Yuri has also been a professional actor over 30 years and improviser for 26 years. She began her career as a theatre actress in Tokyo and then began improvisation theatre, while at the same time moving into film and TV.  Performance and teaching experience of Improvisation: USA, Canada, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Austria, Holland, Switzerland, Colombia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. She’s been the art director of Impro Works Ltd. http://www.impro-works.info/ since 1995. She is a member of Orcas Island Project (International impro group). She is also an Asia representative of the International Theatresports Institute.
Yuri has been also an applied improvisation facilitator. She had worked with several business companies such as Nissan Ltd., Fuji Film Ltd., Lloyd's Register Quality Assurance Limited, Suntory Beer Ltd., Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd., Suzuki Motor Corporation etc.　She is the board member of the Applied Improvisation Network since2021.
As a writer, she has published 4 books about improvisation & voice training and 3 translated books (English to Japanese) . She has started to research improvisation and creativity by Cognitive science as the PhD student of University of Tokyo. MA of University of Auckland (the first-class honor) & University of Tokyo. 
 
Awards 
Best presentation in Japan Cognitive Science Society 2019. 
Best Actress 1998 Stockholm International Film Festival 
Best Foreign Performer 1998 New Zealand Film Awards 
(“Memory & Desire” Director Niki Caro).