HARVESTING BEAUTY IN THE DARK Thursday January 24 • Asian Art Museum SF Butoh Lab, salto donec moriar, Salt Farm, & Katsura Kan's Saltimbanques (Molly Barrons, Marco Becherini, Christina Braun, Sheri Brown, Deborah Butler, Shelley Cook-Contrares, Gabriella Daris, Jennifer Hicks, Douglas Ridings, and Bob Webb)

butoh is a style of dance-theater to be experienced — several times. san franciscans are fortunate to have had exposure through numerous butoh festivals as well as local troupes and teachers (plus a resident kyogen company). as the practice of butoh has grown beyond japan, there are now butoh artists across the world.

every january, the asian art museum of san francisco presents a butoh performance. following this year's event — harvesting beauty in the dark, directed by master katsurra kan, the museum hosted a q&a with the artists

here follows some notes, scribbled in a precognitive, post-verbal state of amazement.

sensei kan noted that "here" [san francisco] is asia, not europe. [reminds me how thomas merton noted in his asian journals, before crossing the pacific ocean, stopping in marin, looking around, and saying he was already in asia]

kan-san's work is not preconceived but free, and if it communicates successfully — miscommunicates, perhaps — a sense of absurdity might be conveyed.

he spoke working within "the gap" : the gap between him and the audience ; the gap between the dancers and other artists with whom he collaborates. when he finds that gap, he has a basis for collaboration. the gap as measure ; the gap between you and me, across which a bridge might be possible.

(i wondered if that corresponds to the japanese word ma)

commenting on the title of the performance harvesting beauty in the dark, he noted butoh is a catch-all for communication between you and me. his means of working means not knowing what he's doing (or has done). "there is only one theme in life: something i don't know yet, darkness; this belongs to my darkness."

this darkness under consciousness can be perceived sleeping in traditional noh, a very long performance in which you might fall asleep several times — out of which you can create, your body having done somehting 10,000 times, 100,000 timnes, forever — something you create from your body, and forget, as a secret — which you hide. [sorry, my notes were hasty]

greco-japanese butoh artist gabriella doris spoke of searching for ways "to destroy the ideal form(s) of beauty: have you thought of another beauty than the mirror?"

ledoh had begun the evening's piece with a 20-minute solo, walking outside, in the city hall plaza, in the rain, towards the museum, then up the museum's beaux arts stairway. in the q&a, he reminded us our minds and feelings are seldom in the present moment, but our body always is. taking his lead from the body, he surrenders the mind, going to the body in the moment, participating with the body, from such simple actions as walking, and keeping with that awareness of the genuine throughout the actions of daily life.

katsura kan suggested that butoh might resemble karaoke: if no one had a concept of karaoke, no one would sing. similarly, saying "butoh" then the expression of dark or ugly things becomes ok, showing the dark side of the moon, being a total person — including our perennial mask.