Our History

Tamagusuku Ryu Senju Kai Okinawa

Founders Yoshiko Tanita Sensei
and Mieko Kinjo Sensei

Under the nurturing care of its directors, Yoshiko Tanita Sensei and Mieko Kinjo Sensei, the Tamagusuku Ryu Senju Kai dance academy has flourished in Okinawa. This Ryukyuan dance academy boasts training centers worldwide, including locations in Hawaii, Los Angeles, Brazil, Nagoya, and Osaka.

In 1945, during World War II, the directors, who are also sisters, began learning to dance at their community’s assigned evacuation location in Taiwan. Recognizing their natural talent for entertaining, their mother supported their passion for dance. Upon returning to Okinawa in 1950, the sisters began formal training under Tamagusuku Seigi Sensei, renowned for his Okinawan dance style and a descendant of Tamagusuku Chokun, who oversaw royal entertainment during the Ryukyuan Kingdom.

The sisters established their dojo (training center) in Kainan, Naha City, in 1961 and officially opened their Senju Kai dance academy in 1976. Since then, they have presented Ryukyuan dance across Japan and internationally, including in the United States, Southeast Asia, South America, and Europe.

Tanita Sensei and Kinjo Sensei have also been judges for the prestigious Konkuru competition, sponsored by the Ryukyu Shimpo Newspaper Company in Okinawa. This competition features many Okinawan dance schools representing various dance styles, establishing the level and rank of their performances.

The sisters have received numerous awards and recognitions from both the Okinawa Prefecture and the Japanese Government for their efforts in promoting traditional Okinawan performing arts. Notable accolades include the Performing Arts Award from the National Cultural Department in 1993 and the Special Judges' Award at the Nagoya Citizens Performing Arts Festival in 1998. Additionally, both founders are designated as intangible cultural assets in the field of performing arts by the Okinawa Prefecture and certified as Preservers of Important Intangible Cultural Properties (Juyo Mukei Bunkazai Hojisha).

Yoshiko Tanita Sensei's dance studio is located in Oroku, Okinawa, while Mieko Kinjo Sensei’s studio is in Nagoya, Japan. Both master sensei have dedicated their lives to teaching and perpetuating the Ryukyuan performing arts, both in Japan and abroad.