Ping: Film documentation: Photo of actor Maro Sekiji

When I determined to proceed with the creation of a multi-media work on Beckett's short story, Ping, it immediately became clear that the perplexing entity in the story (Ping, himself) needed to be represented somehow. I was meeting frequently with composer Toru Takemitsu, and we often talked about films, a common passion. He was a frequent composer for film projects in Japan, so when I decided to try to make my own film (I had no prior experience in this regard.), I talked with Takemitsu. He introduced me to one of Kurosawa's cameramen. Somehow, I also made contact with a then young Butoh dancer, Maro Sekiji [Japanese name order]. He agreed to be the Ping figure. It was necessary, then, to find a small studio, to secure very powerful lighting (that would allow for the "white-out" effect I wanted), and to build the box in which Ping was to be situated. All of this was accomplished in Japanese, and, surprisingly everything happened without serious problems. I planned a very detailed scenario, a script that showed one minute on each page, and described what was to happen and at exactly what moment each new event would occur. The film was, of course, silent, as accompanying sound was to be produced by live musicians and electro-acoustic modifications. The film primarily involved the full-length portrayal of the nearly naked dancer, then utilized shifting focus, pans, zooms, intercut images (related to Beckett's text), color field rectangles, contorted shots of the dancer, and, occasionally, very rapid intercuiting of poses or color fields. The film was shot, I believe, over two days in the Winter of 1968, and was cut together in accord with my detailed script.

• 1968

• Reynolds, Roger, 1934-

• Sekiji, Maro

Based on: Beckett, Samuel, 1906-1989. Ping

Front and back of a photo taken during the filming of Reynolds' Ping film. L-R: Maro Sekiji, and Japanese camera man identified elsewhere. Touching up white powder makeup. It is notable hjat during our very extended shooting sessions, Maro never sweated at all, though he was under very intense light (and therefore heat) throughout the filming. As soon as shooting stopped, he sweated profusely.

• Photographs

• Sekiji, Maro

• Actors
• Butō
• Multimedia works

• image

Shared Shelf: 3975596

Online finding aid

• Roger Reynolds Collection at the Library of Congress

Film, Audio, Video and Digital Art

Performing Arts (including Performance Art)

UC San Diego Library, UC San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0175 (https://library.ucsd.edu/dc/contact)

• Reynolds, Roger, 1934-

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2021-09-29