Close – immersion in jiutamai dance

Close is an attempt to confront the ambiguous position of contemporary traditional Japanese jiutamai dance. In the West, Japanese dancers function as visual objects, deprived of subjectivity, confined to Orientalist categories defined not only by the male gaze, but also by the gaze of the White man. By creating an effect of intimate closeness and giving the dancer/heroine of the dance a voice through which the intimate confessions and trauma of entire generations of women hidden in dance can be expressed directly, Hana Umeda attempts to regain agency and subjectivity both for herself and for the entire multi-generational community of jiutamai dancers. The silent confession that is jiutamai dance is both a means of coping with trauma and a gag placed on the mouth; a means of self-expression and repression by patriarchal society.

Hana Umeda / Sada Hanasaki – performer, dancer, natori at the Hanasaki-ryu jiutamai school. In 2020, she became the first person outside Japan to be officially accepted into the Hanasaki-ryu jiutamai school and received the right to preserve and pass on the tradition of Japanese traditional dance. She is a student of Hanasaki Tokijyo, head of the Hanasaki-ryu school in Tokyo, and a cultural studies scholar. In 2018, she made her debut as a director and choreographer with the performance “SadaYakko” presented at Komuna Warszawa. In her artistic work, she is interested in both exploring and extending the tradition of jiutamai dance, as well as transforming and deconstructing this tradition in search of new forms of expression. As a dancer, performer, and co-choreographer, she has worked with Marta Ziółek, Katarzyna Wolińska, and Jadwiga Rodowicz-Czechowska, among others.

Dr Dorota Sosnowska is an assistant professor at the Department of Theater and Performance at the Institute of Polish Culture at the University of Warsaw and vice president of the Propaganda Foundation, which runs the Propaganda gallery in Warsaw (co-organizer of Warsaw Gallery Weekend). Her research focuses on the history and theory of theater and performance, combining her interest in theater and visual arts. She is the author of the book Królowe PRL. Sceniczne wizerunki Ireny Eichlerówny, Elżbiety Barszczewskiej i Niny Andrycz jako modele kobiecości (WUW 2014). She is the editor of the magazine Widok. Teorie i praktyki kultury wizualnej.