The creation of AKB48’s new sister group, NGT48, was recently announced during AKB48’s Request Hour live event, which took place on January 25th, at Tokyo Dome City Hall.
It was also revealed that the new theater, NGT48 Theater, is scheduled to open on October 1st. Auditions for the new group will begin in March.
As for reasons which Niigata was selected, a person involved the the project, cited the fact that the was no theater on Japan’s main island (Honshuu) which was also near the Sea of Japan. There were countless proposed locations, but Niigata was selected because it’s been a relatively prosperous city since Japan’s ancient times, and it was also one of the largest cities bordering the Sea of Japan.
The developers of the project put forth the idea of, “Expanding AKB’s culture”, and had apparently been involved in the project since December of last year.
Source: http://natalie.mu/music/news/136975
Source: http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20150125-00000112-spnannex-ent
Author: jerry
Sometimes editor. Sometimes translator. Mostly a proofreader. I like Japan and things.