Press

Choreography

“Aretha Aoki, uses her dances to research memory, uncover where it resides in the body and commune with ghosts from the past, “the effect of which is otherworldly and absolutely arresting…“‘ -Maine Today

“Aretha Aoki is known for contemplative, probing solos” -New York Times dance listing

“Las Gravitas is a rare solo that feels personal to her body and aesthetic interest but also reaches beyond the soloist. It feels here like she is trying in earnest to communicate rather than obscure some essential significance, and it is satisfying to watch that effort play out even if we are unsure of her findings. All in all, the work feels like a substantial achievement.” -Lydia Mokdessi for Culturebot

“Las Gravitas documents a process of self-awareness–namely, awareness of one’s tininess and inadequacy and even incompetence set agains expectations, yours as well as others’, against everything that has come before you, against the vastness of interstellar space and even the stardom and superior vocal power of one Jim Morrison. ” -Eva Yaa Asantewaa, InfiniteBody

“a standout act…so good” -Sara Marcus for Artforum

Performance

“Aretha Aoki: performs with abandon and an unequivocal commitment to any task at hand. She embodies tension, strife, triumph, and an occasional irony with an enduring deftness that has come to characterize her performance work.” –Cassie Peterson, The Brooklyn Rail

“captivating” -Cuturebot review of Rebecca Serrell Cyr’s Assemblage 

“fantastic” -New York Times review of Rebecca Serrell Cyr’s Assemblage 

“a dancer with an open, generous presence.” -New York Times dance listing for devynn emory’s This room this braid

“a dancer of delicate beauty.” -New York Times review of Emily Johnson’s Niicugni

“Ms. Anspaugh said that casting was 75 percent of the piece, and here you see what she means…there’s nothing uniform about them. Aretha Aoki, Molly Lieber, Lydia Okrent, Mary Read and Niall Noel Jones: just throwing them onstage together might be enough.” -New York Times review of Vanessa Anspaugh’s Armed Guard Garden

“As casts go, can you top Vanessa Anspaugh, Aretha Aoki, Levi Gonzalez, Molly Lieber, Kayvon Pourazar, Anna Sperber, Vicky Shick and Ms. Mapp?” -New York Times review of Juliette Mapp’s The Making of Americans

“…Aoki, a newer artist in this community, maintains a transcendent singularity next to these revered artists…she resonates with a kind of sly centered knowing that makes each appearance in Mapp’s work seductively beguiling. She portrays an embodiment of the sublime mental states in Buddhist meditation that include loving kindness, compassion, joy and equanimity…” -Culturebot review of Juliette Mapp’s The Making of Americans

Interviews

Constellations and Influences

Aretha Aoki and devynn emory in conversation with Tara Sheena

“Ephemeral Evidence” profile