Kagura, a form of votive music and dance, is a nationwide tradition with over a thousand years of history. While it is usually performed on a small stage on the grounds of a shrine, in Akitakata in Hiroshima Prefecture has a large hall dedicated to year-round kagura performances, and has 22 kagura troupes. As well as appearing on stage, they handle all the backstage and other preparations involved in putting on their strikingly memorable performances.
Kagura is votive music and dancing offered to the gods.
We're going to see a leading example of this tradition, which hasn't changed in over a thousand years.
Akitakata lies in the mountains of Hiroshima Prefecture.
In this region, the kagura tradition is still strong.
This city has a large hall devoted to kagura performances -
- which is typically performed on a small stage at a shrine, during a matsuri.
Performers, supporters, and many
others helped us prepare for this.
I really hope the audience
enjoys the show.
Kagura should be fun for
performers and for staff, too.
I hope that's the kind of
performance we put on today.
This one city has 22 kagura troupes, and there are performances year-round.
The pandemic was a challenge, but strict safety precautions allowed performances to continue.
At the last minute we had to change
the piece we planned to perform.
We haven't rehearsed very much, but
we'll try not to make any mistakes!
In 2022, special kagura performances
were lined up for each season.
We were scheduled for May,
but COVID-19 forced us to cancel.
We felt bad about
being such a nuisance.
Just a few days ago we were asked
to fill in for another troupe.
So we jumped at the chance
and quickly got together.
We were short on crew but
another troupe came to our aid.
They'll be supporting us today.
We have performed "Katsuragi-zan"
on many occasions.
So that's what we'll present.
"Please enjoy this kagura performance."
Eight troupes from Akitakata and
elsewhere will perform today.
Each provides their own
costumes and script.
There are two basic kagura categories:
Traditional pieces dating from before
World War II, and postwar pieces.
The performers all have day jobs.
They rehearse at night and
on Saturdays and Sundays.
The stage is carefully disinfected
between performances.
It's wonderful to see
so many kagura fans!
It makes me so happy and proud.
I hope you all enjoy the performances!
In this area, Kagura is
more than a religious rite.
It's the preferred
local entertainment.
The audiences are bigger than
they were two years ago.
It really helps lift the performance.
It's a joint effort: the audience,
other performers, the backstage team.
All of us are in it together
to create a wonderful performance.
My whole life revolves around kagura.
Some performers have
enthusiastic fans.
Thank you very much for coming.
Please travel home safely!
There were last-minute changes
to performers and performances.
But we made it through!
I'm grateful to our performers,
our crew, and our audience.
Mutual support makes it possible, and
I think we all had a great time.
I hope we can spread kagura
further, outside Hiroshima.
I'd like more people to appreciate
what kagura has to offer.
And so we need more people to see it.
We'd like to perform in big cities
and abroad, and to keep growing.
That's the future I'm hoping for.
Maybe one day these kagura troupes will present this thousand-year old tradition at a venue near you!