ELEKTRO KAGURA is a multimedia performance artist collective that combines intercultural themes, texts, music, dance, and visual art with digital media on stage.

Drawing from traditional forms, ELEKTRO KAGURA creates a mix of tradition and contemporary art that dissolves boundaries and distills essences through an intuitive process.

Current projects

KabuKlub: a collective performance

KabuKlub

 — Workshop & Performance with ELEKTRO KAGURA

“Dance is not something to watch — it’s something to dance.”

Welcome to KabuKlub — a community dance project by ELEKTRO KAGURA, blending the roots of Japanese Kabuki with the spirit of folk dance and club culture.

In this workshop, we invite people of all ages, backgrounds, and experience to move together, to create, and to celebrate the joy of collective dance.

Through rhythm, voice, costume, and imagination, we revive the ancient kabuku spirit — a bold, creative energy that dares to stand out, to question norms, and to live fully through dance.

The Background

Four hundred years ago in Japan, a woman named Okuni of Izumo created a new style of dance that broke gender roles and social boundaries. Her “Kabuki Odori” soon spread across the country as a vibrant, people’s entertainment — wild, playful, and full of life.

KabuKlub brings this same energy into the present.

Together, we combine folk dance, club rhythm, and free improvisation, creating a living space where everyone can express themselves.

Costumes & Creativity

All costumes will be upcycled from used clothing.

Participants are invited to bring or adapt garments that can move freely, transform, and reflect their individuality.

The costume is not decoration — it is an extension of the body, of movement, and of spirit.

Workshop & Performance

The project unfolds over two days of rehearsal and a final day with general rehearsal and performance.

Under the guidance of Ichi Go — as both teacher and as the spirit of Okuni herself — we build a shared experience that transcends age, language, and culture.

Together we embody the essence of Kabuki — not as a museum form, but as a living, breathing, dancing art for everyone.

ELEKTRO KAGURA presents ‘KabuKlub’, inspired by traditional Japanese Kabuki dance and combined with Berlin club culture. Under the direction of Ichi Go, the dancers from the local scene, perform a choregraphie that actively integrates the audience and unleashes the raw energy of a Berlin club. Musicians and visual artists perform both on stage and as performers.

In traditional Kabuki theatre, only men are allowed to perform, playing both male and female roles. However, if one considers the origins of Kabuki dance, it becomes clear that the method was originally developed by a woman, Okuni (1572–1613?). Okuni worked at a renowned shrine and performed her dance style at various locations throughout Japan. Her dance became so famous that it eventually gave rise to Kabuki dance.

Her dance style broke gender roles in particular: Okuni took on male roles, while her partner played female roles. She was inspired by the so-called ‘Kabuki guys’ – eccentric and unconventional personalities who dressed extravagantly and displayed rebellious behaviour. Okuni integrated this aesthetic and philosophy into her dance by having her dancers swap gender roles. This breaking of social norms fascinated the audience, and in the end, dancers and spectators merged into a community that danced together passionately and exuberantly.

A similar dynamic can be found in Berlin clubs, where social norms and conventions are broken and people dance day and night, often blurring gender roles. ELEKTRO KAGURA highlights these similarities between today’s Berlin and Japan of the past, creating a cultural and temporal bridge with this piece.

ELEKTRO KAGURA Team

Yukihiro Ikutani – Szenographie
Cédric Douhaire – Musik
Ichi Go – Tanz