The seventies: Just come and watch the unexpected

 “You see people – men and women – looking
at a painting and experiencing different kind of emotions. Separately and
together. Then, suddenly, the unexpected happens. It is too physical to express
in words. Just come and watch.”

In an interview in 1973
the young choreographer Jiří Kylián notified the audience of his first creation
for Nederlands Dans Theater, ‘Viewers’, which premiered on November 26,
1973.[1] The impact of Kylián’s “unexpected” was profound and would inspire
thousands of people to “come and watch” his creations. This second decade
became noted for the artistic visions of Jiří Kylián and the establishment of a
second company for young and talented dancers. To arrive at this point,
however, the company had to overcome some difficult obstacles at the beginning
of the seventies.

After the early success of the sixties the company had grown substantially. The number of dancers had increased from 16 to 27; the company was now performing on major stages in the Netherlands and toured nearly two months a year abroad. The repertoire was still characterised by its early ideas, “with respect for the tradition behind us, a vital interest in the forms and innovations of today and with a concern for developments in the future”.[2] At the beginning of the seventies, however, the group had to reinvent its long-term vision. A number of key-figures believed that the company had become too conventional and lost sight of its original objectives. One after another the artistic staff – Benjamin Harkarvy, Hans van Manen, as well as Glen Tetley – left the company.[3]

These “new things” revolved around young and innovative choreographers. Even though old faces returned to create works during the seventies – John Butler, Hans van Manen and Glen Tetley – most choreographers were new to the company.[5] Louis Falco, for instance, who was attracted to create ‘Journaal’ (1971); ‘Eclipse’ (1974); ‘Caterpillar’ (1975) – the latter heralded by the Dutch press as “a masterpiece of exquisite power”.[6] Or the experimental performance artist Peter Dockley, breaking the boundaries between spectator and dance in his ‘Never Never Land’ (1970). Moreover, the company attracted female choreographers, who were often under-represented on the repertoire of dance companies. Jennifer Muller – a former dancer and assistant of Louis Falco – was commissioned to create ‘An American Beauty Rose’ (1974) and the sensational ‘Strangers’ (1975) – NDT’s first full programme revealing the divergent thoughts and daily routines of a married couple. Kei Takei, on the other hand, created one episode of her signature work ‘Light, Part 11’ (1976): an ongoing creation composed of more than 30 parts in which Takei draws on both Western and Japanese dance traditions.

Kylián’s specific concern for the texture and structure of musical scores was hard to ignore. His pieces were acclaimed for their extraordinary use of music and visualization of the score. According to Clive Barnes, Kylián’s “movements engulf the music and are themselves engulfed” or as Rudolf Nureyev put it, his works revealed “so much beautiful movement and images. The musicality, the movement – that’s what it takes for dance.”[8] The emphasis of his work on symphonies and pieces for large orchestras by, for example, Leoš Janácek, Gustav Mahler, Igor Stravinsky, Arne Nordheim and Toru Takemitsu, furthermore, intensified the collaboration with the Nederlands Balletorkest. This orchestra was founded in 1965 to accompany NDT, as well as the Dutch National Ballet. With approximately 45 musicians, regularly assisted also by a choir, it focused on the synergy between dance and music – an aim it continues to pursue today.