July 1, 2009, Der Spiegel

Pina Bausch turned the dance world on its head and became one of the most internationally influential representatives of contemporary German culture. She died at 68 on Tuesday and left behind a major oeuvre.

Her productions were unforgettable. It might even be just one scene branded on my memory: a woman with closed eyes, running over tables and chairs, again and again, oblivious of the pain.

These were the creations of the great choreographer Pina Bausch, who died on Tuesday at the age of 68 -- people running but never getting anywhere. Repeat offenders desperately hoping for redemption. The obsessed. People from today's world.

The figures in Pina Bausch' dance pieces are driven, tortured and determined. They are -- often literally -- slamming up against a hostile world. But they're depicted with a droll sense of humor and, sometimes, biting irony. In the end, though, there is a heart-warming tenderness. It's a sensibility in the artist that stems from a deep understanding of mankind's shortcomings and fragility.

Pina Bausch has left behind a major oeuvre. She revolutionized dance theater. But it remains to be seen what her exact legacy will be. ...