THE unique performance of the Saipan Awaodori Team impressed members of the audience during the 41st Japan Autumn Festival at Ypao Beach Park on Guam on Nov. 19, said Misako Kamata, president of Kinpachi Restaurant, which organized the Awaodori team and sponsored its trip.
The team members are Sheena Saures, OJ Search Osilek, Cassidy Wabol, Coddie Francio Forbes, Vianny Mettao, Jeafanie Tibong, Marcela Heben, Julianne Mettao, Leon Wabol and Eleazir Mettao.
It was the Japan Club of Guam, the main event coordinator, that invited the Awaodori team to perform at the Autumn Festival.
While on Guam, the Awaodori team also visited the Japanese School of Guam and performed at the Guam Premier Outlets.
Kamata said the Awaodori team contributed to the success of the 41st Autumn Festival on Guam.
It was the first time for the Awaodori team to perform on Guam, and it was also the first time that Guam audience members saw the Saipan dancers perform, she added.
“The audience members were all eyes and ears, and the team really did an excellent job,” she said, adding that hundreds of people watched and “everyone felt they were part of it, as they also danced with the Awaodori team.”
She added, “These kids are all local children of Saipan, and the Guam audience members were really surprised that Saipan children could dance and play instruments related to Japanese culture and tradition.”
Kamata said they were told that the audiences wanted the Saipan Awaodori Team to come back and perform at the 42nd Japan Autumn Festival next year.
Kamata and the Awaodori team once again would like to thank Japan Club of Guam’s Mitsuo Sato, the president of PHR Ken Micronesia Inc., and Tadashi Gonda, the president of Sun Pacific Guam, which arranged the Saipan Awaodori team’s travel to Guam.
The Saipan Awaodori Team performs during the 41st Japan Autumn Festival at Ypao Beach Park on Guam, Nov. 19, 2022.
Members of the audience dance with the Saipan Awaodori Team during the 41st Japan Autumn Festival at Ypao Beach Park on Guam, Nov. 19, 2022.
The Saipan Awaodori Team members pose for photo after performing at the 41st Japan Autumn Festival at Ypao Beach Park on Guam, Nov. 19, 2022.
