About this performance

NOTHINGBEING

NOTHINGBEING is a project initiated by choreographer Takahiro Yamamoto, and developed in collaboration with Samita Sinha, David Thomson, and Anna Martine Whitehead. This work investigates ways to embody the presence of nothingness and "being," breathing spaces that we could easily dismiss and consider possibilities for the unfiltered self. Based on philosophical and physical research on the approaches to nothingness as well as extensive discussions and reflections with participating artists about their own sense of existence in society, their needs in life, and their embodied daily experiences, this work will invite the viewers to "be" in the space together as they witness the performers engaging in questions of not thinking, feeling, surrendering, transforming, conjuring, and forgetting. Placing three performers in the center, this project addresses the notion of nothingness and "being" from multiple modalities such as moments of highly physical movement, a communal meditation, and internal activation of sensory memories. How can we allow ourselves to shed our protective layers to feel our core existence? How could we unlearn together? What does the presence of nothingness and "being" feel like? In this multifaceted process, this project hopes to underline the value in nothingness to re-recognize the complex presence of our subjectivity, the consequences of forced dismissal/erasure in society, and the importance of our agency in nothingness to empower our way of “being.”

In the US society and Western ideology, nothingness is based on a lack of presence or significance, which culturally and socially leads to the sentiment of dismissal. As an immigrant of 20 years in the US, Yamamoto has noticed this tendency for the collective consciousness not to pay attention to events or situations unless a bigger and dire incident has taken place. Without something, it is “nothing” to be concerned about. At the same time, most spiritual practices put strong emphasis on the metaphysical: an invisible yet substantial presence without physical evidence. Through investigation of mental and physical states, NOTHINGBEING will revolve around questions such as What does the unity of static and dynamic look like? Can we acknowledge the empty yet electric space between here and nowhere? What is the texture of nothingness? If subjectivity is required to experience the Present, for the sake of nothingness, is it possible to remove my subjectivity even for a moment?

NOTHINGBEING is supported by the Japan Foundation through the Performing Arts JAPAN program. It is a National Performance Network (NPN) Creative Fund Project co-commissioned by Portland Institute for Contemporary Art in partnership with Chocolate Factory Theater, On The Boards, and NPN. The Creation Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Ford Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency). Takahiro Yamamoto is a 2021 NDP Finalist Grant Award recipient. Support was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts with funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to address continued sustainability needs during COVID-19 and in support of NOTHINGBEING. The development of this project is also supported by Portland Institute for Contemporary Art and the Dance Center at Columbia College Chicago.