The peculiar charm of the avant-garde

This article appears in Tokyo Weekend Vol. 4.
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The door to a small basement studio in Tokyo opens, and 17 women file in, dressed identically: sleek short hair; navy apron-style dresses with wide sleeves over blouses; shiny white ankle socks. Facing an audience—a small camera crew, a director, and me—they go into performance mode, smiling broadly, shaking their heads rapidly, and walking slowly as they march through the door in a single file, giving the impression of wind-up dolls. Behind them is a woman dressed in all white, walking normally.

This is Avantgardey, a dance crew known for their eccentric, energetic and perfectly synchronized performances. Their names are Nona, Pani, Moca, Fuka, Seira, Nagano, Ayane, Oya, Sono, Harune, Miyuu, Macchan, Aimu, Kotone, Kohana, Chacha and Ui, with the 18th being Akane, their choreographer, producer and overall creative mastermind. Since Avantgardey was first formed in 2022, it has amassed global recognition, most notably for her work in America’s Got Talentand have amassed millions of followers on social media. Today, the group has a packed schedule that includes TV appearances, fan events, and live performances across Asia. We had exactly an hour and a half to take photos with them—afterwards, they needed to immediately leave for their solo concert at Nakano Zero—but luckily, the group ran like a well-oiled machine.

When Akane formed Avantgardey, she had just scored another huge success; the Bubbly Dance, which she choreographed for Osaka’s Tomioka High School dance club in 2017, went viral. Set to Yoko Oginome’s Dancing Hero (Eat You Up), the dance features a group of teenage dancers dressed in exaggerated 80s bubble-era office lady attire—sequined shoulder-padded skirt suits, inexplicably architectural hair, brightly colored makeup—moving in unison. For much of the dance, their expressions are hyper-neutral, a precocious parody of efficient professionals. Occasionally, though, a dancer would flash an exaggerated smile or fake a pained expression toward the audience. To date, the Bubbly Dance video uploaded to Akane’s YouTube channel has been viewed 118 million times.

Many of Avantgardey’s dancers are former members of Tomioka High School’s dance club, hand-picked by Akane; their high school uniform-style outfits seem to harken back to those roots. (Akane says she chose the style “because the contrast between the navy and white arms was great for dancing.”) The group’s mini-break came in 2023, when DJ Steve Aoki invited them to perform at one of his concerts. Next, they became world-famous in the form of: Average gestational ageaveraging about 10 million viewers per season. The group made their debut on season 18, captivating the celebrity panel of judges with their opening performance, which began with Hiromi Iwasaki’s city-pop classic “Cinderella Honeymoon,” followed by dancing to Yoasobi’s “Idol” and ABBA’s “Money, Money, Money.”

Avantgardey made it all the way to the finals, but perhaps the American public wasn’t ready for something so complex and unusual. Despite being a fan favorite, the duo was eliminated in the finals. The ultimate winners of the season were a duo: a man and his trained border collie.

When all members gathered in a small room, one could not help but think: Seventeen people is indeed a lotSomehow, though, the atmosphere never feels hectic or oppressive. The members begin a series of geometric group poses choreographed on the spot by Akane, carefully calibrating the angles of their arms and legs and their distances from one another.

Despite her petite stature, Akane has an imposing presence, exuding a quiet but palpable air of authority. She’s demanding: Between takes, she and another production crew member tiptoe through a group of wigged dancers, carefully adjusting their bangs, combing out tangled hair, making sure their socks are pulled up. Everything is in perfect order.

An hour and a half later, Avantgardey completed one last pose, generously presented us with branded stickers, and immediately walked out of the room, upstairs, and into the motorcade that would take the members to the next event. It all happened so fast that it was almost dizzying.

Still, such tight coordination was to be expected. The avant-garde performances were characterized by startling precision. The movements varied widely in style and emotion, sometimes graceful, sometimes bordering on slapstick—they would fly across the stage with the grace of modern dancers, then quickly switch to low, stooped poses, arms swinging like pendulums, and then suddenly one member would be thrown into the air while the other four crawled on their hands and knees. They would shiver on tiptoe like a group of haunted dolls, or line up unsteadily like baby quails following their mother, before breaking into a complex formation that rose and fell like waves.

Throughout the shoot, the members kept changing their exaggerated facial expressions, the kind you’d make when you saw a friend holding a camera and said, “Let’s take a funny picture!” Pouting, squinting, nostrils flaring, squinting, mouths twisted into funny lipstick-covered grimaces. One of their signature expressions was an exaggerated blank look, with eyes almost wide open. “During the shoot, our contact lenses kept falling out,” joked Noona, who is particularly good at expressing emotions and often stands in the middle.

These expressions, I think, are the key to Avantgardey’s widespread popularity. They create a unique tension that adds another dimension to the group’s performances. Their dancing overwhelms the audience with its meticulous consistency, incorporating the individual dancers into a perfectly synchronized whole. In itself, it’s the kind of thing we’ve all seen before; Average gestational age Filled with large and amazing dance ensembles. The witty and humorous performances were something new. They invited one to look closely at each dancer, to see them as individuals… but then again, they were all very well choreographed and practiced. This made the whole show even more compelling – the funny expressions, the perfect timing, the deadly serious performances.

exist Average gestational ageThe members say their dance is full of Japanese spirit. And what they mean isn’t as obvious as the clothes, moves or song choices. When asked how she defines “Japanese spirit,” Akane alludes to something deeper and more profound. “Rather than trying to express Japanese culture, I want to express the subtlety and sophistication that is unique to Japan,” she said.

Sonoko, who was the host for the group’s public debut, expanded on this idea. “The Japanese culture that I want to share with the world is one that is extremely refined and detail-oriented. Japanese craftsmanship and art often display meticulous attention to detail, which I think is highly valued around the world,” she said. “When creating the performance, we also focus on precision, adjusting our positions to the millimeter and matching the angles of our choreography. This attention to detail is a strength of Japanese culture that I want to convey to the world!”

Akane says she chose the members of Avantgardey because she recognizes that each one has a desire to express their individuality and a drive to succeed. They may run like a machine, but they shouldn’t just be cogs in it. “Even though we all have the same hairstyle and wear the same uniforms, I encourage people interested in Avantgardey to realize that despite our similar appearances, we each have our own individuality,” she says. “I ask members to be self-created and highlight their unique personalities.”

This is most evident on their social media accounts—each member has their own in addition to the group’s official page—where different members showcase different talents, specialties, and self-produced works. For example, Nona often goes viral for videos of herself running in place, while Seira has a joke about eating hot food to the music of Michael Jackson; Macchan loves to shoot and edit videos, so she uploads behind-the-scenes content and funny clips. They also post practice room photos, K-pop dance covers, and street-style photos of them taking off their costumes; Miyuu, Moca, and Pani are particularly stylish.

What they all have in common is a genuine love for performing, great photogenic abilities (even (or perhaps) when making funny facial expressions), and hilarious, charming performances. The camaraderie between them is palpable, even in the short time they spend together. “Because there are so many of us, practicing is like being in school, which is fun,” Moca says. “I spend most of my time with the members,” Kotone says.

If the group’s current schedule is any indication, that’s unlikely to change anytime soon. Over the past few months, they’ve performed in Hong Kong and Taipei, and collaborated with a slew of brands and high-profile personalities, including Suzuki, Cetaphil, Onitsuka Tiger, filmmaker Stephen Chow, Jabbawockeez, the city of Osaka, Crocs, and Netflix Japan. Akane says their ultimate goal is to perform in Las Vegas; in the process, they hope to “leave a unique, avant-garde impact that once seen, will never be forgotten.”

“Performing or dancing with a large group of people is definitely challenging, but the energy is 17 times greater than dancing alone,” she said. “I believe that so many people together can transfer more energy.”

Check out Avantgardey on Instagram and YouTube.

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