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In [[Edo]], ''niwaka'' performances by courtesans came to be a regular annual event in the Yoshiwara; they were performed in the 8th month each year, as part of a festival dedicated to the ''[[kami]]'' [[Inari]]. The festival also involved a parade through the Yoshiwara, in which courtesans in various costumes rode on floats, and stopped at teahouses to perform skits and dances.
In [[Edo]], ''niwaka'' performances by courtesans came to be a regular annual event in the Yoshiwara; they were performed in the 8th month each year, as part of a festival dedicated to the ''[[kami]]'' [[Inari]]. The festival also involved a parade through the Yoshiwara, in which courtesans in various costumes rode on floats, and stopped at teahouses to perform skits and dances.
A prominent element in ''niwaka'' performances was the practice of courtesans dressing up as "Tôjin" (foreigners), in costume drawn from a mix of Chinese, Korean, European, and fanciful elements. ''Niwaka'' got their start in [[1767]], and some scholars have suggested that from the very beginning they were directly and strongly influenced by the [[1764]] [[Ryukyuan embassies to Edo|Ryukyuan]] and [[Korean embassies to Edo]], and by Tôjin performances which were a regular part of the [[Tenka Matsuri]] (major annual festival processions in Edo). It has also been suggested that this farcical, playful, performance of foreignness may have metaphorically enhanced or emphasized the feeling of the Yoshiwara as being "another place," distinct from the everyday world;<ref>[[Ronald Toby]] ロナルド・トビ, ''"Sakoku" toiu gaikô'' 「鎖国」という外交, Tokyo: Shogakukan (2008), 271.</ref> however, it might also have simply been a matter of fun.
Similar performances, called ''Gion nerimono'', also took place annually in [[Kyoto]], in conjunction with [[Gion Matsuri]]. ''Niwaka'' prints produced in Kyoto included not only those made in the standard [[printing and publishing|woodblock]] manner, but also ''[[kappazuri]]'' (stencil) prints.
Similar performances, called ''Gion nerimono'', also took place annually in [[Kyoto]], in conjunction with [[Gion Matsuri]]. ''Niwaka'' prints produced in Kyoto included not only those made in the standard [[printing and publishing|woodblock]] manner, but also ''[[kappazuri]]'' (stencil) prints.