Join the Shizumi Kodomo Dance Troupe

Click the button above to help send the troupe to
Hiroshima, Japan, for the Peace Celebration
July-August 2010

Join the Shizumi Kodomo Dance Troupe

The Shizumi Kodomo Dance Troupe is composed of girls between the ages of 4 and 17 from diverse backgrounds. The troupe begins rehearsing for each new season in December or early January of each year. Rehearsals take place every Sunday afternoon till the end of March or early April. Our main performances are during the spring, from the end of March till early May, with occasional performances throughout the year which may necessitate off season rehearsals on an irregular basis. We are currently preparing to go to Hiroshima, Japan, in late July-early August, 2010, to be a part of the Celebration of Peace commemorating the 65th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb and to be a part of a documentary about a group of children, now elderly, who survived the bombing with their hope intact. If you would like to join the troupe, please contact us first at info@kodomodance.org in early fall.

It is important that new dancers attend all rehearsals leading up to our main spring season. In addition to one-time initiation and annual membership fees, each dancer will need to provide her own costumes and purchase some performance props (see below). Limited financial and/or costume assistance is available.

Membership is limited by the size of our rehearsal space and the time available to work with new dancers. The rehearsal location and time will be communicated via member list serve. In addition to rehearsals, kimono dressing lessons will be provided. All dancers need an adult responsible for the preparation including kimono dressing and doing hair and make-up for each performance. We also ask that the adults assist with transporting props, coordinating backstage activity, and other such tasks.

Costumes and Props:

All dancers must provide their own yukata (summer kimono) for rehearsals and kimono and related items for performances. Each kimono is unique so costs are difficult to estimate. The artistic director and the veterans in the troupe can guide you towards web sites and other locations to purchase the necessary items. For performances, most dancers wear a plain white V-neck T-shirt or camisole and black leggings underneath. The performance costume consists of kimono, obi sash (pre-tied for younger dancers and flat type for older dancers), an eri or special kimono collar, a stretchy sash called a date-jime, several ropes, obi plate (for flat obi), obi-age or scarf-like sash, obi-jime (special ties/rope for obi), tabi socks, and zori or sandals. Some dancers wear kanzashi hair ornaments and others just use silk flowers and special ribbons.

Each dancer needs to have two performance fans, which are imported from a shop in Japan, for a uniform look. The troupe sells these to the dancers at cost. Other props such as cherry blossom branches and paper umbrellas are purchased and maintained by the troupe. Dancers are encouraged to use practice fans, which can be any design for rehearsals.