Our People
Artists
Yuriko Doi - Founder
Japanese-born and trained in the classical theater styles of Noh and Kyogen, Doi brought this heritage to the West in the 1960s, founding Theatre of Yugen in 1978. That troupe has proven to be the major beneficiary of Doi’s directorial resume’ of more than 30 productions. Her foundation in these arts began when she was a graduate student of Waseda University in Tokyo, where she studied with Kyogen master and National Living Treasure of Japan, Mansaku Nomura (Izumi School). She has also been influenced by the Noh practice of her aunt, Yuki Doi (Hosho School), and her studies with Noh principal actor Shiro Nomura (Kanze School). Developing her skills in both forms through continued study with Mansaku Nomura, his disciple Yukio Ishida, and Shiro Nomura, Doi has worked diligently to share these arts with an American audience and students. The array of productions Doi has directed range from classics and adaptations to original works. She has taken for her inspiration theater throughout time, from around the world, directing plays that run in style and subject matter from Japanese and Greek mythology to 20th-century American, using movements from sources as diverse as flamenco and Native American dance. The classical Japanese plays Doi has directed include the Noh plays: Sotoba Komachi (‘87); and the Kyogen plays: The Melon Thief/Uri Nusubito (‘78), Sweet Poison/Busu (‘80), The Magnificent Beard/Higeyagura (‘81), The Sickle and Injured Pride/Uri Nusubito (‘81), Three Handicaped Men/Sannin Katawa (‘81), Owl Mountain Priest/Fukuro Yamabushi (‘83), Parting of the Seasons/Setsubun (‘85), Tug of War/Kubibiki (‘87), Sumo Wrestling with a Mosquito (‘87), The Persimmon Mountain Priest/Kaki Yamabushi (‘96), Tied to a Pole/Bo Shibari (‘02), Spring Water/Shimizu (‘04).
LLuis Valls - Lead Artist
Lluís acts, directs, and writes for the theatre. He has studied Noh with Richard Emmert, Akira Matsui, and Kinue Oshima (Kita school), Kyogen with Yukio Ishida and Yuriko Doi (Izumi school), and Kotsuzumi Noh drum with Mitsuo Kama (Ko school), as well as training in butoh, Suzuki method, and clowning. A graduate of SFSU, Mr. Valls has been a disciple of founder Yuriko Doi since 1993 and served as Theatre of Yugen’s Joint Artistic Director with Jubilith Moore and Libby Zilber from 2002 - 2008. He has worked on dozens of productions at Theatre of Yugen, including Blood Wine, Blood Wedding, (1997), Norton, I (2003), Frankenstein (2003, 2004), The Old Man and The Sea (2005), Moon of the Scarlet Plums (2003, Japan 2005), The Cycle Plays (07/07/07), Mystical Abyss (2012, Denver 2015), Erik Ehn’s Cordelia (2011, NY's La MAMA 2012), Emmett Till, a river (2013), This Lingering Life (2014), and The Red Demon (2016).
Kyogen ensemble members (alphabetical order by first name)
FENNER MERLICK is a performing and teaching artist in the Bay Area. Pedagogically rooted in Kyogen and Noh theater, clown, and bouffon, viewpoints, suzuki, butoh, and viewpoints. They studied Theater at UC Berkeley, trained at Dell Arte International, and are a company member of Theatre of Yugen and Kismet Arts Tangent. They have performed with Cutting Ball, Custom Made, foolsFury, Ragged Wing Ensemble, Liar Liar Theater, PACE Gallery in Menlo Park, and won Best of the SF Fringe in 2013 and 2022 for collaboratively created shows. In 2022 they were awarded an excellence in theater award by the SF Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle.
KATE PATRICK, currently based in San Francisco, has been an ensemble member with Theatre of Yugen since 2019. Most recently she has appeared as the Crab Spirit in Kani Yamabushi, the Master in Busu, and Corvino in last year's adaptation of Volpone, Act I. This fall she is excited to reprise her role for Volpone, Act II as well as design and build special costume pieces for this production. She has also done costume work for various local theaters including San Francisco Opera, Actors Ensemble of Berkeley and New Conservatory Theatre Center. Previous experience in traditional Japanese theater includes her role as the second Yamabushi in University of Hawai’i, Mānoa’s 2016 production of a new kyogen play, Futari Yamabushi, and a 2017-18 Fulbright Research Grant to study traditional ji-kabuki costumes and practices under Sachie Oguri at the Museum Nakasendou and Aioi-za Theater in Mizunami, Japan. While there she performed in two kabuki classics, Sodehagi Saimon as Hachiman Taro Yoshiie, and Fuji Musume. Kate has an MFA in Costume Design from University of Hawai’i, Mānoa.
MERYN MACDOUGALL is a Bay Area artist. Meryn works in Theatre and Film as an actor, director, and fight director. She has had the joy of working with Theatre of Yugen for the last 6 years. She would like to thank Lluis and the Yugen Community for all the wonderful opportunities and training they have provided. Look for her next project UN/FILTERED an independent film coming to film festivals spring of 2024.
NICK ISHIMARU has served as the Artistic Director at Theatre of Yugen between 2016 and 2019. His work explores a combination of Western and traditional Asian performance techniques for original creations, along with work in conventional musical theatre and Shakespeare. He has trained in noh and kyōgen with Theatre of Yugen for over seven years. Ishimaru has also studied kabuki, jingju (Beijing Opera), and nihon buyo (traditional Japanese dance). He received a BA in Performing Arts from Colorado State University (2005), where he directed a kabuki adaptation of Macbeth, and a Masters in Drama from San Francisco State University (2009). During his time as Artistic Director of Theatre of Yugen, he has directed several productions including The Red Demon (2016), A Noh Christmas Carol (2017, 2018, 2019), and Seen/By Everyone (2018). Ishimaru has appeared in numerous performances with Theatre of Yugen, both in San Francisco around the world, including Minor Cycle (2012), This Lingering Life (2014) and Mystical Abyss (Denver 2015), Yugen in Action (Iquique, Chile, 2019) and a plethora of kyōgen performances. He was most recently on stage in Puppets & Poe and Yugen-no-Kai: Aki.
RYAN MARCHAND is a Los Angeles native who moved to the Bay Area to attend San Francisco State, where he completed his BA in French with a minor in Theatre in 2008. He was a founding member of 11th Hour Ensemble and was awarded a CA$H Grant for their original adaptation and performance of Alice. Since then, he has performed, directed, and taught in the Bay Area with particular focus on new and devised works. Recently he performed in Chiori Miyagawa’s world premiere This Lingering Life with Theatre of Yugen whose work is founded in traditional Japanese theater forms; African American Shakespeare Company’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and he has performed in a range of San Francisco Theatre events including the San Francisco Theatre Festival at Yerba Buena Gardens and the Bay One Acts Festival. He served as movement director for Kat Evasco’s Mommy Queerest, which enjoyed runs in San Francisco with Guerilla Rep and in Boston with The Theatre Offensive; he directed with Playwright’s Foundation for their 2015 and 2016 Flash Plays. Most recently he worked as Program + Artistic Director of Handful Players – a free afterschool musical theater program based in the Western Addition, from 2009 to 2018. Currently Ryan is a member of Nice Tan comedy, a WOC/QPOC led sketch comedy group that pokes fun at the complexity of identity, and he works at San Francisco Opera as part of their newly formed Department of Diversity, Equity and Community.
SHEILA DEVITT is a San Francisco-based theatre artist, and joined the Yugen company for her apprenticeship with Jubilith Moore in 2010. She has trained with Fujii-sensei, (Hosho Noh Theatre, Tokyo) and performed for their school recital in 2013; and Kinue Oshima sensei (Kita school), at the Noh Training Project 2019 with Theatre Nohgaku. Theatre of Yugen credits include multiple Kyogen performances at Matsuri festivals around the Bay Area; Sorya! A Minor Cycle; Emmett Till: A River; and the world premiere of This Lingering Life. Sheila has been an ensemble member with the found-object puppetry company Lunatique Fantastique (E.O. 9066, Beauty and the Breast, The Wrapping Paper Caper); and a founding company member with Bacchus Players @ Coppola Winery (Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream). Other regional credits include Marin Shakespeare Co., African American Shakespeare Co., Brava! for Women in the Arts, Town Hall Theatre Co., Ross Valley Players, Cinnabar Theatre, and more. Sheila received a certificate in Stanislavsky studies from the Moscow Art Theatre School at Harvard; BFA - University of New Mexico, focus on bilingual performances of Federico Garcia Lorca’s pastoral trilogy. Sheila served as Lead House Manager at the San Francisco Playhouse; co-producer of the 2020 Bay Area Women’s Theatre Festival; regional coordinator of the StateraArts mentorship program: to uplift, amplify and advance women in the arts. During the pandemic closures, she participated in an online actors reading group that performed the Complete Works of William Shakespeare. She was honored to join the Actors Reading Collective for Mother Road by Octavio Solis. She is currently the Marketing & Engagement Manager for Golden Thread Productions. Thanks & gratitude to family, for the love & support that make this work possible; and to You, the audience, who make the performance complete.
Staff
kyoko Yoshida
Co-Director
Board Member
Kyoko has served the performing arts field for over 30 years as a presenter, producer and consultant, with a focus on artistic and cultural exchange between the United States and Japan. She is the founder and executive director of the U.S./Japan Cultural Trade Network (CTN), which designs and implements exemplary arts and cultural programs in both countries. In the Bay Area, CTN has presented such artists as Mansaku and Mansai Nomura, Eitetsu Hayashi, Hiroshi Koike, Wataru Kitao and Tomoko Momiyama. CTN also collaborated with Yugen periodically, co-producing and co-presenting programs. Kyoko also worked with the National Performance Network between 2011 and 2018, and with Arts Midwest where CTN was incubated between 2002 and 2006. Prior to that, she worked with the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center in Los Angeles for six years. Before arriving in the U.S., she worked with Spiral in Tokyo for six years. Kyoko also translates theatrical scripts between Japanese and English. She holds an MFA in performing arts management from Brooklyn College, CUNY.
miwa kaneko
Co-director
Miwa has worked in the arts and entertainment field since 2006. As part of the international business development division of Key Brand Entertainment (now The John Gore Organization), she facilitated Japan tours of Broadway musicals. As project manager at Gorgeous Entertainment, she organized Japan Day @ Central Park, a non-profit annual outdoor cultural festival. She also helped produce the play Kafka on the Shore directed by Yukio Ninagawa and presented at the Lincoln Center Festival, and the musical Prince of Broadway directed by Harold Prince and premiered in Japan in 2015. In 2017, Miwa became associate director of the U.S./Japan Cultural Trade Network (CTN). In 2018, RooM Infinity, a production company she co-founded, produced The Last Message concert at Carnegie Hall. In 2019, she worked for Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon: The Super Live and Japan Night concerts, both of which were part of the Japan 2019 Initiative led by the Japan Foundation. Based in San Francisco since 2013, Miwa holds a J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law.
Tiger Zhou - Office Manager
Tiger Zhou is an artist, storyteller, and aspiring educator. In college, she worked on multiple theater productions centering on Asian American issues and LGBTQ identities, including Among the Dead, Question 27, Question 28, Heathers: The Musical and The Headlands. As a student, she was cast in a leading role in the staged reading and production of an original adaptation of Guan Hanqing’s Snow in Midsummer. She is working towards a bachelor’s degree in East Asian Studies from Stanford University.
Harrison Moye - Technical Director
After obtaining his certificate in Technical Theater Craft and Design from Pacific Conservatory Theater (PCPA), Harrison returned to the North Bay to continue his passion in Theatre Arts. Although he has worked in pretty much all roles in the theatre world, his main work is as a lighting designer. Some of his designs include In The Heights (Marin Summer Theater), Heathers, TBA Award Winner for Best Lighting Design (Novato Theater Company), Hand to God (Alterena Playhouse), most recently he was the Technical Director at San Domenico School before taking some time off to travel the world. He is excited to bring his Technical Skills and join the Theater of Yugen team!
Board of Directors
haruko dearth
President, Board Member Since 2020
Haruko is a business consultant, artist, and the founder of Lovetheway, a creator of visual art and motivational video content. Originally from Japan and living in the US for more than 20 years, her professional experience includes political journalism, business development, and business management for nonprofit and corporate organizations in the US and Japan. Currently, as a business consultant, she helps clients build and expand their business across overseas and helps them achieve their missions. As an artist, using the power and beauty of traditional Japanese calligraphy, she creates contemporary abstract art that is peaceful yet deeply thought provoking. Each piece is a powerful expression of wisdom that transcends time and space. She earned a Bachelor's degree in Bioethics at Waseda University, and a Master’s degree in Political Science from a California State University.
Mariko Grady
Treasurer, Board Member Since 2019
Mariko performed as a lead actress and voice artist of Pappa TARAHUMARA, a performance company based in Tokyo, for 30 years. She moved to San Francisco in 2000. Immediately after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, she started to sell her homemade fermented foods to raise funds for the victims. Mariko joined the incubator kitchen program at La Cocina in May 2012 and founded AEDAN Fermented Foods. She frequently conducts various educational workshops about her products.
Jock Walker
Board Member since 1978
Nina Bazan-Sakamoto
Secretary, Board member Since 2020
Nina is a visionary community organizer, artist, activist, and currently the Project Manager of the San Francisco Japantown Cultural District. Growing up between San Francisco and Osaka, Nina feels a calling to unite people across barriers to celebrate diversity, share the wisdom of culture, and catalyze collaboration on our environment. Nina holds a BA in International Relations with an emphasis on Environmental Politics. She excels in event-production, creative strategies, is fluent in Japanese, and is passionate about collaborative management as pathway to developing innovative solutions. Nina expresses her artistic passion through many avenues including dance choreography, and eco-fashion workshops, and is founder of Wiz Amulets - Symbiotic Living Jewelry, fashion made of living plants with the purpose to reconnect people to nature.
Jock is currently retired and building a large wooden sailboat but he has served as the President of the Board of the Theatre of Yugen, President of Phacor Inc., a medical device company, President and R&D VP of Menlo Care Inc., a catheter company, and as an R&D manager at Raychem Corp. Jock graduated from the University of Michigan with BSE and MSE in Mechanical Engineering.
Ryosuke (Ryo) Togi
Board member since 2024
Ryo is an attorney-at-law admitted in California, New York, and Japan (Dai-ichi Tokyo Bar Association). The founder and president of Kaname Partners US, P.C. (California) and a partner attorney at Kaname Partners (Tokyo). Born in Gifu and raised in Hyogo. He has practiced law in Tokyo since 2012. After graduating Cornell Law School LL.M. in 2021, he moved to San Francisco. As a person who knows the laws and cultures of both Japan and the United States, he is driven by a desire to assist the Japanese-American community.
Adrienne Lipoma
Board Member Since 2024
Bio forthcoming