JAPAN MATSURI 2016

Sunday 25 September 2016 | 10am - 8pm
Trafalgar Square, London 

Japan Matsuri is back and this year takes place on Sunday 25 September. Trafalgar Square will once again be turned into a festival of all things Japanese - with food and goods for sale, and a variety of stage performances taking place throughout the day. The event is free of charge and family-friendly. The festival kicks off at 10am and finishes at 8pm. Among the many performances at this year's matsuri, are three particular acts to watch out for - Aozasa Shishi-Odori Dance Troupe, Japanese traditional magic TEZUMA, and RADIO TAISO. See below for more information about these special acts.


Aozasa Shishi-Odori Dance Troupe
 
For the first time in the United Kingdom, Aozasa Shishi Odori brings to Japan Matsuri the mystery of the timeless dance rituals of the gods from the mountains of north-eastern Japan.
 
Shishi-odori (deer dancing) has been passed down through the generations for hundreds of years and is still regularly performed by members of various local communities and taught in the local schools. Deer, traditionally seen as messengers of the gods, are represented by masked dancers who perform in memory of the ancestors, or in shrine rituals to ward off evil or in thanks for a good harvest.
 
Aozasa Shishi Odori traces its roots back over 400 years, although its precise origins are unclear. It is characterised by the dancers’ large horned masks and flamboyant movements and accompanied by a band of taiko drums and flutes. The tradition has been designated an Intangible Folk Cultural Property of national importance.
 
Aozasa is in Iwate Prefecture in northeast Japan, a little way inland from the coastal communities so drastically devastated in the earthquake and tsunami of 2011. The group has been brought to Japan Matsuri with the generous support of the Japan Foundation.
 
 
TEZUMA  by Taiju Fujiyama
 
International Tezuma magician Taiju Fujiyama  conjures up a taste of the old Edo-period magic in London. Stage magic performances have long been a tradition in Japan and Tezuma – the name alluding to lightening quick sleight of hand – has enchanted Japanese audiences with a combination of illusion, dance, storytelling and music for centuries. Get ready to be amazed!
Taiju Fujiyama  has been brought to Japan Matsuri with the generous support of the Japan Foundation.
 
 
RADIO TAISO
 
They’re back! The popular stars of Japan’s legendary national TV exercise programmes, Radio Taiso (literally ‘radio exercises’), return to Japan Matsuri to put you through your paces with some gentle warm-up routines. Everyone in Japan has participated in these exercises, at school or at work, and coupled with a healthy diet, no wonder the Japanese population is the longest lived in the world. Come and join in – anyone can have a go, standing up, sitting down – raise your energy levels and get the Square moving!