Butoh: Body on the Edge of Crisis
1990 / 89 min. / color
Directed by Michael Blackwood
Min Tanaka and Maijuku; Yoko Ashikawa and Hakutobo; Akaji Maro and Dai Rakuda Kan; Kazuo Ohno; Isamu Ohsuka and Byakko-sha; Natsu Nakajima and Muteki-sha; Sankaijuku; and Tatsumi Hijikata.
Butoh, a unique theater of improvisation, places the personal experiences of the dancer on center-stage. A Dionysian dance of nudity, eroticism, and sexuality, Butoh’s scale of expression ranges from meditative tenderness to excessive grotesqueness. Through a recalling of the Buddhist death dances of rural Japan, and use of music and masks Butoh is able to incorporate aspects of traditional theater into its extreme performances. An alliance of tradition and rebellion, Butoh is one of the most fascinating underground dance movements. Butoh: Body on the Edge of Crisis is a visually striking film portrait shot on location in Japan with the participation of the major Butoh choreographers and their companies.
Directed by
Michael Blackwood
Writing Credits
Lynn Piasecki … (associate writer)
Bonnie Sue Stein … (narration written by)
Cast
Yoko Ashikawa
Akiko Motofuji
Nario Goda
Tatsumi Hijikata (archive footage)
Yukio Waguri
Akaji Maro
Min Tanaka
Kazuo Ôno
Natsu Nakajima
Sanae Hiruta
Sankai Juku
Dai Rakuda Kan
Byakko-Sha
Muteki-Sha
Maijuku
Hakutobo
Karuko Aiyama
Ushio Amagatsu
Kao Arahata
Shusei Asada
Megumi Ashikawa
Mito Ashikawa
Seisaku Ashikawa
Shoko Ashikawa
Uzumi Ashikawa
Yukinko Ashikawa
Katerina Bakatsaki
Arawakasyu of Byakkosha
Tess de Quincy
François Evangelisti (Francois Evangelisti)
Fumie Hippo
Hisako Horikawa
Tenko Ima
Norio Imanishi
Sadahiko Irisawa
Naruhiko Kadawa
Masaku Kaita
Makiko Kamata
Satomi Kawakami
Harumi Kitaguchi
Kyoko Komatsu
Takeru Kono
Haruko Kudo
Nobutaka Kuwabara
Ritsu Minatama
Yoichi Mori
Keiji Morita
Kasumi Muraki
Ko Murobushi
Sei Nagatsuka
Yukara Nakai
Hideki Nakazato
Goro Namerikawa
Torio Nogi
Tsuruko Noguchi
Atsushi Ogata
Naoyuki Oguri
Yoshito Ohno
Isamu Ohsuka
Hikaru Otsubo
Christine Quoiraud
Tumiko Saeki
Tetsuo Sakaibara
Yuri Sakurai
Andres Salgado
Norikazu Sato
Ea Sola
Takako Suzuki
Yoshiyuki Takada
Yasunari Tamai
Katsuyoshi Tamamura
Koichi Tamano
Chiyomi Tamura
Mutsuo Tanaka Mutsuo Tanaka
Toshiyuki Tanigawa
Makiko Tominaga
Kinya Tsuruyama
Frank Van De Ven
Ine Yatsushima
Produced by
Michael Blackwood … producer
Leslie Megahey … executive producer
José Montes-Baquer … executive producer
Bonnie Sue Stein … associate producer
Music by
Toshio Mizohata
Natsu Nakajima
Minoru Noguchi
Kazu Owaku
Ryuichi Sakamoto
Yasukazu Sato
Tomoe Shizune
Massaru Soga
Cinematography by
Christian Blackwood
Film Editing by
Lynn Piasecki
Makeup Department
Setsuko Ohno … makeup artist
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Taka Iimura … segment director
Peter Laemmle … segment director
Lynn Piasecki … associate director
Tadashi Suzuki … segment director
Art Department
Hisashi Irisawa … sets
Gento Kitashirakawa … stage design
Toshio Yamamura … sets
Sound Department
Manabu Kono … sound
Katsumi Mizutani … sound
John Murphy … sound recordist
Ayumu Okubo … sound
Camera and Electrical Department
Nesya Blue … additional photographer
Yasuo Daito … lighting
Mead Hunt … rostrum camera
Takashi Kimura … lighting
Megumi Kishi … lighting
Goetz Rogge … assistant camera
Ichiro Sekine … lighting
Costume and Wardrobe Department
Kyoko Domoto … costumer
Nourit Masson-Sekine … costumer
Setsuko Ohno … costumer
Editorial Department
Annabel Davies … assistant editor
Music Department
Takudo Fukumoto … musician
Toshiaki Kaji … musician
Yasunobu Matsuo … musician
Takeshi Nakamura … musician
Juho Nishiguchi … musician
Kichizo Nozawa … musician
Takashi Oka … musician
Kaori Takada … musician
Ananosuke Takemoto … musician
Kyoho Uemura … musician
Tadasu Yoshida … musician
Shoho Yoshitake … musician
Additional Crew
Ushio Amagatsu … choreographer
Yoko Ashikawa … choreographer
Kazumi Futagawa … voice
Toru Ibaraki … stage manager
Christine Joffe … assistant to producer
Susan B. Klein … translation (as Susan Klein)
George Kunihiro … voice
Akaji Maro … choreographer
Nourit Masson-Sekine … additional interviews
Natsu Nakajima … choreographer
Hisayoshi Ota … voice
Ikuko Saito … managing director
Machi Satani … voice
Bonnie Sue Stein … consultant
Min Tanaka … choreographer
Thanks
Rudolph Bach … photo credit
Cecil Beaton … photo credit
Jerry Cooke … photo credit
Shosetsu Gendai … photo credit
Mitsutoshi Hanaga … photo credit
Roku Hasegawa … photo credit
Ethan Hoffman … photo credit
Eikô Hosoe … photo credit (as Eiko Hosoe)
Naoya Ikegami … photo credit
Midori Ishii … photo credit
Nourit Masson-Sekine … photo credit
Tadao Nakatani … photo credit
Akira Tanno … photo credit
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