Musical Actress Miyuki Kanbe Dies at 24
Miyuki Kanbe, an actress best known as the third Sailor Moon in the Bishōjo Senshi Sailor Moon musical and Kyoko Kakei in the Battle Royale II: Requiem film, died suddenly of heart failure at a Kawasaki City hospital on June 18 at 4:08 a.m. She was 24. In February of 2007, she had to step down from her upcoming role of Eponine in the Les Misérables musical due to poor health, and she had been in and out of the hospital in her hometown ever since.
Kanbe won the role of Usagi Tsukino and her magical girl alter-ego Sailor Moon in an audition with 500 other applicants. She would play the role in this stage adaptation of Naoko Takeuchi’s manga from 2000 to 2001. She then appeared in several television series and movies. In particular, she played Kyoko Kakei in 2003’s Battle Royale II: Requiem and played Hinaka Tachibana in the Kamen Rider Hibiki television series and film from 2005 to 2006. She also sang the first two opening themes for the 2003-2004 anime series Mermaid Melody: Pichi Pichi Pitch. She was said to be in good spirits when she met with her agency’s head in Tokyo’s Shibuya ward on June 9. Even though she left the Les Misérables production before it opened, the producers at TOHO reportedly left a standing offer for her return by saying, “We want you to come back when you get better.”