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SALT LAKE CITY -- A Salt Lake dance company begins a series of performances Thursday that will introduce Utahns to a dance form many have never seen.
The performance is heavily influenced by Butoh, which originated in Japan following World War II.
Those who study it say while it's fascinating to watch, it's hard to define.
Two dancers, intertwined yet reaching opposite directions -- it could be a metaphor for finding our own way in life, but that's just one interpretation.
In Butoh-influenced dance, everyone has their own interpretation.
"What we want to seek is how to enter into the unknown mind, and from the unknown mind is to let our childlike imageries come up. Our untold stories are revealed," said Jerry Gardner, artistic director of Allen Gardner Dance Theater.
Gardner got his start with martial arts. To improve his movement, he began to study dance. Contemporary and ballet led to him become a mime.
"And then, no pun intended, you hit the wall," he said with a groan as her performed the classic wall pantomime.
In 1986 Gardner was watching TV when he saw a performance. It consisted of seemingly unrehearsed movements, dramatic and eye-catching. At the bottom a single word: "Butoh."
Gardner began studying the dance form and has until present day.
The performances this weekend capture the whimsical as well as taboo and extremes found in Butoh dance. It's part dancing, part acting and isn't choreographed down to the last detail; performers are free to improvise. The moment it becomes routine is the moment it ceases to be Butoh.
"What I've been trying to capture is to find my dance," Gardner said. "To find our dance is to find our life, and I think that's what we're all trying to do."
The performances run Thursday through Saturday at Sugar Space Studio. Performances are for adults and children older than 13.
E-mail: sdallof@ksl.com
