Kids Web Japan

Japanese dance is an art of grace.

In the second half of the Edo period, ordinary people began to study buyo from kabuki with professional choreographers and actors. And during the twentieth century, Japanese dance grew in popularity, leading to an increase in the number of teachers and schools of dance. Today there are many schools, offering instruction in everything from Edo period classics to contemporary works.

The Kawafuji school featured here has its roots in a type of dance connected with Shinto rituals called Edo sato kagura and has provided instruction throughout Japan since the 1930s. The school was renamed Sosaku Hobu Kawafuji in 1953, and since then it has choreographed innovative dances that incorporate traditional Japanese performing arts and classical dance techniques. Nationwide performances are held twice a year.