Work shop

This is Monden from the Monden Spectacular Society.
First, I would like to introduce everyone who is here today.
First, the person furthest from me is Yasuda Haruko from Yasuda Satomi Entertainment.
The man sitting in the center is Nishimura Taikichi, chairman of Matsuzakaya Kogyosha.
The person sitting near me is Hiroko Ohno from Taitora Kogyosha.
The Society for the Study of Freak Shows was originally conceived as an industry-academia collaboration organization based on the intangible cultural asset of spectacles. This year marks the 15th year since it was founded at Nishimuki Tenjin Shrine in Shinjuku Ward. During this time, various problems have been pointed out around freak shows. And each time, it was the freak show tent of Tora-san, Yasuda-san, and Miyoshi-san, who is not here, who managed to survive somehow.
However, over the past few months, as I have spoken to various people involved in this project, I have come to understand that sideshow tent businesses are finding it extremely difficult to maintain their traditions.
As you all know, Tora-san, who is here today, is the one who is most aware of this issue. I'm talking about the Tori-no-ichi festival that is held every November at Hanazono Shrine in Shinjuku, but it has been decided that the traditional shows that have been held since ancient times, such as those using snakes and fire, will not be held. Tora-san, how did this come about?

Apparently the law changed in September of last year .
What can I say... It's heartbreaking, but we can't put on a show anymore.
"Do not abuse animals." This also applies to doggie tricks.
My grandfather and the people before him have always used animals like dogs, monkeys, and snakes in their business, but we have decided that we can no longer do that.
I've heard that snake charming has now fallen out of use in India, and I think that this trend has now spread to sideshow tents in Japan.

Monden: Thank you. I think that when you talk about shows, you all feel a sense of emotion. That shows how much you care about them. More than just a business to make money, you all feel very strongly that they are an important traditional culture that you want to carry on and preserve.
However, everyone is quite shy, so we haven't been able to speak out loudly until now. However, we are facing a situation like the one you just mentioned, and we feel lonely. Let's think about how we can stay together and find a way to survive. So, we have agreed to think of this place as a place for industry-academia collaboration.
So, today, we are all here as a panel for the symposium, but I would like you to understand that all of the audience here are members of the Society of Spectacle Studies, and I hope that you will actively participate in the sessions.
If we can think of spectacles as an intangible part of culture, I would like to think about how we can continue to provide support for them specifically , and what kind of mechanisms and systems we should prepare within the society.
So, I would like to start this symposium by asking for opinions from the field, but first I would like to hear from the chairman, Taikichi Nishimura. Nishimura is involved in the performance as a supervisor of the Omatsuri. Yasuda and Otora actually perform the shows on site, and the performance is made possible by the collaboration of these two roles.
Nishimura-san has been supervising festivals held in Tokyo, Saitama and the Kanto region for a long time. For example, he is responsible for preventing fires, providing materials such as logs for hut construction, and taking care of the cleanup after the event is over. He has been performing such extremely important duties for many decades. Therefore, he has been thinking about the current situation from a variety of angles.
Mr. Nishimura, I'm sorry to bother you, but could you please say a few words?

Chairman Nishimura: Yes. Thank you very much to everyone for your hard work.
I was surprised to hear that the Society of Spectaculars has already been running for 15 years.
As I always say at this conference, I have not attended school for even a year.
I was the child of a circus performer, a showman, and an entertainer. I traveled around a lot, and had the opportunity to go to school. I was even told I could go to a mobile school, but strangely enough, humans are lazy, and no matter where I went, I didn't like the school, so I would leave the house saying "I'm off," and lie down on the bank. That's how I remember it.
I am completely uneducated. If you think of someone who went to university and became a prominent figure, you may wonder why he is the president of this society.
I think that's because humans are ancient. I don't have any academic knowledge, but I traveled all over the country, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, and learned more about sociology than you all. Because of that, I have a good grasp of sociology, and I know a lot of things, so it was more than 10 years ago that Professor Masao Yamaguchi said to me, "You should be the chairman." That was at the Okuma Memorial Museum at Waseda University.
I was adopted. And strangely enough, I joined the Nishimura family of 10 siblings . I am the 11th child to be adopted, but among them are many older sisters and brothers. Strangely enough, they rely only on me. They still rely on me. For some reason.
It's because, how should I put it, I don't have any academic background, but I have studied sociology well and I think people rely on me because I uphold common sense and morality.
Haruko Yasuda's husband, who is here with us, is a little older than me, but I don't know why we got along so well, but in the old days, as you know from movies, especially those about gangsters, they would have a sake cup with their brothers. Someone would be present between them, and they would have a sake cup like this. Then they would become more than just brothers.
For example, if anything happened, we would risk our lives to support each other.
This person's (Yasuda Satomi's) father and the man I was adopted by, Nishimura Sokichi, were like brothers. So this person (Yasuda Haruko) and I are like cousins. We're not related by blood, though.
But ever since I was little, they've always called me "Anchan, Anchan," so we've really gotten along well. I guess I have a connection with the people on both sides of my heart.
Professor Masakatsu Gunji had expressed a desire to join the Society of Spectacular Sciences, and he was invited by Professor Yamaguchi to Waseda. At the time, there was a witness, a movie actor whose name I forget, and I remember him taking my arm and saying, "Mr. Nishimura, this is for you." Then, somehow, I became the president of the Society of Spectacular Sciences. Professor Tanokura is now the chairman.
Professor Tanokura, who just spoke to us, said that he hasn't been feeling well. I'm also 81 now , so I can't say that I'm in the best of health. But as they say, when a person loses their desire, sex appeal, and appetite, they're finished. I have more desire and sex appeal than most people. I also have a strong appetite. I'm 81 now, and just now, in the waiting room next door, our member Sakairi-kun said, "Dad, dinner's ready," and I went for a bite, so I think he must be doing well.
If I were to tell you everything from my origins, it would take two or three days. Really. After all, I 've been holding a microphone and lying as a gate keeper, a gate keeper at a freak show tent since I was about 14 years old. You know, back in the day, you'd often speak at the gate outside the show, saying things like, "This poor boy."
This person (Haruko Yasuda) is good at that. She tells lies to attract a lot of customers. It was the best. Seriously.
That kind of showman uses lies, but they're not completely false. There's a basis. They exaggerate it well, making one into about eight , and this person into about 12. Really.
But strangely enough, someone who has made a living from such a spectacle knows the value of human kindness and has deep ties with people, and even now, this person (Mr. Yasuda) and this person (Mr. Ohno), who are the same age as me, have been asked by the venue to attend.
Now, I would like to introduce to you Haruko Yasuda, the acting head of Taitora Kogyo, whose younger brother is the head of the company, and who is the person who is fully responsible. Please listen to what these people have to say.

Monden: Thank you. Nishimura-san, I have one question. When I visited you the other day, I heard a very interesting story. I heard that most people support the idea of Omatsuri, but because of a handful of people who are against it, the old way of doing things can no longer be accepted.

Nishimura: Well, that's something you can find out by asking the chief priest of Hanazono Shrine, the chief priests of the various facilities that we work at, and the various other people involved.
"When will the show start?" "What time does it start?" "I'll go see it." "I'll come from Hokkaido." "I'll come from Kyushu." The phone calls are flooding in. The shrine's chief priest and other staff are screaming with joy. They say that the shrine is receiving calls countless times .
As I mentioned earlier, Nakamura Kankuro, Somegoro, and many other people bring their families and disciples to see this show, and it is a huge success.
However, even though it is a spectacle that everyone enjoys so much, sometimes one of the 1,000 people in the audience will go out of their way to call the shrine and say, "It's gross," or "They were doing this," or "They did that."
In other cases, they will call the police or other relevant parties directly.
"I do this kind of thing," "I eat snakes." I want to tell people like that to go to a restaurant that serves snake dishes. They kill snakes, drip the blood, and sell it to customers to drink. Also, there is a snake restaurant in Ueno called Hebiten, so I tell them to go there. If they contact me, tell them. That's what I always tell them.
Eating a snake in front of an audience may be considered cruelty, but if we don't do that, how can we perform tricks that use snakes or large snakes?
I am now appealing to the local government and through the newspaper. I am sure that she will be able to return to work soon.
So, one in a thousand or one in several thousand people complain. "It's disgusting," "You can't do that in front of the public..." When one person like this comes forward, that kind of opinion is taken up. The people at the shrine said the same thing.
I would like to tell people like that to go there directly and tell them directly, and not to tell the shrine.
The shrine is very happy because they are making the place lively. The shrine is very happy because there are shows and visitors come and it becomes lively. That is why I said the above.
Just keep in mind that one complaint out of thousands is being addressed.
That's how it is.

Monden: I understand. To add to that, I have heard that the business of Yasukuni Shrine in Kudan, along with Hanazono Shrine, is also facing a very difficult situation.

Nishimura: In Tokyo, there is Yasukuni Shrine, Hanazono Shrine, and in Saitama Prefecture, Kawagoe and Urawa. This is my, well, it's a bit of an unpleasant word, but it's my "territory." It's a word that the yakuza used in the past, and it's called a "sea turf," but it's my territory.
We hold performances in these venues, and we recently held a circus in Chiba Prefecture, so we try to oversee all such tent-based businesses responsibly.
I was also born to a family that ran a sideshow tent. Somehow, I was seen as a good fit, and a master wrestler in Tokyo asked me to come work for him. So I became the son of this master. Because of that, I would look after Yasuda-san and Daitora-san when they came to perform.
Of course, I don't just look after them, I also earn money from them. Thanks to them, I can live off them.
Well, how can I put it, it's like a territory, I guess?

Mr. Ohno: It's Niwaba.

Nishimura: Yes, my name is Niwaba. And I am the Niwaba staff member.
So, we (Taitora and Yasuda) are walking around the country with Nimotsu. Recently, they went to Kyushu and did some business in Fukuoka. Apparently they made a lot of money. Apparently they made a lot of money.
This is not my garden, so I don't get a penny. I just ask and say, "You got this much. That's nice."
That's it. That's it.

Monden: It's hard to find information about the hut hanging, so I'll explain it a bit. First of all, the last thing you mentioned was the "Hojoe" festival held in mid- September in Kyushu . This is a festival held at Hakozaki Shrine (Hakozakimiya).

Yasuda: We'll do it for a week.

Monden: I hear it was a huge success. I'll talk to you about it later.
Then, in Mr. Nishimura's talk, he talked about taking care of the huts in "Urawa," which is Tsukinomiya Shrine in Urawa, Saitama Prefecture, and the Juunikaichi festival is a representative festival. It is held on December 12th.
Then, Kawagoe has the Kawagoe Festival in October , where a haunted house appears. The last one, Yasukuni Shrine, is the "Mitama Matsuri" that is held every year from around July 13th.
By the way, the Tori-no-ichi festival at Hanazono Shrine is currently in full swing, and Tora-san is setting up his show tent. It is held in three parts, and the next ones will be on the 21st and 22nd . So let's go together!
Then there's Nagoya, and I'll talk to Mr. Yasuda in more detail later, but Mr. Yasuda is currently doing business mainly with haunted houses. Until recently, he was in Fujinomiya, Shizuoka Prefecture. This is also managed by Mr. Nishimura and another person, but what other places will he do it in?

Yasuda: The haunted house has become smaller. The shrine grounds are gradually disappearing. Now we have a shooting gallery, a playground, and a haunted house.
I used to perform in sideshow tents, but those places no longer exist, and we can no longer employ people with physical disabilities, so now I only perform as a ghost.
The year runs from May to October .

: So the "season" for a shed-type shop is a short period of five months.
Thank you. I would like to talk to Mr. Yasuda about this in more detail later.
One more thing I would like to say in relation to what Mr. Nishimura just said is that the situation regarding the continuation of the camp at Yasukuni Shrine is currently very delicate. This is a pretty big issue.

Nishimura: At Yasukuni Shrine, there were so many people attending the Mitama Festival in July this year.
A lot of young people are leaving.
We usually finish business at 10 o'clock and turn off the lights. This is because the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has told us to stop business at exactly 10 o'clock for crime prevention reasons.
10 o'clock, there are a lot of takoyaki shops and other places. They all turn off the lights.
We also turn off the lights so that no one comes there anymore. But this year, young people were making a lot of noise in the temple grounds, drinking, eating, throwing bottles of alcohol.
The footing is already so bad that we decided not to injure ourselves. We also decided that if this continued, the shrine would be in trouble.
Because it is a place where important people from the country visit. We decided to refrain from holding the event next year. As a result, there will be no shops at the Mitama Festival next year.
I am currently in the middle of thinking about the future as a businessman. However, I don't think I will be able to hold the Mitama Festival next year. I don't think I will be able to hold it next year.
And after that, we are working hard to get them to reconsider, but there will be no Mitama Matsuri next year. There will be no shows. There will be no takoyaki stands or other stalls.
However, all the lanterns will be lit. The purpose is to worship the spirits of the dead. If you are going out to play, the festival will be held, so there is no need to worry. However, all the shops will be closed. Please keep that in mind.

As you may know, Yasukuni Shrine and its Mitama Matsuri have often been featured in literary works, and have been considered representative places where one can see performing arts performed in tent-like exhibits.
However, there have been a number of times in the past when business was halted.

Nishimura: It's an old story. Before the war, there were two circuses, and about 10 sideshow stalls and haunted houses . Nowadays there are a lot of comic shops, but back then there were a lot more big shows like that.
However, after the war, around 1950 , something happened. The chief priest said that the loud noises at the Mitama Festival were offensive to the spirits of the deceased. So, for about 10 years, we stopped holding such performances .
However, after that, the chief priest who passed away recently said, "It's called a festival, isn't it? What's wrong with worshiping the spirit of the deceased?"
From then on, in addition to putting on shows, a haunted house also began to open.
This was about 40 years ago.
After that, many people came and opened stores for me. However, in the beginning, I couldn't make much money.
But for the past 10 years or so, this guy has been catching them one after another. He catches a lot.

Taitora: I'm trying my best.

Nishimura: Sideshows don't charge small children.
However, what often happens is that the children they bring with them, around first grade age, hide in the shadows and leave without paying.
Even then, he would say "No!" and catch them properly. Thanks to him, I was given a gift.

Monden: You can see that there is still hope for the freak show tent. At one point the shop was unable to open. But it was able to open again. I hope you will keep in mind that this has happened repeatedly in the past.

Nishimura: I would like to ask for your help. Please, the Mitama Festival would be lonely without the shows. I would like everyone to make that appeal. Thank you.

Monden: Everyone, please use the Internet and other media to spread the word. There are many books about the Yasukuni Shrine performances, and of course you can find out about them on the Internet. I would like you to search for them and tell people how much you miss them.
We would like to ask that performances at Yasukuni Shrine resume as soon as possible.

Separator

I have just spoken to Chairman Nishimura and it seems that there is not just one way of looking at freak shows.
On the emotional level, I feel sympathy for them and would like them to continue to do so, but on the other hand, there is also the current state of affairs. As is often said, in a world where everything has to be transparent, there are aspects where restrictions have to be imposed. So far, it seems that there is a kind of double standard when it comes to spectacles.
Rather than criticizing the existence of these two standards, what is necessary is to, together with those involved in sideshow tent operations, properly acknowledge that spectacles are still important in the modern age. And, if necessary, to listen to what those in the field have to say and summarize it in words, which is why this symposium was launched.
Furthermore, I believe it is important to create a system that will support these activities. We have already begun efforts to support such efforts for about six months now.
I believe it is important to promote collaboration between spectacles and industry-academia in this way, but as of now these discussions have only taken place at the individual level, including myself, and as this is still in its infancy, we have not yet reached the point of making it public as a discussion by the Spectacle Society, but I believe we have made a start.
First of all, I would like to ask all of you in the entertainment companies what kind of activities you have been engaged in up until now, apart from your main business.

First, I would like to talk to Mr. Yasuda. He currently lives in Ogaki city, Gifu prefecture, and is currently touring around the country with his haunted house.
As I'm sure you all know well, her husband is Yasuda Satomi, who is better known by the nickname "The Human Pump." He used to travel all over the country putting on real sideshow shows.
He has been working on a kind of collaboration with Masaki Ukai, who is here with us today, since the early 1980s. From what I have heard about his recent activities, he has been focusing on the various props displayed in freak shows, as well as advertising and promotional items such as picture signs, and presenting the shows "as objects."
I'm sure you are familiar with Ukai Masaki, but I would like to first hear about the background to his involvement.
First of all, how has Yasuda's company made the shows more entertaining?

Yasuda Haruko: What kind of shows are there these days?
In the past, I would say to the customers, "This is the poor child," or "Poor child," and have them look at the child. But now, such people are no longer of any use, and are no longer around.
Since the disabled began to be looked after by welfare services, these spectacles gradually disappeared.
When things like that were regulated by the government, it might have been fine for disabled people to have such people perform, but for us, it was no longer possible to hire and use such people, although it sounds strange to say so. I think that is why spectacles became obsolete.
In the unlikely event that our business returns to normal, even though I am now 82 years old , I would like to put on the "old-time show" one more time.

Separator

Monden: Thank you.
I think I heard your feelings that you want to do it again. I would like to support that feeling even a little, but Mr. Yasuda, what was interesting about the shows of the past?

Haruko Yasuda: Circuses and other events require a lot of advertising and cost tens of millions of yen.
In a show, the first thing to do is gather the guests in front of your booth. Then, you explain to them what kind of people you are expecting to see.
In my family, we call her "Octopus Girl," and she has eight legs from her waist down.
Well, actually, that doesn't exist. I just said, "There's a person like that in the freak show."
Right now, I'm hearing from the welfare side that it's extremely difficult.
However, as Tora-san mentioned earlier, if you can't use animals, including snakes, then what kind of shows can you do?
I think that by showing such things and doing such things, the audience is happy to watch.
You can see movies and plays at any time at the theater. But you ca n't see spectacles without festivals . It seems that spectacles have been an indispensable part of festivals since ancient times. I think it's really sad that they have disappeared since the Heisei era began and are gradually disappearing.

Monden: I personally can't imagine a time when freak shows will disappear from festivals. But it's true that we are moving in that direction.

Yasuda: It can't be helped, since they say we shouldn't do it. But if we did it, there would be no spectacle left. So we would end up saying things that don't exist at all. But that would be fraud. So we can't do it.
Our business has always been to "add a ring" to things that really exist, things that have a physical form, and have customers take a look at them. But you can't say something "exists" when it doesn't exist.
If you were to say, "I'm OK with that. I don't care what people say, I just want to go to a sideshow and show off my talents."
If there is someone who says that, I think we can put on this show anytime.

Monden: I really hope we can start discussing this in more detail from now on.
There will also be a social gathering after this today. If anyone would like to raise their hand and say "It's me!", you can speak to me there.
Alternatively, if you could spare a little time for me, Haruko, I might try to discuss the matter directly.
There is one more thing I would like to talk about here today. It is said that intangible cultures such as performing arts and local performing arts are very difficult to revive once they are in danger and fall apart.
Therefore, in the case of traditional performing arts, a system of support tends to be put in place. Experts are always the first to speak out and appeal to the public about the current situation. However, in the case of shows, as far as I know, no such system seems to exist at the moment.
In this current situation, Ukai, whom I briefly introduced earlier, has been working steadily since the late 1980s, although not in a flashy way, to get many people to enjoy spectacles as a culture.
Now, I would like to explain that this is an activity that aims to make spectacles widely known and known to everyone.
One of these activities was a show exhibition that was held in September recently. It was held in Ginza, right?
The exhibition was held in Ginza at the Vanilla Gallery, which is also known for the Sadistic Circus. A retrospective of the freak show was held here.
And the other one is being held in Nagoya, and although it is not a retrospective exhibition, it is also being exhibited at a museum.
I would like to ask Ukai-san about how you came to create this exhibition.
Yes, Yasuda-san.

Haruko Yasuda: In Nagoya, there is a festival called the "Daidochonin Festival" in Osu, Nagoya. It is a festival held in mid- October . We will also be participating, so please come along.
Sometimes it is held in conjunction with the Nagoya Festival, which is held at the same time, and sometimes it is just in Osu.
This year, the wrestling event was held in the grounds of Osu Kannon Temple. A big turnout was seen.
In the past, there were shows held there, within the grounds of Osu Kannon. And of course, the customers were delighted, especially middle-aged and elderly people.
She said, "Oh my, it's been decades since I've heard a story like this. I'm so happy."
There were some people who would tear up just listening to the talk in public.
The other day, I held an event in an auditorium like this at a university, and when an older person heard my recording, he said, "Excuse me, Yasuda-san, could you please perform that live?"
I used to be young and could speak quickly, but now, you see, I have dentures. I can't speak so quickly. But I learn by doing, so even without a script, when I'm asked to speak, the more people in the audience, the better I can speak. If there aren't many people in the audience, I feel a bit embarrassed.
After all, the nostalgic, old-fashioned spectacle shouting is really great.

Yasuda: The shows started after the war in places like Sennichimae in Osaka. They were held in burnt ruins. At the time, you had to pay tax if you charged 3 yen, so they were operated for 2 yen and 99 sen.
1947. The area was burnt to the ground , there was nothing there.
There was so, so much of it.
At the time, there was no recording technology, so we played these huge records. When there were no audience, the records were this big.
My husband was performing the "human pump" act there, and I was standing at the gate. I was 18 years old then.
So when I was working as a gatekeeper, my neighbor, Otora-san, was still a little kid. He was walking around a little, and he came over and I could see him. Yes, I remember that, it's a really nostalgic memory.

Ohno Yuko That was when she was four years old.

Haruko Yasuda: At that time, I was free to perform anything. There was no rule that said, "You can't do this, you can't do that."
Then, in Kyogoku, Shizuko Kasagi's boogie-woogie records were popular at the time. I was inspired by them and decided to play there.
It was the end of December, and there were hardly any people there. We went with Otora-san. We called it Uchikomi and Uchira, but we did it together (the two companies did business together). We got a lot of people. It was after the war.

Chairman Nishimura: Well, after the war, we opened a store in a place called Nanamacho in Shizuoka (Nanamacho, Shizuoka City).
And in Hiroshima, there is a place called Hatchobori, and the road there still remains. Right next to that place, next to the river, they set up a sideshow tent. A lot of people started gathering there. That was over 60 years ago.
　
to be honest, people here have been performing since they were four years old .
Well, I 've been to this conference many times , but Kabuki is also a shop . It 's a shop . The Kabuki that was held at Shijo-gawara in Kyoto was a shop .
This store really has a long tradition .

Yasuda Haruko: I really think it's a tradition .

Chairman Nishimura : There are many people who say that we should not get rid of stores.
Well , I have that kind of relationship all year round, and I talk to the Metropolitan Police Department and others . I also saw the shows when I was a kid . I did goldfish scooping, so that also adds to the liveliness of festivals. Don't get rid of those things . There are a lot of people who say that . So, as I said, if one person out of hundreds complains, they take it up. I'll keep talking about it, but I want everyone to cooperate and participate so that shops can still remain in Japan.
The person closest to her (Haruko Yasuda) was Professor Ukai of Kyoto University. Professor Ukai had been coming to Yasuda's house since ( Haruko Yasuda's husband, Satomi) was still healthy , really. I heard it from Yasuda . Yasuda said that her children were just like his .
I really can only ask for Ukai-sensei's help and for him and all the other teachers to help us perform the show .

Haruko Yasuda: I think that the young people here have probably never seen a show from the past . Have you?

Someone who has a tradition .

Do you have Haruko Yasuda ? Where is she?

I've been watching the venue since before the war . It 's the triangle at the end of Shiba Park , at the foot of Akabane Bridge . There's a gas station there now .

Chairman Nishimura , I used to pull a two-wheeled cart .

Haruko Yasuda : I used to perform here in Shinagawa, at Shinagawa Shrine.
Then I pulled Niguruma and went to a place called Osaki .

Chairman Nishimura: We used a cart, a two-cart . We would load logs onto it (to be used as materials for building a hut) . We would use it as a hut and put on shows. That was about 70 years ago .

Haruko Yasuda : That's right. Then, from Shinagawa to Meguro, we went to a place called Osaki.
After that we will also be performing in Meguro (as part of the annual tour route).

Chairman Nishimura , Professor Ukai, I really appreciate it. Please help us somehow.

MC : What shrine is it called in Osaki?

Chairman Nishimura　Kifune. There was a school there, and it was right next to it , so we did it there.

MC: Meguro is home to Otori Shrine, isn't it? (It's bustling with people for the Tori-no-ichi festival in November and other events.)

Haruko Yasuda Then she also performed at Meguro Fudo . (Meguro Fudoson)

Chairman Nishimura　In the past , I used to perform at various places , including shops . And that's why customers would come .

Haruko Yasuda: I think if we performed it now , it would bring back fond memories for everyone. Especially with the content of what the shopkeeper is saying .
It 's probably something you 've never heard of .

Chairman Nishimura : And since there are some old timers here, we used to perform right next to Shinbashi Station . No , Toranomon .

Chairman Nishimura also did it in Nippori.

Was the venue a burnt-out wasteland after the war ?

Chairman Nishimura : Yes, we started performing when the building was n't even fully erected . But people still came. It's true .

Ohno Yuko: The pond in Asakusa , what was that place called ?

Haruko Yasuda　Gourd Pond

Ohno Yuko : It's a circus and a spectacle place .

Chairman Nishimura: It's been over 20 years since that place was reclaimed. But before that , we performed at the Gourd Pond .

host　Yasukuni Shrine seems to be the most well-known attraction, but Hyotan Pond was also about the same size and was a kind of mecca for shops at the time , right ?

Chairman Nishimura: That's right.

Yuko Ohno ( I was about to do business)

the moderator Hirabi ?

They performed all the time even when there was no Chairman Nishimura Festival .
Then, we performed at Yoshiwara's Otori Shrine (Yoshiwara Kamon Otori Shrine) , which is also located in a pond . After performing in Asakusa, we performed there.

host　Until what point in the Showa era did this continue?

Ohno Yuko : Until I was in the second grade of elementary school, I used to take the trolley bus from Asakusa to Komatsugawa .

Chairman Nishimura : It continued until around 1955 .

Haruko Yasuda was born in 1950. Welfare was introduced in 1955 (the law was enacted).

Thank you, MC .
at these old freak shows, you find some truly surprising sights.
Through the exhibitions that Professor Ukai has been continuing, we will be able to see the memories of these stores in physical form. Professor Ukai , may I ask you to tell us a little bit ?

Masaki Ukai : This is Masaki Ukai. Thank you very much for talking to me .
So you're talking about material culture , or things .
This is going to be a bit of a long story , but I first met Yasuda Satomi, the husband of this Yasuda-san, who was famous for the human pump, in a sleeping hut (lodgings) about 25 years ago, when I was performing at the end of the year and beginning of the new year at Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine in Osaka .
I was visiting Yasuda-san and we were talking , and I wondered what I could do about this . At that time , Satomi -san's human pump was still incredible. She was also a talented comedian .
In those days, sideshow tent shows mainly featured Makitsugi (a type of "female Tarzan" act, involving eating snakes) and people with slight physical disabilities .
Nowadays , young people are going to see it more often, but they were doing things that young people don't usually see these days .
I wanted people to see that such an amazing person exists in a different way, in a different place . So I performed at a small theater in Kyoto that was a student movie theater . There were newspaper interviews at the time, but there were so many people that they couldn't fit in and they had to leave .
Imakatsura　The son of Beichou , who was called Kobeichou at the time, came . We asked him to line up, but we couldn't fit everyone in, so we had no choice but to ask him to leave . That's how popular he was.

Then , with the cooperation of Mr. Toshiaki Ueshima (of the Sakano Hiroshi Street Performance School, who is also here with us) , we performed at the Mokubatei in Asakusa . At that time, we performed as part of an art festival. In this way, we were able to introduce the amazing people who were unknown entertainers at the sideshow tent .
The idea behind this event was to somehow convey the intangible art that he mentioned earlier while he was still in good health.
Then, Satomi Yasuda , sadly, passed away twenty years ago, on November 26th , 1995 .
After that , I would go back and forth to Yasuda's place about once a year.

Then, around October of last year , or maybe August . Since we no longer had the freak show tent , Mr. Yasuda said to us , " You can take the picture signs, the material, and the things that were in the container in front of his house , Mr. Ukai."
So I said to him , " Well, I'll take care of it, and if anything else comes up, I'll keep it so that you can use it whenever you want, " and so I took it in for custody .　
Among the things I received there were thirteen or fourteen picture signs. Then there was the " Octopus Girl " that I mentioned earlier, and the taxidermy of a cow, which he said was called "Kudan" (ninben + cow = item) in the sideshow tent . He brought a whole truckload of these things to me. I also keep them in a container box -like place .
ever a chance for people to see the things (objects, substances) from the freak show I mentioned earlier , I would like to show them in various places .
One of the results was that this summer, at the Gifu Prefectural Museum in Seki City , Gifu Prefecture , there was an " Exhibition of Strange Things . " There were not only freak shows, but also a person named Fukurai from Gifu Prefecture, who was a professor at Tokyo University from around the Meiji period who studied things like clairvoyance and thoughtography , but was expelled for doing so . He was also from Gifu Prefecture , and there was an exhibition of people who were doing strange things and had ties to Gifu Prefecture .
The curator went to Mr. Yasuda's place , and he contacted me . So I displayed the Human Pump signboard that I had kept, the " Kiaijutsu " signboard and the Human Pump poster. I also exhibited photos of Mr. Yasuda that I had taken, and cooperated with the exhibition .

Another recent example is an art gallery called "Vanilla Gallery" in Ginza that will open from August to September this year . The owner is a photographer called Kyoichi Tsuzuki , who has taken photos of four-and-a-half-tatami-mat rooms such as "Travels in Japan" and " Tokyo Style . " He originally stored a lot of illustrated signs and other items through photographer Carlos Yamazaki . The gallery is storing illustrated signs and other items that used to belong to Tada (Tada Kogyosha, Gifu Prefecture, retired around 2000).
At that time , I was also interviewed and told him that I was also entrusted with Yasuda's work, and he suggested that I hold an exhibition there , since there is a place called Vanilla Gallery . So I exhibited the Human Pump and " Kiaijutsu " signs , as well as picture signs of " Octopus Girl " , " Crab Man " , " Mermaid " , etc. (though I think they couldn't be used at the same time ). I also exhibited the " Octopus Girl " material (a device to make it look like half body, half animal), and a stuffed "Kudan" . Those who have seen the space below Vanilla Gallery will know, but the exhibition was held there .

we have been exhibiting tangible items, not intangible items as you mentioned earlier . I have heard that many young people have come and left happy . We have been displaying such items from the retail industry, and books that I have personally collected .
show than just renting a space for that purpose (as a pure exhibition) , and only when there's a magnet for visitors . For example, a freak show tent with a picture sign for a show inside , rather than just hanging it outside .
　And then, there's a spectacle that I think I could still do. I don't know if I'm jumping ahead a bit, but (MC : No no ) , for example , there's " human transformation ."
If it were a human transformation, there wouldn't be any issues with people with disabilities . I think that if we could use a bit more modern technology now , the store could look a lot different .

Yuko Ohno　It 's a lot easier than when we were performing .

Ukai : I think if we all put our heads together , I still have a chance. And I hope many people, like Yasuda-san, Otora-san, and Nishimura-san, think about it.
We can still build a shed .

" change " that Director Nishimura mentioned , and then there's the "electric man" thing where you stand on a hot plate and turn on a fluorescent light and the light comes on, right? Even kids can figure that out right away . The teacher had to think of a way to trick them so they wouldn't notice .

Ukai : I would like to borrow the wisdom of everyone here rather than myself . I think there are some people here who are technical . I think there are still many shows that can be done using today 's technology .

Moderator: Thank you. We've gotten into some very specific details .

Separator

Haruko Yasuda: That kind of human change. But no one notices it even if I act . I guess I have to say " this way and that way " in public .

Chairman Nishimura: As I said before, one thing can seem like ten things .

Haruko Yasuda　However, if you just say, " This is what I'm doing, " no one will watch it . You have to make it interesting and strange.
A woman in formal attire is now going to take off her kimono , remove her clothes, and become completely naked . Once completely naked , she will change back into her original formal attire .
announce in public that the kimono , obi , and other accessories will be attached and that the performers will be returning to their original formal attire , the audience will not understand what is going on .
Nowadays , kids are smart . Ah. They tell us things like , "That's how it is, according to science ," inside.
Then the next customers who come in say , "No , no, that's a scam," and won't go in again.
I think it would be difficult to do things in a way that doesn't make children (your audience) aware of these things.

　My group also did a piece called "Underwater Beauty," where the performers were " humans from the waist up " and " fish from the waist down . " From the waist down , they cut a carp streamer in half , peeled it off, and showed the performers swimming with it .
" swimming," he means, "A mermaid is currently swimming in the water of a well that we have dug down to a depth of ten feet. Have you ever seen one? You have heard rumors and legends, but you probably have never seen a mermaid swimming these days. I am now going to show you a mermaid that is currently swimming in the Atlantic Ocean in the water that we have dug down to a depth of ten feet ." The customers then go in thinking , " Oh , I wonder if mermaids really exist . "
However, it's not enough to just say , " Oh , it's just like the mermaid sign . " So, it's difficult to do something like this unless you have a really good way of speaking . The level of people today is so high .
In the past , children were quite immature, but now it's difficult .
Well , the only thing we don't know right now is the "Rokurokubi" . We still do n't know about the " Rokurokubi " . Mr. Ueshima (Toshiaki Ueshima) , who is here , is now showing us a "Rokurokubi" . It's very well made . It's better than the ones we show, but I think we still don't know about those .
That's well made. It's light, so you can just pop it in and set it down.
The performance we were doing was different. It was called Yoshiwara Touge (?) and we would set up a mechanism similar to that of a Yoshiwara Oiran , and use that to attract customers to the main stage. We would say, "Your neck will get longer from now on ," and pull the mizuhiki cord ( a trick performed by the Yobikomi in the store would give a glimpse of a Rokuro-kubi (a long neck) through the curtains, piquing your interest) , and you would see the neck getting longer . I don't think you'd get any customers if you did that sort of trick nowadays .

Chairman Nishimura : Well, Mr. MC, we continued talking about shops , but there's this strange thing in Japan that's been around since ancient times: haunted houses , which are scary but which children like to enter .
I've been seeing this haunted house on TV lately . The man from the haunted house is here . The original creator of the current haunted house is a man named Yanagi, who has taken it to various places. I wonder where Maruyama is (Maruyama Kogeisha Co., Ltd. in Utsunomiya. It became a trading company during Makoto's time).

Maruyama Kogeisha Makoto : Nice to meet you, I'm Yanagi from Maruyama Kogeisha. I'm from Tochigi Prefecture. Nishimura-san , the chairman mentioned the haunted house, but in 1953 , we installed a haunted house at the "Hanayashiki" in Asakusa ( we were the installers) .
Haunted houses are becoming popular at the moment, and this year (thanks in part to television coverage) there has been a tremendous response.

Chairman Nishimura, what kind of TV is that ?

Maruyama Kogeisha was recently featured on BS Fuji TV in four episodes . They covered everything from what was possible to opening .

Chairman Nishimura: " Hanayashiki " is also on TV, is n't it ?

It's run by Maruyama Kogeisha and was broadcast on NHK .

Chairman Nishimura is revealing the truth .

Maruyama Kogeisha: Nowadays we use bat switches and sensors , and we put lights and mechanisms in them to make them move .
But now we are going back to the old days , to topknots and things like that (period stuff) .

Nishimura: Is that better ?

Maruyama: Yes, that's right. At one time we tried all sorts of things, trying to be trendy . But the owner asked us to make a " traditional haunted house " , so we added bamboo poles, just like you see in department stores. We decided to add bamboo poles here and go with that .
we did a period piece haunted house at Orion Street in Utsunomiya.
The project was even awarded an award by the city . We showed it in a shopping district that had become a " shuttered street," and the response was tremendous .

Nishimura Maruyama , how many performances have you performed this year ?

Maruyama: 10 places. I did about 10 places in the summer alone.

Nishimura in Utsunomiya

Maruyama : That's right. Now, next year, the Choshi Electric Railway in Chiba Prefecture will be hosting a true ghost story called " Choshi no Kaidan" (Ghost Stories of Choshi) . It's a local story . They're planning to do a haunted house, so I 've been busy with that this year , because they're planning to make a haunted house inside the train .
The train runs from Inubosaki to the station just before Chofu , and on the way there you are shown a haunted house and a promotional speech.

Nishimura: Inside it we'll create a haunted house .

Maruyama　Create a haunted house .
I planned it and went there many times . I would run it after the last train .
The last train is at 9:30, but we decided to start around 8:30 .
However, unfortunately, there was a double suicide at a time when the project was cancelled this year (summer 2014) .
A flyer was made, and an internet connection was made. But then , one week before the event, it was cancelled .
So I talked to the president and we said, " Okay, let's do it next year . " So we're on the train and now we're starting to plan it again .

Nishimura: When they do that, I'll definitely go and see it .
a haunted house on the train . You can see the haunted house while the train is moving . I want to see it too.

Maruyama : So there are three "Choshi Ghost Stories." They are true stories . After hearing them , I put the opening lines on a CD .
At that time, the curtain is lowered and the props are brought out .
I'll just say that in the story, a bicycle appears running . That 's what I decided to act out .

Moderator: I have two questions. How can we get information about Mr. Maruyama's haunted train house?

The decision will be made around December , and then we 'll go .

Monden: I promise to let you know.
And one more thing , I have some information for you.
Currently, Mr. Maruyama is planning to revive puppet theater . As some of you may know, puppet theater is a very old performing art that Mr. Maruyama's tent company, along with Mr. Kurokawa (Kurokawa Kogyosha) in Hokkaido , has been doing for a long time . It was passed down from Mr. Maruyama 's mother .
you are currently looking for people who can narrate , or tell stories in a more nuanced way . For example , there are now many female rakugo performers and rakugoka appearing on television . I also think that some of the people who gather at the Misemono Society have connections with such people , or are studying storytelling themselves .
are any such people out there, please let us know and we would love to hear a story about Maruyama's puppet shows .

Maruyama　This year (2014), we did a story of Yotsuya Kaidan in a haunted house. So, as you just said, we borrowed Tochigi Broadcasting and asked an announcer to do the narration .
So, a few years ago , I performed Yotsuya Kaidan at Seibuen in Tokorozawa, and it had been lying dormant since then. So, this year I decided to perform Yotsuya Kaidan , and I did Yotsuya Kaidan.
Then , about three years ago, I did a " Yokai Legend " event with Shigeru Mizuki at the " Kodomo no Kuni " in Gunma Prefecture , and we made dolls, all of which were yokai dolls. That's what really brought in a lot of visitors.

Monden: You talk about it very casually, but Mr. Maruyama is a very talented person . He is the president of the company, of course, but he also creates the sculptures himself .
very skilled craftsman and also serves as an officer in the Utsunomiya City Handicraft Promotion Association .
I will be sharing the details of what I have just said in the journal that will be published in due course . As for the storytelling I mentioned earlier , it doesn't have to be today, but I would appreciate your cooperation in building a relationship with me by sending me an email or something.

Separator

Mr. Monden just mentioned, there have been new developments in the store up until now, and there are also indications of the possibility of new exhibitions, such as the recent collaboration between Mr. Yasuda and Mr. Ukai.
In addition to this, I would like to hear from the person sitting next to me today about the current state of affairs at Taitora Kogyosha .
As I mentioned earlier, these days the only place you can see freak shows is at Hanazono Shrine in Shinjuku , at the Tori no Ichi festival held on the day of the rooster in November .
new show tents may appear in the future , but for now, this festival seems to be the only one left. The people in charge of the show tents for this festival are the people here at Taitora Kogyosha.
Some of you may have seen it before, but at Daitora Kogyosha, there are young tayu (actors) who act as promoters and perform shows that may seem strange to you.
In fact , the company has had a very interesting experience overcoming the difficulty of finding a successor. Can you tell us a bit about that?

Mr. Ohno, from Taitora Kogyosha It must have been about ten years ago already . Irikata-kun (Isamu Irikata, who later became independent and revived a sideshow tent reminiscent of the past) held the first sideshow tent conference at Waseda .
I said, " If anyone wants to do this, come , I'll teach you because there aren't many left.
However, I will teach you how to set up the tent , but I won't teach you the tricks ."
Then I came here . I tried really hard to learn it for about three years . But I wasn't able to do it ...
But, as Tayumoto, he was separated (became independent) .

When you say you have "let go" of the tradition , does that mean you are now independent?

So he became independent. And since he is a member of a theater company , he knows a lot of theater companies . The ones who are helping out now are "Gokiburi Combinat" and " Delicious Sweets" - Delicious is an all-female group . These people came to Irikata - kun to help out . It was like they did a tie-up.
I never got to hear the details, but Irikata-kun passed away. No, he left for Los Angeles.
That's how Irikata-kun and his friends ended up helping out . Well, I think our show ended about four or five years ago. But even though I would get angry at them and say, " This is what it's like ," they kept doing their best. And the people who came were really trying their best.
This may seem sudden, but as a master's daughter , you have to do anything (any job without hesitation) . Tayu are actually very arrogant when they leave the stage . They 're like, " You won't be able to eat without me . "
So I told Irikata , " You have to do everything yourself ." And so he was able to do the tricks to a certain extent .

Today, a cockroach named " Pyonko -chan " came there . This one is also " no good " . I've had a few panic attacks .
they could learn how to hang the hut (hut rack) a little more .
The huts for a show and a haunted house are completely different. However, the other day , we were talking about a haunted house hut, not a show. That 's all I want you to remember .
His performances have improved, and he can even attract customers. I think it would be great if he continues to work hard .
shows are good. It's a show, after all. It 's a job that people say " You can't do it if you're stupid , you can't do it if you're smart, and you can't do it half- heartedly ," and it's a job with a lot of hardships. I told you about the person from the Animal Protection Association who came, but the law changed in September . I was told in Hakata, Kyushu to study the law a little .
　" If I was going to study law , I wouldn't be doing show business ," she said. "I'm a lawyer." That 's the kind of exchange we had. So I left the rest to them. Do your best.
But , "I can't eat snakes " and "I can't burn ." To be honest, they're not really eating . They just hide it and it looks like they 're storing it in their cheeks. That's part of the trick. Still, it's now prohibited to do most show performances , so they have to think of other things to do themselves .

MC : I 've met Irikata-kun many times . He told me that he had a dream of performing a play by the playwright Shuji Terayama in a sideshow tent .

Ohno was in Renji Ishibashi's theater company . The Seventh Ward.
Then I jumped into the sideshow business . Then, someone called Momoyama from the Aquarium Theater heard me speak at Waseda University and said, " You should try doing sideshow business, " so that's how I got in . But it was the first time I'd brought my resume to a sideshow business.

Mr. Shuji Terayama, Mr. Kouhen Tsukasa , and Mr. Juro Kara of Mr. Nishimura's Tenjo Sajiki . They were also people who loved spectacles. They were people who said, "Let's do spectacles . "

Yasuda : I loved Terayama Shuji . I remember watching him come up from the stage . My wife (Yasuda Satomi) was very respected .

MondenHow did you meet?

Yasuda: That was at the first Osu Street Townspeople Festival . Terayama-san came to Osu. At the time , they were recruiting courtesans to perform at the Oiran , which is still going on today .
At the time, I went to Yoshiwara to hire a real courtesan. That's how it all started, and I've been doing it ever since, up until now for the 30th time this year .
At that time, it was Terayama who set up the stage and performed in front of the Osu Kannon for the very first time .
So we were performing in a shed that had been there since my childhood.
However, even the excellent entertainers at Terayama's place just didn't seem to suit the audience, or they didn't have an eye for it , so they didn't attract any customers .
So , Domoto (the organizers of the event) said, " This won't do ," and my husband, Satomi , said, "I'm sorry, Satomi , but please go to that person and pump him up ." So I performed .
Terayama was delighted and said , " I've never seen a store like this , and I 've never seen comedians like this before . "
　He said, " I thought stores were just sloppy places, " and then he asked me, " Are there people who can do such fine acts? "
My husband had already gone on stage , so I waited until he got off . Then I saw the comedian with a shaved head . I thought, " Wow, that 's impressive . "

As you mentioned in your talk, the influence of Terayama Shuji remains to this day , and in his theatrical activities, Irikata- kun seemed to have wondered what would happen if he were to perform Terayama's works in a freak show .
So, when he began his training under Otora, various performance troupes came up, the name of which came up - Gokiburi Combinat - and another group , Delicious Sweets, which is also a performance troupe - and I understand that this is how young people from these groups began to give speeches and actually perform under Otora .
What's surprising is that Waka- chan (Pyonko Tayu) is here . She started studying with Ootora-san and has finally reached the point of building a freak show tent . She's going to set up her own freak show tent, a haunted house . She's very nervous because of the expectations of the crowd, but I think it's wonderful.
I would like to ask Waka-chan to say a few words about herself and what kind of person she is . I have handed her the microphone. Thank you.

Otora Pyonkodayu is originally from Fukuoka. Did he come to Tokyo to do theater ? Yes , he did .
(Host: What kind of theatre company are you active in ?) The Cockroach Combinat .
I came here wanting to do theater, and the first thing I saw was a cockroach.
(MC ? Where is that ?) It's a place called Hikariza in Nakano .

Monden : I heard that you started going there and that it was a group that put on some pretty extreme performances , but what kind of things did you do?

Otora Pyonkodayu is famous for her skewering, especially her skewering in the cheeks.

Monden: So, when did you start helping out at Otora-san's place?

Pyonko Tayu : I joined midway through, but when did it start?
That was more than fifteen years ago.
I started coming here more than fifteen years ago .
I originally worked part-time at a chindon band .
(Monden Chindon is Takada's Tokyo Chindon .)
I was in a lot of different places . I was doing a lot of different things, like how to perform . I was also invited to play the trumpet.
Isn't the speech important for a chindon performer? And I wanted to get better at it, so I asked Irikata if I could do a little speech at his place (yobikomi) .
(Host: And then you started performing in sideshows? )
taken to the Sapporo Festival on the first floor .
I had the opportunity to play the role of Kido.

Monden : Are you currently working together as a live-in employee?

Mr. Ohno: Well, we live together , but we don't . When we travel, we go together.

Monden: Waka-chan, what do you think? I assume you are thinking about continuing the store and developing something new .

Pyonko Tayu: That is what I think . ( For example, the Monden tradition ) is currently being developed.
I'm trying new things all the time now .
Now it 's getting worse and worse. I can't do "snake" or " fire" . So I'm thinking hard about what to do next and I'd like to try a new material at Tori- no -ichi .
The next Ni-no-Tori festival will be on November 21st and 22nd .

Ohno Maki is a snake. As I said before, we are not allowed to use snakes, big or small .
I have a big snake. I have a permit in Machida city, but I don't have a permit in Shinjuku. It wasn't a problem in Tokyo before. But now I have to apply when I go to other prefectures.
I had to submit my request to each prefecture from Kyushu to Hokkaido . I had to submit all the documents stating what time I would be passing through each prefecture. So it's impossible to get to Hokkaido .
However, if it was within Tokyo, it should have been okay. In fact, it's okay to show the snakes for up to 24 hours. However, if it's after 25 hours , you have to get permission again . However, there are two days for the Tori-sama festival , so that's difficult.
But the customers say , " I want to touch the snake , I want to touch it." Eighty percent of the customers who come in ask, " Is there a snake here? " Look, the snake is tearing off the skin it has peeled off for the customers who come in . That's what they say , money will come in .
That's why about 80% of customers who come in say hello .
So, if it's difficult to show the snake, I'm thinking of at least giving them the skin , which is the second step .

Pyonko Tayu : Every time, right before the show, something like " Snakes are no good " happens. Or the host suddenly doesn't do something . There are all kinds of accidents. So we think about it each time and do our best (Mr. Ohno studies and studies )
I can't do " mukashi-nagara " anymore. I'm talking about "nasty" acts .
I don't think it's good to just imitate the past exactly.
I believe it is something that evolves every day . It is difficult to preserve the old-fashioned things , but if there is an environment where freak shows can be created , I think it is possible to create new ones that are in keeping with the times.

I think there was a good final comment . It was about " developing new shows in various places, without being limited to a specific location . "

Separator

The Pyonko location is already within the festival grounds ...

Monden: My apologies. Sorry. I'll go and study (scratches head).
Finally , Mr. Nishimura has actually done something wonderful. He was in Ishinomaki, which was hit by the Great Tohoku Earthquake . He took the festival there, exactly as it was . Mr. Nishimura is the person who looks after the festival , so I think he was able to do something like this.
Can you tell me a little bit about this ?

Chairman Nishimura is a volunteer. In the end, Ishinomaki has suffered various damages, such as the land being lower than the sea, and there is nothing left .
So we went to Ishinomaki with 50 stalls selling things like shooting gallery , quoits , okonomiyaki , takoyaki , bontsuri and other things that are used in various festivals .
It was a school in Ishinomaki . The organizer and leader at the time , Shinjiro Koizumi, asked me if I could take the initiative . I thought that would be a good idea, so I went that Sunday .
In Tokyo, there is always a festival on Sunday, and I said, " Let's take 50 trees . " There were 90 people in total, so I went as the leader of the group .
There , in front of the newspaper company, Koizumi said, " Thank you , Nishimura , for doing this in such a lively venue . "
That's what came out. Children, old people, old ladies . It's free . Takoyaki , naan , everything is free . There were so many of them that I couldn't make it in time .
Shooting ranges are free , so I'll drop it .
That's how it ended , but then Mr. Koizumi came and we shook hands. I have a quick photo of that moment, so I think the moderator has seen it.
That's something to be proud of , Otori-sama, at my rake shop in Meguro. I put it up in front of the shop . Then, customers come in grateful, saying, " Isn't that Koizumi ?" They see it and I can sell it. And I make a profit from it .
It's a volunteer job . I've been asked to do it again , but it's difficult to do it on Sundays .
always have business on Sundays . So the dates don't suit us, and it's difficult to take 50 people. I've been asked to go again , but I 'm definitely going to go again sometime in the future .
The next place I've been asked to go is Fukushima . I've asked him to take some photos again then .

tradition
thank you
I think this is the best possible support. When we think about the meaning of culture today , one of the things we need to consider is its effectiveness and its connection to society . From this perspective, I think Nishimura 's practice is an excellent example of the cultural significance of stores and street stalls in today's world.

Please allow me to conclude with this.
If we pursue the question of " the present of spectacles ," we find that there are traditional festivals and opportunities for stalls to be set up. These are traditional places of commerce, called "takamachi" in merchant lingo .
However, it seems that nowadays, shops and festivals are no longer limited to the traditional Takamachi area. They have gone beyond this and are now appearing in more and more places , and seem to have begun unique activities . I would like to follow these new and unique activities as closely as possible and report them to you all. Thank you for today.