JAEFF: Mr O’s Book of the Dead + Navel and A-Bomb + Dual Enframe (15*)

We conclude our irresistible stumble through the world of butoh with two more masterpieces showcasing the talents of Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ohno. Hijikata reflects of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Eikoh Hosoe’s Navel and A-Bomb, whilst Ohno steps into riotous colour in the concluding chapter of Nagano’s Mr O trilogy.   

Mr O’s Book of the Dead is a stunning work of surrealism and choreography that evades written summary. Indeed, according to Ohno: “It is not important to understand what I am doing; perhaps it is better if they don't understand, but just respond to the dance.”

These classic dance films are complemented by Kioto Aoki’s Dual Enframe, which plays with different iterations of “the framing device,” using the camera, the body, the mirror, and a window space.

With a video introduction by Michael Sakamoto.