During the summer of 1932, Seattle's first Bon Odori festival was held by the Seattle Buddhist Church (Seattle Betsuin Buddhist Temple). Bon Odori is a traditional Japanese style of dancing performed during Obon, a Buddhist memorial service. The joyful dance celebrates selfless giving and expresses gratitude to departed family members and ancestors. Over the years, the annual event open to all has grown to include flower and craft exhibits, musical performances, food booths, demonstrations, and other activities. Bon Odori is officially part of Seafair, Seattle's ten-week-long summer festival of neighborhood and community celebrations.
In this image a dancer performs Bon Odori with about 300 others while spectators line the edges of South Main Street in front of the Seattle Buddhist Church in the Chinatown International District neighborhood. This dancer is wearing traditional Japanese kimonos with an obi. Typical Bon Odori involves dancers forming a circle around the yagura, a raised platform for musicians, however the way in which the dance is performed is different in each region and some dances simply proceed in a straight line through the streets of the town.
Caption information source: "Seattle Buddhist Church is dedicated on October 4, 1941," by Margaret Riddle, HistoryLink.org Essay 10785. Caption information source: "Special dancing is Bon Odori highlight," Seattle Post-Intelligencer, July 27, 1981, page 23.
