Awa Odori

Attested since the sixteenth century, the dance is performed by ren, troupes of forty to a hundred, men crouching in a heavy step and women on tall geta sandals, straw hats tilted over their faces. The band is limited to shamisen, flute, taiko drum and kane bell, on a two-beat rhythm that never changes through the evening. The festival draws 1.3 million spectators over four nights, 12 to 15 August, making it the country’s largest dance gathering.