Thinking Outside the Stage” is a series of articles by Ayaka Ono, You Nakazawa, and Space Knot Blank, in which they discuss their past activities from perspectives beyond the framework of performance. The serialization is conducted jointly by Ayaka Ono, You Nakazawa, Space Not Blank, and Dance Base Yokohama, and each installment alternates between the two websites. The series explores various aspects of the performing arts in an experimental and introspective manner, highlighting new relationships between artists and the creative environment.

▶︎ The 1st “About the Assistant Director”｜Ayaka Ono, Yo Nakazawa, Space Not Blank

Dance Base Yokohama

We were fortunate to be selected as “Open Call Residence Artists” (now “Resident Artists”) of Dance Base Yokohama (DaBY) for two consecutive years in 2023 and 2024. 2023 was for “Inherit the Body,” a choreographic mechanism we have continued to research and develop, an attempt to pass on “Physical Catharsis” to other artists. In 2024, we were selected for our first dance work, “Dance Work No. 1: Practice” by Claude Debussy, which we created using the “Physical Catharsis” choreographic mechanism we have been researching and developing. First, let’s look back at “The Inherited Body”.

The Inherited Body｜Choreographic Concept 001 for Untrained Laypeople / Study on Weight and Movement, January 2024, Dance Base Yokohama
Courtesy of Dance Base Yokohama Photo by Yuka Kamimura

Inherited body

The ” Inherited Bodies ” was an attempt to gather and progress intermittently for about six months, once or twice a month, sometimes four times a month when DaBY was free in consecutive months. In summary, the following is a summary of the project.

Dance Base Yokohama 2023 Open Call for Residence Artists
Ayaka Ono, You Nakazawa, Space Not Blank
“Inherit the Body” Phase I

Primary Research Basic Communication
Tuesday, July 4, 2023 10:00 – 13:00
Wednesday, July 5, 2023 10:00 – 13:00
Thursday, July 6, 2023 10:00 – 13:00
Friday, July 7, 2023 10:00 – 17:00
Friday, August 11, 2023 10:00 – 17:00
Saturday, August 12, 2023 12:00 – 17:00 / Open Rehearsal: 13:00 – 17:00
Total number of hours at DaBY: 28 / Total number of days at DaBY: 6

Second Research Applied Creation
Monday, September 25, 2023 13:00 – 17:00
Monday, October 2, 2023 10:00 – 17:00
Tuesday, October 24, 2023 10:00 – 17:00
Monday, November 13, 2023 10:00 – 17:00
(Friday, December 1, 2023 Mount Tsukuba Climbing)
Thursday, January 4, 2024 10:00 – 17:00
Saturday, January 20, 2024 10:00 – 17:00 / Work-in-progress + talk and showing of “Choreographic Concept 001 for the Untrained Layperson / Study on Weight and Motion”: 14:00 – 16:00
Total time at DaBY: 39 hours / Total days at DaBY: 6 days

We chose two members for the trial: Shizuka Yamaguchi, who has been involved in the research and development of “Physical Catharsis” since 2019, and Yusuke Miya, with whom we will collaborate for the first time in this trial. Yusuke Miya had participated in “Competition II” of the Yokohama Dance Collection 2022, in which we had participated in “Competition I,” and had won the Best New Artist Award. Although we had only passed each other at the award ceremony, I saw the possibility of sharing the process of “inheritance” and sent an e-mail with a sudden request. It is thought that Shizuka Yamaguchi had already inherited “physical catharsis” before this attempt, but we asked Yusuke Miya to describe “physical catharsis” from an objective point of view different from ours, after having shared the process up to this point. The relationship between the four members of “Inherited Bodies,” including us, would continue in other activities, including “Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy’s ‘Practice'” later in the project. The instructions for performing “Choreographic Concept 001 for Untrained Amateurs/Study on Weight and Movement,” for which we did a showing, stated that we needed to have done some mountain climbing together, so the four of us climbed Mount Tsukuba together. Did the mountains strengthen our bond? It is not something that can be quantitatively measured, but we realized that climbing mountains together and creating artwork have similar qualities. Later, Yusuke Miya and Shizuka Yamaguchi discussed the possibility of forming a “mountain climbing club” so that we could climb mountains regularly. We have not been able to do so yet, but we hope to do so in the future.

Inherited Body｜Climbing Mt. Tsukuba December 2023 Mt.
©︎ Ayaka Ono You Nakazawa Space Knot Blank

The “inherit” in “inherit body” is a double-meaning, and at the time of applying for the DaBY open call, we wanted to practice inheritance in both senses. One is, as already mentioned, to spend time intermittently at DaBY with Yusuke Miya and Shizuka Yamaguchi, and to inherit “physical catharsis. The other is for us to carry on the contact Gonzo Physics Series “Choreographic Concepts for Untrained Amateurs”. He appeared as a guest in the talk, and I purchased this work directly from him during the talk. The practice of inheritance from other artists does not stop here. In chronological order, “Shu Matsui and Us,” based on Jerome Bell’s “Piché Kranchen and I,” was performed at Komaba Agora Theatre in November 2023; a showing of “Choreographic Concept 001 for Untrained Amateurs/Study on Weight and Movement” was performed at Dance Base Performed at Dance Base Yokohama in January 2024. In December 2024, “Rebirth,” a piece based on Junnosuke Tada’s original plan with a “30-minute story repeated three times,” was performed at Studio HIKARI, Kanagawa Prefectural Youth Center, and in February 2025, it was performed at Atelier PentA, Nagasaki, with a different structure. The first phase of “Inheriting Bodies” overlapped with the second phase of “Inheriting Bodies” in terms of the time period. In the “first phase,” the four artists who intermittently stayed at DaBY shared and practiced “physical catharsis,” and in the “second phase,” they experienced and embodied the practices of other artists. Yusuke Miya and Shizuka Yamaguchi are performing in “Choreographic Concept 001 for Untrained Amateurs/Study on Weight and Movement” and “Rebirth. Although it is undecided at this point as to when it will be realized, the idea for the “third phase” is not limited to Yusuke Miya and Shizuka Yamaguchi, but to have artists other than ourselves create performances that use “physical catharsis” as a dance before dance works. Apart from that, “Project T (working title),” which is currently being planned, envisions an attempt to “delegate creation to other artists as part of our practice,” which may also be an extension of the “Inherited Body” project. Choreographers and producers interested in each of these projects should contact Please feel free to email us at spacenotblank@gmail.com Please do not hesitate to send an e-mail to . We are waiting for any and all proposals as we launch them.

Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy, “Exercises

After “research and development” and “inheritance” of the system, we aim to “utilize” it from 2025. The first of these is ” Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy’s ‘Practice’, ” which will be created as a DaBY 2024 publicly solicited artist-in-residence. The idea of numbering “dance works” is related to our previous research and development of “physical catharsis” and represents the difficulty for us to “name” a “dance” as a “work”. I think we still have some “resistance” to making “dance” a “dance work. However, in spite of this resistance, we are aware that the attempt to “create” the “dance” we want to show and the “dance work” we want to create is the next step we should take, and an expression of our attitude toward the world. The transition of the project from the application process to the selection of the artists and their residency at DaBY in January 2025 will be introduced in Part 4, “About the Project”. Here, we look back at the actual production of the residency.

As the name suggests, “Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy ‘Exercises'” is a “dance work” intended to choreograph all 12 pieces of Claude Debussy’s “Exercises”. We chose this piece because of its attitude of oscillating between “practice” and “work,” and because we felt that it was thematically appropriate as the first “dance piece” we would create. Does dance need a theme? It may sound like a stinky theory of life, but it is something that those who want to think about it, both those who see it and those who create it, should continue to think about it. The details of the residency are as follows.

Dance Base Yokohama 2024 Open Call for Residence Artists
Ayaka Ono, Yo Nakazawa, Space Not Blank
Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy, Practice, Part 1

Tuesday, January 7, 2025 11:00 – 16:00
Wednesday, January 8, 2025 11:00 – 16:00
Thursday, January 9, 2025 11:00 – 16:00
Saturday, January 11, 2025 11:00 – 16:00
Monday, January 13, 2025 11:00 – 16:00 / Open rehearsal: 11 :00 – 16:00
Tuesday, January 14, 2025 11:00 – 16:00 / Open Rehearsal: 11:00 – 16:00
Wednesday, January 15, 2025 11:00 – 16:00 / Open Rehearsal: 11:00 – 16:00
Thursday, January 16, 2025 11:00 – 16:00 / Open Rehearsal: 11:00 – 16:00
Friday, January 17, 2025 11:00 – 16:00 / Open Rehearsal: 11:00 – 16:00
Monday, January 20, 2025 11:00 – 17:00 / Open Rehearsal: 11:00 – 16:00
Tuesday, January 21, 2025 11:00 – 17 Rehearsal: 11:00 – 17:00 / Open Rehearsal: 11:00 – 16:00
Wednesday, January 22, 2025 11:00 – 17:00 / Open Rehearsal: 11:00 – 16:00
Friday, January 24, 2025 11:00 – 17:00
Saturday, January 25, 2025 11:00 – 17:00 / Performances + Artist Talks Talk: 14:00 – 16:00
Sunday, January 26, 2025 11:00 – 17:00 / Performance + Artist Talk: 14:00 – 16:00
Total number of hours at DaBY: 81 hours / Total number of days at DaBY: 15 days

What is unique about the FY2024 residency is that more than half of the residency was devoted to “open rehearsals,” and based on the experience of the FY2023 residency, we, the artists, wanted to actively promote the “openness” of “creating an open space for third parties, including the audience,” as stated in DaBY’s ” Fair Creation ” declaration. We, artists, wanted to appeal to the public to actively “open” the space.

Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy, Practice, Part 1｜Open Rehearsal January 2025, Dance Base Yokohama
Courtesy of Dance Base Yokohama Photo by Yuka Kamimura

Since FY2023 was the first time using DaBY, we did not yet know what the space and environment would be like. However, after actually staying at DaBY, we found that the area outside of the rehearsal space was always open as a public library, and even if it was not labeled as an “open rehearsal,” people could visit freely, although there were security limits. In addition, we only held a final work-in-progress. In the 2024 residency program, we held open rehearsals on 8 of the 15 days, and invited the audience to DaBY for a total of 10 days, including the two days of performances. Moreover, during the 8 days of open rehearsals, no one came on only one day, and at least one person came on the other days, so the appeal was worthwhile. The visitors were not only invited to see the performance, but also to share how they obtained information about the open rehearsal, why they decided to come, and what they thought of the performance when they actually came and saw it, through the conversation that naturally ensued. I believe that through DaBY, we were able to create a place where both artists and audiences could connect with each other in a satisfying relationship. I believe that we were able to create a place where both artists and audiences could connect with each other in a satisfying relationship. We would like to continue to actively hold open rehearsals in the future. And not only at our events, DaBY is open. If you happen to be in the neighborhood, please take a peek.

In “Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy’s ‘Exercises’,” the choreography was created using “physical catharsis,” half thinking about who would appear in which order, and half not thinking at all. The plan was to choreograph the first six pieces of Claude Debussy’s “Practice,” which consists of 12 pieces, and to perform them in a work-in-progress performance.

Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy, Practice, Part 1｜Work in Progress, January 2025, Dance Base Yokohama
Courtesy of Dance Base Yokohama Photo by Yuka Kamimura

The residency was scheduled for 12 days, from Tuesday, January 7 to Wednesday, January 22, 2025, which means that if we could choreograph one piece in two days, it would be enough time for the work-in-progress. During the first few days, we not only choreographed with “physical catharsis,” but also created scenes using the “questioning” technique. Questioning is a method in which each member creates a scene based on a word that serves as an answer to a question. The dance created by “physical catharsis” and the scene created by “questioning” were layered together to form a composition, with the intention of ultimately creating a “dance work” equivalent to the first six pieces of “Practice.

▶︎ Ayaka Ono, Yo Nakazawa, Space Not Blank / Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy’s “Practice Interview during residency

physical catharsis

The choreographies and scenes created based on the way of making “dance” and handling music in “Physical Catharsis” seem to have demonstrated the subjective physicality of “the dancer” more than any of the previous performances in “Physical Catharsis”. In the case of this performance, I felt that by mixing the meaning of the dance as a “work,” as in the case of “practice,” the differences among the bodies, interpretations, and relationships that are expressed in the meaning of the dance as a “work,” were emphasized. Dance created through “physical catharsis” has a surface layer that strongly refuses to be made into a work of art. If we apply a “retrogression” like this, “dance,” which used to be “everyone is different and everyone is good,” will become “a dance work” that says, “Everyone is different, but is that OK? It is only natural that a “dance work” that was “different and good for everyone” would become a “dance work” that is “different but good for everyone”. However, rather than continuing to talk about “physical catharsis” using the word “diversity” and expanding its value in a one-way direction, saying, “This is good, isn’t it? I was able to rediscover “Oh, so that’s why I didn’t want to make dance into a dance work. I still intend to continue creating “dance works. I hope that “Physical Catharsis” will reach more people as a “methodology for expressing diverse bodies” while expanding its value as a mechanism. At the same time, it will also function as a mechanism to show that, in our hands, the performance is also a “dance work” that expresses the bodies, interpretations, and relationships of the performers themselves, against the existing value and meaning as a “dance work.

Past and Future of Residency Programs

The two residencies at DaBY took different forms: an intermittent residency in 2023 and a short-term intensive residency in 2024. In order to reflect on how the residencies have affected our present situation, we will look back on the past residencies.

Takamatsu City / Takamatsu Artist-in-Residence 2018
Purpose: Creation of a new work “Original Landscape” / Location: Takamatsu City, Kagawa / Total stay: 49 days

Hononokuni Yokohama Arts Theatre PLAT / Dance Residence 2019
Purpose: Research and creation of “Physical Catharsis” / Location: Hononokuni Yokohama Arts Theatre PLAT Creative Activity Room B / Total stay: 12 days

Nonprofit Organization Regional Culture Project / Artist-in-Residence Hidaka-mura 2022
Purpose: Engaging with the community without assuming results / Location: Hidaka-mura, Takaoka-gun, Kochi / Total stay: 14 days

Kyoto Art Center / Co-program2023 Category A Collaborative work
Purpose: Creation of new work “Dance Dance Revolutions” in collaboration with Shuntaro Matsubara / Location: Kyoto Art Center Free Space / Total stay: 28 days

Kinosaki International Art Center / 2023 Artist in Residence Program
Purpose: Creation of a new work “Words and Shakespeare’s Birds” / Location: Kinosaki International Art Center Hall / Total stay: 20 days

YAU / YAU STUDIO Y-base Resident Artist (February – May 2024)
Purpose: Constant “training” and research and creation of new work “Dance Work No. 2” / Location: YAU STUDIO Y-base / Total stay: 18 days

Yokohama Dance Collection 2022 Competition I, French Embassy in Japan for young choreographers, as a supplementary prize for the Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels Award / Pantin Residence 88 Days
Purpose: Research on “dance works” / Place of Residence: Centre National de Danse (CND), Studio 10 / Total days of residence: 88 days CN D, Studio 10 / Total stay: 88 days

These are all the residencies we have had outside of DaBY.

Pantin Residence 88 Days | Encounter with Walter Van Beirendonck June 2024 Galerie Verot-Doda
©︎ Ayaka Ono You Nakazawa Space Not Blank

While there are many other projects in which artists stay and work in the same place for a certain period of time as part of their activities, those that do not focus on “residency” are omitted from this section.

The nature of a residency varies considerably depending on the location, duration, and purpose. For us, however, encountering fresh places and people is simply a stimulating combination of the pleasant and the unpleasant, isolated from “everyday life,” and we find happiness in it, resulting in an explosion of motivation to create. In our case, nothing unbearably bad has ever happened during a residency. In terms of residencies at DaBY, while the intermittent residency in 2023 was used as a place where we could relax and gather occasionally, the intensive residency in 2024 forced us to increase the density of our “creation” time. The short term intensive residency program in 2024, on the other hand, forced us to consider the density of time for “creation. We found it good to gather intermittently over a long period of time, and it was also good to gather intensively over a short period of time, and we made discoveries of our own. Although there was some research before the residency for “Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy’s Practice,” the creative process unfolded at a dizzying pace, and the performance was over in no time at all. The density of place and time undeniably brought out the will to “create. Now that we have finished creating the six songs for the first part, we still have half of them left. What to do with the remaining 6 songs? And when the 12 songs are completed, how will the six songs of the first part change? To what extent will the momentum of the short-term intensive residency production be sustained? The daily dialogue in open rehearsals reveals to us the respective responsibilities of “seeing,” “being seen,” “showing,” and “making seen,” and the total residency time of 81 hours, quantified by looking back in the report, conveys the gravity of the situation.

Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy, Practice, Part 1｜Work in Progress, January 2025, Dance Base Yokohama
Courtesy of Dance Base Yokohama Photo by Yuka Kamimura

In addition to Yusuke Miya and Shizuka Yamaguchi, Gauthier Assensi, whom we met during our 88-day residency in Pantin, France in 2024, participated in “Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy’s Practice”. I would like to write about this encounter someday when I write about “luck” and “encounters” in this series.

The experiences, experiences, and works of art that result from a residency are not limited to just the work. They show us the next path and provide us with new mechanisms. In the third installment, “On Loss,” we will look at what we have had to abandon along the way. There are things we “do” and there are things we “don’t” do. We will look back at the loss of our class, “Performative Design Theory,” which was scheduled to take place at PARA, which ceased all operations on Monday, November 25, 2024, and explore what we can create next.

Thursday, March 13, 2025
Ayaka Ono You Nakazawa Space Not Blank

Ayaka Ono Akira Nakazawa Spacenotblank
Spacenotblank was founded in 2012 by Ayaka Ono and Yo Nakazawa as a collective to create performing arts works. By integrating the established concepts of the performing arts with new mechanisms of their own research and development, they continue to explore the state of the performing arts in the modern age and attempt to create diverse values. As a resident artist at Dance Base Yokohama since 2023, he has been working on the project “Inherit the Body” as well as the “Inherit the Body” as a resident artist at Dance Base Yokohama since 2023. He has been involved in the residency program “Inheriting Bodies,” the showing of “Choreographic Concept 001 for Untrained Amateurs: Study on Weight and Movement (original work by contact Gonzo),” and the residency program and performance of the first part of “Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy’s ‘Practice'” at Dance Base Yokohama. The first part of “Dance Work No. 1: Claude Debussy’s Practice” was performed at Dance Base Yokohama. She will create and perform a new work “Dance Work No. 3” at Dance Base Yokohama International Dance Project “Wings” for the next generation of creators who want to spread their wings to the world.