Session House Award
Past Winners

Dance Flower is an omnibus programme of works chosen from Theater 21 Fes, the open-call series at Kagurazaka Session House. Since 2012 a prize has been awarded each year from among the works performed at Dance Flower. Every winner is listed here.

 

Contemporary dance, modern dance (gendai buyo), butoh, ballet - the prize is open to any genre. Some of the winning works have been invited to the NDA International Dance Festival in Daegu, Korea (New Dance for Asia).

 

• Open calls and opportunities for artists
• Theater 21 Fes open call - a ten-minute work, four editions a year, any genre

 

Winners, 2012 to 2026

 

 

Year by year

 

2026

Session House Prize — Sen Ten (Souki Shintani, Daichi Yamaguchi) Self, Reality
Dance Flower Audience Prize — Miyu Watanabe Nanbun no Ichi / Haruka Takeuchi Reverb
Invited to the NDA International Dance Festival, Daegu — Sen Ten (Souki Shintani, Daichi Yamaguchi) Self, Reality

Performed by Sen Ten (Souki Shintani, Daichi Yamaguchi) Self, Reality / Tererren (Miyu Ogasawara, Rei Sugimoto) feat. Rina Yamamoto mo’ / Kimitsu Nekoka Center (Mizuki Kaneko, Tenma Matsuda) ・(Shoshitsuten) / Satsuki Tajima call it a day－ / Miyu Watanabe Nanbun no Ichi / Haruka Takeuchi Reverb. Guest: mau (Kim Sang-hong) By others

Jury Yasuyo Omoto, Taiju Matsumoto, Mitsutake Kasai; NDA selection: Yu Ho-sik

From this year the Session House Prize is awarded every year without fail, and a new Audience Prize, decided solely by the audience survey, was introduced.

 

2025

Session Best Award — Yako Omori and Chinatsu Horikawa be there not there
Invited to the NDA International Dance Festival, Daegu — Yako Omori and Chinatsu Horikawa be there not there

Performed by Ayane Yasaka An Angel After Thirty Years / Minami Nozawa and Satsuki Tashiro she and her / Tara Hirata I Simply Cannot Remember / Yako Omori and Chinatsu Horikawa be there not there / Nagisa Inoue and @@@@ REPLACEABLE??. Guest: Choomna Dance Company CHANG-G-DA!

Jury Taiju Matsumoto, Mitsutake Kasai, Yasuyo Omoto; NDA selection: Yu Ho-sik

A Best Award was given for the first time in several years, and the invitation to Korea was chosen unanimously by both countries.

 

2024

Work Prize — Saye Onishi Or a Gift (performed by Saye Onishi and Remi Murai)
Future Prize — Takuto Sakurai The Afterglow of a Dream
Invited to the NDA International Dance Festival, Daegu — Nanami Koge Setsuna

Performed by Nanami Koge Setsuna / Riko Abe Take Care of Yourself / Takuto Sakurai The Afterglow of a Dream / Nana Kobayashi SMALL ROOM / Saye Onishi Or a Gift. Guest: Park Jiwon Moro Relex

Jury Taiju Matsumoto, Mitsutake Kasai, Yasuyo Omoto; NDA selection: Yu Ho-sik

 

2023

Session Future Prize — G-ray (Ryosuke Suzuki, Kosuke Mogi) / N.motion Dance Project (Choi Hyo-bin, Nam Hee-kyung)
Invited to New Dance for Asia, Korea — APINUN (Yuri Yamamura, Azumi Piano)

Performed by Minori Sakai The Free Swan / G-ray (Ryosuke Suzuki, Kosuke Mogi) Lachryphagy / Izanami (Akane Watanabe, Chisato Kiyonaga, San.) Juka / APINUN (Yuri Yamamura, Azumi Piano) Maboroshi / Yui Okada, Mayu Sato, Yuria Onishi Pokke. Guest: N.motion Dance Project Deeper, Silence

Jury Yasuyo Omoto, Mitsutake Kasai, Taiju Matsumoto; NDA selection: Yu Ho-sik

All six works were closely matched, so no Best Award was decided; the Future Prize was entrusted to two groups instead.

 

2022

No prize was awarded.

Performed by Nagisa Yamaguchi / Kotomi Imai and Yuya Shiratori (choreography: Kotomi Imai) / Kanoko Iwaki and Kaoru Takahashi (choreography: Kota Kihara) / Haruka Takeuchi and Yumo Murakami / Yuri Sakai and Naomi Tanaka (original choreography: Mariko Kakizaki)

The programme restarted after the pandemic. No prize was awarded this year.

 

2021

No prize was awarded.

Not held, because of the pandemic.

 

2020

No prize was awarded.

Performed by Mizuki Taka dodo / Daiki Nishimura × Ayumi Uyama BUTAI / Ai Hamada Chronostasis / Yuta Kuroki & Shiori Tarumizu The Spider and the Moon

Held on a reduced scale because of COVID-19 (the Roma Hashimoto work did not take part). No prize was awarded.

 

2019 (8th award)

No prize was awarded.

Performed by vol.30, 23 February Kana Ajimu and Kazuki Ishihara Nega / Ikumi Otsuka Shaka / Hirona Kai Pretty Vacant / Shawn K. Farrell (FREEDOM RIDER) Shakai no Mado / Maya Takeda View
vol.31, 14 September Maika Ueda In a Trance / Yuka Okamoto and Yuka Kusakabe Meimei / Lisa Kumagai Fantasy / Reina Sumi What Was Inside the O / Akiyoshi Nita Mitei (with Peiyu Hung)

Jury Ryohei Kondo, Taiju Matsumoto, Naoko Ito

Two programmes were held, in February and September. No Session Best Award was given.

 

2018 (7th award)

Challenge Prize — Mako Egami Juliet

Performed by Sakai to Shinji / Yutaro Kawachi / Nakamura-ke / Karin Kato / Lucia Vazquez Madrid / Iki Jigoku / Sunairo Kurage / Mako Egami / Mizuki Taka / Naho Hori

Jury Naoko Ito, Ryohei Kondo, Taiju Matsumoto

A one-off Challenge Prize was created for "the courage to attempt a transformation, and to achieve it".

 

2017 (6th award)

Session Best Award — Suppon Zaru (Rina Kobayashi, Minori Fujishima) Suppon

Performed by Yuki Takaoka / Kazue Onda / Madogiwa no Warera (Tomoka Matsumoto, Hinako Yoshida) / Mai Kubota and Shotaro Yamaguchi / Ai Hamada / Akudo / Yuya Igarashi / Kanako Iwama / Contact Arts Company / Suppon Zaru

Jury Naoko Ito, Ryohei Kondo, Taiju Matsumoto

 

2016 (5th award)

Session Best Award — not awarded
Jury Prize — Takeshi Matsumoto －doko－
Audience Prize — Yuya Igarashi Goodbye, Tomoji-kun

Performed by The Premium Waltz Antichthon / ibis #NBU make some boys remix / Takeshi Matsumoto －doko－ / Yuya Igarashi Goodbye, Tomoji-kun / Kanka Q Bybye / Daiki Iwamoto and Akane Watanabe egg / Takuto Sakurai and Daiki Sakai Coffee and Milk / anfit I my me mine / gosh Line no Ue no Bokura / Setonaikai Kubo

Jury Naoko Ito, Ryohei Kondo, Taiju Matsumoto

No Best Award. The two works that all three judges rated were given the Jury Prize and the Audience Prize.

 

2015 (4th award)

Session Best Award — not awarded
Audience Prize — DEBEDEBE☆1-go ewig (choreography: Izumi Hoshihara)
Encouragement Prize — tantan Eating in Order to Live. (choreography: Kanae Kameto)

Performed by Saori Hokazono Pink tea / Shota Utagawa and Shun Nakamura Karada mo Asobu / Sumie Kubo and Yuki Shigematsu Sugar and Spice / Kazuma Yamamoto / Yuika Onishi / Shiho Takahashi The Blue Bird / Saori Yoneda (Baobab) × Nanako Shibata (TABATHA) Me + / Deltoca Hidden in Frequency / DEBEDEBE☆1-go ewig / tantan Eating in Order to Live.

Jury Naoko Ito, Ryohei Kondo, Taiju Matsumoto; reviewers: Yuko Nakano, Hiroki Kiba

No Best Award. Two group works with strong construction were given the Audience Prize and the Encouragement Prize.

 

2014 (3rd award)

Session Best Award — Ryu Suzuki Agnus

Performed by Ryu Suzuki / TAG / Chamu Group / Kanako Nakajima / Burabani / MaMaNiMaNiMaNi / Yuka Shinohe / Kota Kihara / Mana Senda / combo×combo

Jury Megumi Ikeno, Ryohei Kondo, Taiju Matsumoto, Takashi Ito, Naoko Ito

 

2013 (2nd award)

Session Best Award — Kaho Kogure A Sphere of Tears
Session Encouragement Prize — Takahiro Mochizuki

Performed by 《O・》zeroten / .nokoto@ / Hero’s / TOY / Kaori Miura / Chizuko Yonekawa / Akiko Miwa / Kaho Kogure / Yuki Nishiyama / The Bambiest

Jury Megumi Ikeno, Ryohei Kondo, Taiju Matsumoto, Takashi Ito, Naoko Ito

 

2012 (1st award)

Session Best Award — Yo Nakamura A Poem of Parting

Performed by Nobue Aichi × Yuriko Nagai / Mariko Kakizaki / Michiko Kiyofuji / Yo Nakamura / Masahiro Mori / Miwa Okuno / Saku / Tamami Takenoshita / hug×boku / Osamu Nakamura

Jury Megumi Ikeno, Ryohei Kondo, Taiju Matsumoto, Takashi Ito, Naoko Ito

Setting a prize for contemporary dance was a first in the twenty-year history of Session House.

 

How the prize has changed

It began in 2012 as the Session Best Award. Because contemporary dance is not a competition, the prize has taken different forms from year to year - an Encouragement Prize, a Jury Prize, an Audience Prize, a Challenge Prize, a Future Prize, a Work Prize - and in some years no prize was given at all.

 

From 2026 the Session House Prize is awarded every year without fail, so that the responsibility of those who choose is clear and the prize works as a continuing measure. Alongside it, a Dance Flower Audience Prize, decided solely by the audience survey, was introduced.

 

No prize was awarded between 2019 and 2022, partly because of the pandemic.

 

Organised by
Session House Planning Office
158 Yarai-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-0805
1.5 minutes from Exit 1b, Kagurazaka Station (Tokyo Metro Tozai Line)
mail@session-house.net
+81-(0)3-3266-0461