Paper short abstract:

Recent debates in dance studies focus with more emphasis on the complex interrelation between dance and politics questioning, for example, the extent to which performance can influence society. In reference to this agenda this paper discusses controversial aspects emerging from Murobushi Kō's dance.

Paper long abstract:

Recent debates in dance studies (Franko 1995, Lepecki 2006, Kolb 2011) focus with more emphasis on the complex interrelation between dance and politics questioning several issues, such as the extent to which performance can influence society. In reference to these agendas this paper discusses controversial aspects emerging from Murobushi Kō's dance.

Murobushi occupies a relevant position in articulating butō's original intent of corporeal revolution. He is a significant heir of Hijikata Tatsumi's radical project of anti-dance, considered as guerrilla and as an attack to the establishment. As a consequence, Murobushi develops dance as an intervention by means of his own body and against his own body integrated into the system. His counter-discourse and artistic investigation elaborate critical assessments of identity, body and dance in relation to knowledge, gender, society, politics, ideology and religion. He relentlessly interrogated the borders of butō, while combining social conflicts with questions of corporeality and performativity. However, he never explicitly addressed social issues in content. Nevertheless, mirroring himself in Michel Foucault's biopolitics, Murobushi pursued, especially in his last two decades, a corporeality which embodies the thought of the outside and which works against mechanisms of power.

In addition, Murobushi played a fundamental role in disseminating butō/Butoh overseas, and contributed to a certain reception of this art outside Japan, while stimulating new dance solutions in the international contemporary dance scene.

Under analysis are put paradoxical configurations rising from a confrontation between his early practice of shugendō and his anti-religious attitude, between his influence outside Japan and his critical stance towards a stereotyped image of butō, his radicalism in performance and his non-interventionist character.