Yumiko Yoshioka

Dancer, choreographer, art director and teacher

Born in Tokyo and since 1988 is based in Germany 

 

In the early 70’s and 80’s she was a member of the first Japanese women's Butoh dance company, ARIADONE.  In 1978, she performed with Ko Murobushi and Carlotta Ikeda in  "Le Dernier Eden " (in Paris), which was the first Butoh performance outside of Japan. From 1988 to 1994, she was an active member of German - Japanese dance theater company  "Tatoeba - THÉÂTRE DANSE GROTESQUE " with Minako Seki and delta RA'i.

 

In 1995, Yumiko has founded the art-formation group  " TEN PEN CHii  art labor " together with a visual artist Joachim Manger (DE) and a music composer Zam Johnson (USA). TEN PEN CHii is based at the International Art Research Location Schloss Broellin, an old castle in the countryside outside of Berlin, and the home of EXIT Dance Research and Exchange Project for summer study for butoh and other related arts.

 

Yumiko pioneered combining butoh dance and visual arts, leading “Ten Pen CHii’ as an art director and choreographer, while dancing herself and teaching her method "Body Resonance" world-wide.