Driving rain and 80 mph winds couldn’t keep Columbus festival-goers away from Saturday’s Celebration of Japan, sponsored by the Dublin Arts Council.
“It’s been great, especially with the weather like it is,” said Carol Argiro, education director for the Dublin Arts Council.
The festival, held in Dublin Scioto High School, introduced Columbus to Japanese art, culture, music and food. The full schedule of events featured, among other activities, storytelling and theater performances, wood block printing, martial arts demonstrations, calligraphy and Zen rock garden activities.
“We have different activities every year, and this year our new feature performance was the Yass Hakoshima Movement Theatre,” Argiro said.
The Movement Theatre combined modern dance with traditional aspects of Japanese theater and classic mime.
Audiences packed the theater all day to see the Burlington Taiko Group, a Vermont-based traveling group that practices the ancient Japanese drumming techniques of Taiko.
“They’re always the most popular attraction. They’re one of the few performing Taiko groups in the United States,” Argiro said.
The festival attracted people of all ages, from elementary students to college students to adults.
“I thought it was more geared toward younger people, but I definitely enjoyed it,” said Danielle Kinnen, a junior in design. “I had fun. I got to play with paint and I thoroughly enjoyed Gyotaku – making a print out of a cold, dead fish.”
Younger children found plenty of hands-on activities to keep them busy throughout the day, including origami, learning to eat with chopsticks or trying on a Kimono.
“This is the eighth year for the Japanese festival,” Argiro said. “It was originally supposed to be the Japanese festival once, and then other countries each year after. But it was widely popular, and now it’s become staple in the Columbus festival schedule. People look forward to it every year.”
