Acting for Two: The trio of Renaissance figures who sing the last part of Miguel's song were actors who played some of the background students.
All-Star Cast: Nakagawa Akinori is a top star of Japan's musical scene, and the older cast are all even more famous and renowned, respected as important seniors even by him. The Squadra cast members — stars of idol units and the 2.5D world in their own right — were dazzled to work with all of them, which they were quite open about.
Costume Backlash: Masaaki Fujioka (Dante), jokingly, during the curtain call speeches in the final performance of the 2023 run.
Of the entirely external variety known as the Covid pandemic, which delayed the musical for 2 3/4 years.
The manga, too, was serialized sporadically and took a long hiatus before ending with two volumes that barely show the supposed main character.
Filmed Stage Production: A bluray of the musical's original run was released in September 2023.
The Merch: At performances, in addition to the standard pamphlets and bromides (photos of the characters), there was a set of 10 oval-shaped metal buttons (Cesare, Miguel, and the 8 Squadra members). There was also a black tote bag with a gold design of a throne with two frames on either side — oval frames perfectly sized to hold those buttons, so you can customize it with your two favorite characters. Of course, fans of the characters (and actors) who didn't get official buttons weren't afraid to make their own and wear them on tote bags when going to the theatre.
No Export for You: As of early 2023, this manga has not gotten an English release, despite multiple award nominations in Japan and France. As for the musical, this tends to go without saying for 2.5D stage plays, the only exceptions prior to 2023 being Sailor Moon and Naruto. However, according to Nakagawa, this musical's ambitions are bigger than that, and it could end up being the work to break that barrier. It helps that the music is the sort of quality that can make it there.
A short, hardcover side story was released in 2013 as a collaboration with a museum exhibit. It covers the 1504 incident when the city of Florence commissioned Leonardo da Vinci to paint a mural of a battle, but since he was taking too long on it, they hired his much younger rival, Michelangelo, to paint a mural of a more popular battle on the facing wall, to spur Leonardo on. In the side story, the two argue, but then Michelangelo sees a drawing of Cesare among Leonardo's papers, and they talk briefly about him, regretting his recent downfall. Cesare, Miguel, and Angelo appear together on the cover, implying that Angelo stayed with Cesare and Miguel for the rest of their lives together, but none of the trio appear in the story itself.
In 2022, after the end of the original series, a second spinoff was announced, under the title "Canzoniere". The title refers to a collection of poems by Petratch, which Niccolò Machiavelli quotes in the end of The Prince. In that chapter, Machiavelli ascribes motives to Cesare higher than simple greed and personal/family aggrandizement, motives that are rarely depicted in fiction about Cesare other than this manga.
Sleeper Hit: There was advertising and hype for the 2020 run of the musical, but at the time of the 2023 run, many people were surprised that it ended up being *this* good. Several people on Twitter expressed regret at having already bought tickets for the final performances of different musicals on February 4-5.
Technical Advisor: Famously, Dante scholar Motoaki Hara for the manga. Despite having died 170 years before this series takes place, Dante is *very* important to the story, and even appears on stage as a character (in Cesare's fantasies) in the musical.
Akinori Nakagawa (Cesare) and Masaaki Fujioka (Dante) were in Jersey Boys together, and they often perform in concerts together.
Oka Kojiro (Giuliano della Rovere) and Kiyama Haruki (Raffaele Riario) have been cast together in several plays, wonderful considering what fun they had backstage.
Tourist Bump: The musical, sponsored by the Italian Embassy, has projected sweeping scenes of Tuscan countryside during the final song, "Beautiful Toscana".
What Could Have Been: Photos, interviews, etc. of the 2020 cast members who did not return in 2023 exist, leaving many fans wishing they could have seen those performances.
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