“Unbearable darkness encounters the world of butoh, resisting its seduction and speculating on its possible origins.” Unbearable darkness is a dance and documentary project by artist Choy Ka Fai. The project investigates the legacy of butoh, inquiring into the relevance and potential of butoh today. Since the spread of butoh to Europe in the 1978, it has seen various forms of cultural assimilation, spiritual cultivation, and performative exorcism. This research traces the possible afterlives of butoh’s founder, Tatsumi Hijikata, interviewing and inviting his spirit to collaborate in the making of a new dance creation. Unbearable darkness makes a choreographic proposition: How does a ghost choreograph? What are the technological possibilities for dancing with Hijikata again?

Main Cities of Activity

Akita, Tokyo, Yokohama

Host Institution(s) / Individual(s)

PARC-Japan Center ,Pacific Basin Arts Communication, Japan

Activity Reports

Unbearable Darkness by Choy Ka Fai(1,839KB)