The third year, Malaysian Dance Festival 2005 with the theme of ?Living Heritage? being held at Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPac) for two weeks from 27 June until 10 July 2005.
The festival features more than 30 performances, two international collaborations with artistes from Japan, Mr. Ko Murobushi and Australia, an international dance conference, 27 workshops and 11 video screenings.
It is presented by the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage and co-organised by MyDance Alliance.
Phoenix Rises, is the newly piece produced by international collaboration between Ko Murobushi, a leading Japanese Butoh Dancer (Japan) and Nyoba Dance (Malaysia). This performance is scheduled from 29 June to 1 July 2005 at Pentas 2, Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPac).
This performance is sponsored by Japan Foundation.
The dates, time and venue as follow:
Date : 29 (Wed), 30 (Thu) June & 1 (Fri) July 2005
Time : 8:30pm
Venue : Pentas 2, Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPac)
Visit http://www.mydancealliance.org/ for more details.
About Butoh
Butoh is a contemporary avant-garde dance form, which originated in Japan and which was first performed there in 1959. It combines dance, theater, improvisation and influences of Japanese traditional performing arts with German Expressionist dance (Neue Tanz) and performance art to create a unique performing art form that is both controversial and universal in its expression. It has evolved to become an international art form with artists and groups devoted to teaching and performing it in East and South-East Asia, North and South America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Hawaii.
Dance festivals have featured performances by Butoh artists since the 1960s, but more recently festivals have been held which are exclusively devoted to Butoh.
(Quotation from ?http://www.butoh.net/?)
Performers
* Ko Murobushi
Ko is a renowned Butoh artist and leading inheritor of Hijikata?s original vision of Butoh. He has founded several Butoh groups including Dairakudakan, Ariadone (all female) and Sebi (all male). In 2003 he formed Ko & Edge Co.
Several of his productions (solo and group) have been invited to international festivals, and he has been awarded residencies around the world.
While Ko exposes Butoh to worldwide influences, he also searches deeper into its Japanese roots, continually looking for new possibilities. Through his choreographies and performances, Ko remains one of the most respected representatives of Butoh.
* Lee Swee Keong
A Fine Art graduate interested in movement, Keong has studied contemporary dance, ballet, Butoh, tai qi, qigong and yoga. He has appeared in diverse dance, theatre, film and experimental productions as a movement artist.
In 1995 he co-founded Nyoba & Dancers with Ng Mei Yin and Loi Chin Yu. In 2003, this was changed to Nyoba Dance to reflect changes in the company?s line-up and artistic direction.
Keong is a contemporary theatre radical whose work and initiatives stand out against his Malaysian counterparts. Exploring alternative thought and drawing on his training in various art disciplines, his works have taken on a distinctive edgy, avant-garde style.
* Caecar Chong
Although a trained architect, Caecar believes architecture is more than just building buildings. In association with Space Spirit Studio, he champions the use of various media across art disciplines to express the spirit of space. His set designs for theatre and dance have respectively won and been nominated for a Cameronian Arts Award.
* Kiea Kuan Nam
Discovering dance during his university years, Kuan Nam went on to become a member of Sel & KL Kwangsi Dance Troupe and later, RiverGrass Dance Theatre. In 2001 he formed 515 Workshop with 4 friends, choreographing and performing in 5 Dancers 8 Dances, Dance Box Series 2002 and Journey.
* Wong Yan Yu
Starting with Chinese dance (Hainan Youth Association) and ballet (Victoria Dance Arts & Danc?ng Art), Yan Yu has recently taken up wu shu (Chin Woo Association). She has been involved in productions such as Ma Chu, Tari (2000, 2002), Junglebook, Siddharta and Above Full Moon.
* Ismadian bt Ismail
A Diploma in Dance graduate from Akademi Seni Kebangsaan, Ismadian has been involved in productions such as Jamu, Gelombang Baru, Stepping Out and Tapestry.
