boyutpedia Chapter 187: The Exhibition of Light Begins!
Chapter 187: The Exhibition of Light Begins!
The long-awaited first official offline stage play of Ultraman Tiga, "The Giant Who Revived in the Ancient Times," has finally opened for pre-sale tickets.
In the spacious and bright office, Gu Nan sat in front of his computer, checking the ticketing data in the backend.
Chen Bo, standing to the side, held a thermos cup with the Super Victory Team logo on it, his chubby face full of shock.
"Brother Nan, this is insane! Tickets for the Grand Theatre went on sale for three days, a total of 12,000 seats, and they sold out in less than 30 seconds! That's faster than a top singer's tour!"
Gu Nan nodded slightly, but his gaze remained fixed on the user IP distribution map.
He swiped the mouse, looking at the dense array of red dots on the screen, his brows gradually furrowing: "Old Chen, look at the IP addresses of these ticket-buying accounts. Something's not right."
Chen Bo leaned forward, squinted at the camera, and was immediately stunned.
"Sichuan, Guangdong, Northeast China, Jiangnan, Xinjiang... less than a third of these are local IP addresses from Jinghai City?"
Chen Bo paused for a second.
"Brother Nan, could it be scalpers? Using software to circumvent regulations and buy votes across regions?"
Gu Nan shook his head, his tone certain: "Impossible. This time, I specifically instructed Lin Yu to implement the most advanced anti-scalping verification system on the entire network for Bilibili's ticketing system. It requires both real-name registration and dynamic facial recognition verification. These are all real users."
Chen Bo gasped, his hand holding the thermos trembling slightly: "So that means... all these tens of thousands of people are flying all over the country, even thousands of kilometers away, across most of China, to Jinghai just to see a two-hour stage play?!"
Gu Nan leaned back in his chair, a hint of emotion flashing in his eyes.
In this parallel world, tokusatsu culture was once a desert that no one paid attention to.
But now, there is a group of people who are willing to travel thousands of miles to see a real Ultraman in reality.
"So, they're not just here to watch the play; they're here to fulfill their dreams."
Gu Nan also sighed.
"We cannot let this sentiment go to waste."
"Many people may not be able to get tickets, but they will still travel a long way to Jinghai because of their love for the place. If they come to the Grand Theatre full of expectations, only to hear the cheers from inside from the outside, that would be too cruel for them."
"So, Brother Nan, what do you mean?"
"We need to expand the venue!"
Gu Nan said decisively, "Immediately contact the manager of the Jinghai City Grand Theater. We need to not only book the entire outdoor plaza, but also rent the 20,000-square-meter international convention and exhibition center next to the theater!"
Chen Bo was a little confused: "Why rent such a big place? We're putting on a stage play here. The convention center doesn't have tiered seating, so it's not suitable for performances."
"Hold an exhibition! Hold a large-scale Ultraman-themed exhibition!"
A massive plan had already formed in Gu Nan's mind.
Just like what they did at their graduation ceremony.
However, this time, it's only expanded by several dozen times.
"Stage plays have limited capacity, but exhibitions can accommodate tens of thousands of visitors at the same time. I want all the Olympic fans who come to Jinghai, even those who didn't manage to get tickets, to truly feel the warmth of light in the convention center!"
Upon hearing this, Chen Bo was immediately fired up: "Let's do it! Brother Nan, I'll get on it right away! But the venue is easy to arrange, we're short on time, what kind of things should we put in the exhibition?"
"Bring out everything we've accumulated over the past two years." Gu Nan's eyes were firm. "Suits, miniature models, filming props, bring them all over."
Over the next few days, the entire team at Light Chaser Animation Studios began working non-stop like crazy.
……
Inside the Jinghai International Convention and Exhibition Center.
Hundreds of workers and staff are busily setting up the exhibition booth. The sounds of electric drills and hammering fill the air.
The entire exhibition hall was divided into several huge areas.
The area A right inside the entrance is named "Origin of Light" - the Showa Ultraman exhibition area.
In this world, although Tsuburaya Productions went bankrupt thirty years ago, the Showa Ultraman still exists in the memories of the older generation.
The replica suits of the original Ultraman, Seven, Jack, Ace, Taro, and Leo are arranged in their most classic entrance and battle poses.
In addition to replicating the suit, Gu Nan also brought out the original props used by Tsuburaya Productions when he acquired the copyright.
The Beta Magic Wand, Ultra Glasses, and old-fashioned Science Patrol helmets and uniforms, weathered by time, are carefully displayed in a bulletproof glass case.
After passing through Area A, you will arrive at Area B – "The Era of Light".
This is the exclusive territory of Ultraman Tiga and Ultraman Dyna.
On the left side of the exhibition area, Ultraman Tiga's Composite, Sky, and Power Types were lined up in a row. In the very center, the gleaming Ultraman Tiga suit was suspended high in the air, its golden light illuminating the entire area.
On the right are Dyna's Shiny, Miracle, and Strong types.
In addition, the miniature sets created by Light Chaser Animation over the past two years were also brought to the set intact. These included the ruins of the ancient pyramids crushed by Golza, the island of Cremos leveled by Desfasa, and the mobile fortress Kurak Crypt. Each scene was equipped with dedicated lighting and the original soundtrack from the film.
In the monster zone, chaos reigned. Giant Golza, Melba with outstretched wings, Gazort with its mouth wide open, Reijubas who wields both ice and fire, and a several-meter-tall bust of the computer demon Desfasa all stood in the venue.
Seeing all these handcrafted "works of art" gathered together, Lao Zhang from the props team wiped away his sweat and exclaimed, "Director Gu, this is quite a grand affair."
Gu Nan smiled, his eyes filled with pride.
After the exhibition hall setup was basically completed, Gu Nan asked Chen Bo to film a five-minute "campus visit VLOG" overnight, which was then directly posted on the official accounts of Bilibili and Weibo.
The title is simple and direct: "Large-scale Ultraman-themed Exhibition in Jinghai City, Admission Free!"
The video quickly gained a lot of views as soon as it was released.
Countless fans who were frustrated because they couldn't get tickets to the stage play were immediately stunned by the magnificent exhibition hall and the dense array of costumes and props on the screen the moment they clicked on the video.
In the video footage, Chen Bo is seen holding a handheld camera, walking around and explaining as he goes.
When the camera pans across the first-generation suits of the Showa Six Elders and focuses on those old, authentic filming props.
The live chat instantly became lively.
[Great! It's Showa era! The children are saved!]
I've been watching the old Oscars series these past couple of days, and some of the storylines are really amazing.
Hey hey hey, is Seven driving a Jeep?!
Next, the camera moved to the Tiga and Dyna exhibit area. There, one could see Shining Tiga and Strong Type Dyna floating in mid-air, standing side-by-side, along with a collection of extremely detailed miniature models.
The live chat exploded with excitement:
[Kids! It's the invincible domestically made Ultraman!]
[Great! It's Ultraman Tiga!]
[Become light again!]
[Holy crap! Shining Tiga! Is that the suit used for the finale?]
This miniature model is so detailed! I really want to see it up close in person!
[Can real people go in? I want to be Ultraman too!]
At the end of the video, Chen Bo walked to the sales area and announced that merchandise would be sold at affordable prices on-site.
Tokusatsu fans across the internet were absolutely blown away, and the comment section was instantly flooded with messages:
I was already so upset about not being able to get tickets to the stage play, but now I'm flying to Jinghai just to see this exhibition!
Tickets bought! See you in Jinghai, guys!
[24-hour hard seat, let's go!]
Of course, there are also some rational voices:
To be honest, it's really kind of them that this exhibition doesn't charge admission, but I hope the on-site management can keep up, otherwise it will be too crowded and the experience will be terrible.
[Can the surrounding area stock up on enough goods? We don't want them to sell out instantly again, allowing scalpers to snag them.]
[Hopefully, Director Gu won't just focus on expansion; the quality of the stage plays is fundamental.]
Looking at the enthusiastic yet slightly worried comments and bullet screen messages in the background, Gu Nan felt an indescribable surge of emotion.
He understands that fans' enthusiasm needs to be respected, but even more so, he needs to live up to that trust.
With the arrangements at the exhibition hall settled, Gu Nan didn't stop and went straight to the interior of the adjacent grand theater.
The rehearsals for the stage play "The Giants Who Resurrected in Ancient Times" are in their final stages.
On the theater stage, in order to perfectly recreate the scene of an ancient village, the props team spent a lot of money to build a giant stone altar with a primitive style, a blazing torch, and mysterious totems.
This spin-off tells the story of Wing's accidental journey back to the ancient past, witnessing the origin of Ultraman Tiga, and engaging in a life-or-death battle with the ancient dark demon god Degus.
"Make the movements bigger! Make the emotions more intense!"
A deep, powerful voice rang out.
"Stage plays don't have close-up shots like in movies and TV shows. Your anger, your despair, and your final realization as you raise the bronze magic wand must be conveyed to the audience in the last row of the theater through extremely exaggerated body language!"
A senior professor from the Beijing People's Art Theatre, standing nearby, was sternly correcting the actors' lines and movements with a ruler.
In the center of the stage, Zhang Zhao, dressed in a lightweight Ultraman Tiga suit, is engaged in intense sparring with several suit actors portraying dark demons.
"Drink!"
Zhang Zhao let out a battle roar and executed a standard Ultraman over-the-shoulder throw, slamming the monster heavily onto the specially made soft mat on the stage.
"Bang!"
A muffled thud was heard. Zhang Zhao did not get up immediately, but remained in a squatting position with great tension, arms outstretched, for a full three seconds.
"Yes! That's the pause! Great!"
Gu Nan walked onto the audience seats, clapped his hands in satisfaction, and said, "The impact of a stage play comes from these precise timings and entrances! You need to give the children in the audience time to scream and applaud!"
Chen Bo, Zhao Gang, and others were also diligently going over their lines on the side.
Although the rehearsals were extremely arduous, and everyone was drenched in sweat, their eyes shone with excitement and anticipation.
"Lights ready! Sound effects cut in! Let's go over the cue point for the Bronze Sparkler transformation again! The lights must match the raising motion!"
Gu Nan held a walkie-talkie and made a final, detailed arrangement in the audience.
Night falls and the city lights begin to twinkle.
There are less than twelve hours left until the premiere of the Ultraman-themed exhibition and stage play.
After the rehearsal, Gu Nan walked out of the convention center alone.
The early autumn evening breeze carried a hint of coolness, caressing his slightly tired yet still resolute face.
He looked up at the massive, fifteen-meter-tall bust of Ultraman Tiga that had been hastily erected overnight in the plaza in front of him.
Under the illumination of several powerful searchlights, Tiga's milky white eyes radiated a gentle yet firm light, as if gazing upon the city and upon everyone who would be facing tomorrow.
Tomorrow, this place will gather tens of thousands of people who have traveled from mountains and seas.
"I hope everything goes well."
Gu Nan chuckled, put his hands in his pockets, and turned to walk into the night.