Structure/ Improvisation/ Multi-layered Phases

ESMTC, Lisboa, 2010 with Miguel Leiria Pereira

f/f in Maus Hábitos

"f/f in Maus Hábitos" in Oporto, Portugao, June. 2008 10"19

parole

17min. (original version: 70min.) in shin-bi, Kyoto, 2006


Direction: Hajime Fujita
Choreography and Interpretation: Hajime FUjita / Meri Ohtoshi
Music: Hikaru Shimizu
Video: Yuki Netsu

“Parole” is Hajime Fujita’s represented work ever. This very simple but very thoughtful duo dance performance was presented in Tokyo and Kyoto in the beginning of 2006. Afterwards, in Japanese dance magazine “Engekijin”, one article remarked “Parole” and reviewed with long text.

Hajime Fujita and Meri Ohtoshi, two dancers’ very slow and sensitive movements, using a essence of contact inprovisation, with light electlonic music by Hikaru Shimizu and beautiful videos by Yuki Netsu. “Parole” tryed to reveal the our tiny and sensitive activity between our communications.

The biggest unique point of this piece is that dancers had not fixed the detail of movements. All of the movements were in-between choreographed and improvised. According that, all the moment, dancers were taking care of each partner. To realize the choreography, dancers needs a cooperation in the improvisation. Even small movements like one dancer goes up on the other’s body, they have to imagine how the partners thinking/feeling presicely. This is like a real converation: “Can I go on?”, “Sure.” So sometime they shows even hesitation.

The piece had also the unison part. But that is also not only to show the dynamics of the same movements of two dancers. Actually, what could be seen is the difference of two dancers. Fujita and Ohtoshi tryed to dance same movements, but unconsciously thier movements are involved by the backgrounds of each(how he/she has been studing dance, what kind of thechnique is his/her speciality, preferences a.o.). Hajime Fujita, started his career with the theater, and Meri Ohtosh, started her career with long time training of ballet, so they have totally defferent experiences. According, the difference of them is easily to be seen as the detail of the movements with unison.

hajime fujita in Ananil (f/f)

8min. (original version: 35min.) 2007 in Festival Ananil in Motemor-o-Novo, Portugal

Direction/Interpretation: Hajime Fujita
Collaboration with Andreu Jacob

f/f is improvisaton dance project, which is core of all of Hajime Fujita’s dance works, and has been presented in several places (Reims, Motemor-o-Novo, Osaka, Kyoto and Yokohama) since 2001. The original theme is showing the existance of himself, not only showing “dance” or “performance”. To do that, he trys to be honest and to show everything what he feels/thinks/reminds.... on the each moment. So sometime he losts, he hesitates, even sometime he starts to speak

Recently, this piece is also involved by presenting in the alternative places. Especially, in the Festival Ananil in Motemor-o-Novo, Portugal, Fujita represented this piece on the path of country side besides old house, collaborating with Spanish musician, Andreu Jacob, was quite appreciated. All of the nature surrounding him affects his sence, and make the movements diverse and flexible. Also in the French momument, Palais du Tau, he danced in the outside place.

f/f in Palais du Tau

"f/f in Palais du Tau" in Reims, France, Sep. 2007 9"37

dontdiemyfriendtommy -sound

-10"00 This is a sound from my short piece called "dontdiemyfrinedtommy", which reading my experience in London.

   This small and short piece was presented in Oporto, 2007, which was based on Hajime Fujita’s personal experience in London. According to some incidents, he had to sleep on the street 2 nights there. And he encountered one old Scottish homelesness. This piece dedicates to him.

   Here is the text from Fujita’s diary:
   Last week, I was in London. It was terrible days. I could not find any place to stay for 2 nights, and I was sleeping on the street that 2 nights. The temperature on the morning in London was extremely cold for my body without any blanket either sleeping bag. I was lying down on the cardboard, shaking and thinking that “why I am here in this such a difficult situation...?” The answer was not coming up, but so many memories of my childhood was circling in my head.

   And I encountered one homeless person, Tommy, seemed over 40 years old, coming from Scotland to look for a job. He told me his story and how he is living there. He had a job in Scotland then, even had a SUZUKI-4WD. But one day the company cut him off, then he could not pay for his house any more. He had bought a train ticket with100 pounds and got to London 4 weeks ago. However, he has not been able to get a job, because none of companies employ a person who can not prove where he/she lives. So he has no way to escape from his situation.  He said, “I saw so many homeless people here in London. Some of them have been living more than 10 or 20 years as homeless. And most of them are alcoholics. I may be so too someday...” The government of UK just supports him small money to eat, not to live some place.

    As you know, London is very clean city and very controlled. But the cleanness exclude the dirty: poor people, aliens, minor religious....

   In the performance, he represented what he felt when he was lying on the street. First he came into the stage almost naked accompanying a tote bag with a lot of clothes. Then scattering those clothes, slowly pick up them and ware one by one. After, he took news papers out from the bag, spread them onto the floor, lay down on them with bending bodies and started to shaking, seemed really cold...

   As a background sound, he played recorded his voice talking about his experience. Though, Fujita did not mention cleary what the piece means. So some of spectators could not understand and pointed him with confusing or laughing. Actually, this is also the imitation of situation sometimes happnes on the street. Descrimination and misunderstanding to homelessness: descrimination and misunderstanding to excluded people. This piece was not quiet radical but seemed very simple, yet actually really political.

DANCEMINUTE

These videos are hosted in DANCEMINUTE, my friend Monica's web site. Thank you Monica!!

Chalon-sur-Saone, France 22 Nov. 2007


Paf, France 21 Aug. 2007


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one dance/one video/one day

“One dance / one video / one day” is very simple video dance project. The idea is just taking one shot of short improvisation and update to the internet everyday. Like a diary, he took several videos in the French old building of Performing Arts Forum under the programme of SKITe/Sweet and Tender 2007 annual meeting.

This is quite simple action to be apart from the way of creating the piece based on any concept. What Hajime did was just being honext for the intitution of his artistic sense. Find a place, find a flame, find a time, find movements, all the process were improvised. Even there were no editing of video, just shows what happens there and then entirely.

On the internet, 7 versions of videos are avaiable to watch. These videos shows Fujita’s eye for the frame of screen as well. For instance, version. 21/8/2007 was shooted on the dark room with just one small desk light, which placed on the left of screen, behind dark green wall. The camera cut the wall very flat. And Fujita was almost naked and first starts to sit down the chair on the right of the screen. The frame of image is like the picture. Or the version. 16/8/2007 shows the sky of dawning with almost half of the screen.

one dance/one video/one day

one dance/one video/one day