Dance New Amsterdam (DNA), and CAVE are pleased to present a co-production of CAVE: NY BUTOH-KAN MASTERS on November 18, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. The evening will feature the world premiere of Nobody's Money developed by world-renowned butoh master Akira Kasai in DNA's state-of-the-art 130-seat theater. A post performance discussion with the master will follow, lead by CAVE's Co-Director Ximena Garnica.
Hailing from Tokyo, Japan, the 68-year old Butoh pioneer Akira Kasai, dubbed "Nijinksy of butoh," studied modern dance, pantomime and classical ballet during the 50's. He performed with the late Kazuo Ohno in "Gigi" in 1963 and in Tatsumi Hijikata's "Bara-iro dansu" (Rose-colored dance) in 1965. During the ‘70s, he continued to develop and refine his own personal style through. Although he may be called a butoh dancer, Kasai's style of dance is clearly different from what is usually associated with butoh - slow, horizontal movements at low positions deriving from the life and soul of traditional Japanese farmers. Instead, Kasai concentrates on fierce horizontal and vertical movements, using the expanse of the stage, but with some humorous or clown like elements.
Nobody's Money will feature music by
Michael Laurence Nyman, Johannes Brahms, and Hibari Misora and Onna-Michi. The inspiration behind the piece is the relationship between money and the body, "I see the affects of the rapidly crumbling trust of money and wonder...is money becoming ‘No Money' these days? Then, how about the human body? Is there an implication between money and the human body?" asks Akira Kasai. The post-production discussion, led by Garnica, will take an in-depth look at Kasai's work.
"It is astounding that DNA has the opportunity to present such an accomplished artist as Akira Kasai in partnership with Brooklyn's CAVE." says Catherine Peila, Executive and Artistic Director of Dance New Amsterdam. "DNA is committed to providing a platform for
International Artists to share their culture as well as their personal expression. It is a large part of DNA's mission and we are honored to bring the premiere of Kasai's Nobody's Money to New York audiences."
In 1971, Kasai established Tenshi-kan (House of Angels) in Tokyo's western suburb of Kokubunji as an institute in which he taught dance. His interest in Rudolf Steiner's anthroposophy and eurhythmy, an art of bodily movement based on a theory that archetypal movements correspond to every aspect of speech, music and emotion, led him to study in Stuttgart, Germany, from 1979 until 1985. Since his return to Japan he has cultivated his own highly idiosyncratic style of dance. In "Pollen Revolution," with which he toured in the United States in the fall of 2004, he first appeared as a woman dressed in a traditional kabuki costume, who eventually morphed into a hip-hop dancer. He leads the Tenshi-Kan Dance Institute in Tokyo and has published two books of essays on dance perception and new dance techniques.
Akira Kasai's world premiere "Nobody's Money", was developed during his 2011 fall residency at CAVE as part of the Ludus Program, an educational program that brings influential international butoh artists to NYC as resident teachers. The NY Butoh-Kan masters presentations is supported, in part, by public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA), and the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA). LUDUS: The New York Butoh Kan Teaching Residency and CAVE performance Season is a program of CAVE Organization, Inc.
Performances take place Friday at 8:00 p.m. Tickets may be purchased online at www.dnadance.org, in person at DNA's box office two hours before show time, or by calling 212.625.8369 x225. Ticket prices for performances are $17 for general audiences; $13 for students, DNA and CAVEnexux members. To arrange discounted tickets for groups of six or more, contact mingle@dnadance.org. All sales are final.
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