Faces and Hands in my Butoh Vlog

Gustavo Thomas Butoh Vlog: Faces

As some of you may know I'm working in a personal project around my Butoh daily training, a Butoh Vlog, where I'm video-recording one small choreography which "emerges" from that training; every time a different choreography and every time an amazing experience (in my point of view, of course).

That Vlog got its own site (in tumblr: http://gustavothomasbutohvlog.tumblr.com/ or here in Blogger with a special page for it: http://gustavothomastheatre.blogspot.com/p/gustavo-thomas-butoh-vlog.html).

Many interesting things have happened in that project and today I'd like to share something I consider remarkable, the visual possibilities Butoh offers to me. After many days working and recording choreographies with my whole body in movement, I decided to work only with body parts, first with hands (and arms) and after with my face (and head). The result as I say was remarkable, I liked too much and I can assure there is a lot of new possibilities for a creative work, specially in the field of visual arts.

I won't talk more about it, it'll be better to show it and you'll watch by yourselves. I'm publishing some photographs extracted from the video with my face with some photoshop effects, and after that the two videos, with arms-hands and with head-face, both with a special effect as well.

Slideshow: Butoh Faces

Video: Gustavo Thomas Butoh Vlog: Inside my head

Gustavo Thomas Butoh Vlog (August 3, 2011): Inside my head / Dentro de mi cabeza (Xray effect version) from Gustavo Thomas on Vimeo.

Video: Gustavo Thomas Butoh Vlog: Hands

Gustavo Thomas Butoh Vlog for July 29, 2011: Two Hands / Dos Manos from Gustavo Thomas on Vimeo.

Texts, photographs and videos in this Blog are all author's property, except when marked. All rights reserved by Gustavo Thomas. If you have any interest in using any text, photograph or video from this Blog, for commercial use or not, please contact Gustavo Thomas at gustavothomastheatre@gmail.com.

Mei Lanfang Hand Gestures. Part 2.

Mei Lanfang hand gestures (Slideshow)

Here a new version of "Mei Lanfang hand gestures video"; this occasion only photographs of those amazing hands, without text in Chinese or motion images. I thought It was important posting this special slideshow just to appreciate on detail those hand gestures Mei Lanfang used to do on stage.

Every photograph is taken from Chinese books. Mei Lanfang, the great Chinese Opera actor had pictures taken of each of his gestures, even hands, face and eyes, looking for establishing a document record for future generations of actors. Many of these gestures were created by Mei Lanfang, including those for moments usually devoid of gesture, or where he dared (as, from the traditional Oriental point of view, it was viewed as daring) to change something that had been done by actors for generations.

Add a vintage film with two short scenes mixed, Mei working with his hands without costume and with costume:

Today those gestures are part of Beijing Opera actors' repertory and they perform them at the same place and in the same way Mei used to do it.

(1) The first version of this video was posted on July 22th 2007: Beijing Opera: Mei Lanfang hand's gestures

Beijing Opera: Mei Lanfang's hand gestures

Mei Lanfang was known thanks to his quality and his ability to perform with details. In the middle of a strong tradition he knew how to make changes, with details; hand gestures were among those changes.

My personal video edition of Mei Lanfang's hand gestures, from films and books I've found about this subject.

Video of Mei Lanfang Hand Gestures