博多人形師が３年ぶりの舁き山笠に込めた思い　一番山笠「恵比須流」

This year, the Hakata Gion Yamakasa festival will be holding its first Kakiyamakasa event in three years. Just like the men who participate in the festival, the puppeteers who create the Kakiyamakasa share a strong passion. We interviewed them about this year's first Kakiyamakasa, "Ebisu-ryu." ◆Puppeteer, Ningyotsukasa Buhei Hakata doll maker, Ningyotsukasa Buhei. Hakata doll maker, Ningyotsukasa Buhei, said, "These are tools used to decorate the Kakiyamakasa. Small ones are fine, but the more you add, the happier people will be." ◆Creating the Ebisu-ryu Kakiyamakasa The Kakiyamakasa he is creating is for this year's first Kakiyamakasa, "Ebisu-ryu." Due to the impact of COVID-19, this will be his first Kakiyamakasa creation in three years. Doll Maker Takehira: "It's not so much that I'm excited, but it's so much fun doing it after three years. It's a little different from the decorative Yamakasa and the way Hakata dolls are usually made, so I hope I can fulfill my role as a puppeteer in the festival. Anyway, I'm having fun." The title is "My Vow: The Guardian Deity of Hakata." It features Owatatsumi-no-Mikoto, the enshrined deity of Kushida Shrine, as its motif, depicting a figure praying for peace and warding off evil spirits. ◆Ebisu School is the First Yamakasa of the Year Doll Maker Takehira: "Because it's the first Yamakasa, I think they're putting in a lot of effort. I want to live up to that, and I hope the Ebisu School members are happy that they've successfully dedicated it this year." Takehira's goal is to create an impressive, carry-carrying Yamakasa. He's putting a lot of thought into the kimonos to make the dolls stand out even more. Doll Maker Takehira: "The lighting is about this much during the Oi Yamakasa. So I'm hoping to make it stand out. The kimono will be white from top to bottom, with a touch of red." ◆ The Haki Yamakasa Nearly Completed On the day the float was nearing completion, a representative from the Ebisu School visited Takehira. "(Immediately after entering the workshop) Wow. This is really nice. This will be a magnificent Ichiban Yamakasa." Ichiban Yamakasa "Ebisu School" General Affairs Officer Seto Hirotaka: "It looks like they're clenching their teeth, but they're not. They're putting in incredible strength. I can imagine the roars of excitement from the spectators at Ichiban Yamakasa." ◆ Decorating the Haki Yamakasa On the 2nd of this month, the Haki Yamakasa was decorated at the Yamakasa shed. *Seto compares the design with the sketch on the fan. "Should Kushida Shrine be hidden, or not?" "Kushida Shrine shouldn't be hidden." "In that case, this size is just right." Once the decorations are finished, the dolls are finally unveiled. *Removing the face covering "Wow. It looks amazing. It's been so long, I'm so happy." ◆Carrying the thoughts of the puppeteers and the men in it Ningyo-shi Takehira: "It's great. That's all. There are all kinds of brocade flags and other things attached to the farewell, but those are things we've been making for three years. Because of COVID, we didn't just sit back and do nothing. Instead, we started preparing little by little, and this is the culmination of all the work we've been doing until now." This is the first float parade in three years. Carrying the thoughts of the puppeteers and the men in it, the Oi-Yamasa parade on the 15th will be the finale.