Sachiyo Ito & Company offers private lessons and classes of Kabuki Dance and Okinawan Court Dance. Beginners learn first, how to get dressed in Kimono, the basic movements, how to use dance fans for expressive movements, then a short dancer piece.

Advanced students are also welcome.

We also have new lessons for children.

AVAILABLE PROGRAMS

One week Residency: Japanese Culture Through Dance
Dr. Ito's program brings the beautiful art and culture of Japan into the classroom to enhance the school curricula and serve as a resource for the community.

One-day Workshop: The workshop provides the students an over-all picture of Japanese dance and performing arts such as Noh, Kabuki, and Okinawan dance, and their related forms.

Concert: Full performance can include lecture-demonstration.
 

A RECENT CONCERT REVIEWThe New York Times

Peace Quest, Personal And Global

Sachiyo Ito and Company offered a "Concert Dedicated to World Peace" on Saturday afternoon at the Clark Studio Theater and made the program artistically meaningful as well as idealistically honorable.

This New York-based troupe of dancers and musicians presents works in both Japanese classical and contemporary styles. The matinee harmoniously united them.

Ms. Ito danced two solos. In the whimsical "Moon Child," which she also choreographed, she gazed wistfully upward, as if longing for the moon. And in this production, designed by Robert Mitchell, the moon came down to her in the form of a glittering silver ball, which she played with and cuddled.

"Yamanba (The Old woman of the Mountain)" was a scene from a Kabuki play of 1848. Here Ms. Ito portrayed an elderly woman bidding her son farewell. Her careful steps, turns of the head and side glances invested the slightest actions with dignity.
In "An Invitation to Bell," a production emphasizing processional movements for Ms. Ito and for an ensemble, Jennifer Kato read poems by Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese monk and peace activist. Many celebrated a spirit of renewal, and the choreography was appropriately calm. But poems about violence and tyranny inspired jagged gesticulations from Ms. Ito.

Then order was restored and the audience was invited to join the cast in a meditative walk onstage. Most accepted, stepping serenely while guided by the sounds of a gong and a bell. The unhurried progress became a pilgrimage into peace.

Jack Anderson, December 14th,1999
 

SACHIYO ITO & COMPANY UPCOMING EVENTS

On the 10th Year Anniversary of the Salon Series

For the last 10 years Sachiyo Ito and Company has offered the Salon Series, a series of informative and educational lectures, lecture-demonstrations and performances aimed at those who are interested in deepening their knowledge of the performing arts of Japan, three times a year on Sunday afternoons at Tenri Cultural Institute, New York City. The unique combination of education and entertainment inspired NY audiences artistically and intellectually, and has served as resources for the Japanese culture and arts. 2008 marks the 10th year of the Salon Series, and the company is celebrating the Salon Series programs with special guests, and also with special concerts. The fusion of dance and poetry will be explored through the celebration programs announced below.

The Anniversary Concert I: Sound of Emptiness Saturday May 24th at 8pm; Sunday May 25th at 3pm and 8pm Location: Tenri Cultural Institute, 43A West 13th Street, between 5th& 6th Avenue, NYC Tickets: $20 advance sale, SmartTix at 212-868-4444; $25 at the door Information: Sachiyo Ito & Company at 212-627-0265 (tel /fax) Press release	Click the above for event flyer.

This evening-length program will combine poetry and dance. The dance drama is based on a short story, titled “Mimi-nashi Hoichi” written by Lafcadio Hearn in his masterpiece collection, Kwaidan (Ghost Stories). It is a re-telling of a folk tale in which a blind biwa player, Hoichi, incompletely protected by the Buddhist sutra, Prajñāpāramitā Heart Sutra, loses his ears. Inspired by the teaching of Prajñāpāramitā, the theme serves to recognize that human perception is relative and in constant flux. Even though a perception is the first step to imagination, our constant duality and self-righteous attitudes lead to conflicts and even wars. Sound of Emptiness asks the audience to understand these undeniable aspects of human nature, and to think how we can find the resolve to bring about a more peaceful world. The poems recited by the chorus with live music will weave through the fantasic dance drama. Audiences are invited to join in the walking meditation at the closing of the dance drama.


Salon Series No. 32
Topic: Renku and Dance: An Afternoon of Improvisation with Haiku Poetry and Live Music
June 1 (Sunday) 2008, 3:00pm-4:00pm
Location: Tenri Cultural Institute, 43A West 13th Street, between 5th& 6th Avenue, NYC
Tickets: $15 (Student / Senior $10)
Information and Tickets: Sachiyo Ito and Company at 212-627-0265 (Tel / Fax)

This topic was well received in the 2005 Salon Series No. 23, and audiences have continued to ask for a repeat. To meet this popular demand, Salon Series No. 32 will present Renku and Dance again. Following rules for Renku (linked verses) established in the 16th century, haiku and dance are linked and alternated as one inspires the other in improvised performance. William Higginson, Penny Harter, John Stevenson, the members of the Haiku Society of America, will join in the program. Also, live music accompanying the dance will be improvised by three musicians, Masayo Ishigure on koto, James Nyoraku Shlefer on shakuhachi, and Yukio Tsuji on percussion.


The Anniversary Concert II: Only Breath
November 22, at 3pm and 8pm
Ticket: $20 for Advance purchase, $25 at the Door
Information: Sachiyo Ito and Company at 212-627-0265 (Tel / Fax) Only Breath is a collaboration of dance, poetry recitation, and music. Artistic Director, Sachiyo Ito, will be joined by the guest artists, Jamie Sieber, the cellist and vocalist, and Kim Rosen, spoken word artist from west coast. Together, they will offer a concert of music, dance, and poetry from ancient and modern mystical, speaking the language of the soul, and carrying us into deeper connection with ourselves, others, and the world.

For information on concerts, workshops and classes, contact:
Sachiyo Ito & Company
405 West 23^rd Street, Ste 4G
New York, NY 10011
Tel/Fax (212) 627-0265
www.dancejapan.com
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BIOGRAPHY

JAPANESE CULTURE THROUGH DANCE

HAIKU AND WALKING MEDITATION

RECENT PAST EVENTS

OPPORTUNITIES WITH SACHIYO ITO & COMPANY

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