NATSUKO KONO
Butoh Dancer, Choreographer and Teacher
Natsuko Kono was born and raised in Kobe, Japan. She studied Performing Arts and Dance at Birkbeck, University of London.
She has worked with Butoh artists Yumiko Yoshioka, Katsura Kan and Tadashi Endo, performing in their dance productions and in an opera directed by Doris Dörrie.
As a solo artist, Natsuko has performed internationally at the Paris Butoh Festival, Dublin Butoh Festival, Moving Bodies Festival, Sommerwerft Frankfurt International Theatre Festival 2024, Testimonianze Ricerca Azioni 2025and International Literature Festival Berlin 2026, among others.
She has been invited to lead Butoh workshops in France, Switzerland, Italy, England, Ireland, Scotland, Portugal, Poland, Serbia, Romania and Japan, as well as at BIG Butoh International Gathering 2024 and miniBIG 2026.
Since 2015, she has performed Anna Homler’s Breadwoman at music festivals across Europe.
Natsuko has lived and worked between Berlin and Rügen since 2015. In 2016, she founded Butoh Initiative, a long-term project dedicated to Butoh training and practice.
https://natsuko-kono.wixsite.com/urbanbutoh
ABOUT THE WORKSHOP
BEING MOVED — THE RECEPTIVE BODY
The notion of “not moving, but being moved” is central to Butoh. “Being moved” cultivates receptivity in the performer.
Over three days, we explore this idea through various exercises in which I intend the dancers to follow, rather than drive or control, the body.
We discover the Butoh body and its relation to emotion and imagery. It trains perspective and the ability to listen as much as it trains the physical body.
Exercises explore our relation and connection to the floor, ground and earth; the centre; awakening the senses of the skin and nerve reflexes; and heightening our consciousness of the space between and beyond.
We consider the surface of the body — the skin — as a sensory organ and as a kind of membrane or boundary between the inside and outside of the body. The nerves become a heightened reception of words or images.
In Butoh, the body develops a highly attuned physical sensitivity, leading to a deep awareness of each moment.
Through exploring the possibilities and diversity of Butoh, the individual finds their own dance and personal expression.
— Natsuko Kono
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Dates & Times
Friday 20 November 2026
16:00 – 20:00
Saturday 21 November 2026
10:00 – 14:00
Sunday 22 November 2026
10:00 – 14:00
Workshop Fee
£120
The fee is for the complete three-day workshop.
Location
STUDIO12 MOVEMENT WORKS
Town Mill Building
Mardle Way Industrial Estate
Buckfastleigh
Devon TQ11 0AG
UK
Registration & Enquiries
Anna Kushnerova
humanclaycic@gmail.com