Though the troupe’s work can be unsettling, it’s also clear why Gekidan Kaitaisha has been called Japan’s most important contemporary dance group.

Coming to Prague as the second in a three-part festival of Japanese new-wave dance at Archa Theatre this fall, Gekidan Kaitaisha will perform Bye Bye: Reflection, an adaptation of an earlier work by the group, Bye Bye: Phantom. Inspired by world events in the wake of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, the new piece offers a vivid and engaging commentary on this violent chapter of history.

Directed by Shinjin Shimizu, the work of Gekidan Kaitaisha is designed as a relentless critique of mankind’s self-inflicted cruelties. The at-times-controversial “body theater” of Shimizu also raises questions about the way the media dull and nullify the true horrors of conflict, and seek to make the invisible impact of violence not only visible, but at times even painful.

“It’s a tough, harsh way to do theater,” Archa spokesperson Jiří SulĎenko says. “But it’s the way they work, and they create modern art.”

Along with a harsh critique of society’s violence, Bye Bye: Reflection offers rock music and multimedia and video art. Combining monumental and ceremonial elements, the performance takes place on an almost entirely dark stage, with just enough lighting to highlight the performers’ twisted forms, accentuating their contours and movements.

Despite its chaotic appearance, the performance style of Gekidan Kaitaisha in fact requires a high degree of skill in controlling the body, which must be trained to endure both slow and rapid, repetitive motions.

“The show has its roots in Butoh and the rebellious things Butoh was up to,” SulĎenko explains. “Butoh has very strict training, and is based on the dancer’s own self-control, as well as the feelings of the dancer. It is mostly about the world’s dark side, and it’s quite slow, but can also be aggressive.”

Gekidan Kaitaisha was founded in 1995 in Tokyo, and soon established a reputation as the enfant terrible of Japan’s dance scene. Constantly experimenting and pushing limits, founder and director Shimizu, along with performers Kumamoto Kenjiro, Hino Hiruko and Nakajima Miyuki, has developed a truly unique and provocative approach to dance.