Miura Kikuna’s Ameya Dance

Directed by Shinkichi Noda

Located on Kanagawa Prefecture’s Miura Peninsula, Kikuna bustles with beachgoers in the summer. In October, the Miura Shirayama Shrine holds an annual festival, the Ameya dance, which has a history extending to the late Edo Period. Young men dressed in female garb perform dances including the shiramatsu konaya, komori, and godanme. The film emphasizes the wild aspect of these performing arts birthed by struggling farmers and fishermen.