Mobu Dance Studio owner Takami Craddock has been studying dance she was just five years old, and has spent much of her adult life sharing her knowledge with kids and teens, inspiring them to pursue dancing at an early age.
Originally from Numazu City in Japan's Shizuoka prefecture, Craddock has a background in ballet, modern, butoh, and improv dance. She was a dance major at Nihon University's College of Art in Tokyo, and eventually studied dance at UC Santa Cruz, through their International Extension Program.
Craddock then trained in New York City, where she ultimately met her husband. She moved to San Francisco in 1991, and has been working as a teacher and performer in the city ever since. Her CV also includes roles as a choreographer and a producer of the San Francisco Butoh Festival.
Mobu—"to dance" in Japanese kanji—offers dance classes for all ages, and is also available for to rent by the hour. However, it's probably most well known for its flagship program, DancEsteem, a semester-long class geared toward youth ages 3 to 18.
"Children are natural dancers. They dance with imagination all the time," Craddock says in a statement on her website. "My mission is for these young dancers to develop their own identity and creativity through movement. If they find themselves loving dance, they will find self-confidence and self-esteem in their own way and in their own time."
DancEsteem originated 20 years ago, when Craddock was first teaching dance at Noe Valley Ministry on Sanchez Street. The class focuses on modern dance, ballet, and basic dance techniques. Students also learn a bit of choreography and improv, and each semester has a culminating performance. Semesters consist of 14 weekly classes that vary from an hour to an hour and a half, depending on age, and cost between $17 and $19 each.
While Mobu's June summer camp is already underway, Craddock also offers a two-week "Back To Shape" dance camp—geared toward teens—during the first part of August.
Craddock has also offered a Special Exchange Program since 2004, where students in the sixth grade and above get the chance to travel to another country, like Japan, Mexico, or the Czech Republic, to perform.
"Dance is a language," she told us. "That's why I feel the international programs are so important."
Craddock enjoys the challenges that come with working with children. "It makes me be more creative. You have to be creative to teach children, and you also have to be persistent and patient."
She also feels very much at home in Noe Valley, and is grateful for the community she's built here since she first began teaching at Noe Valley Ministry. In the future, she'd like to return to performing again, but for now, she's perfectly content where she is.
"I enjoy teaching, and I love my job," she said.
