"Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!"

Setsubun ("seasonal division") is a festival held on February 3 or 4, one day before the start of spring according to the Japanese lunar calendar.

For many centuries, the people of Japan have been performing rituals with the purpose of chasing away evil spirits at the start of spring.

Around the 13th century, for example, it became a custom to drive away evil spirits by the strong smell of burning dried sardine heads, the smoke of burning wood and the noise of drums. While this custom is not popular anymore, a few people still decorate their house entrances with fish heads and holy tree leaves in order to deter evil spirits from entering.

In modern days, the most commonly performed setsubun ritual is the throwing of roasted beans, MAMEMAKI, around one's house and at temples and shrines across the country. When throwing the beans, you are supposed to shout "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" ("Devils out, happiness in"). Afterwards you should pick up and eat the number of beans, which corresponds to your age.

In Kyoto, Maiko perform rituals dances in Shinto Shrines and Buddhist Temples. After the dance, Maiko through roasted beans, MAMEMAKI, shouting "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!", to the odeon gather around a Noh wooden stage.

One of the three major classical theaters of Japan, with kabuki and bunraku puppet theater, noh is a poetic dance-drama performed in ancient language with highly ritualised movements. Along with kyogen farce, it is the oldest form of professional theater still performed today. Its history goes back to the 14th century.

Noh or Nogaku derived from the Sino-Japanese word for "skill" or "talent"-is a major form of classical Japanese musical drama that has been performed since the 14th century.

The Noh stage is a wooden structure with a Shinto shrine-style curved roof covered in cypress bark tiles. - There is no stage curtain.