It happened a while ago, but its memory is still vivid in my burned-out brain. I’m talking about BUTOH Batorū, a name probably unfamiliar to most of you.

But to me, and to the huge line outside of Berghain before the event [on a Thursday], it definitely means something. It also says a lot —> this second edition was moved from Säule to the Berghain dance floor.

I had two tickets [one from a good friend who couldn’t come, and another one]. I waited [im]patiently almost one hour in line, on a quite cold Berlin night.

As a consequence, I managed to miss the performance of Valentin Tszin [the brain behind this event] + the experimental ANATOMY IN DISTORTION live, aka Unhuman.

Photos by @gardenofjoyandpain

Once in, already from the stairs, got mesmerized by the metallic bridge slash cage in the back, which, like never before, was heavily illuminated & full of decors. Everything looked surreal.

I actually stopped there [on the stairs] for quite a while, watching artists perform in something that was looking like a huge, wide television set, with a mesh in front of it.

Anyway, I gathered some courage and climbed the stairs, not really sure what to expect next. Honestly thought the show would be over soon after Valentin’s performance. Well… no.

First of all, there were many familiar faces around, so I was never alone.

Then I got “shocked” by the multitude of performances happening in every corner of the ring, right in the middle of the audience. Performers were suddenly appearing everywhere we walked.

Again, I found myself watching with interest — this time near the front-left speaker — performers dressed incredibly cool, just like in a theater play.

In fact, this might have been the closest I’ve ever been to actors / dancers / performers on a stage. Ever. Only this time, it was a BUTOH dancefloor stage, which made it even more appealing.

Coming back to the music & dance — the artists playing were also some of the biggest names out there: Dasha Rush (Hunger To Create), Mieko Suzuki (Kookoo), and ANATOMY IN DISTORTION -> a live project by Valentin Tszin + Unhuman.

Unhuman [BITE] was the one who brought the whole adventure to a proper ending. He delivered an amazing closing set, still vibrating in my ears. It started slowly, with rhythms that reminded me of the underground Liber Null era in Berlin, when I was still new to the city.

But maybe the most interesting — and at the same time amazing — parts were:

those Butoh acts popping up everywhere.

By the time of the musical closing,

everyone was actually dancing like the performers.

It felt like a cult. And I’m saying this in a very positive way.

If you’ve never experienced BUTOH, this kind of psychological / spiritual dance, it’s hard to explain… Just watch a bit below:

All I can say is: the DanceFloor stayed full until the very end, and it felt like Valentin Tszin, together with the whole team behind and in front of us, managed to create a completely new form of art.

A way of experiencing music, dance, and theater — all at once.

A liberating way of moving, which EVERYONE on the dancefloor [including yours trully] was practicing now — not your usual “dance like nobody’s watching” inhibition.

In the end, still enthusiastically shaken by what I had witnessed, went straight to Manos and congratulated him on the music, and later to Valentin, saying: you guys invented a new type of art event.

The name is here to stay, I’m pretty sure — and it’s called BUTOH Batorū.

After this I just felt like a humble human, and went home, still vibrating from everything. It will happen again, I am sure of it, but not for a while – it has to be cold again, or warm, who knows?

Till number III feel free to check Valentin’s next BUTOH Batoru Workshop

-> ASTERION II: BODY AS LABYRINTH 

Big Thank You To Absolutely Everyone, apologies for the slight delay [life can be weird sometimes, for all of us…], or if I missed any of the names involved.