“Hell” is a scene from Ten Sui, the latest work in the Hokusai Manga Butoh Project, developed since 2022. The project takes as its starting point the depictions of everyday life and human bodies found in Katsushika Hokusai’s Hokusai Manga, researching contemporary Sumida, Tokyo, and reconstructing these observations through Butoh.

This scene focuses on Sumida’s densely built residential areas—historically prone to fire—and the culture of firefighters who confronted these conditions. The choreography draws on the physicality of bodies facing fire, the opposition of wrestlers in the ring, and references to bodily traditions such as sumo.

While Butoh delves into the inner landscape of the body, professional wrestling engages directly with another body through force, balance, and resistance. The encounter between these two forms generates intense physical tension and energy, revealing the body as a site of transformation shaped by emotion and environment.

This performance features a guest appearance by Axe Wang, a wrestler from the Taiwanese professional wrestling organization PUZZLE, in the scene “Pro Wrestling.” His presence introduces an additional physical perspective to the work and contributes to cultural exchange between Japan and Taiwan.