Choreographer Kylián took a trip to Australia to study the culture and  dance of the Aborigines, rituals that appear very much today like they  did thousands of years ago. Fascinated by the moves of these primitive  dancers, particularly their stamping, Kylián wove this style into the  more traditional form of dance, resulting in unique and  attention-getting ballet. 

Stamping Ground refers to the distinct territory that each tribe  possesses in which to perform their dances. The nearly naked bodies of  the three men and women, each representing an animal, generate their own  beats and rhythms that precede the eventual entry of Mexican composer Carlos Chavez’s Toccata for Percussion Instruments. The dance elements  are both ancient and updated forming an eye-catching display of what  human bodies can do when challenged by Kylián’s choreography. 

Source: Theaterbyte

The world-renowned choreographer Jiří Kylián (Czechoslovakia, 1947) has been artistic director and house choreographer for of Nederlands Dans Theater for more than thirty years. Throughout his career Kylián created 75 choreographies for NDT. The piece  "Mémoires d’Oubliettes" marked the end of his work for NDT in 2009. Since then his creative focus has shifted to more small scale projects. Kylián created various other pieces for companies worldwide such as the Stuttgart Ballet, the Paris Opéra, the Munich Bayerisches Staatsballett and the Tokyo Ballet. Kylián received many prestigious, international awards and honours.

Jiří Kylián started his dance career at the age of nine, at the School of the National Ballet in Prague. In 1962 he was accepted as a student at the Prague Conservatory. He left Prague in 1967 when he received a scholarship for the Royal Ballet School in London.  Then he left for the Stuttgart Ballet led by John Cranko, where he made his debut as a choreographer with Paradox for the Noverre Gesellschaft. After having created three ballets for NDT ("Viewers", "Stoolgame" and "La Cathédrale Engloutie"), he became the company’s artistic director in 1975 together with Hans Knill. During the 1978 Charleston Festival in the United States  Kylián put NDT on the international map with Sinfonietta (Leoš Janácek). That year he and Carel Birnie founded NDT 2, which was – and is – meant to offer young dancers the opportunity to develop their skills and talents. In 1991 he initiated NDT 3; a company that created opportunities for ‘older’ dancers. NDT stood out as the first company worldwide that showed the three dimensions of a dancer´s life. After an extraordinary record of service Kylián handed over the artistic leadership in 1999, but remained associated to the dance company as house choreographer until 2009.

Source: Nederlands Dance Theater 's website

More information: ndt.nl/en/home.html

Author, filmmaker and video artist Charles Picq (1952-2012) entered working life in the 70s through theatre and photography. A- fter resuming his studies (Maîtrise de Linguistique - Lyon ii, Maîtrise des sciences et Techniques de la Communication - grenoble iii), he then focused on video, first in the field of fine arts at the espace Lyonnais d'art Contemporain (ELAC) and with the group « Frigo », and then in dance.
   On creation of the Maison de la Danse in Lyon in 1980, he was asked to undertake a video documentation project that he has continued ever since. During the ‘80s, a decade marked in France by the explosion of contemporary dance and the development of video, he met numerous artists such as andy Degroat, Dominique Bagouet, Carolyn Carlson, régine Chopinot, susanne Linke, Joëlle Bouvier and regis Obadia, Michel Kelemenis. He worked in the creative field with installations and on-stage video, as well as in television with recorded shows, entertainment and documentaries.

His work with Dominique Bagouet (80-90) was a unique encounter. He documents his creativity, assisting with Le Crawl de Lucien and co-directing with his films Tant Mieux, Tant Mieux and 10 anges. in the 90s he became director of video development for the Maison de la Danse and worked, with the support of guy Darmet and his team, in the growing space of theatre video through several initiatives:
       - He founded a video library of dance films with free public access. This was a first for France. Continuing the video documentation of theatre performances, he organised their management and storage.
       - He promoted the creation of a video-bar and projection room, both dedicated to welcoming school pupils.
       - He started «présentations de saisons» in pictures.
       - He oversaw the DVD publication of Le tour du monde en 80 danses, a pocket video library produced by the Maison de la Danse for the educational sector.

       - He launched the series “scènes d'écran” for television and online. He undertook the video library's digital conversion and created Numeridanse.

His main documentaries are: enchaînement, Planète Bagouet, Montpellier le saut de l'ange, Carolyn Carlson, a woman of many faces, grand ecart, Mama africa, C'est pas facile, Lyon, le pas de deux d'une ville, Le Défilé, Un rêve de cirque.

He has also produced theatre films: Song, Vu d'ici (Carolyn Carlson), Tant Mieux, Tant Mieux, 10 anges, Necesito and So schnell, (Dominique Bagouet), Im bade wannen, Flut and Wandelung (Susanne Linke), Le Cabaret Latin (Karine Saporta), La danse du temps (Régine Chopinot), Nuit Blanche (Abou Lagraa), Le Témoin (Claude Brumachon), Corps est graphique (Käfig), Seule et WMD (Françoise et Dominique Dupuy), La Veillée des abysses (James Thiérrée), Agwa (Mourad Merzouki), Fuenteovejuna (Antonio Gades), Blue Lady revistied (Carolyn Carlson).

Source: Maison de la Danse de Lyon

Artistic direction: Roel Voorintholt

Creation: 1989

Since 1971, Introdans has constituted an important repertoire of contemporary dance and gives professional performances for adults and for children. The Introdans concept, which aims for variation, accessibility, quality and style, for both young people and adults alike, has gained a reputation that is solidly established and continually growing in the Netherlands and abroad. In September 1989, Introdans set up an autonomous group specifically for young people: “Introdans Ensemble for Youth”, with Roel Voorintholt as the artistic director. This group has become increasingly popular under his dynamic lead. With its repertoire that comprises, among others, the works of Hans van Manen, Jiri Kylián and Nils Christe, here, dance for young people reaches the highest level of quality and requirements. Roel Voorintholt, Introdans' artistic director began his career in 1983 in the company and went on to become one of the key performers. In 1989, he was appointed as head of the “youth department” of the company which was to become Introdans Ensemble for Youth. The company's activities developed rapidly and were highly successful with the public. To acknowledge his work for the city of Arnhem, Roel Voorintholt was honoured with the “Arnhems Meisje Award” in 1993 and the “Perspektiefprijs” (Perspective Prize) in 1997. In 2004, he was made “Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau”. In 2008, Roel Voorintholt won the “Critics' Award from the Dutch Theatre Critics Association” for his efforts to reappraise dance for young people. In 2005, he was appointed artistic director of Introdans.

Source : Maison de la Danse show program

More information

introdans.nl