72 Seasons SF

72 Seasons SF & Distant thunders heard with Sharp & Fine
雷乃発声/かみなりすなわちこえをはっす/Kaminari sunawachi koe o hassu

The 72 Seasons, or 72 候, are a traditional calendar of micro-seasons that encourage a deep appreciation for the subtle changes of the natural world and the cultural practices that develop around them. Over the course of a year, CTN and Sharp & Fine listened to and learned from the stories, memories, cultural practices, and wisdom of various community members, associated with different seasons. Joined by Detour Dance and Kristin Damrow & Company, the artists shared their latest creations inspired by the millennium-old lunisolar calendar during the 12th micro-season, Distance thunders heard.

Date and Time: Friday, March 31 & Saturday, April 1 @ 8pm
Venue: Theatre of Yugen's NOHSpace @ 2840 Mariposa St., San Francisco

Photo by RJ Muna

Sharp & Fine (S&F) is a San Francisco-based contemporary dance company co-founded in 2011 by sisters Megan and Shannon Kurashige to facilitate choreographic work that grows out of a shared history of experience in both classical ballet and contemporary dance and a desire for deep collaboration with artists from different disciplines. S&F creates narrative performance work that brings together physically exuberant choreography, emotionally nuanced text, live music, and multi-disciplinary collaboration. Their work is informed by the technical rigor of classical ballet, the human intensity of contemporary forms, and the conviction that telling a story built on personal truths is a powerful and communal act of communication and empathy. [Read more about S&F]

Photo by Robbie Sweeny

Detour Dance is a devised-theater ensemble that creates bold performances rooted in drag and dance. Founded in 2009 by Eric Garcia and Kat Gorospe Cole, Detour produces immersive and site-responsive experiences that are oriented towards queer lineages and legacies, present-day complexities, and future-facing possibilities. Detour also presents Clutch The Pearls, a monthly vaudeville cabaret for experimental drag performance artists. [Read more about Detour Dance]

Photo by Robbie Sweeny

Kristin Damrow & Company (KDC) is an Isadora Duncan Award-nominated contemporary dance company. KDC’s performances are developed from the physical exploration of the design process through form, space, and human experience. KDC has been commissioned to create work for the FOG Design + Art, Oakland Museum of California, Airbnb Design, among others. [Read more about KDC]

Creative Process Snapshots

Member of KIMOCHI HOME, Japanese language-based, assisted living community, shared their stories and memories of autumn with Sharp & Fine dancers

Archival Recording of the 9/29/2022 Session at KIMOCHI HOME
Sharp & Fine Dancers: Julie Crothers, Sonja Dale, Megan Kurashige, and Shannon Kurashige

Rubbing palms together; Squeezing hands together; Wrist circles outward; Wrist circles inwards
~ Tell me about a memory you have from the autumn season. “Picking up chestnuts, roasted chestnuts on charcoals (Amaguri), slicing a pear into half, driving, leaves are falling…”
~ Why do you remember? “I went out there with my parents. The whole family enjoyed it.”
~ Where were you? “Out in the countryside. Under a chestnut tree.”
~ What was it like outside? “The air was getting crisp and clear.”
Looking up and down; Looking left and right; Head circles right; Head circles left

ABOUT KIMOCHI HOME - Continuing the Japanese Tradition of Care and Support for Seniors
Since 1971, Kimochi has provided culturally sensitive, Japanese language-based programs and services to 3,000 Bay Area seniors and their families each year. Services include transportation; referral and outreach services; health and consumer education seminars; healthy aging and senior center activities; social services; congregate and home delivered meals; in-home support services; adult social day care; 24-hour residential and respite care. [Read more about KIMOCHI]

Check out our Pocket Grandma Wisdom - Akitababa Edition on cultural practices and wisdom from Tohoku, Japan!

This project is made possible through the support from the California Arts Council, WESTAF (the Western States Arts Federation), the National Endowment for the Arts, and generous individual donors.

Please consider making a donation to support our arts and cultural exchange programs between the U.S. and Japan!
U.S./Japan Cultural Trade Network, Inc. is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization.

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