Ryan Takemiya is a DEIB consultant, the founder of Rama (an Asian American creative community), and is the voice of the Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival. He has also MC’d for the San Francisco Obon Festival, the Arthritis Foundation, and National Philanthropy Day, among others. You can find out more about him at www.ryantakemiya.com
The Manilatown Ancestral Ensemble presents the pre-colonial music, song and dance traditions of the Maguindanao, Maranao, Tausug and Kalinga Philippine ethnolinguistic groups. Daniel Giray, lead artist, teaches children’s dance classes for The Young Audiences of the Bay Area, also the San Carlos and Redwood City school districts. He choreographs dances for musical performances for San Carlos Children’s Theater.
Amit Patel is a dancer, choreographer, teacher, and artistic director, living in the San Francisco Bay Area (unceded lands of the Ramaytush Ohlone people)
He is the Co-Founder of Ishami Dance Company, a South Asian Contemporary dance company. As a first-generation born Indian-American, Amit strives to fuse his Eastern culture with his Western training to expand an idiom of Indian contemporary dance. Amit is equally notable for his rebellious pieces in heels, which challenge the norms of sexual identity in dance. He has toured all over the world teaching classes and creating safe spaces for the LGBTQ+ community. His goal as an artist is to create work and community that has the potential to unite, inspire, and empower people across generations and cultures.
Hālau O Keikiali’i‘s primary focus is on cultural traditions, including hula kahiko (ancient dance), hula `auana (modern dance), oli (chant), mele (traditional songs), himeni (modern songs), nā mea hula (arts, crafts, implements), lole hula (hula attire), ‘ōlelo (language), and mo’olelo (stories).
Following tradition, they share what they learn with different communities so that others too can benefit from a better understanding and appreciation of Hawaiian culture. It is within the stories told in the mele, and its morals and values, that people can truly be enriched in their personal lives.
Hālau O Keikiali’i hopes to reach people far and wide, touching everyone who may or may not be exposed to the Hawaiian culture and sharing with them in this spirit.