Shusaku Takeuchi Shusaku Takeuchi Choreographer
(A biography as given by the Nederlands Dans Theater.) What about Man? This was more than just a dance.
He has made the following ballets for the Nederlands Dans Theater:
Garnet (NDT II, Holland Dance Festival, 1999) and A Trilogy, consisting of 3
works that were created in 3 successive years for NDT III: Sight (NDT III,
2000), Windage (NDT III, 2001) and Land (NDT III, 2002). The Japanese Shusaku Takeuchi, born in 1948, studied painting from 1968 to
1971 at the Osaka Art University, and sculpti
ng, graphic art and interior
design at the Yoyogi Design School in Tokyo. During this time, he frequently
performed at happenings and events with a group of young artists. In 1972 he
traveled to Europe to establish himself in the Netherlands. He began by
working with such performers as Japanese Butho dancers Eiko & Koma,
Argentinian choreographer Graziella Martines, Jango Edwards, and many others. His own company, founded in 1974, combined visual art and physical expression. Specialized in mime and dance, it performed mainly in the Netherlands, but
also traveled to Italy and Germany. In between tours, he worked on a project
at the Centre Culturel de Marais in Paris. Eventually the company evolved into
the Shusaku & Dormu Dance Theater. During this period Takeuchi’s artistic interests were heavily influenced
by modern art. His company took part in cultural festivals all over Europe,
performing in a number of cities in France, Spain, Italy, Switzerland and
Germany. In the 1980s the company extended its tours to Eastern Europe, with
performances in Hungary, Poland and the Soviet Union. In fact, Shusaku & Dormu
Dance Theater was the first western company to perform officially in Moscow’s
Red Square. It was during this period that Takeuchi started experimenting with
different art disciplines. In order to explore the possibilities of the human
body, he combined physical expression with the use of computers, sound effects
and virtual reality. His first big stage production, ERA (1982) was performed
in the Netherlands, Canada and several European countries. After the success
of ERA, other big stage productions followed, such as Oblique (1983) and Noon
of the Plant (1985). From 1980 on, he set up specific projects at summer festivals such as
the Freiburg International Theater Festival (1980), the Summer Festival of
Copenhagen (1983), the Oeral Festival on the island of Terschelling in the
Netherlands (1984) and the Kempnagel International Theater Festival in Hamburg
(1986). After Eleven Shades of Grey, which toured through the Netherlands and
Germany (1990), Takeuchi stopped performing himself in order to concentrate on
directing and choreography. As time went on, his productions grew bigger and
more complex. He was also invited by other companies as a guest director and
choreographer, and he began to devote some of his time to teaching. Architectonaal (1990) kicked off a long series of mass site-specific
projects, first with the Dormu Dance Company, and later with a second company,
Shusaku Bodytorium, founded in 1994, which presented physical theater. In
1995, Takeuchi was awarded the Sonia Gaskell Award for The Package. Another
work, Floating Silhouettes (1994), which was performed in an old Amsterdam
harbor, involved no less than one hundred and fifty people. This was followed
by two productions in industrial mausoleums: Reservoir, performed on the ruins
of an old industrial site on a small island near Dordrecht in the south of
Holland (1995) and Bolt (1997), performed in a former shipyard in Amsterdam. (1998) was the first of his theater productions in which text
played an important role.
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a news item also by the Nederlands Dans Theater:
22 05 2003 Shusaku Takeuchi's movie `Shelter' inspired on the NDT III ballet
`Land', performed last season (2001/2002) has won two prices. CZECH CRYSTAL
Category 1: Music or dance programmes made for television
SHELTER
NPS Television, Nizozemí Coproducer: BBC, The Arts Council of England, Egmond
Film and Television
Reason: This category presented some very exciting and original programmes to
the jury. The winning programme in this category was conceived and executed
with strong visual imagination, flair and above all a superb sense of
narrative within a small time frame. The Jury felt that this masterpiece-in-
miniature beautifully fulfilled the programme makers´ ambitions for the work. STUDENT PRIZE
SHELTER
Reason: Shelter won the Student Jury Prize because of the skill with which it
turned a random encounter into something poignantly beautiful. In just nine
minutes it followed the progress of one woman's journey from a wet, chilled
isolation into a fierce, magical coupling. The jury felt that the aesthetics
of yellow on black and white were exquisite, and that the camera shots were
framed in such a way as to magnify the intimacy and immediacy of the event. It was art - in its most complete form.
24/09/2025
PACKAGE
Life of an office man (in Japanese Sarariman=Salaryman)
Award winning modern dance, performed in several countries, like the Netherlands, Germany, Russia, Czech Republic, Den Mark
22/09/2025
NEUM of Fools in Amsterdam
Short video
Amsterdam, Netherlands
05/08/2025
Protesting against the atomic bombs, in the 70ies.
Melkweg
This year 80th anniversary of the atomic bomb attacks in Hiroshima and Nagasaki
27/07/2025
“Even though it was only mid-June, it was already so hot in central Kyoto that we escaped to a mountain valley deep in the countryside. I went with the Butterflies.
Mr. Yokoo kindly drove us there — he experienced air raids as a boy during the war, and now lives a healthy and happy life surrounded by his grandchildren. Thank you so much.
These photos were taken by the mountain stream, where we could hear the call of a kingfisher over the murmuring water.”
20/07/2025
Some of the photos are from Butterflies on the historic bridge at the Otomegaike ( young girl's lake ), Takashima Shiga. Volunteers from the Workshop in Kyoto last month June joined the photo session.
Photo by Mr. Yasuda-san
04/07/2025
Butterfly Dance at Lake Biwa, in Japan
Thank you Yumi Kato for arranging and organizing!
It looks beautiful.
Photographed by 安田さん
25/06/2025
Butterfly Project
It was a great Dance workshop experience in Kyoto. Soon! A couple months later another period of workshops coming in Japan!
All who wish for peace could participate in this project. Young, elderly, people with disabilities, people with or without experience.
Performers act like living statues. Butterflies "dance" at a speed 100 times slower than normal people. This creates something like the "quietness of time".
Slow movement becomes a beautiful contrast and a single art in modern speedy life.
"Butterflies have a very symbolic meaning. Butterflies are beings that announce the coming of spring, they dance like fairies, bringing hopes and dreams. It gives new life after a cold winter. Like an ugly caterpillar turns into a beautiful butterfly, people can use their own imagination and this dance has no political meaning. That's why it's appropriate in every country.
15/06/2025
Butterfly Project
DANCE Workshop in Kyoto by Shusaku Takeuchi
Anyone who is longing for peace could participate in this project. Young, old, handicapped, experienced or not experienced. The performers would act like 'living statues. The butterflies will 'dance' a hundred times more slowly then normal people. This will create a certain 'stillness of time'. In the speedy life of modern times, slow movements form a good contrast and become a beautiful art.
"The butterflies have a strong symbolic meaning. Butterflies are announcers of spring, flying around like fairies, bringing hope and dreams. They announce new life after the cold winter. Ugly caterpillars become beautiful butterflies. People can use their own fantasy and there is no political meaning in this dance. Therefore, it is suitable for any country" (Shusaku Takeuchi)
23/09/2024
A video of Shusaku Takeuchi's creations from his companies: Shusaku Dormu Dance Theater and Shusaku Bodytorium
Collaborations:
- Holland Dance Festival
- De Nederlandse Dans Theater
- Boris Paval Cohen
- Urban Sax
And many more.
Music by Det Whiel
“My career began in 1973 at the Multicultural Center Melkweg in . In my early works, I focused on directly expressing the pain and societal issues I observed. However, after receiving advice from the legendary Dutch rock star Harman Blood, who told me, “Don’t be too serious,” I shifted my approach. I began to entertain first, and then convey my message, which proved to be a more effective way to reach people.
I was fortunate that my company, Dormu Dance Theater, found success, allowing us to perform in many countries. Later, I was honored to be asked by the Netherlands Dance Theater to create choreography for them.
In 1988, I organized a Peace Event at Red Square in Moscow, USSR, during the third summit between Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, where they agreed to reduce the number of nuclear weapons. I was also invited to the restoration ceremony of Marc Chagall’s Peace Window at the United Nations building in New York in 2005, marking the UN’s 60th anniversary.
In 2007, I created the Butterfly Project, a performance involving 100 mothers and daughters, which I later shared with Palestinian children in refugee camps in 2008 and with Fukushima children in 2014.
Now, at 76 years old, I feel it is my responsibility to work for the new generation, to offer hope in what can often feel like a dark and difficult era. Throughout my life, I have collaborated with many international individuals, all of whom desire peace on a personal level. However, within society, people often become rivals or enemies. It is disheartening that while many benefit from peace, a few individuals become wealthy from the suffering caused by war and destruction.”
Due to great interest, we are pleased to announce that we are extending the exhibition "Move to Love, Love to Work" by Shusaku Takeuchi, Toshiko Karashima and Maurice Boyer until August 19, Toshiko Karashima will be present in Gallery WM on Fridays and Saturdays (Elandsgracht 35, 1016TN Amsterdam) from 13:00-18:00
22/05/2023
- 50th anniversary of a Japanese couple in Amsterdam –
MOVE TO LOVE, LOVE TO WORK
~~~ Gallery WM is honoured to present the exhibition by
Shusaku Takeuchi & Toshiko Karashima
Choreographer & Paper artist
Special Guest: Maurice Boyer (Photographer)
****Date: 17/6/2023 to 15/7/2023
****Opening: Saturday 17 June from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Gallery WM
****Address: Gallery WM
Elandsgracht 35-BG
1016 TN Amsterdam
****More information: https://mailchi.mp/e5a5e1cf0d0e/move-to-love-love-to-work
Toshiko Takeuchi Shusaku B Takeuchi
Half a century in Amsterdam! Fifty years of living, loving, working, and collaborating. Since 1973, the Japanese couple Shusaku Takeuchi (art director of “Dormu Dance Theatre” and “Shusaku Bodytorium”) and Toshiko Karashima (graphic and costume designer) have painted Amsterdam red and built up an enormous track record within the Amsterdam artistic world and far beyond. On the occasion of their 50th anniversary in Amsterdam, Gallery WM has the honour to present a selection from their extensive oeuvre. With beautifully designed posters from the 70s, 80s and 90s, old archive material as well as origami-like wall sculptures and installations, the gallery space will turn into a time capsule spanning fifty years. In addition, the couple has invited photojournalist Maurice Boyer, who has documented and been influenced by so much of Shusaku's career, to participate in the Move to Love, Love to Work exhibition with his original barite prints.
18/05/2023
BUTOH WORKSHOP - GERMANY
Please join a three day Butoh workshop with Shusaku Takeuchi, assistant Anna Orkolainen.
On the fourth day Butterfly Butoh performance at Villa Waltberta, Starnberger See. Germany
05/08/2025
27/07/2025
20/07/2025
04/07/2025
25/06/2025
15/06/2025
23/09/2024
14/07/2023
22/05/2023
18/05/2023