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Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival Photo Report: Part 1: Kabuki performances on the large floats at the evening festival [Minamiaizu Town, Fukushima Prefecture]
Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival Photo Report: Part 1: Kabuki performances on the large floats at the evening festival [Minamiaizu Town, Fukushima Prefecture]
Minamiaizu Town is located in the southwest of Fukushima Prefecture, a little south of which you'll reach Tochigi Prefecture. This area, also known as "Oku-Aizu," hosts one of Japan's three major Gion festivals
In this article, we will bring you a look at the first day of Aizu-Tajima Gion(evening festival)
July 22nd : Annual festival (evening festival)
The Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival is said to have originated around 1185 during the Kamakura period, when the feudal lord at the time, Naganuma Munemasa, had faith in Gion and enshrined the god of Gion as the guardian deity of his castle, and held the Gion Festival together with the festival of Tadeuga Shrine, the guardian deity of Tajima
It has long been known as one of Japan's three major Gion festivals, with "Gion Shrine in the west, Tsushima Shrine in the middle, and Tadeuka Shrine in the east." For more details, please see the article below
The festival is held for three days every year from July 22nd to 24th, with the main festival taking place on the 23rd, the middle day
When you arrive at Tajima, the first thing you should do is visit Tadeuga Shrine
We arrived in Tajima just after 5pm on the 22nd. The festival itself starts at 10am, but the main event of the day, the Kabuki performance on the large floats, takes place from the early evening into the night, so you can still see it from this time
At dusk, the dimly lit lanterns and the Oku-Aizu mountains shrouded in thin clouds create a fantastical atmosphere at Tadeuga Shrine
2025.07.22 Aizu Tajima Gion Festival_Tadeuga Daimyojin plaque and main hall
The main deity of Tadeuga Shrine is Tadeuga Daimyojin , who apparently suddenly appeared from a small island in the middle of a rice field long ago, and has since been enshrined as the guardian deity of the area.
It is said that from that day onwards, the town, which had previously been called Hinomachi, changed its name to "Tajima."
2025.07.22 Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival_Tadeuga Shrine and Kumano Shrine Plaques
The Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival used to be called the "Tenno Festival" and was held on June 15th, but since the Meiji period, it has been held together with the festival of Kumano Shrine, which is enshrined in the neighboring area, on the same day as the Gion Festival of Tadeuga Shrine
So, to be precise, it is a festival of two shrines: Tadeuga Shrine and Kumano Shrine
Head to the main street of the festival where the float kabuki is performed
2025.07.22 Aizu Tajima Gion Festival_Seven-lined Vessel Street
After praying, head to the center of town via Nanahokai center. Incidentally, this street is also the route the Nanahokai Procession will take the next day.
2025.07.22 Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival_One of the large floats "Naka-yatai"
During this period, National Route 121, Tajima's main road, will be closed to traffic only in the central shopping district around Aizu-Tajima Station, the main festival venue
As we entered this main street, the first thing that caught our eye was Naka Yatai, one of the large floats. They were in the middle of preparing for the next performance
There are four main floats in total, called the West Float, the Upper Float, the Middle Float, and the Main Float
The kabuki performances vary from float to float, and pamphlets about the shows being performed are distributed at the tourist information center located near Aizu-Tajima Station, so you can check information such as "What will be performed at which float and at what time?" in the pamphlets
2025.07.22 Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival_National Route 121, the main street of the festival
As the sun goes down, more and more people gather on the street
2025.07.22 Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival_Izumiya Ryokan and Kamiyataiya
Izumiya Ryokan is a registered tangible cultural property of Japan . After the war, it was designated as an inn by the occupying forces, so it still has Western-style rooms and English signs inside. By the way, it doesn't have air conditioning, so it might take some courage to stay there in the summer.
Parked in front is one of the large food stalls, Kamiyatai
At the Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival, Tadeuga Shrine has been granted a sake brewing licensesake brewery, Kokken Sake Brewery.
This sake is served not only to those involved in the festival but also to visitors, so the Aizu-Tajima Gion Festival is also known as the Doburoku Festival
The Kabuki performance begins with the parading of the float
2025.07.22 Aizu Tajima Gion Festival_The large float being pulled around
The four floats are pulled around by adults with many children on board, and stop at a place called a "geijo" where a kabuki performance is held. Each performance is divided into seven parts, and as they repeatedly move and perform, a performance is held in turn as they arrive at the geijo
By the way, while the float is being pulled around, the children on the floats "Osan! Yarekakero!" , which apparently means something like, "Come on, guys, run hard!" It's probably a traditional thing, but it's quite exciting. Lol
If the shouts are slow, they slow down, and if they're fast, they speed up. As the kids get more excited, they start talking faster and faster, so it looked like it was quite a challenge for the adults pulling the floats
Once the children arrive at the performance hall and get off the float, the kabuki performance begins. The photo shows a kabuki performance being held on the upper float, titled Ichinotani Futabagunki .
Children's Kabuki was originally performed at the Gion Festival from the Edo period through the early Meiji period, but was abolished with the promulgation of the "School System" in 1872 (Meiji 5) on the grounds that it was "not educationally desirable."
in 1994 for the first time in about 120 years and continues to this day.
Due to time constraints, we were unable to see all of the performances by the floats, but even though they were children's kabuki, their acting skills were comparable to that of adults. I was a little surprised at how much more authentic the kabuki performance was than I had imagined
After that, we couldn't find a place to stay in town, so we headed back to a ryokan inn in Yunokami Onsen. The only thing I regret is that we couldn't drink alcohol because we had to drive, even though we were surrounded by the most amazing festival atmosphere... To be continued on day two!
Traveling around the Tohoku region, I enjoy drinking delicious sake and exploring the local history, traditions, and customs. I write articles based on my interests. I'm currently interested in folk performing arts, local toys, and folk beliefs
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