Abstract

This study empirically addresses some aspects of how seeing Japanese avant-garde dance performances (_butô_) is organized in interaction. Using conversation analysis, it analyzes two episodes in detail. In these episodes, different practices are used to perceptually restructure the appearance of a performance. In the first episode, a person explains the difference between the appearances of two performances by transforming modalities (such as verbalization and vocalization). In the second episode, a person directly points out the change in how a performance appears. We suggest, via the juxtaposition of these two episodes, that the difficulty of explaining the appearances of _butô_ performances is the constitutive part of their appearances to which the participants themselves orient. The data are in Japanese with English translation.