Kokoro Dance, one of Canada’s preeminent butoh dance companies, presents the world premiere of the provocative and primal Embryotrophic Cavatina, the company’s latest full-length work 20-years in the making, September 20 – 23 and 26 – 29, 2017 at the Roundhouse Community Arts & Recreation Centre. Choreographed by Co-Directors & award-winning dance artists Barbara Bourget and Jay Hirabayashi, and set to the score of acclaimed Polish composer Zbigniew Preisner, four dancers will strip themselves bare – literally and figuratively – in breathless motion and stillness, embodying the rawness of humanity and transcending all superficial layers of persona and ego.
“Dance and butoh have been a life-long journey of discovery, and with the development and creation of Embryotrophic Cavatina we’ve seen this journey come full circle,” says Bourget. “Jay and I envisioned this piece back in 1998, the same year Zbigniew Preisner premiered his first full-scale orchestral composition, Requiem for my friend. Inspired by the pure emotion and anguish of Preisner’s groundbreaking music, we began to develop the early sections of Embryotrophic Cavatina with the intention of choreographing to the complete 69-minute score. Working with a dream creative team, we are thrilled to finally reveal the culmination of two decades of work, ingenuity, and growth to our cherished audiences.”
Kokoro Dance has been presenting acclaimed butoh in Vancouver and internationally since 1986. The company brings a contemporary approach to this Japanese philosophy of movement, which was founded by butoh masters Hijikata Tatsumi and Ohno Kazuo as a reaction to western dance styles of ballet and modern in the 1960’s.
Embryotrophic Cavatina - born out of “embryotroph”, referencing the embryonic nourishment of placental animals and “cavatina”, a short, simple song without repetition - will be performed by four dynamic artists. The artists of Embryotrophic Cavatina will tap into the essential part of the self to awaken a deeper, universal connection within themselves and the audience.
Kokoro Dance presents Embryotrophic Cavatina
Dates: September 20 – 23 and 26 – 29, 2017 at 8pm
Tickets: $25 - $30
Address: Roundhouse Community Arts & Recreation Centre 181 Roundhouse Mews, Vancouver, BC V6Z 2W3
Box Office: kokoro.ca/ 604.662.4966
Website: kokoro.ca
Photos by Chris Randle