Educational Media Reviews Online

Annoku Butoh is a style of avant-garde dance that established itself in the counter culture experimental arts scene of post WWII Japan. The dance form is thought to have been founded by Tatsumi Hijikata, who both created and performed in butoh pieces from the late 1950’s - through the early 1970’s. In butoh, the style of movement is extremely stylized and deliberate, vacillating between slow and sharp, expressing feelings of dread, sexualization, violence, calmness, birth and “creatureness” among other things. This 1973 performance of Summer Storm at Kyoto University was Hijikata’s last public performance before his death in 1986.

The film itself predominately serves as a straightforward recording of the performance. Thought the dance was originally recorded in 1973, the current iteration of the film was pulled together in 2003 by producer/director Aria Misao, who restored and edited together footage shot on three separate 8mm cameras from varying vantage points during the original performance. The gritty quality of the 8mm film stock in combination with the use of direct lighting adds to the surreal feel of the performance.

Though the film provides little to no context on the art of butoh or Hijikata himself, the disc contains a separate interview with Donald Richie, a well-known author and film critic specializing in Japanese culture and cinema. Richie’s short 14 minute interview provides background on Japan’s 1960’s counter culture and experimental art scene, as well as his personal experiences with Hijikata and Butoh performances.

Summer Storm is highly recommended for institutions with dance or experimental arts programs and recommended in general for higher education collections.