photo credit: Steven Miller, Allina Yang, Jim Coleman
Anima Mundi is a modern animist epic that fuses visceral movement, live music and cinematic projected imagery to conjure a world of spirit beings and shadows. Inspired by ancient ritual and Japanese supernatural woodblock prints, Anima Mundi serves as a meditation on reconnection with the other-than-human world, a space to examine the human-centric perceptions that devalue our sensorial animal intelligence. A woman walks into the forest and discovers a portal leading to the source of the soul. Guided through a deep transformation by a Marebito spirit being, she navigates the realms of modern disconnect, moving through dimensions where she is trapped in a factory-farm cage or surrounded by autonomous cars. This multifaceted story is inspired in part by the Aruki Miko, roaming female shamans who performed rites across ancient Japan before their powers were stripped by patriarchal forces. Parsing supernatural Japanese woodblock prints and fables with light projected through textured washi paper, Anima Mundi coaxes ghosts and spirits to emerge from the shadows. True to the vision of director Haruko Crow Nishimura and the signature style of Degenerate Art Ensemble, the performance offers a hyper-visual and texturally rich experience.
“Stunning…a rich visual world”
– The Seattle Times
CREDITS
Anima Mundi was conceived by Haruko Crow Nishimura in collaboration with the team and cast.
Performers: Haruko Crow Nishimura, Ezra Dickinson (the Marebito), Joshua Kohl (musician), Mako Kikuchi (musician)
Artistic Director, Performer and Song Co-writer: Haruko Crow Nishimura
Music Director, Composer, Producer, Musician and Film Music: Joshua Kohl
Video Projection Artist, Cinematographer: Leo Mayberry
Devised Texts and Artistic Collaborator: Shin Yu Pai
Cinematography and Documentation: Ian Lucero
Costume Design: Willow Fox, Wyly Astley and Kaori Yamashita
Scenic Design: Max Sarkowsky
Lighting Design: Jessica Trundy
Scenic Sculpture Design: Jason Williams
Audio Engineer: Walter Harley
Production Stage Manager: Lily Nguyen
Production Assistant: Ashley Hickey
NYC Tour Producer and Consultant: Cindy Sibilsky
Scenic Fabricators: Bryce Bartl-Geller and Dave Baldwin
Cinematographers: Leo Mayberry, Ian Lucero and Doug Arney
Film Music: Joshua Kohl
Car Drivers: Christopher Warner, Rusty Oliver, Kevin Nortness, Kym Adams, Clark Battle
Film Crew: Trina Cooper
Film Editors: Leo Mayberry, Joshua Kohl and Haurko Crow Nishimura
Costumes and Wigs: Willow Fox, Wyly Astley, Kate Solomon and Eveylyn Bitner
Additional Film Voices: Leanna Keith and Shin Yu Pai
The Segment of the Little Fox Dance was created in collaboration with Amy O’Neal.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
The Bessie Award-winning Degenerate Art Ensemble creates hyper-visual, interdisciplinary performances rooted in the embodied, sensory language of Japanese Butoh dance and physical theater, inspired by the expressive freedom found in cinema, manga, mythology and universal folk tales; mediums that often contain subversive truths and clues for transformation. They weave together live music, song and cinematic imagery to create new mythologies filled with archetypal beings and landscapes, telling stories that strive to awaken a deep sense of interconnectedness. Noteworthy collaborations include work with the Kronos Quartet and Robert Wilson. Their work takes the form of theater, concerts, site-specific activations and museum exhibitions. The Ensemble is led by visionary artistic director/performer Haruko Crow Nishimura and composer/musician Joshua Kohl.
FUNDING + SUPPORT
Degenerate Art Ensemble is a 2025 NDP Finalist Grant Award recipient. Support was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project, with funding from the Doris Duke Foundation and the Mellon Foundation in support of Anima Mundi and to address continued sustainability needs.
VENUE NOTES + ACCESSIBILITY
La MaMa
Downstairs Theatre
66 East 4th Street
By Subway: N/Q/R/W at 8th Street/NYU, 4/6 at Bleeker Street, F at 2nd Avenue.
Accessibility
La MaMa welcomes all audiences to experience work made by our artists in our many spaces, and we offer the following services to meet the needs of our audiences. If you have questions about accessibility services at La MaMa, please call our box office at 646-430-5374 or email boxoffice@lamama.org. Accessible entrances are located at 74A E 4th Street, 66 E 4th Street, and 47 Great Jones. Please call our box office at 646-430-5374 or email boxoffice@lamama.org with questions or any specific requests. Restrooms open to the public are in the Ellen Stewart Theatre lobby, the Downstairs Theatre lobby, and the 74A E 4th Street lobby. A staff member can direct you to the elevator to reach the restrooms. Elevators are located in 74A E 4th Street, 66 E 4th Street, and 47 Great Jones. Open captioning is available for select performances.
Appropriate Age Range
Not suitable for young audiences.
Content Warnings
Anima Mundi incorporates loud noises and bright lighting.
SCHEDULE
Wednesday, January 13 at 7pm
Thursday, January 14 at 7:30pm
Friday, January 15 at 6:30pm
Saturday, January 16 at 5pm
Sunday, January 17 at 2pm
VENUE
La MaMa
Downstairs Theatre
66 East 4th Street
map
Accessibility
For access + directions, click here
Run Time:
90 minutes without intermission
