Ars Nova Workshop presents composer and multimedia artist Paul D. Miller aka DJ Spooky and choreographer-performer Michael Sakamoto for a genre-defying performance featuring excerpts from three original works: Beautiful Blue Sky, asymm, and Gods and Monsters at Solar Myth on Sunday, November 2.

Rooted in butoh, hip-hop, new music, and immersive media, these interwoven pieces explore cultural memory, resistance, and ecological urgency through richly layered sound, movement, and image. With inspiration drawn from the legacy of the late composer and activist Ryuichi Sakamoto, the program moves across geographies and histories to offer a striking reflection on our collective present.

The evening includes Beautiful Blue Sky, a duet between Sakamoto and guest artist Mohammed “Barges” Smahneh that blends autobiographical dance theater with hip-hop and Palestinian folk traditions; asymm, Sakamoto’s solo exploration of identity, borders, and belonging; and Gods and Monsters, Miller’s music- and media-driven performance combining electronic, classical, and hip-hop elements with visuals and dance. Together, these excerpts create an urgent, poetic experience that dissolves boundaries between disciplines while imagining new ways of being in a fractured world.

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Prior to his Ars Nova Workshop performance, dance theater artist Michael Sakamoto leads Body/Mind/Funk/Time — a movement workshop bridging Butoh and American street dance. Born from postwar transformations in Japan and the U.S., both forms channel resilience and imagination. Participants will explore Sakamoto’s embodied approach to rhythm, awareness, and flow. November 1, 5–6:30PM, Studio 34. Register here.