Fri, Sep 19
|Chicago
Free Museum Night / Bon Odori Workshop / Prelude to the Spiral Performance
Free Admission Museum Night runs from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM. The museum tour begins at 6:00 PM. Guests are welcome to join the Bon Odori Workshop (limited capacity) at 6:00 PM. Prelude to the Spiral Performance at 7:00 PM.
Time & Location
Sep 19, 2025, 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM CDT
Chicago, 3500 S Morgan St, Chicago, IL 60609, USA
About the event
Note:The workshop has a limited capacity of 10 participants. Please arrive prior to 6:00 PM to sign up on site, or email info@heritageasianart.org to reserve your spot.
Every third Friday evening, the Heritage Museum of Asian Art invites you to enjoy free admission and a special evening program. On Friday, September 19, we are delighted to welcome Yoshinojo Fujima, Takahiro Tomatsu, and Shalaka Kulkarni for a special Bon Odori Workshop and Prelude to the Spiral Performance Performance.
Bon Odori is a traditional Japanese festival dance that brings people together to honor ancestors, express joy, and cultivate a sense of community. The dances are simple, welcoming, and meant for everyone—no prior experience is required. The evening will open with a short introduction to breathing exercises led by Takahiro Tomatsu from Tokyo, Japan. This will be followed by a Bon Odori workshop led by Fujima Style Grandmaster Yoshinojo Fujima of Shubukai, the Classical Japanese dance branch of Asian Improv aRts Midwest (AIRMW). With support from Shalaka Kulkarni, participants will learn two to three dances highlighting the circular, soothing qualities of this tradition. Together, the breathing practice and movements of Bon Odori nurture relaxation, well-being, and cultural connection.
Guests are encouraged to wear comfortable clothing. This program also serves as a precursor to Spiral Inwards/Outwards, a performance presented by AIRMW on Tuesday, September 23 7:00 PM.
About the Artist:
Yoshinojo Fujima (aka Rika Lin) is an interdisciplinary artist, dancemaker, and Grandmaster in Fujima-style Japanese classical dance and is part of the postwar Japanese American diaspora. Her process and art springs forth from the complete immersion in traditional practice and then ‘sonar pings’ as questions, challenges, and then fireworks into a coalesced impression. She has performed her original works and as part of many collaborations at Links Hall, the Chicago Cultural Center, the Pritzker Pavilion, and the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA), where she premiered her full length work Asobi: Playing within Time in 2018. yoshinojo.org
