Bon Odori by NihonJin Kai - Group Dance - Copenhagen Sakura Festival 2016

As seen through the lens of my old Canon Cam
Bon Odori by NihonJin Kai - Group Dance -
Copenhagen Sakura Festival 2016
Langelinie - Copenhagen - April 30, 2016

The Column, in the background, celebrates a naval battle with the Swedes, early 18th C, where Admiral Ivar Hvitfeldt and his crew continued to fight until their ship blew up. The Nike/Victoria goddess, at the top, is by archiect/sculptor Wilhelm Dahlerup, famous also for the first building of Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, in Copenhagen! Yes, it was Sponsored and paid for by Carl Jacobsen, the brewer, in the 80ies of the 19th. C.

NihonJin Kai, stands for White Japanese, is a group that practices in Valby, Copenhagen!

Bon Odori is the Japanese celebration of the the deceased parents and ancestors. The music, songs and dances may differ from region to region and may be sacred or, with some sake, may be more spirited, or profane. The dancers perform certain gestures that may tell tales of the deceased, his/her profession, his/her likes etc...Flowery straw hats, or fans, or handkerchiefs, or lanterns are branded and used in the ceremony. The dancers may proceed clockwise or counter-clockwise, or even in a straight line, when going trough the streets! Usually they rotate around a Master of ceremony, here with the Taiko, the drum.

The Copenhagen Sakura Festival, this year, the ninth, to celebrate the blossoming of the 200 Cherry trees, donated, 11 years ago, by a Japanese Businessman who made his fortune selling Danish Pastry in Japan!
Apr. 30, 2016