Event

An annual event! As one of our efforts to create attractive places to visit at night around the island, this year we will again light up the historic Kitazawa Flotation Plant.

In June, the area around "Onogame," the symbol of the Outer Sea coast, is filled with as many as 1 million tobishima kanzo flowers, 500,000 in number, in full bloom. The cluster is said to be the largest in Japan, and is famous as one of the most scenic spots on the Sea of Japan. The local people perform Kaifu drums, Onidaiko drums, and Sado folk songs.

Kyomachi Street was Aikawa's main street in the early Edo Period (early 17th century), when the Kinzan gold mine flourished. The historical street, where there used to be merchants' houses, is dimly lit with lanterns, and groups from both inside and outside of Sado parade through the street, dancing the Aikawa Ondo folk dance. All accompanying music is played live, and dancers slowly proceed, accompanied by the blue-tinged song. You can see the slow procession of elegant dancing within the grounds of the Sado Commissioner's Office, too.

Sado's local performing arts such as "Sado Okesa" and "Onidaiko" gather in one place. This is a popular event that attracts more than 10,000 spectators every year, with around 25 performing arts groups participating. Visitors can enjoy the performing arts of each region that have been handed down on Sado Island without having to leave their homes. Food stalls selling local specialties, fresh seafood from Sado Island, and Sado sake can also be enjoyed.

With the guidance and cooperation of the Honma clan (head of the Hosho school on Sado Island), Ryotsu Takigi Noh also serves to preserve the history and quality of Noh on Sado Island. Noh is performed in a fantastic atmosphere on the Shiizaki Suwa Shrine Noh Stage overlooking Lake Kamo. Please come and watch this traditional Noh performance that has been supported and nurtured by the people of Sado Island.

Dubbed "Wakamiya-san," Hachiman Wakamiya Shrine is extremely familiar to locals in the Ryotsu Minato area. The annual grand festival is held on the 5th of May every year. Along Wakamiya Street, fisherman's good-haul banners (used to indicate a good catch) are hoisted and flutter, creating a colorful backdrop for this distinctly heated, port-town festival. Ondeko (demon drumming), shishi (lion dance) and a portable shrine, bounced and shaken by its bearers, parade around the street. A Sagariha musical performance troup and a float with musicians on it also travel around the neighbourhood. In the precinct of the shrine where many people await, the portable shrine makes its slow and steady return. The highlight is the heatedly bounced portable shrine in the parade.

Ushio Shrine is a venerable old shrine that is descended from Izumo Taisha Shrine. The Noh stage is also prestigious and dignified, and is almost the largest Noh stage on Sado Island. The history of the firelit Noh stage is one of the oldest on Sado Island. The Tenno Festival Yoimiya is dedicated to firewood Noh on the Noh stage. Onidaiko (devil drums) from Lagoon and Agata are also dedicated. In the main festival, miko (shrine maiden) dances and daikoku dances are performed. The portable shrine procession is performed, and onidaiko (devil drummers) go from house to house to perform the parade.

The annual series of performances on Sado Island. They are held at the Shukunegi Public Hall, which still retains its old-fashioned atmosphere. You can enjoy a powerful performance right in front of you. Don't miss it this year, as it will be held only in spring!

The Noh stage at Ozen Shrine is said to be the oldest existing Noh stage on Sado Island. It is one of the "Four Noh Places in Sado Province" and has been used for Noh performances since ancient times. The stage features a mirrored panel with a picture of a pine tree and a sunflower. Regular Noh plays are performed every year, and the stage is dedicated to Shinto rituals along with Sagi-style Kyogen (Kyogen). Kyogen plays performed during the Noh play include Okura-ryu, Izumi-ryu, and Sagi-ryu. The Sagi-ryu is the only three remaining schools of Kyogen in Japan. Yamaguchi City in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Chiyoda Town in Saga Prefecture, and Sado Island. Kyogen declined in the Meiji era (1868-1912), and the Sagi-ryu school of Kyogen on Sado Island was said to have disappeared in the 1950s. In the 1975's, the herald of Sagi-ryu Kyogen was identified in Mano-cho at that time, and this form of Kyogen was revived. The Sado Sagi-ryu Kyogen Kenkyukai (Sado Sagi-ryu Kyogen Society) has been working on its transmission and dissemination.

Located in the Hatano area, Chokokuji Temple is an ancient temple which was built in imitation of Hasedera Temple in Yamato (present-day Nara Prefecture). It is known for its peonies as well as the Rabbit Kannon statue housed there. Elegant peony flowers burst into bloom along the front path, in front of the main hall and all around the temple grounds.

Ryotsu Takigi Noh has been playing a role in maintaining the tradition and quality of Sado's Noh performances, obtaining instruction and cooperation from Mr Honma (head of Sado Hosho School). You can see Noh performances in the magical atmosphere of the Noh stage in Shiizaki Suwa Shrine which faces Lake Kamo. Enjoy the traditional art of Noh, developed by the community.

This festival is held to comfort gold mine workers and to pray for the prosperity of the mines. The festival includes a Shinto ritual ceremony at Oyamazumi Shrine, known as the "God of the Mountain," a town-wide okesa float, a fireworks display, and other historic events held mainly in downtown Aikawa. The festival is considered one of the three major festivals on Sado Island, along with the Ryotsu Tanabata Festival, Kawabiraki Festival, and Ogi Port Festival.

This festival began when rice was offered to Kisaki Shrine as a prayer for safe voyage in the days when Ogi Port was a port for loading gold and silver. Shinto ritual entertainment, small lion dances, large lions, and devil drums, as well as Shukunegi chitoton and chitoton, etc., make the rounds of the gates. Ogi Okesa" and "Mikoshi" also make an appearance. As the last summer festival on Sado Island, the night sky is decorated with a large display of fireworks.

An event where you can relax and enjoy the day at Ogi Minato Park. Entertainments will be performed on the stage. There will also be sales of Oki soup, local specialties, and tuna. The annual "catching turban shells" is also popular.

Two large lions from Tokuwa Shrine and onidaiko (devil drum) from Suwa Shrine are paraded through the streets, with houses at their gates. Onidaiko is said to be a dance depicting gold diggers at the Aikawa Mine. Around noon, the large lion and onidaiko gather at Tokuwa Shrine for the "Neriage" (parade). The enthusiastic "Neriage" is well worth seeing as they slowly climb the stone steps while singing "Ise Ondo" and "Kiyari," a traditional Japanese folk song.

This is one of the leading cycling events in Japan with over 3,000 participants. There are five courses to satisfy everyone from beginners to experts. Course A, which has the largest number of participants and the longest distance of 210 km, almost circles Sado Island. While enjoying the spectacular scenery along the coast, participants will tackle a highly challenging course with continuous ups and downs. In addition, an S Course has been newly established for super-advanced runners, which runs on a partially mountainous course. The warm support of the people of Sado Island and the unique delicacies of Sado Island served at aid stations are also part of the event's charm.

A summer festival held by the taiko performing arts group "Kodo" since 1988. Live performances are held on three consecutive nights, each with its own distinct personality! The festival is also packed with a variety of other programs. For more information, please visit the official website.

A portable shrine procession is performed, and large lions and devil drums go around the houses in the Mikawa area. In the evening, the parade at the steepest shrine on Sado Island is a sight to behold.

Held in the Sawata area, Sado no Bon "Shishigajo Matsuri" is a festival featuring a mikoshi (portable shrine) parade carried by children, Bon dancing and Ondeko deity mask dance, among others. (Bon is the time when the spirits of the ancestors return home.) The fireworks show set to music, "Firework Fantasy," is popular for the dynamics of launching at close range. Fireworks are set off in rhythmical patterns in sync with a wide range of music.

Annual festival of Kusakari Shrine and Sugawara Shrine. Taikagura Tsuburosashi, a Niigata Prefecture Intangible Folk Cultural Asset, is danced in the town. Onidaiko (devil drums) and mikoshi (portable shrines) are brought out, and a large lion parades through the town with a powerful appearance. In addition, children and students perform "Kodomikoshi" and "So Odori" to enliven the festival for the whole district.

Kasuga Shrine is considered to be the birthplace of Noh performances in Sado. This Noh stage was built by Nagayasu Okubo, a former Noh actor and Deputy for Sado (later the first Commissioner of Sado), and it was the site of the first ritual Noh performance dedicated in Sado. The present-day stage was transferred, to where it now stands, from the Hamochi area, by volunteer members of the community in 2006. Besides the mysteriously beautiful Takigi Noh, Sado's local performing arts, such as the folk songs "Sado Okesa" and "Aikawa Ondo" are also presented.

Kuji Hachimangu Shrine Annual Grand Festival is presented by three villages. Among the performances dedicated are: to-to (sword dance) of the Nozaki village, and Hanagasa Odori (the flower hat dance) of the Jonokoshi village, which is a Niigata Prefecture Important Cultural Asset. The Ondeko (demon drumming) group from Shimokuji village travels from door to door starting early in the morning, and dedicates a performance to the shrine along the way. This traditional festival also features a portable shrine parade, Yabusame (horseback archery), and a musical procession of children.

The Ryotsu Ebisu Festival is held on June 15 and 16 every year. It is an annual festival of Suwakata Shrine, the town guardian of the barbarians, and the Ryotsu barbarians shopping street is the center of the festivities. The festival includes a large portable shrine procession, onidaiko (omikoshi), kodomo onidaiko (children's onidaiko), shishi-mai (lion dance), otsutome-mai (maiden dance), and yorogi-ha (downhill dance). Ryotsu Jinku," a traditional Japanese folk dance, is also performed in a relaxed atmosphere. (Contents are subject to change)

Ryotsu Takigi Noh has been playing a role in maintaining the tradition and quality of Sado's Noh performances, obtaining instruction and cooperation from Mr Honma (head of Sado Hosho School). You can see Noh performances in the magical atmosphere of the Noh stage in Shiizaki Suwa Shrine which faces Lake Kamo. Enjoy the traditional art of Noh, developed by the community.

The Noh stage at Kusakari Shrine is thought to have been built before the early Meiji Period (late 19th century), and there remains a record of Noh performances held here in the late Edo Period (mid-19th century). Noh has been performed continuously, and it is dedicated to gods at the Kusakari Shrine's annual festival (Hamochi Festival) on the 15th of June every year. Bonfires illuminate the stately Noh stage and invite you into the subtle and profound world of Noh.

Ryotsu Takigi Noh has been playing a role in maintaining the tradition and quality of Sado's Noh performances, obtaining instruction and cooperation from Mr Honma (head of Sado Hosho School). You can see Noh performances in the magical atmosphere of the Noh stage in Shiizaki Suwa Shrine which faces Lake Kamo. Enjoy the traditional art of Noh, developed by the community.

The event takes place in the water of Mano Bay, off the shore of Sawata Bathing Beach. Participants can compete in races of varying distances: 5,000m, 3,000m, 1,500m, and 500m.

This event has become a well-known food event on Sado Island. Visitors can enjoy traditional performing arts while eating Osaki soba (buckwheat noodles), a specialty of the island, boiled and seasoned fish, and other local delicacies. Many tourists and repeaters come from outside the island, so be sure to make reservations early.

This competition features several courses set amid the landscape of the entire island of Sado, and attracts 2,000 participants from both inside and outside of Japan. The A-type (long distance) race boasts the longest bike course (210 km/130.5 mi) in Japan, going around almost the entire island. Driving is discouraged on the day of this event so that traffic is minimal, freeing up the roads for runners and bikers, and enveloping them in the supportive cheers of spectators and 5,000 local volunteer staff.

Anju Tenjin Matsuri is a summer festival in the Hatano area where Anjuzuka (Memorial Mound of Anju in Hatano) is situated. The festival features a portable shrine parade, Harigoma (spring foal dance), a folk dance, and representative Ondeko (demon drumming) groups from five villages in the Hatano area. You can enjoy yakitori grilled chicken skewers along with draft beer, while immersing yourself in live music performances on the outdoor stage on the eve of the festival. During the festival, painted paper lanterns lined up on the shopping street brighten up the night sky.