XREAL Air 2 Glasses Debut in Shiki Theater Subtitle Rental Service
The deployment of XREAL Air 2 in Shiki Theater's subtitle service demonstrates AR glasses being used for accessibility and multilingual support in live performance, a concrete application beyond entertainment.
Reporting from 2 sources: ASCII.jp, PANORA.
XREAL and Evixar announced on June 25 that the Shiki Theater Company will introduce a new model of its "Subtitle Glasses" rental service starting June 1, 2026, using XREAL Air 2 AR glasses. The service will be available at the Dentsu Shiki Theater [Umi] for the current production of 'Aladdin' and at the Ariake Shiki Theater for 'The Lion King'. The system combines Evixar's acoustic communication technology "Another Track" with the XREAL Air 2 glasses and a XREAL Beam Pro controller to display subtitles in real time synchronized with the stage performance. The new model is significantly lighter than the previous version, allowing a hands-free, comfortable fit. The service aims to support multilingual audiences, including foreign tourists, and theatergoers with hearing impairments. Advance reservations are required through the Shiki Theater Company's website.
The system uses Evixar's "Another Track" acoustic communication technology, which embeds encrypted data into "special sounds" or matches "feature points" of sounds stored in a database. Devices recognize these in real time, allowing subtitles to be displayed without a limit on the number of users and without time lag.
Jun Takigawa, President and CEO of Evixar, said the collaboration with XREAL "further evolve[d]" the subtitle service. He noted that an international sports event for athletes with hearing impairments is scheduled in Tokyo in 2025, and "momentum for accessibility is increasing." He said the service "will play an important role in supporting the entertainment experience for customers with hearing impairments."
An XREAL representative said the company is "honored that our AR glasses have been adopted for the service at the historic Shiki Theater Company's performances." The representative described the XREAL Air 2 as a "long-selling product" with a "lightweight design intended for everyday use" that allows comfortable wear during long performances.
The new housing set combines the XREAL Air 2 glasses with a XREAL Beam Pro controller. The company said the set offers a "lightweight fit and clear image expression," making subtitles appear to "naturally float in space without being aware of the display frame."
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.