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2
July , 2001
AN
INSIDER'S VIEW OF SAKURA MATSURI
It's not easy putting on the oldest continuous
community event in Denver. It takes months of planning, dozens of volunteers
and the tireless work of a handful of people involved at the core of all
the activity. That's what I learned this year by being peripherally involved
with Denver's 29th annual Sakura Matsuri, or Cherry Blossom Festival.
| There is a vast, invisible conspiracy of hard work that goes on in the background during Sakura Matsuri. |
There is a vast, invisible conspiracy of hard work that goes on in the background during an event such as the Sakura Matsuri. The public - both Japanese and non-Japanese people - that comes to enjoy the summer celebration's dancing, music, martial arts, crafts, flower arranging, gift vendors, artwork, calligraphy, children's activities, bonsai demonstrations, various displays, and of course, food, drink and more food, never gets to see the bustling behind the scenes: the weeks of organizing and the days of cooking and the hours of preparation and renting the tents and stage and making sure every last detail is covered.
There are individuals heading committees and individuals assigned tasks to handle on their own. There are groups within the sponsoring organization - the Denver Buddhist Temple - including the Young Buddhist Association and DBT Minyo Kai (the dance group that taught the more than 100 people the moves for the bon odori street dance on Saturday night) - whose members lend extra help throughout the event. (By the way, I had a great time at Saturday evening's bon odori dance, and didn't stumble too badly, even in my kimono!)
Some people dedicate themselves beyond the call of duty, and put in long hours leading up to the event and then spend long days during, showing up early in the morning and going home late at night, after all the other helpers and certainly all the public have gone home. The performers are the public face of the festival and so they get the accolade and the applause. But there are many who never get acknowledged for the work they do - the many cooks, servers, dishwashers, raffle ticket sellers, the cleanup crew (it's amazing how many cups and bottles and other litter otherwise sane and sensible people leave behind when they are at an outdoor event), all the vendors and non-profit organizations that suffer under the sun.
All of these people and groups deserve the sincere thanks of the community for making Sakura Matsuri possible. The problem is that a very small core of people end up organizing events such as this year after year, and not enough new (and especially younger) people step up to volunteer their time and effort.
This year's event was hotter than usual -- the temperature flirted with the 100-degree mark, especially on the second day. The thousands of people that attended Sakura Matsuri also deserve a big thanks, for coming out in spite of the heat. The temperature wasn't bad if you were inside the church to eat or explore the many cultural displays, lectures and demonstrations, but outside the heat was worse than oppressive. The martial arts groups all avoided the encroaching sun on the stage so they wouldn't burn their bare feet. One brave troupe demonstrated some karate moves on the pavement in front of the stage and the group's sensei later admitted his feet were in pain ... despite the fact that he had just broken a baseball bat with his shin. All weekend, a line of grateful festival-goers stood against the mist sprayer for a brief cool respite and people took their hot plastic folding chairs and sought out the spotty shade from the trees along Lawrence avenue.
The entertainment stage, where I stayed most of the weekend, was well-attended even when the sun blasted down. It's become customary to open and close each day with taiko drumming, and the Denver Buddhist Temple's Denver Taiko group had its Junior Taiko members play at the start and the full professional ensemble close out each day to roaring crowds. In between, the traditional dancing by various groups ranging in age from pre-schoolers to adults introduced audiences to the beauty and grace of Japanese dances. For music, there was everything from karaoke singing of old-fashioned "enka" pop songs to the traditional singing called shigin of Chinese-style poetry, the pretty cascading harp-like sounds of the koto and the haunting, haunted sound of the shakuhachi, or Japanese bamboo flute. Two breeds of Japanese dogs were showcased, the Shiba Inu and Akita (dogs are always a hit with the audience, and thankfully there were no "accidents" on the stage as they were introduced). As always, there was a healthy helping of martial arts representing aikido, karate, judo, tai chi, and others.
And this year, the Sakura Matsuri planning committee invited a Florida entertainer, Masaji Terasawa, to come and perform his street entertainment throughout the festival. He practices the art of "Amesaiku," making strikingly creative sculptures out of heated rice syrup candy which he draws out of a cart. He combines his artistry with a great deal of comedy and slapstick and magic, and "the Candy Man" captivated audiences that gathered around him on the street, the sidewalk or in the church, wherever he rolled his cart.
He added a new twist on the community's cultural outreach, and reminded me that Sakura Matsuri is an important event for a number of reasons.
It's all too easy to forget why we do this. Sakura Matsuri is an external celebration of Japanese culture in a world that is increasingly ethnically diverse, and an expression of how Japanese can fit within the larger community. It's an internal celebration of Japanese traditions to the Japanese American community, where the passing of generations can sometimes fade away the reasons for all the cultural rituals like a silk cloth sitting too long in the sun. It's also a time for the entire Japanese community to get together and catch up after not seeing each other for a whole year. And, it is simply a way to connect our humanity with each other, and pull together to accomplish one great public display every year.
I'm looking forward to Sakura Matsuri 2002, hot sun and all.