Dance in Film · 1989
Dance of Darkness (1989)
Edin Velez layers archival performance, interviews, and fluid video effects into a nonlinear portrait of Japanese Butoh, moving from Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ohno to Dairakudakan, Byakko-sha, and Hakutoboh.
Dance of Darkness is a 1989 dance documentary centred on Global East Asian Classical & Modern. For dancers, it's a chance to see the style performed on screen — the phrasing, partnering, and musicality that the same dances carry onto a real floor.
Jump to the 5 indexed dance sequences ↓
Dance styles featured
Where to watch: Educational rental or purchase through Electronic Arts Intermix; no verified public stream as of 2026-08-11.
The dance sequences in Dance of Darkness
5 sequences — what is danced, by whom, and where to find it.
Byakko-sha performance excerpt
ButohDanced by Isamu Ohsuga; Byakko-sha
Byakko-sha appearing as a distinct branch in the film’s Butoh mosaic.
The Byakko-sha excerpt broadens the documentary’s map of post-Hijikata Butoh through another company lineage. Set beside other excerpts, its performance helps viewers compare distinct approaches without forcing them into one house style.
Stream or rental only — the timestamp is for when you have it playing.
Dai Rakuda Kan performance excerpt
ButohDanced by Dai Rakuda Kan
Dai Rakuda Kan carrying Butoh’s distortions into an ensemble image.
The Dai Rakuda Kan excerpt expands the film from the founders’ solos to company-scale Butoh. In Velez’s nonlinear structure, the group becomes evidence that the form developed multiple bodies and theatrical vocabularies.
Stream or rental only — the timestamp is for when you have it playing.
Kazuo Ohno performs Admiring La Argentina
ButohDanced by Kazuo Ohno · Choreography Tatsumi Hijikata
Kazuo Ohno alone inside the iconic Admiring La Argentina.
Ohno’s iconic solo gives the film a sustained encounter with one of Butoh’s defining performers. Its inclusion shifts the documentary from historical account to embodied artistic legacy, while the piece’s direction connects Ohno directly to Hijikata.
Stream or rental only — the timestamp is for when you have it playing.
Tatsumi Hijikata archival performance footage
ButohDanced by Tatsumi Hijikata
Hijikata’s archival body surfacing through Velez’s layered video collage.
Hijikata’s archival presence anchors the documentary in Butoh’s founding revolt, letting historical movement register before later companies extend it. Velez’s layered editing turns lineage into an active visual comparison rather than a chronology.
Stream or rental only — the timestamp is for when you have it playing.
Yoko Ashikawa and Hakutoboh performance excerpt
ButohDanced by Yoko Ashikawa; Hakutoboh
Yoko Ashikawa and Hakutoboh emerging from the layered archival collage.
Yoko Ashikawa’s Hakutoboh excerpt places a distinct performer and company lineage beside the better-known founders. The juxtaposition helps the documentary make Butoh’s depth and versatility visible through bodies, not just interviews.
Stream or rental only — the timestamp is for when you have it playing.
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