Translation service is provided for classes offered by overseas instructors, as necessary. Classes are open to visitors (depending on schedule). Priority access for through-ticket holders. Venues are Free Space of Kyoto Art Center and the Auditorium of the Former Rissei Elementary School.

Audition
Beginners are welcome.
Workshop open to public
Showing

A.
Dance Method

What is the body for dancers? What do you need to acquire to become a dancer? In this Dance Method workshop, you will come to understand the structure of the body, and comprehend the space, time, energy and other elements in need for a flight to creativity. You will also learn the wisdom of the body which enables you to move without injury in a more natural, unconstrained, daring and free manner.

A-1
Abgail YAGER (USA)

Time and date: 10:15 – 12:15, 1st May (Fri.) – 10th May (Sun.), 10 sessions in total
Venue: Former Rissei Elementary School
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \ 22,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 25 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

This class attracts so many participants every year. This year the class is designed to help you to awake and sharpen different senses of perception, to cause various movements from within the body and to cultivate analytical eyes. The class uses various methods and exercises such as Yoga, Qigong, Alexander Technique, and Klein Technique. It pays attention to a sense of space, the starting point of each body movement, and precise ways to use physical functions. It also explores the role of “sensation”, which facilitates effective shift of one physical sensation to another while dancing. All sessions of this class employ a mixture of improvisational structures and patterned exercises. Subtle, delicate, intellectual, tricky and elegant class by Abigail is recommendable for those who want to learn more about the physical structure.

A-2
Francesco SCAVETTA (Norway)

Time and date: 13:00 – 15:00, 1st May (Fri.) – 10th May (Sun.), No session on 6th
May, 9 sessions in total
Venue: Former Rissei Elementary School
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \ 22,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 25 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

The theme is “A Surprised body”, which has been shared in 33 countries, to awake perception and sensitivity and facilitate discovery. Balancing the body and determining the position of the centre of gravity, you will activate your body to create a condition in which the shift of the centre of gravity originates one movement of the body after another and the movements freely pass through the body. Coordinating the breath, will and movement, you will release the joints and limbs from tension and feel the shift of weight at all times. You will learn how to exhibit fluidity and dynamism of movements by eliminating unnecessary tension and resistance of the antagonist muscle. This class helps your body to be free from the day-to-day habits and routine patterns of body movement.

A-3
Tom WEKSLER

Time and date: 15:45 – 17:45, 1st May (Fri.) – 10th May (Sun.),
No session on 6th May, 9 sessions in total
Venue: Former Rissei Elementary School
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \ 22,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 25 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

This workshop is made up of three parts: “Warming up” inspired by shadow yoga, Butoh, etc.; “Floor work” created under the influence of the world of animals, Capoeira, Taekwon-do, Parkour, break dance, etc., and leading to new functional movements of the body; and “Archery” searching for the movement generated with your partner between Butoh and dance. The Floor work instructed by Tom will help to enrich your feeling on the floor, smoothen your movements, and set you free much more than you can in one particular genre of dance.

B.
Body Conditioning
Matan ESHKAR (Israel)

Time and date: 10:15 – 12:15, 1st May (Fri.) – 10th May (Sun.),
No session on 6th May, 9 sessions in total
Venue: Kyoto Art Center
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \ 22,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 25 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

A yoga class by Matan, an instructor for professional dancers in N.Y. and Israel. His eloquent instructions using words, the body, allegories, etc. will help you to deepen the understanding of yourself, enhance the level of awareness of your body, and to learn the way of thinking which will be useful in your daily life. Let’s experience a change in breathing, phrases and rhythms, try out your own work and collaboration with the partner. You will feel the sensation of “Passing Through”. This lesson is the most optimal at the start of a day. You will be more conscious of your body and understand its structure. You will be able to connect your body and your consciousness, and eventually deepen your understanding on the interconnection between the body structure and your movement.
* A one-on-one clinic by Matan will be available at Meirin Body Salon.

C.
Creation & Research

Internationally renowned choreographers will explore, with the participants, vocabularies unique to creation as well as the importance of the creative thinking. The participants will be given their own themes to experience creative awakening.
* Deadline for application for this session only is 3rd May (Sun.)

C-1
Jung YOUNG-DOO (South Korea)

Time and date: 15:45 – 17:45, 1st May (Fri.) – 10th May (Sun.),
No session on 6th May, 9 sessions in total
Venue: Kyoto Art Center
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \ 22,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 25 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

This class is about analyzing music. You will start analyzing a short piece of classical music, creating a dance, and finishing the session with a showing on the final day. Music plays a very important role in choreography. Coming to know music helps you for creation as well as knowing choreography and dancing. This class tells you how to understand the structure of music, to analyze it, and to use it as a basis of choreography.

C-2
Eric LAMOUREUX (France)

Time and date: 18:15 – 20:45, 1st May (Fri.) – 10th May (Sun.),
No session on 6th May, 9 sessions in total
Venue: Former Rissei Elementary School
Fee: \ 3,500 (one session), \ 25,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 25 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

The works which we develop favors the experience (experiment) from a context which we put as trigger of the implemented (operated) process of search (research). This process evolves in grip (taking) with the stakes in circumstance, in environment, in situation which we spot (locate) and articulates in division (sharing) with the dancers. The meaning potentialities of the physical presence: It is question every time to put in games (sets) the body, of commitment in physical qualities which establish (constitute) a vast pallet. It is about aggravate potentiality meaning of the physical presence, to explore zones / strata of which we smell, think, present that they contain unpredictable and unpredictable resources, sensitive (perceptible), cognitive resources the vast of which we cannot plan before exploring them. It is in / from /through these zones / strata there, that we discover and draw the constituent elements of a thought from act which develops in the proximity of what appears.

D.
Contact Improvisation

Contact Improvisation (CI) is about to change the positioning of its role in response to the recent social changes in Japan and other parts of the world. CI is a significant source not only of inspiration for dances, choreographers, and artists but also of influence on various genres in society such as community art and medical care. CI is a place for encounter between the reality and creativity of your body and others’. CI is to foster the ability to “listen” to others’ body and to seek for unique capability of communication and Response-Ability with others.

D-1
Kosei SAKAMOTO + Yuko MORI (Kyoto)

Date: 24th April (Fri.) – 26th April (Sun.),
Time: 19:00 – 21:00, 24th (Fri.)
11:00- 13:00 & 14:00 – 16:00, 25th (Sat.)
11:00 – 13:00 & 14:00 – 16:00, 26th (Sun.)
Venue: Kyoto Art Center
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \ 13,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 30 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

A basic course of Contact Improvisation. This course emphasizes your body’s listening to and deepening understanding of “other’s body” of different characteristics through various movements created by the bodies. It also focuses on how to respect the sensation of your body and the others’ and to communicate with each other through a sequence of contacts with “others”. Let’s try it out by drawing on all of your five senses and the sixth!

D-2
Noam CARMELI (Israel)

Time and date: 13:00 – 15:00, 1st May (Fri.) – 10th May (Sun.),
No session on 6th May, 9 sessions in total
Venue: Kyoto Art Center
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \ 22,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 30 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

The theme is “Flowing and Floating”. This is a movement practice for efficient, precise, released and flowing movement, based on principles from Aikido, Ilan Lev Method and Contact Improvisation.
Through the practice we can experience free movement in the body supported by clear structure and the interesting combination of keeping the flow while making choices and directing the movement. While dancing we will find more efficient ways to use the skeleton for carrying weight as well as letting go of muscular effort. By following the rule of nature, i.e. let the gravity/weight go down into the ground, and the energy/movement go up, we let the movement happen with less effort and keep the body ready, grounded and free. In the workshop we will get to know the basic principles of FloWork and we will explore how these principles can influence and support us in Contact Improvisation dance.
We will research how we can use the qualities that we find in the solo part, while we dance with a partner and the others.

* “Ilan LevMethod” based treatment by Noam will be available at Meirin Body Salon.

The last day of Noam CARMELI’s class will be a jam session. Noam will lead the class into the jam session.

Time and date: D-2 Noam CARMELI’s session, 10th May (Sun.)
Venue: Kyoto Art Center
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session)
Participants: Any participant of the Festival

E.
Beginner Class

A very popular introductory class for those who interested in dance. Catch a sampling of various styles and ideas in dance under the instruction given by teachers from different parts of the world. Time is allocated for After Talk, a Q&A session with teachers after each workshop. This is surely a “place” full of stimuli for the body and the spirit.

1st May (Fri.) – 9th May (Sat.),
Venue: Kyoto Art Center
* After Talk at the end of each session may be a good occasion to explore your curiosity in dance.
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \14,000 (five sessions), \ 22,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 30 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

1st May (Fri.) Kosei SAKAMOTO + Yuko MORI (Kyoto)
2nd May (Sat.) Matan ESHKAR (Israel)
3rd May (Sun.) Jung YOUNG DOO (South Korea)
4th May (Mon. holiday) Jun MORII (Osaka)
5th May (Tue. holiday) Tom WEKSLER (Israel)
6th May (Wed. holiday) Eric LAMOUREUX (France)
7th May (Thu.) Francesco SCAVETTA (Norway)
8th May (Fri.) Abigail YAGER (USA)
9th MAY (Sat.) Noam CARMELI(Israel)

F.
Media and Dance

Toru YAMANAKA + Shinya B (Tokyo)

Date: 15th May (Fri.) – 17th May (Sun.)
Time: 19:00 21:00, 15th (Fri.)
11:00 – 13:00 & 14:00 – 18:00, 16 th (Sat.)
Venue: Kyoto Art Center
Fee: \ 3,000 (one session), \ 22,000 (through-ticket)
Capacity: 30 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)

Together with Shinya B, an artist and dramatug, and Toru YAMANAKA, a musician known for his works for dumb type and ONG Keng Sen, you will join a group to create a short piece of work in which you will organically intertwine music and dance, and think about relations between choreography and media. This programme will be the audition for “Hot Summer in Kyoto/ Dance Scape”, a project participating in the Program for Nurturing Upcoming Artists by Agency for Cultural Affairs of Japan (application under review). This is a workshop where you can try out your potentials as a dancer, director, technician, and etc. about relations between the body and music, and how to express the relations.

P
Dance in English

The best way to enjoy workshops given by foreign instructors is to understand the nuance and expressions directly in English! That would raise the level of efficiency and pleasure for you. Here is a dance workshop for those who “are not good at English but want to understand it in English!”. Let’s get used to English through the ears while moving your body.


Time and date: 13:00 – 15:00, 18th April (Sat.) – 19th April (Sun.)
2 sessions in total
Venue: Kyoto Art Center
Fee: \ 2,000 (one session)
Capacity: 25 participants (Priority access for through-ticket holders)
Instructors: Kosei SAKAMOTO + Yuko MORI
* Please come in easy-to-move outfits.