Arawana Hayashi

Biographical Information
"Trained from childhood as a dancer, Arawana’s pioneering work as a choreographer, performer and educator is deeply sourced in improvisation, collaboration and traditional dance forms. From 1968-1973 she directed an intercultural street dance company that performed in troubled neighborhoods as part of Boston’s Summerthing community arts program. In the mid-70’s Arawana became Co-Director of the Dance Program at Naropa University in Boulder, CO where she was involved in experimental inter-disciplinary performance work that became the foundation for the University’s current degree programs in dance, performance and somatic psychology. An accomplished practitioner of Bugaku, Japanese Court dance, Arawana’s study of this form began in 1977 under Suenobu Togi, formerly a member of the Japanese Imperial Household Agency Music Department. In 1981 Arawana returned to Boston and founded the Jo Ha Kyu Performance Group, which she directed until 2000 when she joined the faculty of the annual Shambhala Institute for Authentic Leadership. Currently Arawana is an acharya (senior teacher) in the Shambhala Buddhist tradition. She teaches workshops in The Art of Making a True Move for individuals and organizations throughout the U.S. and is also leading the development of Embodied Presence Practice in collaboration with Otto Scharmer and the Presencing Institute."

Affiliations

 * Presencing Institute