Onion
an inkBoat production
Quartet | 70 minutes
Commissioned by Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 2002.
“Onion is a half trembling, half laughing affirmation of self, embracing history and mortality. In this existential landscape, the dancers, with an exacting and flawless technique, effectively limn ineffable states of consciousness with precise gestures and flashes of genuine humor that catch one completely off guard. Onion combines various performance techniques, including Butoh and improvisation, in a deceptively simple, thematically rich narrative advanced largely through movement and the lush ambient score. A vivid yet nearly wordless work of unusual subtlety and force.”
-Robert Avila, SF Bay Guardian, Jan 1 2003
Conception and Direction
Shinichi Iova-Koga & inkBoat
Development and Performance
Yuko Kaseki
Shinichi Iova-Koga
Sten Rudstrøm
Haruko Nishimura
Realization
inkBoat
Sound Design
Dan Rathbun
Lighting Design
Allen Willner
Music
Carla Kihlstedt
Dan Rathbun
Costume Design
Alenka Mullin-Loesch
Erin Blendu
Set Design
Frank Lee and inkBoat
Set Dressing
Mary-Lois Hare
Staging Consultant
Ellen Sebastian Chang