Rio's Atelier, where life-style topics such as cooking and interior decorating were explored by Asumi. In late November and early December 2021, Asumi hosted her first concert titled ''Asumic Lab.'' In 2022, Asumi made a guest appearance on episodes 6 and 7 in the drama ''DCU''. It was also announced that she would play Sarah Brown in the

Toho is a Japanese entertainment company that primarily engages in producing and distributing films and exhibiting stage plays. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. ...

production of the hit musical ''

Guys & Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Run ...

'' from June to July 2022. She also began a renewed season of her Hulu original show
Asumi Rio's Atelier
' in November 2022, for 8 episodes.

Filmography

TV drama

Japanese dub

Musical works

Notable Takarazuka roles

Flower Troupe

* ''

Sengoku Basara is a series of video games developed and published by Capcom, and a bigger media franchise based on it, including three anime shows, an anime movie, a live action show, and numerous drama CDs, light novels, manga, and stage plays. Its story ...

'' – Uesugi Kenshn * '' The Love of the Last Tycoon'' – Pat Brady

= As top star

= * ''

The Rose of Versailles also known as ''Lady Oscar'' and ''La Rose de Versailles'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Riyoko Ikeda. It was originally serialized in Shueisha's manga magazine ''Margaret'' from 1972 to 1973, while a revival ...

'' – Fersen * ''Elisabeth'' (2014) – Death * '' Ernest in Love'' – Ernest (Jack Worthing) * ''

'' (2016) – Bill Snibson * ''Romanesque Mask'' – Victome de Valmont * ''

'' – Edgar Portsnell

Moon Troupe

*= Switch casts * ''Romeo & Juliette'' – Romeo, Tybalt* * ''

'' – Oscar, Andre* * '' Spring Snow'' – Matsugae Kiyokai * ''

The Scarlet Pimpernel ''The Scarlet Pimpernel'' is the first novel in a series of historical fiction by Baroness Orczy, published in 1905. It was written after her stage play of the same title (co-authored with her husband Montague Barstow) enjoyed a long run in Lo ...

'' – Chauvelin, Armand St. Just* * ''Elisabeth'' (2009) – Stephan, Rudolf* * ''

'' (2008) – Jaqueline Carstone

Newcomer performances

* ''Elisabeth'' (2009) – Death * ''

'' (2009) – Bill Snibson

Post-Takarazuka roles

* ''

'' (2021) – Edgar Portsnell * ''Mademoiselle Mozart'' (2021) –

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

(Eliza) * ''

'' (2022) – Sarah Brown * '' War Paint'' (2023) – Elizabeth Arden * ''9 to 5'' (2024) – Violet Newstead * '' Musical Shōwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjū'' (2025) – Miyokichi

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Asumi, Rio People from Shizuoka (city) 1985 births Actors from Shizuoka Prefecture Living people 21st-century Japanese actresses Takarazuka Music School alumni Takarazuka Revue otokoyaku