“Oneiric Theater’, the first online concert of 12-member South Korean-Japanese girl group IZ*ONE, truly delivered on the promise of a unique virtual experience powered by AR (augmented reality) and XR (extended reality).

More than the virtual effects, however, it was the real talent of all 12 members that shone through. They took their fans — dubbed WIZ*ONE — on a magical journey across different thematic stages, performing tracks not just from their comeback EP “Oneiric Diary”, but also their previous albums.

A fairy tale come to life

IZ*ONE (pronounced as “EYEZ-wun”), also delighted viewers by showing new sides of themselves and unveiling wonderful surprises in “Oneiric Theater”, including sub-unit stages, a jaw-dropping dance break, a live band, and a game show segment called Quizland.

And, of course, an absolutely stunning cover of Red Velvet - Irene & Seulgi’s “Monster”.

From the very first track they performed, “Welcome”, to the last of their two encore songs, “With*One”, IZ*ONE’s first online concert was a dream come true for fans.

IZ*ONE was formed in the 2018 reality competition show “Produce 48” on Mnet. “Produce 48” was a collaboration between the Mnet series “Produce 101” and the J-pop idol group AKB48. They debuted on Oct. 29, 2018 with the EP “COLOR*IZ”, with “La Vie En Rose” as the lead single.

The members of the girl group are Miyawaki Sakura, Jang Won-young, Jo Yu-ri, Choi Ye-na, Ahn Yu-jin, Yabuki Nako, Kwon Eun-bi, Kang Hye-won, Honda Hitomi, Kim Chae-won, Kim Min-ju, and Lee Chae-yeon.

IZ*ONE made their second comeback this year on June 15 with their third EP, “Oneiric Diary”. The girl group is also releasing its first album in Japan, “Twelve”, on Oct. 21.

IZ*ONE and WIZ*ONE

More than the nonstop showcase of incredible vocals, visuals, and dance skills, however, what made “Oneiric Theater” truly special was the outpouring of love that IZ*ONE showed for their fans, and that WIZ*ONE showered Sakura, Wonyoung, Yuri, Yena, Yujin, Nako, Eunbi, Hyewon, Hitomi, Chaewon, Minju, and Chaeyeon.

“Don’t forget that we are one. WIZ*ONE, I love you,” Sakura told fans during the online concert.

One of the representatives that AKB48 sent to “Produce 48”, Sakura debuted as a teenager in 2011 as a member of HKT48, a sister group of AKB48.

IZ*ONE members admitted how sad they are that they have not been able to see their beloved WIZ*ONE in person for the past few months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They said, however, that they are glad they got this opportunity to perform for their fans and chat with them online.

“My beloved WIZ*ONE, let’s meet again soon,” said Eunbi.

Eunbi, who is the leader of IZ*ONE, shared the spotlight with Sakura in their cover of “Monster”. What made the performance even more significant is that Eunbi is a lookalike for Red Velvet’s Irene, while Sakura is a big Red Velvet fan.

Trending on Twitter

The official fan name WIZ*ONE comes from the word “wizard”, combined with the girl group’s name. As Yujin explained when IZ*ONE revealed the name during their debut show-con: “The name means that our fans who love us are creating a magical future together with us.”

WIZ*ONE showed all-out support for the “Oneiric Theater” online concert on social media. In fact, the concert’s official hashtag #ONEIRIC_THEATER was trending at No. 1 in the Philippines for over three hours. Meanwhile, the “Monster” duo of Eunbi and Sakura trended at No. 3 and No. 4, respectively.

After the online concert, IZ*ONE again delighted WIZ*ONE with surprise V Live streams.

V Live is the popular South Korean live video streaming service that celebrities in that country use to broadcast and chat with their fans.

Were you able to watch “Oneiric Theater”? What was your favorite performance?