“Requiem Dance” - Butoh Intensive Workshop for All Souls' Day

“Requiem Dance” -  Butoh Workshop for All Souls' Day

Anthropologically, in our attempt to grapple with and comprehend "Death," we have created rituals, myths, beliefs, and religious ideas. Around these concepts, we have built temples, cities, political and cultural organizations, and norms that shape our ways of life. Thus, contemplating death prompts a reconsideration of the forms of life itself.

The act of contemplating and celebrating death holds such centrality in our cultures that we have established various festivals, ceremonies, and traditions dedicated to honoring the deceased. These practices also aid the living in demystifying the topic and coping with the losses inherent in our natural existence. They provide not only solace and spiritual connection but also foster social cohesion by passing down values and stories across generations, thereby contributing to the construction of cultural and collective identity.

Within the annual Christian calendar, this moment of ritualization, celebration, and reflection occurs on November 2nd, known as All Souls' Day or Dia de Finados. In pagan traditions, such as the renowned Dia de Los Muertos in Mexico, festivities extend from October 31st to November 2nd. Rituals during these celebrations include attending masses, visiting cemeteries, adorning with floral decorations, offering incense, setting up altars of homage, wearing ritual attire, embodying specific characters, and adorning with facial and body paintings. There are countless ways to construct a ritual for this occasion, and one can create their own through dance.

In honor of this, we have crafted a unique form of ritualization and reflection: a Butoh dance workshop dedicated to All Souls' Day, scheduled to occur from October 31st to November 2nd, 2024, in Salzburg, Austria. This will be a journey to transmute your emotions into dance, your dance into prayer, and your prayer into a dance of reverence.

Workshop Details:

Dates: October 31: 3:00 PM - 7:00 PM November 1 & 2: 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM

Location: Inama Institut Biodorf-Weg 4, 5164 Seeham, Austria

Goal: To develop a deep understanding and practical experience of Butoh dance, focusing on creating and performing a "Requiem Dance" that explores themes of mourning, memory, death, and rebirth through dance movement. This workshop provides a powerful context for the "Requiem Dance," aligning with global traditions of mourning and reflection, offering participants an opportunity to engage in a ritualistic and expressive art form that resonates with themes of loss, memory, and renewal.

Registration: Inama Institut 

https://www.eversports.at/widget/w/fGeGry?event=682639&type=workshop