Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Spawning Practice

"Butoh plays with time and also perspective....If we humans learn to see things from the perspective of an animal, an insect, even inanimate objects, the road trodden everyday is alive--we should value everything." --Tatsumi Hijikata

A surprise discovery on the wild Stehekin River--little Sockeye Kokanee Salmon are spawning freely! Such an inspiration in preparation for our 11/11/11 dance to honor the salmon life cycle at mile 11 on highway 11 at 11:11am. MomoButoh Dance Company members will gather from all over the continent at Oyster Creek for our 5th annual ritual butoh performance. This year we have 11 dancers working with live musicians, singers, story tellers and poets. We will offer 11 unique site-specific scores revealing 11 segments in salmon's life cycle:
1 ~~>))))> Salmon legends of seaside native people...
2 ~~>))))> Salmon struggling for survival with humans due to overfishing, dams & toxic spills...
3~~~>))))> Salmon "in between" moving up & down river, not knowing whether they will survive the journey...
4~~>))))> Salmon as prey for bears, eagles and other predators...
5~~~>))))> Salmon meeting a lone fisherman standing in stillness sensing the connectivity of the freely flowing current...
6~~ >))))> Salmon babies eating their egg sacs & everything else they can...
7~~~ >))))> Salmon struggling to return to their birthplace & home stream...
8~~>))))> Salmon eggs waiting to hatch, floating aloft in current...
9~~~~ >))))>Salmon males & females spawning...
10~~ >)))) Salmon dying & offering flesh to future generations.
11~~~~>))))>Salmon move en masse to swim freely in the open sea!

On the bank of the Stehekin, among the Kokanee, I discovered the ripples, the resting, the joy and pain of struggle against obstacles. The release of the body, the floating of the spirit! Thank you dear swimming relatives, it is for your life, your increase & your vitality that we offer our dance.
Our flesh is your flesh, our eyes are your watery eyes, our spines your spines, our struggle your struggle, our love & death is yours as well. May our dance reveal our deep gratitude for your beauty, presence & gifts.

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