A traditional performing art from Isesaki, featuring 3 dancing dragon heads
Senbongi Ryuto Kagura
The 2026 edition of Senbongi Ryuto has ended.
Festival information
EVENT INFORMATION- Dates
- 2026/10/10 〜 2026/10/11Ended
- Season / frequency
- Every year on the 3rd Saturday and Sunday of October / Every year
- Location
- Senbongi Shrine
- Area
- Gunma Prefecture・Isesaki City(From Tokyo: approx. 50 min–1 h · bullet train)Prefecture-level estimate to a main station or airport, not the venue. Airport access, check-in and onward travel are extra; remote areas and islands can take much longer.
- Highlights and activities
- Wishes behind the festival
- Required number of participants
- 3-person group
- Last updated
- 2026/10/19
Performers wearing 3 dragon heads present a distinctive linked dance by 3 people, passed down at Senbongi Shrine. This folk performing art, associated with warding off misfortune and praying for rain, has been safeguarded and passed down in the community.
About Senbongi Ryuto Kagura
Senbongi Ryuto Kagura is a passed down in the Kita-Sengi and Minami-Sengi neighborhoods of Isesaki City, Gunma Prefecture.
It is known by this name because it is dedicated at Senbongi Shrine in Minami-Sengi.
A distinctive feature is the “one-person-standing, three-person linked dance” format, in which 3 people each wear one of the 3 heads.
A folk performing art passed down in the community, featuring dragon-shaped heads.
Source: 千本木龍頭神舞 - Wikipedia
Festival highlights
A highlight is watching 3 performers dance, each wearing a different dragon head.
The 3 heads represent Ho-oh-moto, a female lion, and a male lion, and feature carved horns and sacred masks, along with brightly colored toriso ornaments.
When the toriso breaks off during the vigorous movements, children can be seen gathering the pieces.
The use of dragon-shaped heads is another feature that distinguishes this from other lion dances.
A traditional performing art from Isesaki, featuring 3 dancing dragon heads
What to expect
During the dedication, 3 performers dance together, each wearing one head and moving independently.
Before the Ryuto Kagura dance, a stick performance is also dedicated as a purification rite.
The stick performance is performed by practitioners of Araki-ryu Kenpo, a martial art passed down in the Moro district.
The main occasion for the dedication is the autumn festival at Senbongi Shrine.
How to take part
必要人数：3人一組
Location and access
- Venue and address
The dance is dedicated mainly at Senbongi Shrine and in the Kita-Sengi and Minami-Sengi neighborhoods of Isesaki City.
Senbongi Shrine is located at 2280-1 Minami-Sengi, Isesaki City, Gunma Prefecture.
- By car
About 20 minutes from Honjo-Kodama Interchange on the Kan-Etsu Expressway.
- Parking
There is space for 2 cars at Senbongi Shrine.
Source: 千本木龍頭神舞／伊勢崎市 / 千本木神社 | 【ぐんまフィルムコミッション】ロケ地検索と群馬で映画やドラマなど撮影する制作会社をサポート | 【ぐんまフィルムコミッション】ロケ地検索と群馬で映画やドラマなど撮影する制作会社をサポート
Address 2280-1 Minami-Sengi, Isesaki City, Gunma Prefecture
Dates and season
- Listed dates
2026/10/10〜2026/10/11
- Season
Every year on the 3rd Saturday and Sunday of October
- Frequency
Every year
Accommodation and hotels PR
Showing nearby accommodation.
Prices and availability are current at the time of retrieval. For multi-night stays, only the first night’s price is shown. Confirm the final price and directions to the venue with the booking provider. Select your dates again when using the area search link. Search area: within 3 km of Central Gunma Prefecture / Isesaki City (the search is not centered on the festival venue)
Tips for your visit
At Senbongi Ryuto Kagura, look out for the 3 dragon-shaped heads and the toriso ornaments made of colorful Japanese paper.
It is said that the toriso breaks off during the dance and children gather the pieces.
According to local tradition, hanging a piece of toriso by the entrance wards off evil.
Nearby attractions
太田市立新田荘歴史資料館
群馬県太田市にある博物館
Origins and History of Senbongi Ryuto Kagura
Senbongi Ryuto Kagura is said to have been performed to ward off misfortune and pray for rain since the mid-Edo period.
Stories tell of people praying for rain during droughts in an era when rivers and irrigation channels had not yet been developed, and saving the community from crisis.
A story is also told that the lord of the Isesaki Domain bestowed lanterns on the performers.
Of the forms that spread through the Tone and Arakawa river systems from the Muromachi period to the early Edo period, this is said to be the only one still in existence. It is designated an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Gunma Prefecture.
Official information
Senbongi Ryuto Kagura is featured as an intangible folk cultural property of the city on the “Intangible Folk Cultural Properties” page of the Isesaki City official website.
You can find information about local preservation and transmission through the city’s cultural property guide.
Source: 無形民俗文化財／伊勢崎市
Senbongi Ryuto Kagura at a Glance
Senbongi Ryuto Kagura is a lion dance featuring 3 dragon heads, passed down in the Kita-Sengi and Minami-Sengi neighborhoods of Isesaki City.
Distinctive features include a linked dance performed by 3 people, a preceding stick performance, and scenes in which the toriso breaks off amid the vigorous dance movements.
It is said to have been performed to ward off misfortune and pray for rain since the mid-Edo period, and it is still dedicated at the autumn festival at Senbongi Shrine.
Japanese Festivals.jp Editorial Team
Celebrating local culture and helping you discover a side of Japan you never knew.
Article updated: 2026/10/19
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