Arts & Entertainment in Japan
Tokyo

Festivals and Events

• Ippan Sanga

  The Emperor and the Imperial Family receive the New Year greetings of the public in the grounds of the Imperial Palace.

    January 2
• Sensoji Temple

  Setsubun

  Crowds storm the grounds of Sensoji Temple, scatter beans and say goodbye to winter and hello to spring.

    February 3 or 4 http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2285.html

• Hina Matsuri

  A doll festival through which families with girls wish their daughters a successful and happy life.

    March 3 http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2281.html

• Hana Matsuri

  The Buddha’s birthday is celebrated in all Tokyo’s temples with either parades or quieter celebrations.

    April 8

• Design Festa

  Hundreds of young and aspiring artists descend on Tokyo Big Sight in Odaiba.

    May 26/27 http://www.designfesta.com/02_en/00_df_e/index....

• The Yasuda Kinen

  One of the country’s most famous horse races, held at the Tokyo Racecourse.

    Around June 4 http://www.japanracing.jp/yasuda/index.html

• Hanabi Taikai

  The summer skies explode with thousands of fireworks.

    From mid-July
• Asakusa Samba Festival

  Asakusa Samba Carnival

  Rio comes to the streets of Asakusa with a spectacular parade of dancers.

   

    Last Saturday in August http://www.web-japan.org/atlas/festivals/fes11....
• September Basho

  The September Basho

  The greatest Sumo wrestlers in Japan meet at Kokugikan Sumo Hall, one of the year's six Grand Tournaments.

    September

• Kawagoe Grand Matsuri

  One of the liveliest festivals in the Tokyo area, involving some 25 ornate floats and hundreds of costumed revellers. 

    Third weekend in October.
• Tokyo Motor Show

  Tokyo Motor Show

  At Chiba.

    October 27-November 11 http://www.tokyo-motorshow.com/eng
   

• New Year

  Thousands gather at the big shrines to hear the bells ring out 108 times (the number of human frailties, according to Buddhist thinking) to usher in the new year.    

    January 1

Theatre, Cinema and Opera

Though language can be a problem when exploring Tokyo’s theatre, colourful extravaganzas like Takarazuka or the more traditional Kabuki are enjoyable.  Kabuki is by far the most accessible of Japan’s traditional performing arts and its dramatic plots, full of larger-than-life heroes, are easy to follow even without understanding a word of the dialogue.  Performances last three or four hours, but single-act tickets are available at the Kabuki-za. www.shochiku.co.jp/play/kabukiza/theater. Puppet theatre, bunraku, pre-dates Kabuki, but shares many of the same story-lines.  The artistry of the puppeteers is astounding.  Apart from Japanese transfers of hit Broadway shows, the most entertaining popular theatrical experience you can have in Tokyo is Takarazuka, an all-singing, all-dancing, all-female revue which appears at the Takarazuka Theatre.  Tokyo can also be a surprisingly good place for English-language drama – major international theatre groups often pass through on their foreign tours, although tickets tend to be expensive and hard to come by. 

The people of Tokyo are avid cinema-goers, though a trip to the movies is far from cheap.  The best time to catch a movie is on Cinema Day, generally the first day of the month, when tickets are less expensive.  Listings are published on Thursdays in the Daily Yomiuri and every Friday in Metropolis. By the way, if you want to see a movie that accurately captures contemporary Tokyo, rent the DVD of Lost In Translation, starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson. 

If you get the chance, catch a concert of traditional Japanese music, played on instruments such as the sakuhachi (flute), shamisen (a kind of lute that’s laid on the ground) and taiko (drum).     

Museums and Galleries

Many great museums are located in Tokyo, including the National Museum, the Science Museum Tokyo and the Edo Museum.  One of the MUST destinations during your trip to Japan, Tokyo’s National Museum is the oldest and largest Art/History Museum in Japan. About 2,500 works from more than 100,000 items in the collection are on display. The National Science Museum covers the story of evolution from the earliest beginnings of life to the development of human beings. There are also exhibitions under the theme of dinosaurs and the sea. The Edo-Tokyo Museum was founded in 1993 as a facility to tell the story of the history of Tokyo.  There are also art museums dedicated to traditional Japanese as well as western art and sculpture. Other museums in Tokyo feature advertising, paper, tobacco and transportation.

Travel tip:  To save admission fees, the Grutt Pass is available for 49 facilities including museums, art galleries, zoos and aquariums, for Y2,000.