The annual Japanese Fall Festival will be held this Friday through Sunday, September 6-8, at the Mizumoto Japanese Stroll Garden at Nathanael-Greene Close Memorial Park, 2400 S. Scenic. It's hosted by the Springfield Sister Cities Association in partnership with the Springfield-Greene County Park Board.
Springfield Sister Cities Executive Director Lisa Bakerink said the festival is a celebration of both Japanese culture and the relationship Springfield has had with its sister city Isesaki, Japan for 38 years. Six delegates from the sister city will be here for the event, she said, "and they will be stationed periodically at the culture tent at the event, sharing some of their crafts and skills and just information about Isesaki."
There’s lots of entertainment planned at the festival. The headliner will be a group called Zoomadanke.
"They take a simple child's cup and ball toy where you have a ball and a string and catch it on a cup or a spike, and they turn it into a whole acrobatic routine," Bakerink said.
Entertainment will also include Taiko drummers; storyteller/musician Yasu Ishida; Japanese traditional dance by Kizuna; a high energy Yosakoi dance team called Uzumaru; and more.
This year’s event will also feature a professional Japanese confectionary.
"He is going to demonstrate how to make wagashi, which is a beautifully designed, very artistic bean paste dessert that's served with tea ceremonies, said Bakerink.
Vendors will sell items related to Japanese culture. There will be demonstrations and workshops as well as traditional tea ceremonies, and a food court will feature Japanese cuisine.
Kazumi Holcomb and her Japanese language class from Kickapoo High School will host a free kids’ area.
Evening strolls are planned for Friday and Saturday nights, and visitors can purchase wishing lanterns to float on one of the garden’s three koi ponds.
Visitors will have the chance to purchase souvenirs and snacks at the omiyage and dagashi tent.
Admission at the door for adults is $9 on Friday and Sunday and $14 on Saturday. Children ages 3 to 12 get in each day for $4. Members of the Springfield Sister Cities Association receive free admission to the festival.
Visitors may enter and exit the park on Scenic with right turns only, and Bakerink said that will be enforced.
Volunteers make the festival possible, she said, and they are always needed. You can find out more here.
