Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Modern Dance Master Pina Bausch's Latest Work

German choreographer Pina Bausch is one of the giant figures of modern dance. Critics say her work is bold and visually arresting -- she's choreographed pieces where the stage is covered in dirt or carnations or water, where men and women flirt tenderly, then fling each other violently across the room.

Bausch's work gained greater notoriety when director Pedro Almodovar featured one of her dance works in his film Talk to Her.

On Tuesday, the notoriously press-shy choreographer is at the Brooklyn Academy of Music for the American premiere of her new work, For the Children of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Jeff Lunden reports on the reclusive artist's new work and her legions of dedicated fans.

"I think the work speaks for itself," Bausch says of her latest work. "I always try to speak about all of us, about what we feel, about our same language, about our wishes, our hope, our desires, our fears, about love, about yes, being human -- and how beautiful each person is, and how fragile each person is... And I think all these together is what I have to say."

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.