Mu Daiko taiko performers, Emma Valentine, left, Jennifer Weir, front, Jeffrey Ellsworth, back center, and Gregg Amundson, back right. (Mu Daiko photos)

By Mary Tan
AAP Staff Writer

An Expression of Japanese Culture

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Linda Hashimoto van Dooijeweert, left, and a student of her sansei Yonsei Kai, a Japanese traditional dance group. (Photos by Maya Nishikawa)

By MAYA NISHIKAWA
AAP staff writer

ST. PAUL, Minn. (Aug. 21, 2011) — Thousands of people crowded the streets and gardens near the Como Park Conservatory to see, hear, and taste a bit of Japanese culture during this year’s Japanese Lantern Lighting Festival last Sunday.

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Mu Performing Arts presents “Taiko Blast!” at the Minnesota Fringe Festival directed by Jennifer Weir, and featuring members of Mu Daiko from August 5 through 14, 2011 at Mixed Blood Theatre.

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Soul of the Drum  (Photo by Michal Daniel, ©2009)

By TOM LAVENTURE
AAP staff writer

The Mu Daiko taiko ensemble makes its way to the Ordway’s McKnight Theater for the first time in Mu Performing Arts’ upcoming production Soul of the Drum from June 15 – 26, 2011, featuring six premiere works in the first weekend of performances alone.

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From left, Rick Shiomi, artistic director, Mu Performing Arts, with performers, Katie Bradley and Sun Mee Chomet, discussing the life experience of Korean adoptees in America and how it inspired their theater writing and acting as adults. The two performed as part of the Week of Mu, an open-house series Friday at the Lowry Lab Theater in St. Paul. (AAP Staff photo by Tom LaVenture)

ST. PAUL, Minn. (August 25, 2010) – A week of free performances offered a glimpse of the wealth of talent at Mu Performing Arts, and will likely encourage many to look into the upcoming Mu season of full taiko and theater productions. This past Friday, two Mu actresses performed brief one-act solo performances called “My Story: All American Girl,” on stage in the Lowery Theater – the same building where the new Mu Performing Arts offices are located in downtown St. Paul. The two then joined Mu Artistic Director Rick Shiomi for a post-performance dialogue.

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Saint Paul, Minn. (July 6, 2010) – The 2010 Dragon Festival will be held this weekend, July 10-11, 2010, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. at Phalen Lake Park, 1530 Phalen Drive, St. Paul, MN 55106. The Dragon Festival is a two-day free event to showcase cultural heritage, entertainment and traditions of ethnic Asian Pacific Islander communities within the Twin Cities. This pan-Asian community event is to promote cross-cultural understanding and to keep the cultural heritage alive within the younger Asian population.

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Becoming, a taiko performance created by Iris Shiraishi and Zaraawar Mistry will run April 9 through May 2, 2010 at Dreamland Arts, 677 Hamline Ave. N, St. Paul. Directed by Mistry, Becoming is the personal journey of Iris Shiraishi, from her own childhood in Hawaii to her work as a taiko artist with Mu Daiko and Mu Performing Arts. It is an intimate piece filled with ritual and song, and an uplifting story about discovery, exploring the transition from the angst of youth to release in the power of music. Becoming is recommended for ages 13 and older. Seating is limited to 40 people per show. Tickets $18 general and $16 students/seniors, plus $1.99 fee. Call 651-645-5506 for tickets or visit www.muperformingarts.org and www.dreamlandarts.com for more information.