Part of Platform 2016: A Body in Places

Eiko and John Killacky will be in attendance to introduce this screening!

This Wednesday night film series is co-presented by Danspace Project and Anthology Film Archives and curated by Eiko, who addresses “how humans contribute to and survive the characteristics of places.” Tickets are available at Anthology’s box office on the day of the show only. The box office opens 30 minutes before the first show of the day. There are no advance ticket sales.

PROGRAM 6: A BODY IN A CHAIR: BODIES AWAKE
I have long felt that dance does not belong only to the young, healthy, and athletic. Here are some clear examples of old and challenged bodies dancing in mourning of the lost. –Eiko

Otsu Koshiro
INNER MONOLOGUE
2005, 100 min, digital. In Japanese with English subtitles.
I studied with Butoh’s founder Kazuo Ohno in 1971-72 and again in 1975-76. He was always disappointed by my leaving for faraway places like Europe and the US. Having spent nine years in the War, Ohno, upon his return, danced with urgency, perhaps also with remorse. In 1977, at the age of 70, he danced La Argentina, his homage to famed Spanish dancer La Argentina, whom he saw in 1929. He performed six seasons in New York, the last in December 1999 at the age of 93, his very final concert abroad. He soon suffered a fall that advanced his Alzheimer’s. However, with the help of his son Yoshito Ohno, he continued to dance on a chair, both in his studio and in the theaters of various cities. Though his memories and steps were lost, his dancing clearly lived on in his body and mind. Ohno danced and murmured, “If I cannot dance, why have I climbed this mountain?” –Eiko

With:
John Killacky and Steve Grandell STOLEN SHADOWS 1996, 10 min, video
John Killacky DREAMING AWAKE 2003, 5 min, video
STOLEN SHADOWS is a black and white film lamenting on the mounting losses from the AIDS pandemic. DREAMING AWAKE juxtaposes a narrator in a wheelchair with the movement of nude dancers. A surgical mishap left Killacky paralyzed. He willed himself to re-learn and train his new body. –Eiko

More info:
anthologyfilmarchives.org
eikoandkoma.org