KYOTO ART CENTER
 

EVENT
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KYOTO EXPERIMENT 2016 AUTUMN Michikazu Matsune "Dance, if you want to enter my country! "

Genre
  • VisualVisual
  • MusicMusic
  • DanceDance
Category
  • PerformancePerformance

A performance that questions the borders of national and racial identity

Vienna-based Michikazu Matsune uses his own body to create performances that challenge society and systems. Premiered in Austria in July last year, this performance is inspired by an actual incident at Ben Gurion Airport. The African-American dancer Abdur Rahim Jackson was visiting Israel for a performance but his Muslim first name drew the suspicion of the border security officers. He was taken into a private room and made to dance in order to prove his profession.
Matsune’s approach is not simply to criticize this; rather, he attempts to explore the truth behind the peculiar incident based on his own experiences of travel. Reconsidering the background behind the story, Matsune re-enacts a piece by Alvin Ailey, the dance company to which Jackson belongs, themed around the African-American civil rights movement, while also questioning the true value of a passport as identification.

Confronting a society that forces lines between nationality, ethnicity and identity, Matsune, who has lived overseas for many years, stands at these borders and uses various means to inquire into how far they can be disputed from the position of the individual.
An exhibition, “Towards the other side of the world,” is also held in the same venue. Planned by Matsune, it features a range of artists from around the world, revealing the frictions and contradictions caused by national borders.
Date / Term
November 3,2016[thu.]-November 6[sun.]
November 3(Thu) 16:30-
4(Fri) 19:30-
5(Sat) 14:00-
6(Sun) 19:30-
Post-performance talk: November 4
Theater reception opens 1h prior to the performance
Venue
Kyoto Art Center Auditorium

Michikazu Matsune

Born 1973 in Kobe and lives in Vienna since 1997. Michikazu Matsune is an artist, choreographer and performer who works in various mediums such as live-performance, photography and video. His interest lies in testing poetical absurdity to reflect our society critically and playfully. His interdisciplinary performances have been developed in different contexts such as public space,
gallery space and stage, and presented in renowned institutions and festivals internationally. Since 2012 Matsune teaches performance practice and has been a guest tutor at the Universität der Künste Berlin (University of Arts Berlin) and Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance. As an extension of his art practice, he also organizes/curates exhibitions with focus on performance practice.

URL

http://kyoto-ex.jp/2016-autumn-eng/

Contact

KYOTO EXPERIMENT Office(11:00-19:00)
TEL:075-213-5839 / FAX:075-213-5849
E-mail:info@kyoto-ex.jp

Admission

Adult Adv. ¥2,500 / Day ¥3,000
Youth, Student Adv. ¥2,000 / Day ¥2,500
Senior Adv. ¥2,000 / Day ¥2,500
High School Student
and Younger Adv. ¥1,000 / Day ¥1,000
Pair ¥4,500(advance only)
Youth tickets → Up to 25
Senior tickets → 65 & Up

*Unreserved Seating

[Exhibition] Towards the other side of the world A project by Michikazu Matsune

Before and after performances, audience can also view the exhibition “Towards the other side of the world” in the same venue

Dates: November 3 (Thu)– November 6 (Sun)
Venue: Auditorium, Kyoto Art Center

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