UNITED KINGDOM: PINA BAUSCH AND HER DANCE COMPANY "TANZTHEATER WUPPERTAL" PERFORM IN LONDON

Record ID: 389057

  • Title: UNITED KINGDOM: PINA BAUSCH AND HER DANCE COMPANY "TANZTHEATER WUPPERTAL" PERFORM IN LONDON
  • Date: 30th January 2002
  • Summary: LONDON, UK (JANUARY 30, 2002) (REUTERS) (PERFORMANCE CLEARANCE FOR RESALE) EXCERPT FROM SHOW
  • Embargoed: 14th February 2002 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: LONDON, UK
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Topics: Entertainment
  • Reuters ID: LVABGQG3MVHAKR19XF6FMGLLK281
  • Story Text: The high priestess of European dance theatre, Pina
    Bausch, and her company, Tanztheater Wuppertal entranced London
    audiences with her show,
    "Masurca Fogo" - a heady and eclectic melting pot of images
    presented in Bausch's inimitable style.



    Pina Bausch, one of the most highly respected figures
    on the European dance stage, created "Masurca Fogo", meaning fiery
    mazurka in Portuguese, for the Expo '98 in Lisbon, and as is typical
    of Bausch, she draws on the culture of that country to create the
    work. It is, for Bausch, a reasonably light-hearted piece, but as
    Dominique Mercy, one of Bausch's senior dancers explains, she
    always has a serious point to make.

    "All the pieces are different of course, and even if there
    is a lot of fun, like in the last piece it always has a
    double side, it's not only, it's just maybe to make it more
    easy to catch the next corner."
    Bausch's work is characteristically multi-layered and
    complex, drawing on numerous styles of dance and theatre. The
    piece is created by an extensive workshop process with her company
    to generate raw material to work with.

    "There is this tremendous amount of material which we
    collect during all the rehearsal time and then at some point
    Pina started to select things which she thinks are right for
    what she is looking for, and she tries many many possibilities, she
    makes little sections, even tiny ,tiny little sections and tries to
    see how theY react to one another, she confronts elements together
    to see what's coming out and things take place the way they have to
    take place actually, it's sort of looking for something which takes
    place from itself, it doesn't happen alone, but things get where
    they have to be I guess."
    Such a process relies heavily on the talent of her company. The
    dancers come from a wide range of backgrounds and come in all shapes,
    sizes and ages. They are all superb performers, and must all be able
    to cope with Bausch's rigorous methods.

    "She is first of all very open, very open, everything is
    possible, you are allowed to do anything you want, I think the
    first thing she demands is honesty, towards the work and
    within yourself as a human being dancing."
    The 61 year old German choreographer still appears on
    stage with her company, and for the past 25 years has been at the
    cutting edge of dance theatre, challenging audiences, often with
    rather bleak imagery, to untangle her unique work, which uses
    everything from high-camp theatrical gimmicks to beautifully crafted
    passages of movement. Masurca Foso is no exception, although there
    is perhaps more laughter to be had than usual.

    The company has toured throughout Europe with the work, to packed
    houses.

    "Even within a city when we have 4 or 5 performances, audiences
    will react each night differently, so there is maybe a sort of wave
    or colour about the reaction of an audience in a particular
    town, but even though even evening is different, we are
    different, the way we feel the way we are on stage, and people
    react different, an opening night is different to a second
    performance, a Saturday night performance is different, it is
    very difficult to say, but I think that is true even when
    there is not so many people here tonight for the dress rehearsal,
    I have the feeling that people also react differently when they
    really understand text from the songs, they have another relation
    to what is happening on stage in regard to the text of the music."
    One of the most striking elements in Masurca Foso is the
    music which includes Portuguese folk music, fifties easy listening,
    kd lang and a string quartet's version of Kraftwerk's The Model.

    The music fits superbly with the action, but is actually added
    towards the end of the creative process.

    "Work with the music is from a certain point onwards,
    parallel to the work itself, she never, we never start with
    music, there is a long time where just work, do things like
    this without music, even movements or whatever, and a certain point
    she will take one or two music, but more like support, and quite
    late after, there is also two people in the company a musician and
    a soundman who do tremendous work looking and searching for music
    with Pina to find things, and then they select things, and in regard
    to what looks like being kept for the piece we try different music
    and things take place like this, so it can be from jazz to
    classical music, it's very open.,"
    With a rich combination of intriguing choreography, interesting
    music, skilled performers and a knack of using light-hearted scenes
    to make serious investigations into the nature of humanity, with
    this show Pina Bausch and her company live up to their reputation
    as one of the must-sees in the dance world, there is nothing quite
    like them around.


    ---ENDS---
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