7 benefits of Butoh online classes

Butoh, also known as the "Dance of Darkness," is much more than just a form of performance art. This art form, born out of post-WWII Japan, is a highly psychological and physical experience that aims to remove the "social mask" and find a more honest form of physical expression.

Here are seven benefits that can be derived from the practice and experience of Marco Nektan’s Butoh online classes:

1. Radical Self-Awareness

Butoh forces you to reconnect with the smallest sensations inside your body, whether it be your breathing (breathwork), the weight of your internal organs, or the sensations on your skin (holistic). This form of intense self-awareness helps develop a powerful connection between your mind and body (psychosomatic), which has become so disconnected with the world that we live in.

2. Emotional Catharsis

Butoh is quite different from other dance styles that focus on the aesthetics and beauty of the human form. Butoh, on the other hand, explores the "grotesque" and the "shadow" side of human emotion, allowing for a powerful experience of catharsis (shadow work).

3. Freedom from Aesthetic Judgement

Butoh has no "wrong" ways of looking, only ways that are authentic. This form of dance art frees the practitioner from the need to look "pretty" and "attractive," allowing people of all shapes, sizes, and ages to find empowerment in the form of their body.

4. Deepened Presence and Mindfulness

The slow and intentional movements of Butoh, described as "the dance of the periphery," demand complete concentration. It is a moving meditation that helps you connect with the present moment and calm a racing brain.

5. Enhanced Creative Imagination

Butoh involves sort of creative visualization, which is a set of vivid and poetic images that evoke movement. For example, you might be asked to envision your body made of smoke or your bones filled with lead. Butoh helps develop your creative imagination.

6. Resilience and Physical Control

Butoh may seem effortless, but the slow-motion movements and unusual postures require a good deal of physical control and stamina. It helps develop a strong inner self and a high degree of physical discipline.

7. Connection to the Universal

Butoh helps practitioners connect with the universal by removing personal identity or falls ego, which is represented by the white paint used on the dancers' bodies. It helps dancers feel connected to the world and to the universal cycle of life, death, decay, and rebirth. Register for Butoh online classes: