Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on September 2009

Yasmeen Godder Singular Sensation
Photo by Tamar Lamm

“Though time passes with astonishing rapidness, sometimes you encounter moments in which you feel that you have seen a glimpse of infinity,” say the producers of the upcoming Dance Triennale. “Those are moments filled with surprises, discoveries, deep impact and emotional excitement.”

With the over-arching theme of “infinite moments,” Japan’s largest international contemporary dance event brings 18 artists and companies from 11 countries together for three weeks of dance that will test the extent to which audiences can put aside the pressing concerns of a recessionary economy.

Launching as a biennale in 2002, the event went on hiatus until 2006, when it shifted over to a three-year format. Spokesperson Miho Kato explains the change was made to accommodate the time needed to book artists and gather funding, but says the festival’s ambitions have not been checked—it has expanded to three weeks and encompasses a greater range of events than before. In addition to the numerous performances, many artists will be giving talks and workshops, while a variety of dance-related programs are slated for ancillary venues at the Aoyama Theatre and Spiral complexes.

The choreographers on the bill also do not lack in ambition. From the politically relevant to the esthetically striking, they represent a good swath of the vast spectrum that’s grouped under the definition-resistant term “contemporary dance.”

Among those to watch is Israeli Yasmeen Godder, whose previous visits have included visceral examinations of her country’s conflict with the Palestinians. The piece she brings to Tokyo, Singular Sensation, focuses on the increasingly extreme sensations of sex and violence that people seek out in response to their hyper-stimulated modern lives. This is explored via the contortions of five dancers—among them a self-styled sex addict—but Godder also makes sure to include moments of comic relief and flashy, colorful movements and costumes.

Also from the Middle East—and presenting a rare taste of contemporary dance from Turkey—is Istanbul’s TalDans Company. Formed by Mustafa Kaplan and Filiz Sizanli in 2003, the company builds on its founders’ backgrounds in electronics and architecture, using elaborate stage props and a mime-like vocabulary of movement to keep audiences continually off balance. For their recent Dokuman, for instance, the troupe took inspiration from a visit to a textile factory in the Austrian city of Linz, transforming their reflections on industrial systems into sound and movement.

These are just two of the numerous intriguing approaches on offer at the Triennale, which also brings in performers from Europe, North America and Asia. The latter is represented by two choreographers from South Korea and several from Japan, with the notable absence of artists from China, India or Southeast Asia.

Those whose curiosity is piqued should direct themselves to the festival’s refreshingly comprehensive if difficult to locate English website, which includes downloadable schedules and profiles of the event.

Dance Triennale Tokyo 2009
Contemporary dance festival with participants from all over the world. Sep 21-Oct 8, various times, free. Aoyama Theatre and Spiral Hall, Omotesando. Tel: 03-3797-5678 (Aoyama) and 03-3498-1171 (Spiral).