Event

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.

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.

This is an annual festival of "Shinmeisha" located in the center of town. Two large lions parade through the streets, and oni (devil) drums are also paraded around the town, making their way around the gates as well. The skillful oral performances in front of the houses are also a highlight of the festival. Onidaiko (devil drummers) dance to the accompaniment of lively flutes and drums, with the demons facing each other. Children dressed in happi coats and tasuki (socks) also appear and dance one after another.

Akadomari's summer festival. The main event of the day is the "Grand Sumo Tournament on the Sea of Japan" held in a ring floating on the sea. The audience cheers for the wrestlers as they struggle to slide and fall on the swaying ring. There are performances by local performing arts groups, sales of local products, and a beer garden. At the end of the festival, fireworks light up the night sky.

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.

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.

The Noh stage on the grounds of Daizen Shrine is said to be the oldest one still in existence in Sado. It is one of the four Noh stages in the Kuninaka area where Noh performances have been regularly held. The Noh stage features kagami-ita (a back wall) with a painting of a pine tree and the sun. Noh is performed every year, dedicated to the gods, along with Sagiryu Kyogen. Kyogen is usually performed as a comic interlude between Noh acts, and there are three schools: Okuraryu, Izumiryu and Sagiryu. Sagiryu has been passed down in only three places in Japan: Yamaguchi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Kanzaki City (Chiyoda-cho), Saga Prefecture, and Sado. Kyogen steadily declined in popularity during the Meiji Period (1868-1912), and Sagiryu Kyogen in Sado once ceased all together in the middle of the 20th century. In the 1970s and 1980s, a successor of Sagiryu Kyogen was discovered in the Mano area, and it was reinvigorated thereafter. Today, the Sado Sagiryu Kyogen Study Group has been striving to pass down and spread the art form.

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.

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.

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.

We will hold the Hinamatsuri Marché in conjunction with the Sadokuni Aikawa Hinamatsuri (Girls' Festival). Please come and visit us.

This is one of the nine shrines on Sado Island mentioned in the Engishiki (927), and is an annual festival of the "Sado Ichinomiya" Tadotsu Shrine. The traditional Yabusame ritual, which is said to have originated with a dedication by Honma Jito, lord of Hamo Castle, is performed, as well as children's dances and a large lion parading through the houses of the Hamo and Iioka areas to drive away evil spirits.

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.

Nagoshi-no-harae (purification ceremony over the summer) is held at Kisaki Shrine and Kotohira Shrine in the Ogi area. Participants pass through a thatch ring made of kaya (thatching) wrapped around a large bamboo wheel to purify themselves of the injuries of the past six months and pray for good health for the next six months. In the evening, men and women of all ages gather at the shrine to go through the thatched ring decorated at the shrine, with men going around the ring three times to the left and women going around the ring three times to the right. There is a custom to eat Ayame dango (dumplings made of iris), which are also sold at stores.

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!

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.

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.

Kuroki Palace used to be a residence of Emperor Juntoku, who lost the Jokyu Disturbance and was forced into exile on Sado. Emperor Juntoku spent twenty-two years in this simple, temporary palace, until he passed away while aspiring to return to Kyoto. A ritual event is held to commemorate the Emperor in this area deeply connected with him.

One of the best cherry blossom viewing spots on Sado Island, with 2,000 cherry trees in bloom. The cherry blossoms are illuminated at the peak of the blooming season.

A festival at Hakusan Shrine with banners fluttering along the seashore. Three groups of demons each perform a different Maehama-style dance. Children with red painted cheeks also participate, taking turns dancing with the adult ogres. In the morning, after the dedication of the shrine, they walk from house to house, beating drums to gate the houses. A large lion parades through the district as well.

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.

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.

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.

The annual summer Beer Festival will be held at Aiport Sado, a 4-minute walk from Ryotsu Port. There will be workshops, mini-concerts, and many other events. For details, please check the official HP and flyers.

Myosenji Temple is known for the only five-story pagoda found in Niigata. Within the grounds, there is a grave of Hino Suketomo, who was a court noble forced into exile on Sado and then executed. He is mentioned in the Noh chant, "Danpu," created based on "Taiheiki" (Chronicle of the Great Peace). In commemoration of Hino Suketomo, Myosenji Temple puts on a Noh performance at its annual festival, "In Memory of Hino" on the 3rd of July, the anniversary of his death. At this event, Noh and Kyogen performances are dedicated in the tatami-mat floored main hall with the background of an old pine tree.

The Sado Bonfire Noh season kicks off with Noh peformances at Daizen Shrine. One of four Noh stages in the Kuninaka area, the stage at Daizen Shrine was reconstructed in 1846, and is said to be the oldest among others still in existence in Sado. Encased in green, the stage features a thatched and hipped roof and has an elegant atmosphere. Witness the opening of the Sado Noh season, while taking in the fresh spring breeze.

Traditional performing arts show! 25 restaurants gather. Oyster kankan-yaki and sales of peeled oysters are also available. Sado Ryotsu Hina Matsuri (Doll Festival) will be held at the same time.

The Ogi area features many old-fashioned, machiya-style houses, which are reminiscent of townspeople culture. During this doll festival, hina dolls and "treasures" with a long history are displayed along the Ogi Shopping Street where historical buildings stand in rows. At some shops, there are clay dolls on display, a reminder of exchanges with other parts of Japan that are peculiar to Ogi. Have fun at this event while enjoying a leisurely stroll around the town of Ogi.

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.

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)