Another Famous Local

Izumo has a famous link to Kyoto and one of Japan's famous performing arts. A local girl named Izumo no Okuni went to Kyoto early in the 17th century to raise funds for Izumo Grand Shrine. One of the ways she did was staging performances on the river bank with her friends often playing the role of the male chapters. The plays caught the imagination of the locals and became very popular. This is how Kabuki started although these days all the rolls are played by men. A statue of Okuni dressed as a Samurai is displayed at Izumo Airport as well as near the river in Gion in Kyoto.