The Concept for This Fall's Live Show Revealed: "Turning the Oni Back into a God"

Sasaki Atsunori , the director of MCZ's live shows, revealed details of the concept and staging intentions behind "Momoclo Autumn Tōjin Sai (means 'peach god festival') 2026," scheduled for this fall, during a talk show held yesterday at "Momoclo Nagaiki Plaza," a community center in Chosei Village, Chiba Prefecture.

Sasaki, popularly known as Atsunorin, explained that the project began when producer Kawakami approached him with a rather vague request: "Let's do Tōjin Festival again." This prompted him to recall the 2016 summer live show "Tōjin Festival: Onigashima," held ten years ago, in which the Tōjin-sama deity had been turned into a oni (japanese traditional demon) and then left that way.

He decided to use this unresolved storyline as the basis for the new show.

Here are some highlights from his remarks:

•  The theme of the 2016 Onigashima show was "coexistence with oni  (demons)," but this time the concept is different.
• Day 1: The mission is to channel the combined power of Mononofu fans and staff toward the "demon-transformed Tōjin-sama," who will be somewhere on stage, and hold a festival to purify the deity and somehow restore its original divine form.
• Day 2: The plan is not to simply repeat the same show. The setlist will feature songs that strongly convey what comes after the deity has returned to its divine form.
• However, Day 1 will also have its own climax, ensuring that fans attending for just one day can still enjoy a satisfying experience.
• Due to constraints such as the relatively small venue, large-scale productions like those seen in the past will be difficult to stage in the future. That is precisely why this will be a "reborn Tōjin Festival."
• The aim is to take this reborn Tōjin Festival, born in Chosei Village, to various locations in the future and build a new legacy.
• Plans are underway to give fans reasons to return to Chosei Village even after the live show ends. He expects Momoclo to make an announcement. He wants to leave something behind, not just memories.
• This year, circumstances prevented a spring live show, while the summer heat made a large outdoor concert undesirable. The event was therefore moved to autumn, and Tōjin Festival was revived to coincide with the change.
• The concept of "passing the baton of smiles" will continue to be carried forward.
• The original Tōjin Festival began when Kawakami approached Atsunorin with a request: "I want to put on a bizarre festival."

After the talk show, Atsunorin himself posted on X, promising, "I will make sure you are satisfied."

Mononofus are expressing growing excitement ahead of this weekend's event. Among the comments from attendees were: "It was so moving that he said he wants to preserve the concept of Haru no Ichidaiji even in the new Tōjin Festival" and "I can see hope that Haru no Ichidaiji will live on within Tōjin Festival."