Cruzing In-Between Japan: Alain Sinandja’s I Don’t Care What You Think

Beri Juraic

Cruzing In-Between Japan: Alain Sinandja’s I Don’t Care What You Think

Beri Juraic

Lancaster University

Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper

Abstract

In 2020, Human Rights Watch wrote to the Japanese government urging them to start accepting transgender women into public women’s universities. For the umpteenth time, the issue of LGBTQIA+ rights became the subject of heated public debate. Against this debate, Kobe-based choreographer/dancer-interpreter (danseur-interprète) Alain Sinandja performs a poignant dance piece I Don’t Care What You Think (2020) with Kyoto-based trumpet player Christopher Fryman. Sinandja wearing a flowery dress combines various dance genres to explore his
femininity and his bodily position as a foreigner in Japan. I employ the notions of opacity (Glissant, 1991), post-negritude (Reid, 1997) and new solidarity (Azuma, 2017) to explore how this piece cruises along the borders of identities and genres to complicate performers’ and spectators’ bodies in-between feminine/masculine/queer other and foreign/native other.

Part of panel 'Cruzing, Glitching, Hip-Hoping: Cross-Asian Perspectives on Queer Performance' with Dr Katherine Mezur

Original language	English
Publication status	Published - 13 Dec 2025
Externally published	Yes
Event	Performance Studies international #30: XXX – Cruzo, Cruising, Crossroads - Fortaleza, Brazil Duration: 11 Dec 2025 → 15 Dec 2025 https://www.psi-web.org/psi-conference-30/

Conference

Conference	Performance Studies international #30
Country/Territory	Brazil
City	Fortaleza
Period	11/12/25 → 15/12/25
Internet address	https://www.psi-web.org/psi-conference-30/

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

Cite this

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title = "Cruzing In-Between Japan: Alain Sinandja{\textquoteright}s I Don{\textquoteright}t Care What You Think",

abstract = "In 2020, Human Rights Watch wrote to the Japanese government urging them to start accepting transgender women into public women{\textquoteright}s universities. For the umpteenth time, the issue of LGBTQIA+ rights became the subject of heated public debate. Against this debate, Kobe-based choreographer/dancer-interpreter (danseur-interpr{\`e}te) Alain Sinandja performs a poignant dance piece I Don{\textquoteright}t Care What You Think (2020) with Kyoto-based trumpet player Christopher Fryman. Sinandja wearing a flowery dress combines various dance genres to explore his femininity and his bodily position as a foreigner in Japan. I employ the notions of opacity (Glissant, 1991), post-negritude (Reid, 1997) and new solidarity (Azuma, 2017) to explore how this piece cruises along the borders of identities and genres to complicate performers{\textquoteright} and spectators{\textquoteright} bodies in-between feminine/masculine/queer other and foreign/native other. Part of panel 'Cruzing, Glitching, Hip-Hoping: Cross-Asian Perspectives on Queer Performance' with Dr Katherine Mezur",

author = "Beri Juraic",

year = "2025",

month = dec,

day = "13",

language = "English",

note = "Performance Studies international \#30 ; Conference date: 11-12-2025 Through 15-12-2025",

url = "https://www.psi-web.org/psi-conference-30/",

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T1 - Cruzing In-Between Japan: Alain Sinandja’s I Don’t Care What You Think

AU - Juraic, Beri

PY - 2025/12/13

Y1 - 2025/12/13

N2 - In 2020, Human Rights Watch wrote to the Japanese government urging them to start accepting transgender women into public women’s universities. For the umpteenth time, the issue of LGBTQIA+ rights became the subject of heated public debate. Against this debate, Kobe-based choreographer/dancer-interpreter (danseur-interprète) Alain Sinandja performs a poignant dance piece I Don’t Care What You Think (2020) with Kyoto-based trumpet player Christopher Fryman. Sinandja wearing a flowery dress combines various dance genres to explore his femininity and his bodily position as a foreigner in Japan. I employ the notions of opacity (Glissant, 1991), post-negritude (Reid, 1997) and new solidarity (Azuma, 2017) to explore how this piece cruises along the borders of identities and genres to complicate performers’ and spectators’ bodies in-between feminine/masculine/queer other and foreign/native other. Part of panel 'Cruzing, Glitching, Hip-Hoping: Cross-Asian Perspectives on Queer Performance' with Dr Katherine Mezur

AB - In 2020, Human Rights Watch wrote to the Japanese government urging them to start accepting transgender women into public women’s universities. For the umpteenth time, the issue of LGBTQIA+ rights became the subject of heated public debate. Against this debate, Kobe-based choreographer/dancer-interpreter (danseur-interprète) Alain Sinandja performs a poignant dance piece I Don’t Care What You Think (2020) with Kyoto-based trumpet player Christopher Fryman. Sinandja wearing a flowery dress combines various dance genres to explore his femininity and his bodily position as a foreigner in Japan. I employ the notions of opacity (Glissant, 1991), post-negritude (Reid, 1997) and new solidarity (Azuma, 2017) to explore how this piece cruises along the borders of identities and genres to complicate performers’ and spectators’ bodies in-between feminine/masculine/queer other and foreign/native other. Part of panel 'Cruzing, Glitching, Hip-Hoping: Cross-Asian Perspectives on Queer Performance' with Dr Katherine Mezur

M3 - Paper

T2 - Performance Studies international #30

Y2 - 11 December 2025 through 15 December 2025

ER -

Cruzing In-Between Japan: Alain Sinandja’s I Don’t Care What You Think

Abstract

Conference

UN SDGs

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