Johnny Kitagawa
In 2002, Johnny Kitagawa had the Kansai Jrs put on an old play previously performed by their seniors, SMAP and KinKi Kids, called "Another". This marked a revival of Kansai Jr activities but Kitagawa's strategy this time was to localize the Kansai Jrs' activities and keep them based in Kansai. Shibutani returned to the stage. He also appeared on TV regularly, on "JKansai".