Saeko Ichinohe Dance Company

2008

Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe

Inspired by the early lives of the Native Americans and the Ainu.

Satoshi Takao and Heather Currie in "Fire"   
  
Costumes: Yukie Okuyama  
Photo: Costas^©  

Section 1:  The Sun

Section 2:  Under the Roof -  Fire, Ritual, Gathering

Section 3:  Journey's Echo

Section 4:  Reclaiming and Beyond

Both in the East and the West, native people lived with great respect for nature, cultivating the knowledge of what nature could give them.  They lived in harmony with the environment.  In the past, both groups experienced great hardships caused by the superior strength of foreign powers.  Both have now reclaimed and cultivated their heritage.

2007

Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe

Haruno Yoshida  

& Katie Higham-Kessler  

Photo: Nan Melville^©

Outer forces of Japanese art forms are controlled by a serene mind and inner strength derived from the centre of the body.

1981

Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe

    Mary Hubert and Hector Tello  

Photo: Kenn Duncan^© 

A dynamic synthesis of Samurai-like movements and classical ballet steps. The dance is accompanied by pulsing Japanese folk drumming and the ethereal flute sounds of the shakuhachi.

2004

Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe and Jeff Moen

    Shiho Miazawa, Cho Ying Tsai

      & Haruno Yoshida

   in "Kitchen Beauties" section.

   Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe

   Photo: Nan Melville^©

In his "Floating World" series, Wood Block Artist Utamaro (1753-1806) documented the beautiful women in the shops, teahouses and pleasure quarters of Edo (Tokyo). Geishas in private, their servants and their assignations form the subject of his work.

      .......

This dance captures these many elements in five sections:

• Prologue   (SI)                           
• Maiden Fishing for Abalone   (SI)
• The Courtesan   (JM)
• Kitchen Beauties   (SI)
• A Lovers' Journey   (SI)

2003

Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe

Stacy Williamson & Brett Howard

Photo: Nan Melville^©

Created in 2003, the dance dance reflects the intense modernity of Shiko Munakata. Born in 1903 Munakata was the contemporary master of the Japanese wood-block print.

The work as a whole was very successful in integrating the stationary imagery of woodblock carvings with the multi-dimensional mobility of the moving bodies of dancers.

1996

Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe

   Jeff Moen, Carolyn Roslund, Shih-Ling Hsu

   Photo: Nan Melville^©

The dance is inspired by works spanning two decades in the Swiss painter's career. The blend of wit and whimsy, desire and pathos evoke new depths in the choreography.

1994

Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe

Harman Sebek & Markiver Grissom  

Photo: Johan Elbars^©  

A work inspired by the elaborate traditional robes from the Heian period (794 - 1185), which were worn for the 1994 royal wedding of the Japanese Crown Prince and his bride.

The eloquent movements of the dance underscore the grace and beauty of the sumptuous Sokutai dress for men and the Junihitoe for women

2001

Choreography: Saeko Ichinohe

Dance of the Bamboo Plant: strong roots, bamboo shoots and a flexible trunk, as well as bamboo-related stories.

Saeko Ichinohe and Brett Howard  

Photo:  Nan Melville^©  

Saeko Ichinohe's Asian-influenced modern dance choreography is mesmerizing, unhurried, and crafted with such subtlety that the brilliance of its design is not instantly revealed. The intelligent beauty of Ichinohe's work creeps up on the viewer at a dignified, measured pace.