Shinichi Iova-Koga
Butoh – Temporal Transformations

© David Joshua Jennings

In the 1960’s, the avant-garde arts in Japan flourished in an atmosphere of protest and civil dis-obedience. Japanese identity was confusingly intertwined with American values and cultural transformation. Within this bewildering environment, performing arts such as Butoh Dance emerged, touching on and deconstructing the extremes between Western modern dance and Japanese traditional arts.

The first steps towards transformation exists in time. Suspend, extend and compress the temporal experience with physical precision and imagistic fluidity to open the potential of the moment. Complex and nuanced forces shape the gesture, arising without force. The pathway of the eyes beckon to the next steps. Exercises develop energy-efficient motion and connectivity to build clarity and stability. With this foundation, participants enter the chaotic stream of interaction, become wild, let go of rigid logic and enter the unknowable dance.