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Mikuni Yanaihara

やないはら みくに

Yanaihara Mikuni

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1971-01-25 （Imabari, Ehime, Japan）
Died
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Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese

Career

Occupations
choreographer, director, playwright, dancer, dance artist, university professor
Active Years
1988-
Affiliations
Nibroll (dance company, artistic director), Mikuni Yanaihara Project (director), Kinki University, Faculty of Letters, Department of Performing Arts (associate professor, later professor)

Education

Ehime Prefectural Imabari Minami High School
Period: 〜1989
Year of Graduation: 1989
Country: Japan
Osaka University of Health and Sport Sciences
Faculty of Physical Education / Department of Dance
Period: 1989-1993
Year of Graduation: 1993
Country: Japan
Graduated from Department of Dance
Duke University
Department of Dance (study abroad)
Period: 1993（留学）
Country: United States
Study abroad (short-term)

Awards

NHK Prize (National High School Dance Contest in Kobe)
1988
Organization: National High School Dance Contest Committee / NHK
Result: 受賞
NHK Prize (National High School Dance Contest in Kobe)
1989
Organization: National High School Dance Contest Committee / NHK
Result: 受賞
EDUCATIONAL DANCE Competition — Work Prize
1993
Organization: EDUCATIONAL DANCE
Result: 受賞
Kyoto ALTY Dance Festival — Arts Award
1994
Organization: Kyoto ALTY Dance Festival
Result: 受賞
Enomoto Art Award
1999
Organization: Enomoto Art Award Committee
Result: 受賞
Millennial Arts Festival — Selected Works Prize
2000
Organization: Millennial Arts Festival Committee
Result: 受賞
Rencontres Chorégraphiques (Yokohama Platform) — National Jury Award
2002
Organization: Yokohama Platform / Rencontres Chorégraphiques
Result: 受賞
MOM Contemporary Prize
2004
Organization: MOM
Result: 受賞
Kishida Kunio Drama Award (nominee)
2008
Work: Blue Bird
Organization: Kishida Kunio Drama Award Committee
Result: 候補
Dance Forum Award — Grand Prize
2009
Organization: Dance Forum
Result: 受賞
Shakespeare Competition — Excellence Award
2010
Organization: Shakespeare Competition Committee
Result: 受賞
Kishida Kunio Drama Award
2012
Work: Maemuki! Timon
Organization: Kishida Kunio Drama Award Committee
Result: 受賞
Yokohama Cultural Prize (Arts Encouragement Award)
2012
Organization: City of Yokohama / Yokohama Cultural Prize Committee
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Maemuki! Timon

2012 play / stage work

A play staged and published by Hakusuisha; it portrays human relationships and everyday subtleties with humor and incisiveness.

human relationshipseveryday subtletieshumor and cynicism

Blue Bird

2008 stage work

A stage piece incorporating choreographic elements; it was a nominee for the Kishida Kunio Drama Award.

physical expressionsymbolic imagery

Bibliography

  • Maemuki! Timon (Hakusuisha, 2012)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
fusion of physical expression and theatrevisual and rhythmic compositioncontemporary and experimental stage narrative
Recurring Motifs
relationship of body and voiceslippages in everyday lifehumor and the absurd

Legacy

Known for a distinctive practice crossing dance and theatre, she has influenced performing arts domestically and internationally. As an educator she has contributed to training the next generation; her honors include the Kishida Kunio Drama Award and the Yokohama Cultural Prize.

Trivia

  • Born in Imabari, Ehime.
  • Founded and leads the dance company Nibroll.
  • Directs the Mikuni Yanaihara Project.
  • Has taught at Kinki University's Faculty of Letters, Department of Performing Arts (associate professor → professor).
  • Has notable relatives with the Yanaihara surname (e.g., Tadao Yanaihara's relatives).