is a Japanese

Odissi dance Odissi (), also referred to as Orissi in old literature, is a major ancient Indian classical dance that originated in the temples of Odisha – an eastern coastal state of India.Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis (businessman), Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print m ...

'' in 2008 and was featured in a documentary series, ''First Japanese''.

Biography

Ono started dancing at the age of 4 under the instructor Masako Yokoi, the only Japanese modern dance graduate from the Martha Graham Dance School in the United States. She also trained in western classical ballet at the Matsuyama Ballet in Tokyo, and studied

jazz dance Jazz dance is a performance dance and style that arose in the United States in the mid 20th century. Jazz dance may allude to vernacular jazz about to Broadway or dramatic jazz. The two types expand on African American vernacular styles of dance ...

and hip hop at the K-Broadway Dance Center, Tokyo. In 1996, Ono joined

Nrityagram Nrityagram is India's first modern Gurukul (residential school) for Indian classical dances and an intentional community in the form of a dance village, set up by Odissi dancer Protima Gauri in 1990. The residential school offers training in ...

, the dance village in India started by the noted Odissi dancer, Late Protima Gauri, and won a scholarship for her studies. She initially received training in Odissi from Protima and continued her training from Surupa Sen and Bijayini Satpathy after Protima's death. She also attended classes in

Yoga Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...

Kalaripayattu Kalaripayattu (; also known simply as Kalari) is an Indian martial art that originated in modern-day Kerala, a state on the southwestern coast of India. Kalaripayattu is known for its long-standing history within Indian martial arts, and is ...

and

Mayurbhanj Chhau Chhau dance, also spelled Chhou dance, is a semi classical Indian dance with martial and folk traditions. It is found in three styles named after the location where they are performed, i.e. the ''Purulia Chhau'' of West Bengal, the ''Seraikell ...

dance and participated in workshops held at Nrityagram by Wolfgang Theatre, Paul Taylor 2 Company, The Expressions, Asha Coorlawala and Robert Williams. After five years of training in Odissi and yoga, she left Nrityagram to become a solo performer. She has been living in Orissa, India since then, and received further training in Odissi from the Guru Shri

Kelucharan Mohapatra Kelucharan Mohapatra (8 January 1926 – 7 April 2004) was a legendary Indian classical dancer, guru, and exponent of Odissi dance, who is credited with the revival and popularizing of this classical dance form in the 20th century. He is ...

, Guru Ramani Ranjan Jena, and Guru Naba Kishore Mishra. Since 2001, Ono has been based at

Bhubaneswar Bhubaneswar (; ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. The region, especially the old town, was historically often depicted as ''Ekamra Kshetra'' (area (''kshetra'') adorned with mango trees (''ekamra'')). Bhubaneswar is ...

, India, as a professional Odissi dancer and yoga teacher, collaborating with dancers, musicians and artists from India and abroad. She had her first ''Manch Pravesh'' (debut as a soloist) at Habitat Centre in the year 2003 and is now working on her own choreography pieces that are a blend of tantra, yoga and classical Indian dance. She has performed and given lecture-demonstrations and workshops in India, Japan, United States, Canada, Italy, Sweden, Australia, France,

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, and

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. She has also performed for two Prime Ministers of Japan,

Junichiro Koizumi Junichiro Koizumi (; , ''Koizumi Jun'ichirō'' ; born 8 January 1942) is a former Japanese politician who was Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics in 2009. He is ...

in 2005 and

Shinzo Abe Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍晋三, Hepburn romanization, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), President of the Lib ...

in 2006. In 2008, she participated in a contemporary dance project with Boi Shakti and Gerard Mostard. Ono also trains other Odissi dancers and directs Masako Ono Performing Arts (MOPA) in India and Japan. In 2010, she launched the MUDRA Foundation to support the efforts of international artists working to promote local art and handicrafts.

Works

Pieces choreographed by Masako Ono include Frozen Grace, Dance of the Crane, Divinity Within - Tantrik Prayer, Kundalini Stavah, and The Day Dream.

Professional milestones

* Selected as one of the world's 100 most respected Japanese people in their respective fields by Newsweek Japan in 2008. * NHK BS 1 produced a documentary film on Masako Ono as part of the ''First Japanese'' series in 2007. * Performed for Junichiro Koizumi and Shinzo Abe, former Prime Ministers of Japan. * Performed at the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

in Washington D.C., USA in 2007."Masako Ono , Explore the Arts,"
Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 1 April 2007.

References

External links

*
Masako Ono's page on Myspace

Masako Ono's Blog

Review in ''The Hindu'', 29 October 2010

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ono, Masako Living people People from Tokyo Japanese female dancers Odissi exponents Performers of Indian classical dance Japanese expatriates in India Year of birth missing (living people)