The 「Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Festival」 is a summer event held in June in Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture. The Executive Committee has announced the talents who will play the roles of Toshiie Maeda and his wife, Omatsu-no-kata, in the 「Hyakumangoku Procession」, one of the highlights of the 「72nd Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Festival」 to be held next year.
Ichikawa Udanji as Toshiie Maeda
The 「Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Festival」 is held in commemoration of the great deeds of Maeda Toshiie, the founder of the Kaga Domain, who laid the foundation of Kanazawa when he entered Kanazawa Castle in 1583.
The Kanazawa City Festival had been held since the Taisho Era (1912-1926), and after the war, the Oyama Festival was held under the auspices of the Oyama Shrine Bonzei Association, but in 1948, the 「Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Festival」 began as a commercial and industrial festival.
Every time the festival is held, people pay attention to who will play the role of Toshiie Maeda, who plays the leading role in the gorgeous 「Hyakumangoku Procession」, and it has been announced that kabuki actor Udanji Ichikawa (59) will play the leading role next year.
(Image from 『Ichikawa Udanji Ichikawa III』 Instagram)
Udanji Ichikawa is a good fit not only for Kabuki performances but also as an actor, appearing in period dramas such as 『Kagemusha Tokugawa Ieyasu』 (TV Asahi, 1998), 『Kenkaku Shobai Syuriken Osyu』 (Fuji TV, 2018), and 『Shokichi’s Wife 2』 (NHK BS Premium, 2021).
Last year, he visited Kanazawa in November for 『Traditional Performing Arts Hana no Mai』, a performance he gave in 16 cities across Japan, where he enjoyed Kanazawa maimon sushi with his son Ukon Ichikawa II (Takeru-kun).
Actress Mahiru Konno plays the role of Omatsu-no-kata
Mahiru Konno (45) was born in Osaka and was the top daughter in the Snow troupe of the Takarazuka Revue, but left the troupe in September 2002. She then resumed her career with her current agency, Frahm.
She has appeared in four morning dramas, including the NHK serials 『Teruteru Kazoku』 (2003) and 『Come Come Everyday』 (2021). She played the role of Princess Okoto in the NHK historical drama 『Fuurin Kazan』 (2007) and has frequently appeared in 『Yo nimo kimyo na monogatari』 (Fuji TV series). Recently, she played the role of a patient’s mother in the Fuji TV series 『PICU: Pediatric Intensive Care Unit』.
In 『FLaMme YouTube Radio 「Konno Mahiru no Midday Mood」 #2』 distributed by the YouTube channel 「FLaMme」 in February of this year, this charming woman happily says, 「I fell in love with Kaze Fujii」, referring to seeing singer-songwriter Kaze Fujii on TV.
Photography along the route of the Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Festival is
In June 2022, Naoto Takenaka played the role of Toshiie Maeda and Chiaki Kuriyama played the role of Omatsunomata in the Hyakumangoku procession. As the procession passed by, it was discussed that the staff held a bulletin board saying 「Please refrain from filming」 to prohibit photography. It is said that many spectators were perplexed by the sudden prohibition of photography.
The event became a hot topic because it was covered in the news, and it was reported that next year’s 「Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Festival」 「can be photographed」 because permission was obtained from the talent’s agency to take photos and post them on social networking sites.
Upcoming Events
| Event Name | Starting Ceremony of Hyakumangoku Procession (Information on 2022) |
| Location | In front of Kanazawa Station East Plaza (starting point) |
| Address | 2 Kinoshinbo-machi, Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture |
| Contact | 076-220-2194（Kanazawa City Tourism Policy Division） |
☆Kanazawa Information
