One of Japan's leading summer dance festivals, Awa Odori, is taking place in the western prefecture of Tokushima with full precautions against earthquakes.

The festival in Tokushima City opened with indoor performances on Sunday. Outside performances began on Monday, with the festival's highlight called so-odori held in the evening.

Monday's so-odori involved about 1,500 dancers in 15 prominent groups. Spectators took photos and clapped as they admired the powerful and perfect dances.

Awa Odori is scheduled to run through Thursday, while a mega-quake advisory is in place in the area.

Before the performance began, festival staff held up placards to let visitors know where to evacuate if needed, and told them to assume a low posture at their seats in the event of an earthquake.

A member of a family from neighboring Ehime Prefecture said they were impressed with the powerful performance. The person said the family understood that they did not need to cancel their trip based on the earthquake information they checked, but they are carrying extra food in case of an emergency.