Into this literal and metaphorical minefield steps Koma Otake. Best known for his work in the long time collaborative duo, Eiko and Koma, his solo performance allows an unobstructed view of his artistic genius. For “You,” commissioned by Danspace Project and premiering there in 2023, Otake is set designer, painter, choreographer, director, and performer. As part of the La MaMa Moves! Dance Festival, “You” is Otake’s first appearance in the venerable Ellen Stewart Theatre.

Dressed in simple white kimono haphazardly belted, his hair a stringy tangle, Otake is a mirror image of the figure displayed on the canvas. His posture suggests injury or disability, maybe a crippling of old age. He lists to the left, one foot drags a bit, not quite flat on the floor. Shoulders back, ribcage thrust, head leaning toward his chest, he pauses with feet in fifth position. More potatoes drop from the burlap sack bundled on his head. He approaches the painting and leans in, as if reuniting with an old friend. Every move he makes is evocative. He’s not really walking or standing—or dancing. He saunters, struts, swaggers. All the time seeming to pose for effect. White talc and kohl exaggerate the expressions on his face: innocence, wonder, pain, surprise, mourning.

“You” proceeds to expand the idea of violence that the potatoes have introduced. First, Otake performs with a single arrow that he eventually lodges into the “chest” of his painted doppelganger. Then he makes a machine gun from broken parts of the overturned chair. It feels like a reenactment, as if a dream or a scene from a painting come to life, more than an actual attack. He eventually trashes the entire set—the destruction juxtaposed with Amy Winehouse’s mournful break-up song, “Back to Black” and lively tango music recordings of Francisco Canaro and Orquesta Pipica Victor.