An evening-length work for Butoh dancers, musicians, and live video, Knock on the Sky unfolds within a sonic and spatial environment controlled by the performers in real time. Inspired by Woman in the Dunes , Kobo Abe's retelling of the myth of Sisyphus, composer-pianist Myra Melford, butoh dancer-choreographer Dawn Saito, and architect-sculptor Michael Haberz set out on a journey to find meaning in what life presents to us and what it asks of us. Supporting artists include Butoh dancer Oguri, bassist Stomu Takeishi, and trumpeter Cuong Vu.

Butoh's viscerally and visually compelling vocabulary of movement--by turns disturbing, uplifting, and mundane--reveals the universal beauty and resilience of human existence. Melford's music likewise draws on universal human experience, blending jazz, blues, contemporary art music, and folk traditions. For this project, Melford will turn to musical structures influenced by Japanese Kabuki Nagauta, or long song, and Japanese Gagaku court music. In addition, performers will use MAX/MSP software to spontaneously manipulate the sonic and visual environment of the piece. Live video imagery projected on hanging scrims will create walls of light that constantly redefine the space in which the performance takes place.