Mana Hashimoto was born in Tokyo, Japan. Mana started classical ballet when she was four years old, and continued her ballet training and performing until she came to the United States in 1993.

In the United States, Mana studied jazz composition at the New England Conservatory and Berklee Academy of Music in Boston, working primarily with the piano. Mana came to New York City in 1998 to study modern dance at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance.

Mana began losing her sight at the age of 17, and eight years ago she lost her sight completely. Nevertheless, this has not interfered with her career: the passion for her art continues, as she assumes her active choreography and performing schedule, as well as organizing creative dance courses for visually impaired people and children in New York City.

In 2001, Mana founded the dance company Treaders in the Snow with Naeko Shikano and Takako Matsuda. The Village Voice called the three dancers “… all expert performers in the hypersensitive vein that reminds you of creatures sensing their world through quivering antennae.” The New York Times Dance Critic, Jennifer Dunning, referred to the "quiet magic, distillation and purity of vision" of the group's choreography, and to Ms. Hashimoto as "a serene, imposing center of the storm." Her peers also recognize Mana’s stature as an artist. Nancy Stevens, a documentary filmmaker and former dancer with the Martha Graham Dance Company and now a filmmaker describes Mana as a "uniquely gifted individual" whose "influence has been deeply felt in the international dance world."

Carl Rosenstein, Director of The Puffin Room, whose organization awarded Mana a scholarship at the renowned Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival refers to Mana as a "brilliant and outstanding performing artist." Eiko Otake, of the famous dance duo, Eiko & Koma, who was named a MacArthur Fellow in June 1996, speaks of Mana's "noble and sacred elegance" as a performer and states "Mana's artistic life is of great significance in the art world." Joanne Tucker, Founder of the Avodah Dance Ensemble, believes that Mana has made a "highly significant impact on the arts scene" and has a "critical role to play in the evolution of modern dance in the United States.”

Mana has performed around the world. Already in 2007 Mana has performed in Belgium, Paris, Finland, Lithuania, and the United States. In 2006, Mana performed in Japan, Belgium, and Finland, and in New York City at Dixon Place, the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors, and at the Central Park Vigil for International Peace Festival. Previously, among other venues, Mana has performed in Paris, at the 2005 Butoh Festival in Avignon, and in Edinburgh Scotland. In 2004 Mana was invited to the residential program at the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival through a grant offered by The Puffin Room Foundation.