to villages, crossroads, and other locations to help the locals by driving away evil spirits. Acrobatic feats and lion dances played a major role in these rituals. Around the time of the beginning of the Tokugawa shogunate (1603–1868), performances derived from this emerged in Edo as a major form of entertainment. In connection with the celebrations surrounding the beginning of the shogunate, lion dances, acrobatics, juggling, and a great variety of other entertainments were performed on stages across the city, all nominally under the auspices of . Over the course of the period, these came to be more closely associated with storytelling and other forms of popular entertainment. continues to be performed to this day and include many elements of street entertainment. See also Glossary of Shinto Mystery plays References Derived primarily from the Japanese Wikipedia article. Giolai Andrea, Introducing Mikagura.Some Ethnomusicological Features of an Ancient Japanese Ritual, https://web.archive.org/web/20160316132415/http://www.centrostudiorientaliroma.net/introducing-mikagura-%e5%be%a1%e7%a5%9e%e6%a5%bd-some-ethnomusicological-features-of-an-ancient-japanese-ritual/?lang=en External links Dances of Japan Japanese traditional music Japanese words and phrases