Fiona Graham
Sayuki (紗幸, born in Melbourne as Fiona Graham) is an Australian geisha working in Japan.[1] She is also an anthropologist, producer and director of anthropological documentaries. She has worked on a number of programmes for NHK as well as National Geographic, Channel 4, and BBC.[citation needed]
In December 2007, after a year of preparation and training, Sayuki formally debuted as a geisha in the Asakusa District of Tokyo, skipping the conventional apprentice stage (known as maiko or hangyoku) due to her age.[1] She states that she is the first western geisha in Japanese history.[2] Sayuki is taking lessons in several arts, but her main art is yokobue (Japanese bamboo flute).
Sayuki has a PhD in Social Anthropology from the University of Oxford, and an M.B.A. from the same. Her first degrees in psychology and teaching were taken at Keio University.[3] She has done fieldwork in Japanese companies, in Tokyo's night world, with Japanese traditional sports teams, and in the world of anime and popular culture.[citation needed] Sayuki became a geisha as an academic project, and does not expect to be a geisha all her life.[3]
"Sayuki: inside the flower and willow world" will be published with Pan Macmillan Australia. A documentary about the geisha world is planned as well.[citation needed]
Bibliography
- Inside the Japanese Company by Fiona Graham, Curzon Press, 2003, ISBN 0415306701
- A Japanese Company In Crisis: Ideology, Strategy, And Narrative (Contemporary Japan) by Fiona Graham, Routledge, 2005, ISBN 0415346851
References
- Ryall, Julian (9 January 2008). "Westerner inducted into mysteries of geisha". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
- ^ a b Aussie geisha speaks out, The Japan Times, 29 June 2008, retrieved 3 June 2009
- ^ Turning Japanese: the first foreign geisha, The Independent, 24 January 2008, retrieved 2 June 2009
- ^ a b Ryall, Julian and Norrie, Justin (2008-01-08). "Australian academic is a geisha down to a tea". The Sydney Morning Herald.
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