Bardo
Set to international rhythms by Dead Can Dance, Japanese choreographer Toru Shimazaki's Bardo is a mystical and mysterious journey between life and the afterworld. Passionate, fiery and fiercely athletic, the twelve dancers in Bardo weave their way through daring partnerships and striking visual images. The Chicago Tribune calls Bardo "a pounding, intense ensemble work…beautiful, haunting, seductively lovely even when breathlessly fast…"

… a pounding, intense ensemble work full of tortuous partnerships and unrelenting passion. Shimazaki's movement is beautiful, haunting, seductively lovely even when breathlessly fast, and he weaves a spell of mystery, power and hints of terror.
Sid Smith, Chicago Tribune, September 2006

In Japanese, "bardo" describes the uneasy, suspended state of body and mind in the weeks immediately after death. Shimazaki's piece begins as a great swirl of figures huddle and spin apart in a kind of strange, panicked relay. A riveting duet was among the many highlights in a work that needs multiple viewings to appreciate fully… a sense of feverish passion and romantic desire at work.
Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times, September 2006

Toru Shimazaki (Choreographer) began his training at the Goh Ballet Academy as a full scholarship student before joining Goh Ballet Company in Vancouver, Canada. In 1986, he moved to Austria and danced as a soloist at Tirol Landestheatre in Innsbruck. The Sitter School of Dance in Canada invited him to be the director of the Ballet Department in 1990, launching his career as a choreographer. Thunder Drum, created in collaboration with Canadian composer Geoff Bennet and performed by Reiko Matsuoka Ballet Company in 1992, marked his Japanese choreographic debut. Shimazaki has also created works for Polish Dance Theatre, Grand Theatre de Geneve, Momoko Tani Ballet Company, Colorado Ballet, Setsuko Ichikawa Ballet Company, Japan's National New Tokyo Theatre and other companies throughout the world. His work River was chosen to represent "today's Japanese contemporary dance" at the Association of Performing Arts Presenters' 2004 annual conference. In July 2004, the American Dance Festival invited him to participate in its international choreographers commissioning program. He also served as a member of the jury for Prix de Lausanne, Shanghai International Ballet competition and Cirque du Soleil auditions. He choreographed the musical Elisabeth, which has been running in Japan for three years and has enjoyed more than 300 performances. Shimazaki now works primarily in Kobe where he is the chief professor of the Dance Department at Kobe Jogakuin College.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago: Bardo Photo © & courtesy of Todd Rosenberg

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago: Bardo Photo © & courtesy of Todd Rosenberg