Create, Dance, and Captivate with CONDORS — FaN Fun Workshop
The Music City Council of Fukuoka provided music cooperation.
Project 1: Workshop
FaN Week begins Sept. 16. In its Fukuoka Castle-area venues—the Fukuoka Art Museum, Artist Cafe Fukuoka, and Fukuoka Castle Ruins—participants create and present dance with CONDORS members in spaces surrounded by art. The resulting work will be filmed and released as a commemorative piece for the 60th Fukuoka Civic Arts Festival.
Event: Create, Dance, and Captivate with CONDORS — FaN Fun Workshop
Dates: every Saturday and Sunday from Sept. 9 through Sept. 23, 2023
Venues: Fukuoka Castle area, Jonai, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka; Fukuoka Castle Ruins, Artist Cafe Fukuoka, and Fukuoka Art Museum
Instructors: CONDORS members Ryohei Kondo, Satoshi Ishibuchi, and Ikumi Kurosu
Capacity: about 18
Eligibility: dance experience or interest in dance; elementary-school age through 30; able to attend all dates, subject to consultation; able to appear in the video
Any gender or nationality
Fee: high-school-age participants and younger ¥3,000; general ¥5,000
Application period: July 15–Aug. 10; applications closed
Project 2: Preview Event
In conjunction with FaN Week, CONDORS members who teach the Civic Arts Festival commemorative workshop present a preview at the Art Cafe on the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum’s seventh floor, building excitement for the Sept. 24 performance. Enjoy the dynamic group in an open space surrounded by art. A talk may reveal their aspirations and special viewing tips available only to preview attendees.
Event: CONDORS in Motion — FaN Fun Prologue Dance & Talk
Date: Sept. 17, 2023 (Sun.), from 3:00 p.m.; about 30 minutes
Venue: Art Cafe, Fukuoka Asian Art Museum 7F, Riverain Center Building, 3-1 Shimokawabata, Hakata-ku, Fukuoka
Performers: CONDORS members Ryohei Kondo, Satoshi Ishibuchi, and Ikumi Kurosu
Admission: free; no advance application required
Seating is limited because the event takes place in an open space. No numbered tickets will be distributed.
Project 3: Workshop Performance
Dance created by CONDORS members and workshop participants across the FaN Week venues—the Fukuoka Art Museum, Artist Cafe Fukuoka, and Fukuoka Castle Ruins—shares the joy of bodily expression. Touching many forms of art, the performers give shape to free ideas born in art-filled spaces. Their performances invite audiences to sense art in everyday spaces and streetscapes, rediscovering new values and Fukuoka’s appeal.
Event: Create, Dance, and Captivate with CONDORS — FaN Fun Performance
Date: Sept. 24, 2023 (Sun.), from 1:30 p.m., staggered schedule
Held in light rain; venue changes or postponement possible depending on other weather
Venue order planned: Fukuoka Castle Ruins, Artist Cafe Fukuoka, Fukuoka Art Museum; order subject to change
Performers: CONDORS members Ryohei Kondo, Satoshi Ishibuchi, and Ikumi Kurosu, with 18 workshop participants
Admission: free; no advance application required
Project 4: Premiere of the Filmed Creative Work
Event: Create, Dance, and Captivate with CONDORS — FaN Fun Epilogue + Gospel Live
Date: Dec. 23, 2023 (Sat.), scheduled from 3:00 p.m.
Venue: Art Cafe, Fukuoka Asian Art Museum 7F, Riverain Center Building, 3-1 Shimokawabata, Hakata-ku, Fukuoka
Video performers: CONDORS members Ryohei Kondo, Satoshi Ishibuchi, and Ikumi Kurosu, with workshop participants
Live performers: Maiko Kanchiku, director of the Music City Council of Fukuoka and Japan Gospel Music Association, and others
Admission: free; no advance application required
About CONDORS
Since the beginning of the 21st century, CONDORS has consistently represented and led Japan’s contemporary dance scene. This all-male dance company performs in school uniforms, combining dance, live music, puppetry, performance, video, and comedy. It has been invited to more than 30 countries and received a full-page rave in The New York Times. Artistic director Ryohei Kondo received the Minister of Education Award for Fine Arts, one of Japan’s highest honors for stage artists, and the Terayama Shuji Prize at the 2005 Asahi Performing Arts Awards. Since 2022, he has served as artistic director of Saitama Arts Theater.
Founded in 1996, the group broke through with a 1999 performance at Tokyo Globe Theatre and expanded into the United States in 2000, followed by invited performances across North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and beyond. Seeking to revitalize regional culture, it produces large participatory works with Hakataza, Shizuoka City, and others; provides overall direction and choreography; develops young dancers and choreographers; supports performances; and holds next-generation dance festivals. From every angle, it works steadily to share the appeal of contemporary dance and the joy of movement with society and contribute to an inclusive society through performing arts.
Instructors and Performers
Ryohei Kondo
Director of CONDORS, raised in Peru, Chile, and Argentina. Recipient of the 67th Minister of Education Award for Fine Arts, fourth Asahi Performing Arts Award Terayama Shuji Prize, and 67th Yokohama Cultural Award. Television appearances include TBS’s Jonetsu Tairiku and NHK’s Chikyu Ichiban. He choreographed and appeared in Kondo Family Exercise on NHK Educational and Television Office Worker Exercise on NHK’s Salaryman NEO, and choreographed the opening of the NHK morning drama Teppan. His extensive choreography spans films, television, music videos, and commercials, including dance instruction for the NHK historical drama Idaten. He became artistic director of Saitama Arts Theater on April 1, 2022.
Satoshi Ishibuchi
Associate professor at Daito Bunka University and doctor of literature. His book The Adventurous Body became an unusual hit for a specialist work. A CONDORS member since its 1996 launch, he captivates with intensely concentrated dance and also choreographs television commercials. Deeply knowledgeable about music, he plays many instruments and composes. He was pianist for Television Office Worker Exercise on NHK’s Salaryman NEO, made a major-label debut through Epic, worked on commercials for Nissan and Calpis, and appeared on NHK’s MUSIC JAPAN.
Ikumi Kurosu
Born in Saitama, he studied street dance in high school and contemporary dance from age 19. At Yokohama Dance Collection EX2015, he won both the Sibiu International Theatre Festival Prize and Touchpoint Art Foundation Prize, followed by the Jury Prize in 2017 and overseas performances. In 2018, he founded Bushman, a male group seeking delicate movement, and appeared in artists’ music videos. He joined CONDORS in 2018.
About the Fukuoka City Foundation for Arts and Cultural Promotion
Established in March 1999 to advance arts and culture in Fukuoka, enrich citizens’ lives, and create a vibrant civic culture. Art and culture belong in everyone’s life. Under the goal of connecting art and citizens, the foundation provides opportunities for as many people as possible to encounter culture and art nearby and feel moved and inspired.
Organization
Fukuoka City Foundation for Arts and Cultural Promotion
Head office: Riverain Center Building 8F, 3-1 Shimokawabata, Hakata-ku, Fukuoka
Chair: Susumu Ishihara
Activities: creating opportunities to enjoy arts and culture, supporting civic cultural activity, and promoting information sharing
Established: March 1993
Organizers: Fukuoka Civic Arts Festival Executive Committee, Fukuoka City, and Fukuoka City Foundation for Arts and Cultural Promotion
Support: Fukuoka City Board of Education, The Nishinippon Shimbun, RKB Mainichi Broadcasting, and Fukuoka Cultural Federation
Cooperation: Fukuoka Art Museum, Artist Cafe Fukuoka, Fukuoka Castle Ruins, and Fukuoka Asian Art Museum
Planning and production: Fukuoka City Foundation for Arts and Cultural Promotion
Production cooperation: ROCK STAR Ltd.
Music cooperation: Music City Council of Fukuoka
Video production: SOLSCAPE
Design production: Noe Wada, Fukuoka College of Design and Technology
Inquiries: Fukuoka City Foundation for Arts and Cultural Promotion, 092-263-6265, weekdays 9:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Fukuoka City Foundation for Arts and Cultural Promotion
