The
offering.
Why do we dance for each other?
Instead of performing we can look at dancing for an audience as an
offering or a gift…. This is a very important part of the
work. This is where we truly take a risk. We can dance all day with the door shut…
However the true transformative power is not realized until we reveal ourselves. In my opinion the
performer is inviting the audience to see, so the performer must be willing to be seen.
There is a type of poverty
that can be very beautiful in dancing. Often it is lost in fancy costumes, big movements and virtuosity.
Butoh, like Zen seeks to show the beauty in the simple…. When we dance it’s as if we
are saying, “here is my body…this is what I have to offer, nothing more.” We give ourselves
in the dance exactly as we are. We start from wherever we are at. Like the cracked bowl,
it is beautiful because of the crack… If we can do this, give ourselves completely in
candor from where we truly stand than we have accomplished something paramount. This
type of understanding is primary to the technique and the scores that we dance in class.
- Candor Sincere and open speech, honesty in expression
- impartiality
It is our vulnerability which is our greatest gift. We should dance in poverty,
do less, say less, and be more naked.
