DANCE REVIEWS : ‘Nocturne’ Builds Emotional Intensity

Her hands slowly clawing the air, her face a mask of pain and fear, tiny Mutsuko Tanaka stands on the stage of the Japan America Theatre, the train of her long, tattered gown gathered about her feet. Twisting restlessly, she begins to grow, straight up--seven, eight,

nine feet--until her intensity, her mystery, become monumental: a part of the landscape.

This is the opening of Ebisu Torii’s “Nocturne,” the plotless dance-drama that introduced Torii and Tanaka’s four-member Buto-Sha Tenkei ensemble to America on Friday. Exponents of butoh, the nightmarish contemporary Japanese dance idiom, and former members of the seminal company Dai Rakuda Kan, these artists savor the grotesque imagery, startling juxtapositions and unhurried buildup of emotional weight that draw butoh audiences deep into irrational states of consciousness.

Expressing what their program notes call “the strange radiance of life emerging from the depths of sleep,” the 70-minute “Nocturne” incorporates Western classical and popular music as well as a haunting score by Masaru Soga. Lighting by Yoshiro Abe plays a major role--and Torii himself appears in a solo of relentless clenched tension that might prove unforgettable under ordinary circumstances.

But “Nocturne” belongs to the superb skills and fierce concentration of Tanaka, showcased in solo after solo. Even when the whole company assembles at the end and everyone gazes at the audience, eyes suddenly glinting a horrific red, there’s no mistaking the diva from hell dominating this alternately poetic and disturbing dance-theater experience.

* Buto-Sha Tenkei performs “Nocturne” at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center, 6200 Atherton St., Long Beach. Tickets: $10 (students, seniors) to $15. (310) 985-7000.