Rihoko Sato

Rihoko Sato studied gymnastics in England and the United States, where she lived until age 15. Having participated in KARAS’ workshops in 1995, she joined the group in 1996. 
Since then, she has performed in all group works, and also works as the artistic assistant to Saburo Teshigawara in all his creative activities.  
She is acclaimed internationally, as one of the main figures in Teshigawara’s works. 
In 2009 she presented her first solo dance SHE directed by Teshigawara, leaving a striking and emotional impression. Her exceptionally sensitive body and nerves create a wide range of dynamism, from melting fragility to sharp intensity, opening a new dimension for physical expression. 
Rihoko Sato also assisted with KARAS’ education project S.T.E.P. and worked as dance mistress for Teshigawara’s commissioned works for other ballet companies.  
She received the Best Dancer Award for her duet with Vaclav Kunes in Scream and Whisper at Les Étoiles de Ballet2000 Awards in 2005 in Cannes, France, the Japan Dance Forum award for 2007, the Forty edition of the Premio Positano “Leonide Massine” Per la Danza 2012 and most recently the Japan dance critic new face award (2016). In 2018 she received the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's Art Encouragement Prize (dance). 
Alongside her collaboration with Saburo Teshigawara and Karas, Rihoko Sato now works on dance projects under her own name as a choreographer.  
Her first creations include the solo performances Vêpres de la Vierge by Monteverdi with the vocal and instrumental company La Tempête (2018) and IZUMI (2019), and the group piece Traces (2019), for the Italian dance company Aterballetto. In fall 2022 she premiered her new solo work, Forest of Confession, a poetic journey through her dance and voice at KARAS APPARATUS.