Min Tanaka has taken his glacial, meditative dance to farms, theaters and rooftops around the world.

For his latest attempt to find the essence of butoh, the internationally recognized dancer has drawn inspiration from the doghouse. Tanaka will perform a solo dance, titled "Where we fall into transparency," in Tokyo, Matsumoto and Kyoto from Nov. 11. Minoru Noguchi performs the music.

Born in 1945, Tanaka has said that the movements of this part-autobiographical work were inspired by his childhood in suburban Tokyo and his memories of playing in his dog's kennel and swinging about on a bar.

During the 1980s, Tanaka was one of the first artists to set up in the secluded village of Hakushu in Yamanashi Prefecture, where he had been attracted to the traditional values of the locals. There, he launched the successful Body Weather Farm dance collective, setting an example to other dancers and musicians that a creative career could be forged from outside Tokyo.

More recently, Tanaka has collaborated with artists from the fields of noh and tanka and has performed a solo dance to the music of Yoko Ono in Massachusetts.

Min Tanaka performs "Where we fall into transparency" on Nov. 11 (7 p.m.) and 12 (4 p.m.) at Setagaya Public Theater (tel. [03] 5432-1526); on Nov. 15 (7 p.m.) at Matsumoto Performing Arts Center (tel. [0623] 33-3800); and on Nov. 18 (4 p.m.) at Kyoto Performing Arts Center (tel. [075] 791-9437).

Tickets for all performances are 3,000 yen in advance, 3,500 yen at the door.

For more information in Japanese, visit www.min-tanaka.com