Salsa’s About To Heat Up Niseko

A salsa studio, salsa events and a world-class salsa teacher are coming to Niseko.

Mika Takenaga is a professional salsa instructor who, as the founder of Roppongi, Tokyo’s Dance Studio Casino and the Japan Salsa Association, has played a large role in Salsa’s growing popularity in Japan.

While Mika san spends much time overseas leading salsa workshops and performing, her relationship with Niseko began during the Covid era, when she and her family, including their then three-year-old daughter, spent several weeks here during the summer of 2021, staying at an Annupuri Residences property.

As Mika san enjoyed the scenery, the food and the town with her family, she discovered that many of the residents and visitors were interested in salsa, so she started to hold small, informal events.

Eventually, Mika san and her family decided to purchase a Niseko Annupuri Residences property and their now under-construction 5-bedroom villa – that uniquely will feature a dance studio – is due for completion in February 2024.

Mika san plans to hold dance classes in her studio when in Niseko for residents, visitors and existing students from Tokyo.

The villa will sit on a 2,768sqm (837 tsubo) lot and the design is a custom plan by AE5 Partners, an architectural and design firm with offices in Japan and Italy that has already designed two other Annupuri Residences homes.

Masahito Kato, President & CEO of Annupuri Properties, which developed Annupuri Residences, said that as a developer, the goal is to design villas that match owners’ interests so their stays can be as enjoyable as possible.

Although Masahito and his team have built home gyms, saunas, offices and other custom amenities before, this was their first dance studio and as part of the design process, he and the architect took a salsa lesson with Mika san at her Tokyo studio.

The expression of salsa, said Mika san, can be challenging for Japanese practitioners as it relies on forward communication that is culturally different from some aspects of Japan’s more reserved mode of operation.

But Mika san also said that as the Japanese tend to be good at repeating what they are taught in detail – meaning technique – they can rely on this until they become more comfortable.

“My classes aren’t limited to Japanese people but I enjoy teaching them very much because their personalities come out through their dances,” said Mika san.

The villa studio will be large enough for about 15 people to dance in and will view Niseko natural scenery from its windows, a very different aesthetic than Roppongi in central Tokyo.

In addition to salsa within Annupuri Residences, Mika san is planning on hosting other salsa events in Niseko, starting the weekend of 15 September with the Nisko Dance Festival, an event open to the public which will also include Australian dance camp visitors and students from the Tokyo studio as participants.

Mika san hopes the Niseko Dance Festival can become an annual event.

“Most salsa and Latin events are at the beach or in the city, but this will uniquely be in the mountains,“ said Mika san.

“It feels good to dance outdoors, and the international environment [of Niseko] is perfect for a salsa event. The goal is international exchange and interaction with locals through dance,” said Mika san.

For Masahito, the villa development and the coming salsa classes and events are just another sign of Niseko’s expansion into an all season resort.

“Many European and North American ski resorts have more visitors during green season than in the winter, and I expect Niseko to achieve that in the future.”

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