This year’s Kyo Odori was held at Shunjuza—a stage located within the campus of Kyoto University of Art and Design. An artsy college atmosphere was very welcoming and familiar, while the performance was excellent, easy to understand, and extremely entertaining.
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Tayu; ghosts of the past, beautiful actresses, or mysterious dancers? I need to admit that I had no clue about any details of the tayu profession when I arrived at the Yoshino Tayu Memorial back in April 2019. I’m still a bit puzzled, as the history records seem to be incomplete, so my tayu research is ongoing. Who are these alluring entertainers?
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A dancer’s ensemble wouldn’t be complete without a proper hairstyle. The most accurate and suitable hairstyle for wearing a kimono on stage is a complicated nihongami. However, it is not made of the performer’s real hair. Even long time before the modern era, artists used handmade wigs (katsura). For actors and dancers, wigs were (and still are) an essential part of the stage costume, as certain hairstyles enhance and express the specific roles.
