Young men, aged 17 (If there are not enough boys aged 17 years, boys who are not yet 17 years old or are over 17 years old are also included in the performance) stand in a semi-circle dressed in samurai clothes and carrying bows. One by one, they are called to the centre by an old man who reads the name of a character in the tales of the feud between the Genji and Heike clans. There is no musical accompaniment. When all twenty-six characters have spoken, the youths rhythmically stamp their feet and sing offstage.