2007年は天狗の年！

2007年に、大杉ミュージカルシアター（石川県小松市）は、「よくばり天狗Ⅲ：天狗惑星の大冒険」という創作ミュージカルを上演する予定です。制作のお手伝いや参加を希望するスタッフやキャストを広く募集しています。さて、パブリック・アート・プロジェクトの始まりは、「宇宙天狗舞台衣装デザインコンテスト」です！詳しい応募要綱はこちらをご覧ください . 締め切りは６月１日でした！

2007: The Year of the Tengu!

In 2007 Osugi Musical Theatre of Komatsu, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan will put on an original musical called The Greedy Goblin III: Adventures on the Tengu Planet. People from all over the world can contribute to and participate in our production. The Public Art Project begins with our

SPACE TENGU COSTUME DESIGN CONTEST!

(Deadline was June 1. Guidelines here. Winning costumes are here. )

The Tengu statue in Osugi

We have sent two tiny Tengu on trips around the world!

NEW !! Some traditional tengu stories from Japan in English are here!

A 15 cm statuette which will be a core of our public art project.

Winking tengu courtesy of Tengu Natto.

What is a Tengu?

Tengu are minor kami (Gods) or yokai (goblins, monsters) found in Japanese folklore. Tengus are popular subjects of Japanese art, theater, and literature, and come in two basic varieties. Karasu (crow) tengus have the body of a man, but with a beak and wings. Yamabushi (mountain hermit) tengus are tall beings with red faces and extremely long noses. They often carry a staff, a small mallet, or a magical fan, and sometimes have wings or a feathered cloak. Tengus are almost always portrayed in the dress of Buddhist monks or priests. See our gallery pages for various yamabushi tengu images.

Why a Tengu ?

In our village of Osugi there is a statue of a Tengu, made by Kurakichi Okura in the 1970's. This statue is the inspiration for our tengu musicals and projects. We first produced Yokubari Tengu (The Greedy Goblin) in 1997, a "new legend" about how he turned to stone. In 2004, we put on Yokubari Tengu II: I'm Back! This year the saga continues with Yokubari Tengu III: Adventures on the Tengu Planet.