New Pina Bausch adaptation, exclusively in Amare

27 January 2025, news

Kontakthof - Echoes of ’78 is a new work by dancer and choreographer Meryl Tankard. It is based on Pina Bausch’s legendary Kontakthof from 1978. Kontakthof is one of the most important pieces of Bausch’s repertoire (1940-2009). Now, 45 years later, Tankard has created a new interpretation of the piece featuring part of the original cast from 1978. 

Kontakthof - Echoes of ’78 by Pina Bausch
Concept and choreography Meryl Tankard 
A production by Sadler’s Wells, Pina Bausch Foundation and Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch

Exclusively in Amare in October 2025

Amare Den Haag is co-producer of the performance Kontakthof - Echoes of ‘78, to be staged in Amare in October 2025. Following the grand success of The Rite of Spring in 2023, Amare sought a way to present more of Pina Bausch’s remarkable work in The Hague. Kontakthof - Echoes of ’78 is a result of that. Kontakthof - Echoes of ‘78 premiered in Opernhaus Wuppertal in late November 2024. The performances in Amare Den Haag in October 2025 are the first to follow.

Nominated by the jury of Berliner Theatertreffen 

The jury of Berliner Theatertreffen selected Kontakthof- Echoes of ’78 as one of the ten most remarkable productions for 2025.

Kontakthof versus Kontakthof - Echoes of ‘78

The original Kontakthof from 1978 is one of the most important pieces in Pina Bausch’s repertoire. She created Kontakthof during the period when her Tanztheater Wuppertal started to draw international attention. While working on the production, Pina Bausch regularly expressed the wish to see the original cast dance the same choreography at a more advanced age. Now, 45 years later, dancer and choreographer Meryl Tankard, who played one of the leading roles in 1978 and this time again, has done exactly that. 

Nine of the original dancers return to their roles in the original decor and with the original music. But Kontakthof - Echoes of ’78 also incorporates projections of archived images of their performances as young dancers, and of the dancers who are no longer present on stage. The projection of these old black-and-white images offers a remarkable insight into the past and the present. It offers recognition, can evoke melancholy, can be touching, and is sometimes very comical.

The stage decor is the original design by scenographer Rolf Borzik, who died in 1980. He situated Kontakthof in a party hall with a tiny stage and some chairs lined along the side. It is a place where people meet each other, dance, and attempt to sense each other’s feelings. The music consists of pre-war songs, full of romantic longing and melancholy.

Meryl Tankard, concept, choreographer and dancer

"While watching film recordings of the 1978 premiere, I was struck by the simple but powerful and timeless quality of Rolf Borzik’s images. This made me think about how I should approach this project. Forty-five years on we are older, a number of the original cast members are sadly no longer with us, and there are limitations to what we can do physically. But then exactly that is what makes it interesting and a challenge. Instead of replacing our dear friends, I want their absence to be palpable. We play and dance with projections of our younger selves, using the archive material to bring these echoes of 1978 to the forefront. Kontakthof has an enduring relevance, like so many of Pina’s works. It is an honour to return to this iconic work."

Press review

“The dancers are precise, virtuoso, and tenacious. Their bodies emanate an astounding strength and grace, and the performance is characterised by a combination of earnestness with a touch of self-deprecation. Tankard’s simple but genial idea – bringing together the past and the present, film and live theatre – offers new insights into Bausch’s work.”- Wiebke Hüster - Frankfurter Allgemeine

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