About Takao KAWAGUCHI (Tokyo. Dancer/Performer)
Born in 1962, currently based and live in Tokyo. Joined in student theatre at college, and learned pantomime-based movement techniques. Upon return from studying in Spain for one year, Kawaguchi began dancing and co-founded ATA DANCE with Yoshifuku Atsuko in 1990. In 1996, he joined the Japanese multimedia artist collective Dumb Type and participated in “Or” (1997), “Memorandum” (1998), and “Voyage” (2002). In parallel, Kawaguchi began working solo from 2000 and collaborated with artists of different disciplines including Yamakawa Fuyuki, Itoh Atsuhiro, Manabe Daito (Rhizomatiks), and Fujimoto Takayuki (Dumb Type) – to explore live performance crossing borders of theatre, dance, visual image, and fine arts. From 2008 onwards, he began the solo performance series “A Perfect Life”; the 6th work of which, “From Okinawa to Tokyo”, was presented at the 5th Yebisu Eizo Festival at the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography in 2013. Recently he has approached Butoh in “The Sick Dancer” (2012) based on the text of the Butoh founder Hijikata Tatsumi, and “About Kazuo Ohno – Reliving the Butoh Diva’s Masterpieces” (world premiere in 2013). The latter was shown at the Kunstenfestivaldesarts Brussels in 2016; nominated for the NYC Bessie Award for 2016-17; it was also presented at Théâtre de la Ville à Paris (Festival d’Automne à Paris) in October 2018. The piece has been performed over 70 times at over 30 cities around the world – including Berlin, Melbourne, Los Angeles, Sao Paulo, and Bangkok; it is still touring to date. Latest works include “Touch of the Other” (2015, Los Angeles; 2016, Tokyo), which was based on the archive materials of sociological studies of male-to-male impersonal sex at public places from ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives in Los Angeles; and solo dance “Blackout” (2018, Tokyo).
We, Symbols all
We, Symbols all
Symbols in a world of symbols
A role, an image
A barter, a bargain
1 + 0’s 0 + 1
1 + 1 = Total
0 + 1 = Total
I am you I am he I am she
I am we and they
I am the world the world is I
I am I am I
The world has no one but me
In life, anything goes
Anything, o yes anything
Anything goes
Ideal is a string of words
A series of slogans
Five sayings four epithets
We are the world
We sing
We run
We jump
We walk
Step by step
On the high-rise
Under the open sea
We are water we are fire
We are mountain we are wind
That moment
That scene
That laugh
That sight
A patch of blue
Blue patches are now a flash of pale white memory
Game over in a flash Let there be light
Politics of politics
Politics for politics
Play of symbols
Play of words
Words and speech morphed into weapons
Constantly wrecking
Constantly regrouping
Making the world a better place
A better place
Gentle as wind and water
Brilliant as the shining moon
To destroy is to rebuild
The world on its head
The world on its feet
No law no heaven
For the people
New world old world
Heroes, anti-heroes
Genius, morons
Without 100 years of solitude
Nor one thousand / ten thousand years
Ten thousand ten thousand years
I want it now
River of no return upload download
Smart start
The post post post post modern world of 0+1
The no and no of right and wrong
One second is too much
I want it now
Spring flowers autumn moon wind flower talk to moon
Lust and hope
Note and keep
Way and truth
Life and death
What we know and feel
How we laugh and cry
Our despair
And our tears
Have all become…
Storylines and screen images
Voices and roaring fires
Nothing has anything real
Nor anything has anything fake
Images after images
Memories over memories
Illusions on illusions
A whole life during this life
No snow no rain
No breeze no falling leaves
No autumn no winter
No more…
You and I
When the sun turned white
You sent me a text message
The moment today’s world ends tomorrow
You and I will be faded shadows
On the streets that no longer are
Dark shadows one by one
Sink into the grey earth
Step by step you and I
Come
The time is 7 minutes 7 seconds past 7pm
You and I before the flash of white light
Is it the end ending
Has the past passed
Yangtze Yellow River Victoria Harbour
A glass of water
A puff of white smoke
How many years, how many fallen leaves
Wind is blowing, wind is blowing
Mobile phone is beeping
I am here I am here
In Harajuku and on Charing Cross Road
In the square on Chang An Da Jie
In the café of existentialists
When breath is sucked in
Like the silver river of fading memories
Gently in gently out
Light as feather heavy as mountain
Green on green the bamboo leaves
White on white the floating clouds
Two hands
Two eyes
Tears flow and sparkle
For billions of years
Remnants of blue ballpoint writings erased
from the yellowing paper of my black notebook
To Be or Not to Be
I write therefore I am
Tunes from the music box
You’ve let me taste happiness
Like a Rolling Stone
Water red as wine
Red is the fountain pen
Floating clouds flowing water
Fuck you fuck you
Perfect moment to fly me to the moon
Years
