East meets west this year on Fort Wayne’s Fright Night as brave souls gather at Promenade park and take to the streets for Night of the Yokai with A Sunset Spirit Parade.
The event, making its debut this year, is the brain child of acclaimed local found-object sculptor, Sayaka Ganz and is designed to honor and highlight Fort Wayne’s close ties to its first Sister City, Takaoka, Japan.
The celebration is made even more memorable as it looks toward the 50th anniversary of this partnership which is coming up in 2027.
Here WBOI’s Julia Meek and Takaoka committee chair Susannah Arthur discuss the significance of this vibrant slice of Japanese folklore and how it connects us with our Sister City Takaoka in the most spirited way possible.
Event Information:
Night of the Yokai Sunset Spirit Parade, Promenade Park
Saturday, Oct. 17
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Find more information on the Fort Wayne Sister Cities Facebook Page.
Here is a transcript of our conversation:
Julia Meek: Susannah Arthur, welcome.
Susannah Arthur: Thank you so much, Julia. I'm really happy to be here today.
Julia Meek: So the spirits are gathering all over town for Fright Night. How dreadfully fun! And you are bringing all spirit worlds together with Night of the Yokai. So who are these spooky little creatures we will be confronting?
Susannah Arthur: So Yokai are actually Japanese spirits that they have written about for over 1,000 years.
They can be anything from objects that have come to life, whether they're like an abandoned teacup that has been forgotten, and they want to like take revenge on the person that has forgotten them, to just animal spirits that can be mischievous, revengeful, or helpful.
Julia Meek: But we never know exactly what. We never know exactly why. Okay. We welcome a world of cultural traditions at our Fright Nights, from the Celtic New Year everything to Dia de los Muertos to the Zombie walkers--I guess that's otherworldly.
So how does your Night of the Yokai add to the fun, the fun and the fright of the night in fun, Susanna?
Susannah Arthur: So we're pulling off of something in Japan that is called the Hayaki Yako, and that's the 100 Demon or Spirit Night Parade, which was an actual painting done in like the late I would say 1300s.
So, they had their idea of what these spirits might look like. Yes, and so in this traditional sense, they would come together for one night out of the year and walk the streets and cause pandemonium.
Julia Meek: They were the source then. Okay, they were parading. Got it.
Susannah Arthur: Yes, the spirits would come together and parade through the streets, scaring people. So we're hoping to bring that kind of spooky--not, maybe not pandemonium, but spooky fun, to the night.
Julia Meek: We will be surrounded by, embodied within and just overrun by these little rascals.
Susannah Arthur: Yes.
Julia Meek: So okay, sounds like great fun. We have the beloved local creative Sayaka Ganz to thank for bringing this brilliant idea to our table, right?
Susannah Arthur: Yes.
Julia Meek: In a nutshell, what does this famous piece of Japanese folklore add to our own 21st century Halloween customs right here in the heartland, right here today?
Susannah Arthur: Well, my hope is that it'll bring a really unique element to our own traditions, and that we're we're dressing up as these fun spirit creatures. That has kind of been an American tradition that has cropped up in Japan more recently.
Julia Meek: So we've actually influenced them on the costuming on the All Spirits Nights?
Susannah Arthur: Mm-hmm, because this was not traditional for them to dress up and do this. They told it as stories. But recently in Japan they have started dressing up and parading in the same way during this time of year.
Julia Meek{ How interesting! And this being your first annual, though you have been planning, well planning this for truly a little over a year, Susannah, what kind of an advance word on the street is there? People know that this is going to happen. Are they as excited as you are?
Susannah Arthur: I truly hope so. We've been talking to as many people as we can to promote this.
We did work with Tech Venture Maker Space to do two costume workshops with them, which I am so excited they were able to host that for us, and a huge shout out to them. We have connections with the Fort Wayne Cosplayers that we are hoping they'll be able to join us.
They are super excited about it, from what I hear and understand. And we're also working with the Japanese American Association of Indiana to make this happen. And many members from that community are so excited to take part in this.
Julia Meek: As I understand, this year's cherry blossom festival actually netted quite a cosplay turnout, and that is kind of a generational thing where the young kids are embracing it. Do you see it going backwards to older folks embracing it because the young ones do?
Susannah Arthur: I would hope so, because it's kind of a fun thing to do, to kind of blend those traditions and to bring people and to have some fun together.
Julia Meek: On the street, on Fright Night. So let's take on that night. How will it work for you and your paraders, starting with the gathering point, which is Promenade Park in downtown Fort Wayne?
Susannah Arthur: Yes. So we will be meeting at 6o'clock on the Auer Lawn in Promenade Park, that's just across from the parking garage, actually right down there.
We'll have a meet and greet for about an hour, and then at 7 o'clock sharp, we'll walk around the immediate area of Promenade Park, probably down the Landing, and come back, passing out some candy, causing a little bit of a spooky ruckus, and then...
Julia Meek: Just a little? [both chuckle]
Susannah Arthur: Just a little, coming back to Promenade Park by 8o'clock.
Julia Meek: Great. So it's a couple hours of real interaction, a genuine Sunset Spirit Parade. The sun's going to be setting then. We will have in another part of the city, if all goes well, or maybe not so well [chuckles] we will have a Zombie parade.
We will have spirits everywhere. There's got to be some sugar skulls walking around somewhere, and again, is it all ghosts and goblins and spirits welcome at your place?
Susannah Arthur: Absolutely. We're just hoping to add to the fun of the night and have people get out and enjoy the festival.
Julia Meek: Something new, something old and new, and fun, and not too spooky, but spooky enough.
Susannah Arthur: Just spooky enough.
Julia Meek: Perfect. Now, a word on the costuming that you mentioned earlier. Another ancient to modern favorite, and as you noted, costuming is rather new in Japan, and it is something here that we've embraced in other cultures.
And now, because of the cosplayers and the role players and the manga people, we are all embracing that. How are you furthering this part of the pageantry?
Susannah Arthur: Well, beyond the workshop, it was a costume workshop that we held. All of us will be dressing up, [both laugh] myself included. Some people will be pretty wild, and there's a couple like really old pictures where like an umbrella came to life.
So there, I think like some spirits that we're not really used to in our own Halloween tradition. So I really want to introduce kind of a totally unique way of thinking about spirits here in Fort Wayne that is unique to the Japanese culture.
Julia Meek: And procession and yes, fright--frightfully fun! And who all do you hope to see gathered for this grand parade?
Susannah Arthur: Everyone is welcome. This is a family event, so we expect small children to families. If you're in the area, please come and join us.
Julia Meek: And obviously, costuming is encouraged?
Susannah Arthur: Encouraged but not required.
Julia Meek : Not necessary, okay. Now Susannah, let's look back at our own and first sister city, that's Takaoka, Japan. How does this event especially tie us to that wonderful community and all of the culture and customs that we have shared?
Susannah Arthur: So our hope is to kind of bring attention to the fact that we are coming up on our 50th anniversary with Takoka Japan.
And we wanted to bring in a really strong, really rich Japanese history to share with our community to really highlight Japanese culture in a fun way that we haven't done before. It was a good opportunity to bring an event that all ages could attend, so that we can reach as many people as we could.
Julia Meek: And we do enjoy the Cherry Blossom Festival, a direct result of their sisterhood. We enjoy the Japanese Gardens that they've gifted us right there in the Art Center, right down in the hub of our arts and culture.
How does it make you feel? You are also the secretary of the Sister Cities organization, and you feel the connections every day in every way. You're expanding them right now. Why should people want to know more and be closer to this this privilege that we have?
Susannah Arthur: I think that through our hope from the Sister Cities perspective is to bring these cultures to the forefront in our communities, so that we can really build bridges and promote understanding and peace from a citizen, individual to individual.
Julia Meek: Right on. I mean, up close and personal, and in every which way, that makes sense. Of course, the gardens, the tranquility, the traditions, the sacred natures of everything, and just a little bit of fun. It goes with our "family."
Susannah Arthur: Yes
Julia Meek: And it couldn't have come at a better time because we are looking toward that 50th anniversary of this special connection we have with Takaoka, Japan. What does this mean to the half century of connection it represents?
It's been 50 years of a lot of commitment and culture and learning, and sharing, and our city is pretty open and reflected in our diverse amount of of cultures and ethnicities and religions, and everybody gathered here. Where does this fit in that part of the show?
Susannah Arthur: So when we originally came up with the idea, we really wanted to bring in people broadly, from you know young high schoolers or middle schoolers all the way up to you know the people in their 60s or older.
Something that could really be enjoyed by the whole community, and really highlight that we do have this 50-year-old relationship. And that is huge, even compared to all of the like the history of Sister Cities International. To have a 50-year-old relationship is really special.
And the amount of work that has gone in before me by all of the founders and what they've given to Fort Wayne. We all just want to be able to bring attention to that and bring people into that story.
New people that are interested to carry on that--forward, that torch. We couldn't think of a more fun way to do it, and so we're really hopeful for that to happen.
Julia Meek: It should happen and happen well. Do you find the community hungry for, looking for connections? It hasn't been an easy last 10 years. There's been COVID. There's been a lot of unrest and exclusivity where it should be inclusivity.
In your heart, what kind of a difference does yes, a simple act of having this wonderful ancient tradition that we all share on this crazy fun Fright Night be happening right here, right now?
Susannah Arthur: So I think that when you engage in things, particularly from other cultures, that you really get a sense of a broader human society.
And bridging those, when you start to see other people as just people that have a really a wealth of human culture to bring to the table, it really broadens us and makes us deeper as human beings to really start to see each other as part of a larger human society.
And that is kind of the heart of Sister Cities in creating a more peaceful world through those connections.
Julia Meek: Amen, and as a group, thank you for what all you all've been doing for all this while. Now, going forward, what can we continue to learn from this special connection we have to our family on the other side of the world, especially in this the 50th anniversary of our coming together?
Susannah Arthur: So, as we look forward to our 50th anniversary, we will be sending 25 local high school baseball students to Takaoka next year.
Julia Meek: Oh, my my!
Susannah Arthur: Which is a huge undertaking. We're currently in talks with the TinCaps to help coach that team, and that will be kind of the highlight of the ceremony that will happen in Takaoka next year.
Julia Meek: Can you even believe it--that it's going to happen? And can you say what all it might mean? That's quite an undertaking!
Susannah Arthur: It is a huge undertaking that already we've been working on for probably, honestly two and a half years. And the amount of people that have stepped up to support us has been phenomenal.
Fort Wayne Community Schools has been involved. Parkview's been involved, and we deeply appreciate everything that they're doing to make this happen.
It's been wonderful to bring the community together in this way to help and see the support for it.
Julia Meek: And the communities all working--that's the point of having the sister cities. They are certainly international now. And in full disclosure, the visiting back and forth, which is certainly a splurge when "your sister" lives on the other side of the world. It happens as frequently as possible. Have you yourself been yet?
Susannah Arthur: I have had the opportunity last September. I got to go for the first time to Japan. We visited Osaka for a few days, and then I I had the opportunity to go to Takoka and meet everyone that I talked to in person.
It was an amazing experience and something I'll never forget. And I will be going next November and I cannot wait to go
Julia Meek: Go...take me out to the ball game?
Susannah Arthur: Yes!
Julia Meek: Fantastic! And meanwhile, Susannah and last question, as East meets West and ancient worlds embrace the modern, beyond the fun of this celebration and there's going to be plenty of it; in your heart and in spirit, why does it matter most for all concerned that we have this connection?
Susannah Arthur: I think that at this particular time in our world, promoting a more peaceful, connected world couldn't be more poignant or more important. As we really try to highlight that our brothers and sisters that live in other places in the world are exactly that.
There are our friends and our neighbors, our brothers and sisters, people that we live alongside, and we learn so much from them. And I think that at this point in time, really loving our neighbor Is the point.
Julia Meek: Susanna Arthur is Takaoka Committee Chair, Night of the Yokai Sunset Spirit Parade. Thank you so much for sharing this story of your horrifically frightful Spirit Parade and the backstory of that, Susannah, have a wonderful festival, do carry it on.
Susannah Arthur: Sayonara, Julia, and thank you so much for having me today.
