OrganWorks Planning “The 8th Breast”.
Title: Yugo Yasuda
◆About Breast
This project invites guests who are active in the forefront of various fields to join Shintaro Hirahara and OrganWorks members in a dialogue.
Using contemporary dance as a starting point, the goal is to elicit ideas about creation and research, and to bring out the unique aesthetic of the specialists.
The name “Brest” was chosen in the hope that a chain of mutual ideas and inspiration will be generated to create the seeds for the creation of a new world.
Through imaginary brainstorming (brainstorming), it will be an opportunity to draw out each person’s fixed point and their motivation and interest in future creative activities.
◆Outline
Vol.1 “Creating the Future, Dance Delusion Conference
Date: Sunday, April 13, 2025, 15:00-16:30 (Doors open at 14:15-)
Taeko Machida(OrganWorks)
Guest:Nozomi Tanaka(Dance Base Yokohama) x Yuka Kamimura(Dance Base Yokohama)
Creation environment is important for both choreographers and dancers.
Creation at Dance Base Yokohama is always somewhat progressive.
The reason for this is the environment of Dance Base Yokohama.
The studio is designed in such a way that it is easy for the staff team to come and go between the studios, and also easy to separate the studios so that they can move freely between the inside and outside of the creative site.
This allows the staff to move freely between the inside and outside of the creative site, allowing them to concentrate on their work or escape from the stuffy atmosphere. Staff members also work right next to the creation, watching and not watching. We keep a good distance.
While working as a dancer, I am also involved in the planning and production of OrganWorks’ training program “Terra Co.
Assistant Director Nozomi Tanaka and Creative Staff member Yuka Kamimura are active in DaBY, which supports and trains artists and develops various other businesses.
They discussed not only their roles as staff members of Dance Base Yokohama, but also how they would like to depict the future of contemporary dance, and what would happen if they were put in charge of the production of an imaginary performance. We will brainstorm with fantasies such as “What if I were in charge of producing a fictional performance?
We hope to have a talk while going back and forth between the role of the dancer, who is the content of the work, and the role of the “production” that supports the structure from the outside.
Taeko Machida
Vol.2 “Does Art Need Artistry? Does Art Need Artistry?”
Date & Time:April 20, 2025 (Sun) 15:00-16:30 (Doors open at 14:15-)
Haruka Watanabe (OrganWorks)
Guest:Natsuo Sato (Snowboarder)
This time, we invite Natsuo Sato, who works for an outdoor brand and is active as a snowboarder, as our guest.
＜Why a snowboarder as a guest in a project of a contemporary dance company? ＞
What brought these two very different genres together was the words of Ms. Sato, who took Watanabe’s contemporary dance class after something happened to her.
After the class, Ms. Sato said something like , “I envy that dance is destined to become an art form while dealing with the body! After the class, Ms. Sato said something like, “I envy that dance is destined to become an art form while dealing with the body.
Snowboarding, influenced by the “side-riding culture” of surfing and skateboarding, has developed both athleticism and artistry throughout its history. However, I feel that the core of snowboarding lies in “play,” and I want to explore the possibilities of snowboarding.
Dance is the senior performing art to snowboarding,” was a comment from Mr. Sato at the pre-meeting.
I would like to think of this conversation as “snowboarding’s predecessor to dance in the outdoors. Not just in the sense of being an outdoor sport, but in that it has developed from a small culture into entertainment, tourism, or fashion, and has stepped outside the door.
This development can also be seen as a result of a certain standard, that of competition. For contemporary dance, which is destined to keep updating its framework, it is difficult to define a standard of skill, and as a result, the ambiguity of <professional> is also connected. We thought that we might be a good adviser for contemporary dancers who face such challenges.
What’s a good slip?
What’s a good dance?
What is a good movement?
We share the same point of view that we are always thinking about what is a good movement. Please join us in this slightly core talk.
Haruka Watanabe
◆Venue
Dance Base Yokohama (https://dancebase.yokohama/access)
3F KITANAKA BRICK&WHITE BRICK North, 5-57-2 Kitanaka-dori, Naka-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan
Directly connected to “Yokohama Kitanaka Knot”, Exit 2a, Bashamichi Station, Minatomirai Line<
◆Rates
Admission free, one drink required (cash only)
Wine (red/white)
・Coffee (ice/hot) 500 yen each
◆Application
Google Form
*Registration as a DaBY member is required to apply. Click here to register in advance.
◆Profile
Vol.1 “Creating the Future, Dance Delusion Conference
Nozomi Tanaka
Dance Base Yokohama Publicity/Production
Graduated from Ochanomizu University, Faculty of Letters, Arts and Education, Department of Language and Culture, French Language and Culture Course.
She has been involved in dance since her childhood. After graduating from university, she worked as a flight attendant for an airline company on domestic and international routes. Later, she worked in public relations for an IT company involved in regional development.
After retiring from the company, she participated in the launch of Dance Base Yokohama (DaBY). Since its opening, she has been involved in DaBY’s production, PR, and marketing.
Major projects he has been involved in include the Aichi Arts Theatre x DaBY Dance Project: Ryu Suzuki x Shinji Ohmaki x evala’s “Rain,” Crystal Pite’s “KIDD PIVOT” Japan tour, and NDT (Netherlands Dance Theatre) Premium Japan Tour 2024.
Yuka Kamimura
Dance Base Yokohama Production
Born in Yokohama. Graduated from Yokohama City University, School of International Liberal Arts.
Started classical ballet at the age of 4 and aspired to become a dancer, but changed her career with the aim of making artistic experiences in Japan more accessible to the everyday. Currently, she works as a production and publicist at Dance Base Yokohama.
In 2021, she received the “YCU Student Award” from Yokohama City University as a result of her daily artistic activities.
Co-author of “University Students Living the Corona Disaster: Discussing Pandemic Experiences While Studying Abroad” (Showado).
Taeko Machida
OrganWorks Dancer/Production
Studied classical ballet under Eiji Kubo and Yoko from childhood.
Graduated from Japan Women’s College of Physical Education, majoring in dance. Studied contemporary dance under Naoya Aoki while in school.
She has performed in works by many choreographers in Japan and abroad, including Yukio Suzuki and Carmen Werner.
Since 2013, she has been a member of OrganWorks, a contemporary dance company led by Shintaro Hirahara.
She is a dance teacher and movement instructor with a reputation for her ability to convey the subtlety of her physical expression.
She is involved in a wide variety of dance-related activities, including OrganWorks’ training project “Terra Co.” and the launch of Autumn Productions with Akikai Nita, for which she is in charge of planning and production. and also established Autumn Productions with Shokai Nita, where he is in charge of planning and production.
Vol.2 “Does Art Need Artistry? Does Art Need Artistry?”
Natsuo Sato
Snowboarder
He has been snowboarding since his childhood and moved to Canada at the age of 15. After filming and representing Japan, he retired from snowboarding and started working for an outdoor brand.
He continues to delve deeply into physical expression and culture through snowboarding.
Haruka Watanabe
OrganWorks Dancer
Studied modern dance under Kaoru Okada and contemporary dance under Chiho Suzuki from the age of five.
She has won first prize in various dance competitions, including first prize in the contemporary dance category.
Graduated from Rikkyo University, Department of Visual and Physical Sciences, Faculty of Modern Psychology.
While a university student, she studied contemporary dance under Shintaro Hirahara, and belonged to OrganWorks, performing in their productions and working as an assistant choreographer.
Using their flexible and strong physicality, they perform unpredictable movements.
He is currently working as an actor and staging assistant.
