Event

88 : Hachi Hachi

Intricately weaving taiko, dance and theatre, 88: Hachi Hachi is a bold new theatrical work investigating the space that exists between 2 people. UNIT SOUZOU Co-Directors, Michelle Fujii and Toru Watanabe face each other through a rhythmic journey uncovering their entwined lineages and personal histories.

Performed by: Michelle Fujii & Toru Watanabe
Directed by: Susan Banyas

About Unit Souzou:
Portland's newest professional taiko company, UNIT SOUZOU (pronounced "sohzoh") is at the forefront of a growing artistic movement within the world-wide taiko community. With over 20 years of professional experience, Michelle Fujii and Toru Watanabe, co-directors of UNIT SOUZOU are relentless innovators known for their fusion of taiko and Japanese folk dance. 'Souzou' can be written in three ways meaning 'creation' () 'imagination' () or 'noisy' () alluding to a force by which new ideas are born and take shape in the world. Inspired by these words UNIT SOUZOU focuses on building creative and imaginative works for the art form of taiko. In addition to creating groundbreaking theatrical works, UNIT SOUZOU is deeply committed to share taiko through teaching in schools, collaborating with the local community, and offering public classes.

About Susan Banyas:
Susan Banyas is a multi-media artist, director, and educator. The Hillsboro Story was produced by Artists Repertory Theatre, 2010/11 season, Portland, OR; and No Strangers, a collaboration with jazz composer David Ornette Cherry, was commissioned by Los Angeles Library Foundation for the Aloud at Central Library series. It's Been a Busy Week is an on-going performance/practice of gleaning physical poetry from the soul of the week and shaping it into dance stories and visual theatre. The ensemble dance work was presented in 2011 at the Art Gym/Marylhurst University. Blue Wheel is dance video response to a residency at the Robert Rauschenberg Residency Program in Captiva, Florida and is currently in development as multi-media performance.