The performance is usually played in the following way: In a night scene at a hokora (a small shrine) on a mountain, suspicious people in a bizarre costumes and makeup appea on stage as bandits (for example, TAIRA no Masakado), or as pilgrims (for example, FUJIWARA no Sumitomo), and fight each other silently for a treasure in exagerrated movements, accompanied by the slow rhythm of Kagura (sacred music and dancing performed at shrine).
夜の山中の祠を舞台に、奇抜な扮装と化粧を施した怪人物たちが、山賊実は平将門、巡礼実は藤原純友などといった役で登場し、神楽などのゆっくりとした伴奏に乗せて、大きな動きで宝物を巡って無言で争う様式が普通である。