Itoigawa Kenka-matsuri Festival (April 10th at Amatsu-jinja Shrine)
Amatsu-jinja Shrine, located about 500 meters south of Itoigawa Station, is an old Shinto shrine, which has been long venerated as the first shrine in the Itoigawa Region. An annual grand festival held at this shrine on April 10th is 'Kenka(fighting)-matsuri.' It is a soul-stirring festival, where young people from two areas in the city carry mikoshi (portable shrines) and fight by hitting them against each other's. For the area which wins the fight, it is said that a good catch of fish and a good harvest are assured for the year. After the fighting is over, the main event now is bugaku (court dances and music) on the stage. Chigo-mai (boys' dance) which has been handed down from the Kamakura Period (1185 - 1333) unrolls elegant and noble scenes like a picture scroll from old times. The dance is designated as a national intangible cultural asset.
Itoigawa Omanta-matsuri Festival (held on the first Friday and Saturday of August, in several areas of the city)
People in happi coats dance along the streets to the song 'Omanta-bayashi.' Mikoshi also turn out and the whole city is filled with a festival mood. 'Omanta,' by the way, means 'you' in the regional dialect.
Ennen of Nechi-yamadera (August 31st and September 1st at Hiyoshi-jinja Shrine)
This is a grand festival of Hiyoshi-jinja Shrine, which is located in Nechi-dani to the south of the city. Subtle and profound dances such as Furyu (a dialogue drama performed by richly costumed actors), bugaku, kagura (sacred Shinto music and dance) and shishi-mai (dance performed in the guise of a shishi, an imaginary beast) are performed one after another. Among them, 'Oteteko-mai' dance is a folk art designated as a national intangible cultural asset, still holding the form of Kabuki dance of the Medieval Period. It is said that it might have been named thus, as it is performed to a musical accompaniment which sounds 'ote-teko-ten'. The gorgeous costumes are also worthy of note.
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