Homo Kemoni Project

In 2019 Miriam Strasser initiated her investigation of a Butoh-Clown-Character she named “Homo Kemoni”. In the “Homo Kemoni Project” she collaborates with different artists for inter-transdisciplinary performance research and creation.

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"Homo Kemoni" thrives on what people radiate: their feelings, energies, complexes...

their subconsciousness, if not the collective subconsciousness... The audience feeds the play of this being, by their presence, their emotions; which gives physical expression in dance to everything it feels and absorbs and amplifies every impulse in the space.

The Homo Kemoni Project is an inter-transdisciplinary performance research project that aims to investigate topics from a different perception, a different state of consciousness that is rather subconscious, intuitiv and emotional, using the scenic languages of Butoh Dance, Clown and Physiacl Theater. The project is currently researching the subjects “Sexuality” (“Contaminated Marriage”, german “Verseuchte Ehe”) and “States of Consciousness” (“ContaKt: Consciousness in Relation”, german “Bewusstsein in Beziehung”).

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​Event Link: https://www.theaterarche.at/events/contakt

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"ConTaKt: Consciousness in Relation"

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How does consciousness emerge? What are the physical mechanisms involved? Does it have a specific location in our brain? How many different states of consciousness exist? Do plants possess consciousness?

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ConTaKt: Consciousness in Relation is an artistic-scientific performance inspired by the mysteries of modern neuroscience. Exploring the multifaceted nature of consciousness, this work delves into the intricate layers of self-awareness, relationships and the transformative exchanges that occur between them. At its heart lies the profound act of connecting - with oneself, others and the world beyond.

Consciousness remains one of neuroscience’s most profound enigmas. Through this performance, audiences are invited to embark on a sensory journey into the depths of human awareness. The experience unfolds through an innovative fusion of multilingual narrative, digital animations and dynamic physical interpretations.

Drawing from disciplines such as Butoh dance, clowning, physical theater, music and digital art, ConTaKt brings the complex dimensions of consciousness to life. Central to the story is "Homo Kemoni," a genderless, animalistic humanoid figure, that encounters a shadow, representing a hidden aspect of inner self. Interacting with this aspect, as well as with the audience, Homo Kemoni traverses altered states of awareness - such as sleep, meditation, hallucination and dreaming - unraveling the subtleties of human perception and brain function.

The performance places the dynamics of connection - both interpersonal and internal - at its core. Through whimsical yet profound exchanges, it examines how relationships and consciousness evolve and transform.

By blending movement, storytelling, and visual art, ConTaKt invites the audience to explore the intricacies of perception and reflect on our connection to ourselves and the world. It offers a captivating lens into the human mind, making the intangible complexity of consciousness both visible and tangible.

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Production of the Homo Kemoni Project​

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Concept, dramaturgy, artistic direction, text: Miriam Strasser
Languages: English, German, Spanish, nonverbal, gestural, digital-visual
Creation & performance: Miriam Strasser with the support of Manuel Waldgeist
Digital creation: Mahdi Bakhshi
Composition & Music: Helena Merenda
Graphic support: Carlos B. Luna
Technical support: Ronald Rigo
Stage assistance: Will Lopes
Stage- and Light-Design: Andreas Ryba

 

With the support of Goethe Institute, European Union, María Pages Foundation and Choreographic Centre.

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YOU WANT TO SUPPORT THIS PROJECT? KLICK DONATION-LINK !

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Summary

"Consciousness in Relation" is an international research project aimed at creating a trans- and interdisciplinary stage performance that explores the neurobiology of consciousness while integrating art and science. The project delves into the neurobiological mechanisms of various states of consciousness and the relationships and interactions between them. To achieve this, the cultural creator Miriam Strasser, a performance artist and anthropologist (BSc), along with Mahdi Bakhshi, a digital-visual artist, combine the scenic languages of experimental, exploratory gestural theater - such as Butoh and Clown - music and audiovisual media to investigate the processes of consciousness in movement and link them with a scientific-philosophical narrative.

The aim is to explore and decipher what happens in the brain during natural altered states of consciousness, such as sleep, lucid dreaming, or ritual dance, and to bring discoveries of science to the public through physical, scenic, and audiovisual imagery.

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Overview/Concept

We are interested in natural altered states of consciousness, which we aim to make visible using scientific imaging techniques and then develop them into artistic projections that provide a visual journey through the human consciousness.

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The arc of the dramaturgical concept is based on various states of consciousness (see graphic), with the number of natural states of consciousness varying significantly depending on perspective and culture, ranging from 3 to 25 states as described by Freudian psychology to the Indian Hindu-Dharma.

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The consciousness states shown above are the "baseline" of the dramaturgical concept, but they will vary in their order and be differentiated (e.g., dividing "sleep" into different sleep phases and "dream" into "normal dream," nightmare, lucid dream, etc.), also adding consciousness states not listed, such as "music".

We also aim to explore different levels of altered consciousness and develop our own artistic-scientific "alphabet" from them.

Scenically, this means that the performance begins with "sleep" in an inward state and evolves into a "happening" with audience participation. Various states of consciousness and contact possibilities are traversed, with the audience becoming increasingly actively engaged and involved in the stage action.

The stage action is accompanied by a scientific-philosophical narrative that runs like a thread throughout the performance, and by artistic visual projections based on neuroscientific data;

such as the following visual elements: abstracted 3D animations of the human brain, abstract visuals based on an EEG-Dataset recorded during a Butoh-Dance-Performance of Miriam Strasser, visuals illustrating the liveliness of plants.

 

The musical concept for the performance project is based on the frequencies of different brain waves corresponding to different states of consciousness and aims to create soundscapes that convey the atmosphere of these states of consciousness (e.g., GAMMA above 30 Hz [peak experiences of insight], BETA 13-30 Hz [concentration], ALPHA 8-12 Hz [meditation], THETA 4-8 Hz [dreaming], and DELTA below 4 Hz [deep sleep]).

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This project is carried out in several phases:

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PHASE 1: In the first phase, the research phase, we will connect the theoretical content we are investigating, and the research and EEG recordings we are conducting in collaboration with neuroscientists at the Miguel Hernández University in Elche, with movement and body dynamics.

PHASE 2: In the second phase, the creation phase, we will develop the choreography and dramaturgy of the performance by working on the text and connecting it with physical dramaturgy.

PHASE 3: In the third phase, the technological interaction, we will develop the sound landscape and the audiovisual landscape to integrate the technological language with the choreography of movement and the narration of scientific results.

PHASE 4: Presentation. Our premiere will take place on September 20, 2024, at the "Theater Arche Wien" in Vienna. In addition to this performance season, guest performances and tours are planned.

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Motivation and Specification

"For all this, we have no words..." This project aims to start where language reaches its limits. Deep within our bodies lie memories, traumas, wisdom, dreams, and magical sensations that are difficult to explain and almost impossible to describe. We aim to explore this source of consciousness, which connects us all (and is probably the origin of spirituality and religions), and approach it from two different directions: through the sensory, physical approach through the body, immersing ourselves in states of consciousness, on the one hand, and through the scientific, philosophical, descriptive, and observational approach, on the other hand.

Thus, we want to express with our bodies through experimental, exploratory gestural theater what cannot be put into words - what must be lived, felt. And we invite the audience to live and feel it with us.

With an audiovisual file, we aim to express what can be put into words, using the spoken languages English (mainly for the "main narrative," the scientific-philosophical "explanatory"/descriptive parts), Spanish, and German (mainly for the poetic and "personal" narrative, the "self-reports"/poetic storytelling parts).

In the audio file, we want to include both self-written material and material from interviews/research.

The visuals are created based on neuroscientific data and free creative expression, illustrating various states of consciousness and their processes in relation to brain activity. The goal is to make abstract and highly emotional stage events more tangible, to make hidden inner states rational and visible, and to create identifiability that allows feelings and traumatic experiences to be assigned and pathways to self-help to be shown. (Insights from dream research, for example, show that lucid dreaming can be learned as a way out of recurring nightmares.) Ultimately, the project is an invitation to more sensitivity and mindfulness, which should lead through contact to a shared happening with the audience, which plays an interactive improvisation game with the performers on stage, because in play we are authentic, present, and full of joy - perhaps the "excellent" state of consciousness with the most synaptic processes in the brain... In the truest sense of the word: when we play, new synaptic networks grow in our brains, which can later be used to increase the cognitive abilities of the mind.

Since the performer has a scientific background in "biology", she wants to combine her artistic methods and scientific knowledge to explore the neuroscientific background of performance art and especially to investigate the processes in the brain during the "Butoh state" (scientifically) in a way that serves as a common "asset", as there is very little description of the neurobiological processes of "Butoh". This avant-garde contemporary performance art of Butoh dance has indeed only been scientifically studied once in the United States, in an artistic-scientific project by Vangeline France and the New York Butoh Institute, while Miriam Strasser, through her work on her Butoh-Clown character "Homo Kemoni," delved into the depths of consciousness research to decrypt what exactly happens in these so similar inner states (Butoh Dance and Clowning) in the human brain. Since the year 2014 she has been investigating the human consciousness, both neuroscientifically and through self-awareness such as lucid dreaming and various meditation and breathing techniques. With this project she wants to continue this groundbreaking research regarding the neuroscientific implementation of Butoh Dance and thereby make a contribution to society. In this sense she has been collaborating with Dr. Eduardo Fernández from the Department of Histology and the Institute of Bioengineering of the Medical Faculty of the University Miguel Hernández, and Lucia Callen, performing artist and PhD neuroscientist, having recorded brain waves during some Butoh performances with EEG devices as part of the research process in January and February 2024.

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Photos: Miriam Strasser and Lucia Callèn during EEG scans at the Miguel Hernandez University in February 2024. The initial investigations have shown that the "subtle awakening" (entering the Butoh state) can be observed through measurement. Furthermore, a clear change in brain activity in the Butoh state can be observed. (Images provided by the Lintec research group of UMH).

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“Contaminated Marriage”

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In this performance Homo Kemoni reacts to the audience as well as to the audiofile “contaminated marriage”, which is talking about sexual violence institutionalized through marriage. The sound file contains original recordings from parliamentary debates in Germany in 1990, in which predominantly male members of parliament voted against the inclusion of rape within marriage in the penal code, as this could not be equated with the rape of a "foreign" woman.

Homo Kemoni itself is a genderless being. It reacts in a non-judgmental and playful way to all the statements made in the audio file and takes them up as play impulses, innocently incarnating the different characters described in the file and expressing their beliefs. The audio file questions the statements made in a female voice and finally talks about intimacy and female desire in the end.

Performance: Miriam Strasser / Audiofile: Isabel Winter

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"Contaminated Marriage" has been shown on several experimental and interdisciplinary art-festivals, such as "Butohresque Vienna Butoh Festival" and "Böse Kunst".

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About Butoh Clown

 

Butoh clown is an interesting and rather rare combination of two different performance art forms: Butoh and clowning. Each of these art forms has its own deeply rooted tradition and mode of expression, and their combination creates a unique performance that is strongly characterized by emotion, physicality and often deep, sometimes disturbing symbolism.

 

Butoh

Butoh is an avant-garde Japanese dance form that emerged in Japan after the Second World War. It was developed in the late 1950s by artists such as Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ohno. Butoh is known for its slow, often grotesque movements that express an intense emotional and psychological depth. The dance style is strongly characterized by the expression of the unconscious, darkness, pain and existential themes.

 

Clowning

Clowning, or clown art, is a theatrical art form that has its origins in the commedia dell'arte and relies heavily on body language, facial expressions and eccentric behavior. Clowns often play with humor, absurdity and the exaggeration of emotions to entertain the audience, but also to reflect deeper human conditions.

 

Butoh-Clown

The combination of Butoh and clowning creates a performance that can be both humorous and deeply touching. A Butoh clown uses the often ponderous and emotionally charged movements of Butoh, combined with the expressive, often absurd elements of clowning.

This mixture can create a powerful (and sometimes disturbing) performance that challenges the audience to reflect on human existence, suffering and the absurdity of life.

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Butoh-clowns are rare and the art form is not widespread, but when it does occur, it often leaves a lasting impression as it explores the boundaries of physical theater and performance art.

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