Ushio Amagatsu, the Hypnotic Universe of Sankai Juku
HIBIKI – Distant Resonance
Walking as a simple form: with their eyes fixed ahead,
two people walk slowly,
with the same step, in the same direction.
They don’t need signals to stop or to start again simultaneously;
if there are more than two, if they speed up,
it is the same.
No words,
but a resonance,
a dialogue between consciousnesses.
The resonance springs from a tension,
which in turn arises from a collision,
two taut surfaces collide.
But if one detaches from the other, the other does as well,
and the resonance disappears.
It is said that ontogeny resembles phylogeny.
A fetus begins its metamorphosis after one month, from fish to amphibian, from reptile to mammal.
The landing that took place over millions of years
on the Paleozoic shore,
the human fetus accomplishes in a few days.
The sound of blood circulation in the mother’s womb
resembles the movement of waves.
It is the first resonance that reaches us.
Ushio Amagatsu
Sankai Juku, founded by Ushio Amagatsu in 1975, is an emblematic group of Butoh, that particular form of dance that exploded in Japan in the late 1950s and 1960s in response to the tragedy of Hiroshima.
Dance of darkness (this is the meaning of the word Butoh), which he initially staged with artists like Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ohno, the master who passed away at 103 this June, presents an unconventional and radical body, striving to rediscover the roots of existence through inner folding and the temporal dilation of gesture. As a second-generation Butoh artist, Ushio Amagatsu has developed, since the 1980s, his particular vision of performance in which the movement of male dancers with shaved heads, faces, and bodies covered in white makeup presents a new beauty in scenes of powerful visual impact. His performances consistently represent a journey of discovery into a universal and symbolic dimension through a movement developed around the relationship with gravity and ecstasy.
Hibiki - Resonance from Far Away
Created at the Théâtre de la Ville in Paris in 1998, Hibiki – Resonance from Far Away is a creation for six dancers with original music composed by Takashi Kako and Yoichiro Yoshikawa. Divided into six sections, it is one of the exemplary pieces of Sankai Juku's art. It begins with Sizuki (drop), with dancers crouched on the ground in fetal position inside bubbles of light, while Amagatsu himself stands, with his fragmented and hypnotic gesture, serving as a symbolic intermediary between heaven and earth. It is a birth, an opening to a mysterious world, where the body discovers space but also prepares for seductive changes in a scene sprinkled with white and red puddles of water in which to reflect. An evocative journey towards the light, as announced by the visions and images of the other sections. Here are the dancers in bare torsos and long skirts, caressing, penetrating, measuring the density of the scene. Their gestures are meditative and fluid, shifting from singular to collective, new gods of an unreal and magical universe. They dance among large transparent plates/basins between zones of shadow and ecstatic light, suddenly ignited by red on their faces, in the water, and in garments that take on feminine qualities. Warmth and blood, transcending gender. A luminous sinking into the origins of humanity.
WHO IS USHIO AMAGATSU
Born in 1949, Ushio Amagatsu trained in classical and modern dance in Tokyo, as well as in traditional Japanese dances before embracing Butoh. The name of his group, Sankai Juku, means The Atelier of Mountain and Sea, in union with the most characteristic natural elements of Japan. Among his early works, Kinkan Shonen (1978) is an emblematic title of the cosmic connotation of his work. Since 1980, he has been continually invited to Europe, particularly France. It is at the Théâtre de la Ville in Paris that he has consistently debuted his creations since 1981, including Unetsu (1986), Omote (1991), Hibiki (1998), and Tobari (2008). His encounter with Europe has contributed to a fascinating aesthetic that bridges East and West. In 2002, Hibiki – Resonance from Far Away received the 26th Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production.
