Hisashi Watanabe

Born in 1986, Watanabe began juggling at the age of 20, and in time his interest has shifted toward the body itself, leading him to become involved in dance as well. Since 2013, he has performed both in Japan and abroad as a member of the dance company Monochrome Circus. In 2015, he presented his solo juggling piece Inverted Tree, and that same year he started the company Atama to Kuchi. The company presented the work Monolith as their first production, drawing attention and acclaim from the dance, juggling and circus scenes. In 2016, his work was selected as a finalist for the Toyota Choreography Award. That same year, in a rare case for a new company, he was given the opportunity of an independent performance at Kaat and presented the new work Whitest.

Hisashi Watanabe has emerged on the Japanese performing arts scene like a shooting star with a new type of performance that skirts the boundaries between contemporary dance and juggling, which he calls “Floor Juggling.”