Lost in Place
Durational performance of electro-ambient psychedelic jazz, accompanied by live dance in the fluid, slow-moving butoh tradition.
Devised by Reuben Lewis in collaboration with Yumi Umiumare, I Hold the Lion’s Paw and Taka Takiguchi (滝口貴).
‘Space’ and ‘Place’
Lost in Place draws from poetic notions of "place" and "space" that are central to the collaborative process behind I Hold the Lion’s Paw (IHTLP) and shakes them up through a radical fusion with Butoh: a marginal Japanese dance practice.
In IHTLP’s work, poetic notions of "place" and "space" are employed to provoke a meditation on our growing need to navigate a path through overwhelming social, economic and global turmoil, as we seek a place – both as a society and as a creative ensemble – to land. These conceptual themes were originally explored in IHTLP’s latest studio album, which is also called Lost in Place.
Duration plays a key role in examining these provocations through Lost in Place. Our connection to and experience of "place" and "space" is in a continually evolving and complex relationship with the passing of time; and one of the most powerful elements of live art making is its ability to transform these relationships for the audience.
Durational performance allows a sincere vantage point of the creative continuum that underpins the collaborative framework of Lost in Place. There is no start or end to the work, instead, audiences are invited to get "lost in place" with the artists in a world where time, place and space operate differently.
Butoh
Originally known as 'Dance of Darkness', Butoh has always been associated with the marginalised, embracing the abnormal, odd, quirky and the deviant. Initially forced underground, Butoh is now considered a pioneering art form of inter-disciplinary practice and embraced for its fluidity of expressive boundaries and inclusive approach by masterful practitioners and audiences worldwide. 'Butoh-fu' is a form of written notation for choreography described by iconic Butoh artist Yukio Waguri. In Waguri's '7 Worlds of Butoh-fu', combinations of text with visual prompts are utilised to "awaken images through words, then physicalise those images". The inherent openness to interpretation built into 'Butoh-fu' makes it an ideal creative framework for investigating the intersections between dance and music.
Creative Team
Artistic Director: Reuben Lewis
Choreography, movement : Yumi Umiumare
Installation, movement: Taka Takiguchi (滝口貴)
Synth, voice, movement: Emily Bennett
Bass, movement: Joseph Franklin
Bass, guitar, flute, percussion, movement: Adam Halliwell
Drums, movement: Ronny Ferella
Movement: Risa Muramatsu Ray
Movement: Eri Mullooly-Hill Konishi
Tour History
Mona Foma, 17-19 February 2023 (premiere)
Faro Mona Residency, 4-14 August 2023
The first and second developments of ‘Lost in Place’ occurred at the Brunswick Mechanics Institute (VIC) in partnership with the Next Wave organisation prior to a premiere performance season at Mona Foma in 2023.
This project has been assisted by Next Wave and the Australian Government through the Australia Council, its arts funding and advisory body.
