Revival of the local performing art swept away by the Tsunami
Haragama kagura(Haragama kagura Preservation Association)

Haragama Kaguramai

Tsu Shrine in Soma city. It is located in Haragama, a fisherman's town, where almost all of the residences were destroyed. For more than 300 years, the Shrine, as the Guardian of the sea, has been protected by the local people. Haragama Kagura is a kagura dance which was dedicated to God.
The Shrine had survived the tsunami damage before. It was not washed away by the East Japan Earthquake. However, the costumes and tools, which were put outside of the Shrine, were lost. It was hard to continue Kaguramai. In 2012, the year after the Earthquake, the young fishermen in the community restarted Kaguramai, the local festival.
The revival of Haragama, a fishermen's town, was impossible without the traditional performing arts which connected the people in the area. More than anything, everyone could become pleasant and healthy through the art. It is truly meaningful for the townspeople to restart Kaguramai. The voices initiated the local people. Since then, Kaguramai became more essential in local events, more so than before the disaster.

Contact: Shuji Kumagaya, The Chief of Tobu 1st ward, Fukushima Prefecture, Haragama kagura(Haragama kagura Preservation Association)