Kimiko Yanagida

🪔 About

Kimiko Yanagida is a distinguished Japanese Odissi dancer, teacher, choreographer, and researcher, known for her significant contributions to promoting Indian classical dance in Japan. Her extensive training includes 12 years of Western classical ballet from a young age and four years of contemporary dance and choreography at Nara Women's University. She delved into Odissi, training for five years under the late Guru Hare Krishna Behera in Delhi and for almost three decades under Guru Subash Chandra Swain in Odisha, India, continuously enriching her technique and repertoire. Yanagida also pursued academic research in dance, studying dance philosophy and aesthetics at National Nara Women's University, where she earned a B.A. in educational science with a major in dance aesthetics. In 2020, she completed her Master's degree in Human Culture Studies from Nara Women's University Graduate School, specializing in body expression and physical education. Her career also included working for the Science and Technology Department of Odisha, India, for two years (1993-1995). Since 1995, Kimiko Yanagida has been teaching Odissi dance and leads her own dance troupe, 'Chandrika,' which has grown to include 50 members across Osaka, Kobe, and Tokyo. She has been teaching her program, 'Rhythmic Dance Expression,' at National Nara Women's University since 2005, and currently teaches at Osaka Health and Welfare Junior College. Yanagida has performed extensively in Japan at prestigious venues such as Ise-Jingu Shrine, Todaiji-temple, and the National Ethnology Museum, and internationally in India, the USA, and Germany. She actively fosters cultural exchange by assisting the Indian Consulate and supporting international dancers performing in Japan.