The intercultural virtual dancing subject: a choreographic investigation of spatio structures In Japanese-Western cultural practice

A thesis submitted to the University of Bedfordshire in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy (Research Institute for Media, Arts and Performance)The aim of this practice-led research is to question and examine the notion of a dancing body in two and three-dimensional spaces within the context of intercultural performance. The research will draw upon comparative analyses of Japanese and Western cultural tenets, and on how these inform specific examples of dance making. The overarching goal is to test choreographically and then theorize an intercultural meeting point in relation to space and time, which highlights exchanges and tension between Japanese and Western in modern day dance making. It is hoped that such test and theorization will stimulate, in turn, advancements in the creation of a unique form of Japanese-Western dance performance. As reported above, this research is practice-based, and develops from questioning a number of issues relating to conflicted discourses which inform current notions of dance and technology. Firstly, it explores the presentation and identity of a dancing body in two dimensions, questioning whether the creative process of choreographic experiences of three dimensions can be negotiated and presented in two dimensions - so that ‘actual’ and ‘virtual’ spaces can be blurred. Said questioning, will both move from and rely on an intercultural perspective in negotiating the spatial interplay between the live performance and screen, to then formulate the mentioned intercultural meeting point within the dance works, where two distinctive cultures can co-exist and share their own values and characteristics without any hierarchical placing. Secondly, the research questions and challenges the applicability of Western theories and practices to Japanese culture. Being based on a process of active dialogue between theory and practical experimentation, and being written by a citizen of Japan who lives in Western Europe, this research constantly reflects on how the non-Western author needs to negotiate Western cultural forms and practices with her embodied cultural preference as a dance artist. Consequently, this work suggests a potentially different approach by formulating a model of a virtual dancing body that both resides within and goes beyond boundaries of existing intercultural performance theory