Uncut

Pina Bausch (1940-2009) was one of the most famous choreographers of our time. "Uncut" is the first volume with interviews and speeches of Pina Bausch. The 400 pages book contains 35 newspaper- and television- interviews, a programmatic text from Pina Bausch about her first season in Wuppertal as well as her two big speaches at the Kyoto award ceremony. The quotes are a selection of partially unpublished text versions of the interviews between 1973 and 2007. The range of the original publication mediums are from professional journals to big daily newspapers to a small high school newspaper in Wuppertal. The glossary, catalogue of works and chronicle offer valuable further information. Time and again the choreographer and pioneer of the modern dance theatre answered journalists questions. Her functioning received special attention, especially the questions to the members of the ensemble with whom she looked for words, pictures, movements and moods to find a voice for the life. Furthermore, Pina Bausch talked about the formative experiences of her life: her childhood in Solingen, the training at the Folkwangschule in Essen and at the Juilliard School in New York, encounters with teachers and collegues. But she spoke about the 36 years in Wuppertal in particular ¬- about the rejection which she received at the beginning before the tide slowely turned in her favour and Pina Bausch gained international fame with tours and coproductions across the world. The broad spectrum of the evidence allow a deep insight into the work of one of the most influential choreographers of the 20th century.

Pina Bausch was born 1940 in Solingen and died 2009 in Wuppertal. She received her dance training at the Folkwang School in Essen under Kurt Jooss, where she achieved technical excellence. Soon after the director of Wuppertal's theatres, Arno Wüstenhöfer, engaged her as choreographer, from autumn 1973, she renamed the ensemble the Tanztheater Wuppertal. Under this name, although controversial at the beginning, the company gradually achieved international recognition. Its combination of poetic and everyday elements influenced the international development of dance decisively. Awarded some of the greatest prizes and honours world-wide, Pina Bausch is one of the most significant choreographers of our time. By Norbert Servos Translated by Steph Morris