On May 22, the 10th anniversary of the opening of the popular landmark, Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ebizo XI performed his famed nirami glare on a stage specially created atop Tokyo Skytree in Tokyo s Sumida Ward.
Nirami is a signature technique of the Naritaya, one of the Kabuki's acting guilds of which Ebizo is a member.
Nirami is performed by moving each eye in different directions. The act depicts Acala, a Buddhist deity with the power to ward off evil and bad luck.
There is a belief that people can spend the next year illness-free if the glare falls on them.
The event, called Ichikawa Ebizo Nirami at the sky, was held on a 70 centimeter-high stage that was set up at the top of the tower, 634 meters above the ground.
After delivering a prologue, he removed part of his outer attire covering his right shoulder. Then he glared into the wide areas of the Kanto region that can be seen from the tower, with a sanpo wooden stand used to put food offerings in his left hand.
Naritaya was named after the Naritasan Shinshoji temple dedicated to Acala in Chiba Prefecture.
Ichikawa Danjuro began using the name Naritaya after he had a son, Ichikawa Danjuro II, following his visit to the temple and praying there.
The public can visit the Tokyo Skytree for the first time. It is a flat, dodecagon shape with a diameter of about 15 meters.