Cobalt is a solo dance performance that reflects the lush, vibrant, pigmented abundance that I strive to feel in a gender-confused, culturally fragmented body; my container that I constantly scrutinize and critique, and doesn’t always feel like home. Moving through time from my childhood to the future, I oscillate between these portraits of self, attempting to succeed in the impossible task of existing at multiple ages, multiple identities, all at one moment.

The project began with a striking blue blazer I purchased 4 years ago. Over the years, I collected more cobalt blue pieces: pants, a hat, men’s boxers, socks — until I had a head-to-toe outfit. My near-naked form traversing the space spine-first to splatter onto the costume hanging on the wall, a duet with an egg filled with blue glitter, and holding my gaze tenderly with each and every audience member to overcome my childhood anxiety of eye contact: these vignettes are all part of a condensed lifespan, spanning from birth, my childhood in Japan, to my future elderly form. For me, the impact of the colour cobalt is in how it encapsulates a boldness and regality that I crave to feel in my body, as someone who grew up under strict cultural and familial expectations. As more blue garments adorn my body, my body language shifts from compressed and jagged to smooth and unafraid. With its aesthetic minimalism and gentle provocation, I believe Cobalt can strike a chord with anyone on a journey to radical self-acceptance.