Ms. Bausch was the artistic director and choreographer of the "Dance Theatre Wuppertal Pina Bausch
Company", based in Wuppertal, Germany. The company has a large repertoire of original pieces and
regularly tours throughout the world.
Bausch was born in Solingen, Germany and began dancing at
a young age. In 1955 she began studying at the Folkwang Academy in Essen directed by Germany's
then most influential choreographer Kurt Jooss, one of the founders of German Expressionist dance.
After graduation, she won a scholarship to continue her studies at the Juilliard School in New York in
1960, where her teachers included Anthony Tudor, José Limón, and Paul Taylor. In New York she per-
formed with the Paul Sanasardo and Donya Feuer Dance Company, the New American Ballet, and be-
came a member of the Metropolitan Opera Ballet Company.
Ms. Bausch's work is also known for infusing humor with sadness. Male-female interaction is a theme
found throughout her work, which has been an inspiration for and reached a wider audience through
the movie "Talk to Her", directed by Pedro Almodóvar. Her pieces are constructed of short units of dialogue and action, often
of a surreal nature. Repetition was an important structuring device. Her large multi-media productions often involved elaborate sets and eclectic music. For example, in Masurca Fogo half the stage is taken up by a giant, rocky hill, and the score includes everything from Portuguese music to K. D. Lang.
In 1983, she played the role of La Principessa Lherimia in Federico Fellini's
"And the Ship Sails On".
Ms. Bausch was married to Dutch-born Rolf Borzik, a set and costume designer who died in 1980. Mr. Borzik had strongly
influenced the visual style of the Dance Theatre from the very beginning and crucially supported Ms. Bausch through the early years until the company began to receive international recognition shortly before his death. In 2008, Ms. Bausch was awarded
the Goethe Prize of the City of Frankfurt-am-Main. She died in Wuppertal, Germany on June 30, 2009.
