“Study by yourself. Then make your own revolution. This is butoh.” – Yoshito Ohno¹
Welcome, curious souls!
We have here the first of its kind virtual butoh manual and is perpetually updated. This manual is very heavy with hands-on exercise and simple explanations. Each section is as a chocolate sampler box, connecting to other chocolate sampler boxes.
Everything is a teacher. This manual is just one grain of sand in the immense hourglass of life that some might find useful. It is not the intention of this manual to speak for all butoh. This is the shadowbody slant / style / perspective / map of butoh. It is up to the individual to craft their own butoh. The manual is about creating creators and visionaries. The main source of inspiration is our own body, psyche, world, and spirit.
“Art is deeply rebellious. Bad artists talk about the rebellion, but true artists do the rebellion.” – Jerzy Grotowski²
This manual is to be approached with play, curiosity, bravery, creativity, and rebellion. There is nothing immune to remixing or discarding. Discernment is part of creating your own artistic genius. The navigation is set up as cumulative, but it does not mean you cannot jump around to whatever grabs your interest. You get out what you put in.
And check out my latest project, a new Christian-based butoh method — THEOKINESIS.
Also, there are always butoh intensives and workshops happening that I am a part of. For the recent calendar, check out the Theokinesis main page.
Any questions at all whether technical or not, don’t hesitate to reach me. Also, connect to the two Butoh Self-Research & Discovery groups: Facebook & Telegram.
¹ Calamoneri, Tanya. “Butoh Pedagogy in Historical and Contemporary Practice”. The Routledge Companion to Butoh Performance. London and New York: Routledge, 2018. Page 424.
² Wolford, Lisa, and Richard Schechner. The Grotowski Sourcebook. London: Routledge, 2001. Print. 235.
