Amaterasu performance marks 160 years of Belgium-Japan relations in Brussels

A Japanese stage work built around the sun goddess Amaterasu turned Brussels Town Hall into a symbol of Belgium-Japan soft power as both countries marked 160 years of diplomatic relations. The performance brought kimono fashion and other Japanese heritage elements into one of Brussels’ most recognizable civic landmarks, placing cultural symbolism at the center of an anniversary year meant to reach beyond embassies and protocol.

The event was organized by Be-Japon and staged in Brussels Town Hall, a setting that gave the production more than scenic value. The building’s civic and historical weight helped frame the performance as a public act of relationship-building, with Japanese tradition presented before a European audience in a space that belongs to the city as much as to any one government.

That choice mattered because Amaterasu carries a meaning that runs deeper than aesthetics. In Japanese tradition, Amaterasu is the sun goddess and a foundational figure in the imperial line, so staging her story in Brussels suggested a deliberate use of culture as diplomacy. The performance functioned as a visual reminder that bilateral ties are not sustained only by trade or formal meetings, but also by shared rituals, public symbolism and the ability to make another country’s traditions legible to new audiences.

The anniversary itself traces back to 1866, when the Treaty of Amity, Commerce and Navigation established formal relations between Belgium and Japan. Official 160th-anniversary materials say 2026 marks that milestone and describe the celebration as broad enough to include projects in culture, arts, sports, education, tourism, economy and science. That range explains why a stage production, a fashion display and a public ceremony could sit comfortably alongside diplomatic messaging.

In practical terms, the Brussels performance showed what governments hope symbolic events can do at a moment when cultural diplomacy has become as valuable as formal statecraft. It offered a public, accessible way to refresh the bilateral relationship, reminding Belgians and visitors that 160 years of ties can be celebrated not only through policy statements, but through performance, heritage and the shared space of a city hall.