KONDO, Ryohei Born: 1968 Function: dancer stage director choreographer Company: CONDORS http://www.condors.jp/ Profile: KONDO Ryohei grew up in Peru, Chile, and Argentina. He first attracted notice as the principal dancer in one of YAMAZAKI Kota's works, and since appearing as a finalist in the Bagnolet International Choreography Competition, he has also performed in works by KASAI Akira and KISANUKI Kuniko. In 1996, he launched the dance company Condors and was involved in the composition, images, and choreography of all the works. The members of this all-male troupe all have unique personalities, and the work "Gakuran," in which the dancers performed wearing junior and senior high school uniforms created a sensation during the group's earliest days. His richly varied stagings, which contain a rapid succession of scenes and skillfully interspersed dance, images, live music, puppetry, and storytelling, have become extremely popular. Among dance companies, they are unusually motivated to travel, having toured all of Japan, as well as the United States and East Asia. Stardust Memory 2003 This program takes a completely new approach, putting its themes to the forefront in an unprecedented manner and greatly increasing the number of dance scenes. While following the Condors' customary path of including dance, images, performance art, puppetry, and storytelling, creating an light, emotional mood throughout.