June Y. Watanabe Mills College

Performances  |  Dance History  |  Choreographic Works  |  Professional Affiliation  |  Awards


Performances

Strength and Diversity - Three Generations of Japanese American Woman, Oakland Museum & National Tour - 1990-94.

Issei to Shin Issei - 50 years of Japanese American Women Artists, Meridian Gallery, San Francisco - 1990.

Yearly home seasons and national and local tours since 1982, collaboration performances with distinguished artists for a one-of-a-kind evenings.

Guest appearances with Bay Area Women's Philharmonic, SF Jazz in the City Series, Stern Grove Summer Festival, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, ACLU's 200th Anniversary Celebration of the Bill of Rights, and community benefits.

Local and regional performances - every year 1-3 apperarances.

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Dance History

Dance Training

Major modern techniques, ballet, choreography, education; Graham, Cunningham, Humphrey, Horst, Newman Techniques and classical ballet; classical Noh dance.

Private Studios, UCLA, LA Conservatory of Music and Art, American School of Dance, American Dance Festival in New London, Conn, New York Studios; Kita School of Noh Drama.

Teaching

1960-62 El Camino College, Torrance, CA

1973-75 University of California, Berkeley

1975-79 Mills College, Oakland, CA

1986-92 Visiting Assist.Professor, part-time Mills College

1992 to present Associate Professor, part-time Mills College

Master classes & guest artist regionally and nationally - 1963-present.

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Choreographic Works

1996 The Noh Project - evening of authentic Noh and contemporary dance; premiere of Deai, commissioned by Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in SF and the Japanese American Community Cultural Center in LA, with Anshin Uchida, Noh Master and Intangible Asset of Japan; composer Carl Stone; and set designer John Woodward.

1995 Jo Sui . Je Suis /as water, I am - 40 min. group work w/ guests.

Text & visual installation by John Woodall; Composer Bun-Ching Lam.

1994 Falling Man - 12 min. (solo) text by John Woodall, Yumi Daiko by Akiko Shimada.

1993 Charlie - 18 min. 4 singers/3 dancers; composer Alvin Curran;

E. O 9066 - 35 min. (revised version) 4 singers/3 dancers, Composer Bun-Ching Lam;

Evening of Improvisations - 35min. Structured solo improvisations with Denny Zeitlin, jazz pianist

1992 Night is the Day of the Moon - 25 min. (six dancers) Composer Morton Feldman;

... a moment... - 15 min. (solo) Composer Somei Sato

1991 Time Over Time - 50 min. (Trio) In collaboration with Frank Shawl and Marnie Thomas

1990 The Tower Collection - 50 min (multimedia group work) Composer Kirsten Vogelsang

Pillar - 18 min. (solo) In collaboration with Taiko Master Seiichi Tanaka

1989 Trilogy - 90 min.(multimedia Solo dancer/Quartet Singers) score by Bun-Ching Lam; visual-D. Rosenberg, costume-S. Woodall, lighting-J. M. Francos.

1988 Three Contemplation s - 15 min. (Solo) Composer Olivier Messiaen;

The Cradle Will Fall - 18 min. (trio) Composer David Friedman;

Daughter and I - 18 min. (Duet) video Kurt Lundblad and composer Susan Archuletta.

1987 Suitable for Framing - 25 min. (Duet)composer Kirsten Vogelsang; visual designs Doug Rosenberg

Is Art Is - 15 min. (Trio) David Rosenboom, composer; dancers Karen Attix & Livia Blankman.

Improvisational Journey - 21 min. (solo) in collaboration with Anthony Braxton, saxophonist

Heian - 25 min. (solo) Composer Somei Sato, video and set designer, Douglas Rosenberg.

1986 Composition No. 132 - 90 min. (solo) guest of Anthony Braxton saxophone

Black Rain - 15 min. (group) for the Asian American Dance Collective, SF.

E. O 9066 - 30 min. (group) Judy Rosenberg

Games in the Field - 26 min. Composer Lutoslawski in collaboration with Kronos Quartet

Red Towel - 15 min. (solo) Composer J.S.Bach based on Air Mail Dances by Remy Charlip;

1985 Glassworks - 23 min. (group) Music by Philip Glass

1984 Sonata for Five - 20 min. (group) Music by Maurice Ravel;

1983 Bird Run - 14 min. (group) Music: Tape collage of Joan La Barbara and J. S. Bach

Michiyuki - 15 min. (solo) Authenintic Noh music.

1982 Corner to Corner - 6 min. (group) Music by Brian Eno, David Byrne

Variations on a Theme - 24 min. (group) Music by Frank Bridge and Benjamin Britten

La Suite Celeste - 24 min. (group) Music by Steve Reich

Internment - 20 min. (group) Music by David Behrman, Terry Riley, Alvin Lucier, Henry Wolff and Nancy Hennings

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Professional Affiliation

Professional Experiences

Gloria Newman Dance Theatre in Los Angeles, 1960-62

Understudy Graham Company and Donald McKayle Dance Company, 1962

Artistic Director/choreographer, June Watanabe Dance Company, and guest soloist since 1980 to present.

Special Engagements

Board member of the Board of Trustees of Dance/USA-1991-97

Field Advisory Committee member for Dance Bay Area 1992

Profiled in KQED's series: The Creative Mind , 1991

Numerous radio/TV interviews and numerous news articles, 1992 to present

Speaker at Women's History Month Conference- Breaking Down the Barriers,1992, UCSF;

Panelist at Conference Empowering Women of Color,1992,UC Berkeley

Panelist at Dance/USA Roundtable Conference Mission-Driven Education, 1994, Chicago.

Panelist/Advisor

Arts Councils of Arizona, California - '95, Illinois, Ohio, Oregon, and Marin, National Endowment for the Arts, Meet the Composer, Inc., Headlands for the Arts, Lila Wallace Readers Digest/Arts Presenters - Audience Development - '95/'96.

Advisor to the American Dance Council, American tour Initiative- '95, Kennedy Center/Arts Presenters Arts Education Study- '96.

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Awards

SF Isadora Duncan Awards: Outstanding Achievement for Individual Performance - 1993, Special Award for Time over Time - 1991 and 4 nominations for Trilogy -1990.

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts/Japanese American Community Cultural Center The Noh Project - The Japan Foundation/JUSSPA, The Rockefeller Foundation -MAP Funds, The Japan/US Friendship Commission - 1995-96.

Young Choreographer in Residence at the American Dance Festival 1987 & 88

Co-commission/residency at Jacob's Pillow,1988 and residency,1993.

Dallas Black Dance Theatre - commission "Koe" for the Dallas Sun & Stars Festival, funded by Dallas & Japan - 1996.

Three time recipient of Meet the Composer/Choreographer Commissioning Award - 1989, 1990 & 1992

The Rockefeller Foundation - MAP Funds - 1992 & 1996

Festival 2000 -1990

NEA/Japan Friendship Commission Creative Arts Fellowship- 1993

National Endowment for the Arts Dance/Film/Video - 1989

Marin Arts Council: Individual Artist Fellowship - 1993

Creative Achievement Awards - 1986

California Arts Council Choreographic Fellowship - 1993

California Arts Council / Organizatonal Support- 1984 to present

Dance Touring Program - 1987 to 1997

Western States Performing Arts Tour Roster - 1993 to1995

The Marin Community Foundation, The Zellerbach Family Fund, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, The Koret Foundation, The San Francisco Foundation, American Dance Tour Initiative, NEA Expansion Arts - 1985 to present.

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Last Updated: 4/26/05