TaikoArts Midwest proposes a simple, ground-breaking idea: bring the best North American & Japanese female taiko artists together for a 2-week international cultural exchange and artist residency to collaborate and create a one-of-a-kind performance. Envisioned as a catalyst to fuel movement towards gender equity in taiko, this project celebrates and puts women centerstage in a collaborative one-of-a-kind performance at the Ordway Center for Performing Arts in St. Paul, MN.

Yurika Chiba, SJT’s Artistic Staff Member and PJ Hirabayashi, SJT’s Artistic Director Emeritus will be part of this unique concert along with:

Kaoly Asano (JAPAN)
Heidi Chan (Tornoto, ON)
Chizuko Endo (Honolulu, HI)
Michelle Fujii (Portland, OR)
Naomi Guilbert (Winnipeg, MB)
Mayumi Hashimoto (JAPAN)
Chieko Kojima (JAPAN)
ManMan (Los Angeles, CA)
Anna Sato (JAPAN)
Iris Shiraishi (St. Paul, MN)
Megan Chao Smith (Minneapolis, MN)
ten ten (Toronto, ON)
Tiffany Tamaribuchi (Sacamento, CA)
Jennifer Weir (Minneapolis, MN)
Diana Wu (San Diego, CA)
Mizue Yamada (JAPAN)
Also members of: Ensō Daiko and ensemble-MA