Energy, food and dancing were all on the agenda Saturday night for Japan Club’s annual Matsuri event in the John J. Hemmingson Center Ballroom. The two-hour-long cultural event at Gonzaga University featured Japanese dances on stage and with the audience, a hand sumo tournament and a senior spotlight speech.
Peter Houtsma, a GU senior, said the event was an amazing showcase of culture and dedication.
“I thought it was really awesome. The food was amazing, and just learning more about the culture and celebrating that — I’m glad to be a part of it,” Houtsma said. “I think they did a really good job curating the vibe, making sure attention was going in the right places and really setting the mood. They got it so people were comfortable to be dancing around the room and everything, so they did a really good job.”
In Japanese, “Matsuri” means festival or holiday, and Matsuri festivals originated as events to honor deities through procession, dance, music and food. The festival is a more than one-thousand-year-old tradition, and GU has celebrated it annually for four years.
Sam Lord, a board member and public relations chair for the club, said the event took detailed planning to come to fruition.
“I helped plan a lot of the stuff as a board [member] to make the event happen. I helped set up, and it was just really nice to see it all come together tonight,” Lord said. “My favorite part of the event was seeing all of our hard work come together, because it took a while to make it happen.”
Lord said that planning the event was difficult since the preparations took place over the summer, when most students were off campus.
“There’s a lot that could go wrong, but also a lot that can go right,” Lord said.
However, Lord said his optimism prevailed and the event went well.
One aspect of the event that went especially well was Bon Odori, said Takuto Hiraoka, the master of ceremonies for the first half of the show. Bon Odori, a traditional Japanese dance, was guided by club members and joined by nearly all attendees throughout the evening.
“I didn’t expect that many people to come and join. We actually planned to make a small circle around here,” Hiraoka said. “But it turns out, so many people joined it, and we ended up making a big circle and then having everyone together. It was so fun.”
Hiraoka echoed the sentiment of other board members saying he was excited for the future of the event.
“Since I have two more years [at GU], if I would be planning stuff, I would want to add more Japanese culture since I’m from Japan. I can bring a local perspective,” Hiraoka said. “Being involved in this kind of event encouraged me to show my Japanese culture and values that I can bring. Because some of the board members are not from Japan, it’s good for me to help advise them and build up better things.”
Lord said the Japan Club members do their best to honor Japanese culture through the event.
“I think people should come because it highlights Japanese culture,” Lord said. “It’s a really fun couple of hours you can spend. We worked really hard to make the menu, to plan the performances and I think if people want to have a really fun time, they should come to Matsuri in future years.”
Cooper Wells is a news editor.
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