In the small town of Nishimonai in the northern prefecture of Akita, the locals perform a Bon Odori – a special dance for Obon which is a time for honoring the ancestors.
The Nishimonai Bon Odori is unique in that some of the dancers were a black hood to represents the spirits of the deceased. Other dancers wear a patchwork kimono of silk fabric known as hanui and a woven straw hat called a amigasa.
You can’t see the faces of the dancers which gives the whole dance a kind of surreal quality.
For those practicing Japanese, take the challenge in seeing if you can comprehend the Akita-ben (dialect) of the singers.
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