Overview

• Japan’s 12th National High School Sign-Language Performance Koshien was held on September 14 in Kurayoshi, Tottori, with entries judged on sign accuracy and stagecraft.
• Kumamoto Prefectural Kumamoto School for the Deaf won the theatre, sketch and poem division for a third consecutive and fourth overall title.
• Kobe Noda High School earned its first championship in the dance and singing division.
• After advancing through video-based preliminaries, 16 teams from 12 prefectures representing 21 schools—about 150 students—performed pieces up to eight minutes.
• Princess Kako attended the opening, offered remarks in sign language referencing the upcoming Deaflympics, watched the performances and later conversed in sign with awardees.