Japanese traditional dance - Nihon Buyo (日本舞踊) - taught as an open class. The class is led by Sengiku Bando, a master of the Bando school, one of the great houses of Japanese classical dance and kabuki, who has performed in twenty-three cities across sixteen countries.

 

Nihon Buyo is almost always taught privately: you are introduced to a teacher, you join a school, you take a dancing name, and you stay for years. An open class that anyone can book and attend on the day is very nearly unique in Japan - as far as we know, this is the only one of its kind - and it exists because Session House is a contemporary dance house that wanted this tradition to be reachable.

 

You do not need an introduction, a teacher, a kimono or any previous experience. You can come once.

 

Mondays 13:00-14:30

 

What you learn

The class teaches the logic of the Japanese body as Nihon Buyo has shaped it: a way of standing, walking and turning that suits how we are built, taught systematically on foundations drawn from Noh. Walking, the sliding kuriashi step, stamping and turning are broken down and practised in a group teaching method developed for this class.

 

The aim is not only to preserve Japanese classical dance but to carry its technique into the way you move now. Dancers find that it widens what their body can say; the class also passes on knowledge that runs through kabuki gesture and staging.

 

Visitors from abroad are especially welcome. If you want to understand Japanese aesthetics through your own body rather than from a seat in a theater, this is a rare chance to do it. No Japanese is required to follow the physical work.

 

What to wear

Bring practice clothes you can move in - nothing traditional is required. If you would like to work in yukata or kimono, we will show you how to put it on.

 

Fees - tax included

Single class JPY 2,500
4-class pass JPY 9,600 (valid one month)
10-class pass JPY 23,000 (valid three months)

 

Sengiku Bando - Japanese traditional dance artist and choreographer

Read the teacher profile of Sengiku Bando

Nihon Buyo dancer, choreographer and master (shihan) of the Bando school. Entered the Bando school - one of the great houses of Nihon Buyo and kabuki - at the age of three, and at fifteen was granted the name Sengiku Bando by Bando Mitsugoro VIII. Studied theater with Roman Gekijo, the company led by Yukio Mishima.

 

As a choreographer she has made a great deal of new work in collaboration with other genres, seeking a fusion between dance as expression and its opposite pole, and her projects are well received abroad: a month-long run at the Festival d'Avignon supported by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, co-productions with the Maison de la culture du Japon a Paris and the Maly Theatre in Moscow, and performances in twenty-three cities across sixteen countries including the Sibiu International Theatre Festival, the National Theatre of Iceland and Norway. She has given Nihon Buyo performances in Ukraine and Central Asia with support from the Japan Foundation, and has been invited to the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing and Shanghai and to the Monaco Dance Forum hosted by the Princess of Monaco. Specially appointed professor at the Taipei National University of the Arts, and leads Nihon Buyo workshops at national ballet schools and art universities.

 

Booking

Advance reservation is required. Book through the reservation form, or write to mail@session-house.net - we answer in English, and we are happy to explain what the class is like before you come.

 

Venue: Kagurazaka Session House B1F, 158 Yarai-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo - a minute and a half from Exit 1b of Kagurazaka Station (Tokyo Metro Tozai Line). See Map & Access.

 

 

 

For the latest timetable, see the Japanese page for this class or write to us. Other classes at Session House - contemporary dance, ballet and somatic work - are listed on Dance Classes.