Costume and cosplay ideas to heat up your school cultural festival
At school cultural festivals, there are all kinds of events—exhibitions, food stalls, and even stage performances! Among them, many students probably want to stand out and have fun in free-style outfits, such as stage performances or costume contests.
Since it’s a once-a-year event, you want to make it a memorable day by dressing differently from usual, right? In this article, we’ll introduce recommended ideas for those looking for costumes and outfits for cultural and school festivals.
We’ve picked a wide range, from classic outfits to slightly more elaborate cosplay, so please use it as a reference.
Costume and cosplay ideas to amp up the excitement at school cultural festivals (1–10)
Pretty Cure
When you think of Pretty Cure, you might picture it as something loved by preschool and early elementary school girls, but like Sailor Moon, it’s also popular among adult women.
Some people may have dreamed since childhood of becoming those heroines, even just once.
So why not make that dream come true at your school’s culture festival? Big ribbons and frilly costumes can make your heart flutter even as an adult.
Put on a costume, sing and dance to Pretty Cure’s theme songs, and liven up your culture festival!
Princess
https://www.tiktok.com/@n0a_927/video/7411857491643878674Who’s your favorite Disney princess? Of course, it’s impossible to pick just one, right? By the way, the castles at each country’s Disneyland are themed after different princesses, and in Japan it’s none other than Cinderella.
Cosplaying as a princess is one of many girls’ dreams, isn’t it? It’s perfect for a festival-like school culture day—how about everyone dressing up as princesses together? Snow White, Anna, Elsa, Rapunzel, Belle, Tiana, and more—you might even get the whole class to cosplay as princesses.
Just thinking up handmade costumes is exciting from the planning stage, isn’t it?
Demon Slayer
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba aired as an anime in 2019 and was released as a film in 2020, captivating everyone from small children to adults and sparking a social phenomenon.
With a sequel to the anime announced, its popularity shows no sign of fading! So how about dressing up as Tanjiro, Nezuko, or one of the Hashira of the Demon Slayer Corps for your school festival? You can easily buy cosplay costumes online, and fabrics with each character’s haori patterns are also available, so making and wearing your own accessories could be a great option, too.
Harry Potter
https://www.instagram.com/p/CrHxxPurOt_/How about a costume inspired by the popular fantasy series Harry Potter, which continues to attract attention through various developments including novels and films? When it comes to outfits from the series, the standard is the school uniform: a black robe paired with a scarf in your house colors, which is an easy-to-recognize combination.
If it’s too warm to wear a scarf, there are also ties in each house color, which are recommended as well.
Paying attention to small accessories—tucking a book under your arm, carrying a wand, and so on—will help emphasize the worldbuilding even more.
Pirates Girl
https://www.tiktok.com/@meee.ili/video/7419840258801552648How about livening up your school festival by dressing as a Pirates Girl in a pirate costume? Female pirates are popular in movies and TV anime, right? Be sure to choose outfits that highlight pirate features, like bandanas and corsets.
Joining a stage performance or a costume contest is great, but a cosplay café also sounds fun.
How about it as your class’s attraction? Since pirate outfits aren’t something you can wear in everyday life, we hope everyone who dresses up really enjoys it.
Chiikawa
https://www.tiktok.com/@qmq.o0/video/7419265214035758344Everyone knows Chiikawa, but do you know Chiikawa’s real name? The official title is actually “Chiikawa: Something Small and Cute.” When I first saw the anime segment on Fuji TV’s morning show “Mezamashi TV,” I was surprised by how laid-back it was.
How about you? If it’s a school festival with lots of little kids coming, Chiikawa cosplay might be the most popular.
Chiikawa, Hachiware, Usagi—everyone can show off whatever cosplay they like.
Plan your cosplay from different angles—outfits, headpieces, and more!
The Apothecary Diaries
“The Apothecary Diaries” is a work that was adapted from a light novel into a monthly manga and has also been made into an anime.
The anime’s theme song by Ryokuoushoku Shakai became a hot topic as well.
It’s a popular series, and the frustratingly slow-burn romance between the characters Maomao and Jinshi is one of its highlights.
Cosplaying as the two of them would definitely liven up any school or cultural festival.
Try completing the look with makeup, a wig, and colored contacts.
Store-bought costumes are convenient to use.
If you’re performing on stage, setting the background with a Chinese-style motif would really pull it all together.
Amate Yuzuriha (Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX)
Released in January 2025, the film Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX has also begun airing as a TV anime from April.
The movie drew 850,000 viewers in its first 10 days and was a big hit.
Following Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury, which for the first time featured a female pilot as the protagonist, the female lead of Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX, Amate Yuzuriha, seems like a cosplay choice that would draw attention.
Amate Yuzuriha is portrayed as a high school girl.
Since her age is close to students who hold school and culture festivals, the cosplay should fit well.
And when it comes to Gundam, don’t forget to carry a Haro with you—that’s an essential touch.
maid outfit
When it comes to cosplay, you just can’t leave out maid outfits! You can easily buy a costume, or if you already have a black dress, you could probably pull it off by just getting a frilly white apron.
Besides the classic black-and-white look, there are lots of variations in colors and styles, so it’s easy to add originality and avoid matching with others.
It might be fun to go all out with accessories—like adding cat ears—for an extra cute touch.
If your class is putting on a maid café, this outfit is absolutely essential.
Ensemble Stars
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cq2897Uhki7/Ensemble Stars, which began as a smartphone game, is an idol-training game that has garnered attention for its various media mix expansions.
Because it’s especially popular among women, it’s often used as a theme for cosplay, frequently serving as a basis for cross-dressing into male characters.
Another key point is that the distinctive characters wear a wide range of outfits, so choosing which character in which costume to portray is where your sense of style really shows.
It’s also important to select outfits suited to the occasion—whether you prioritize glamorous designs or ease of movement.