Contemporary Dance Analysis of Pina Bausch’s Café Muller: Review

This essay provides a critical analysis of Pina Bausch's contemporary dance piece, Café Muller, exploring its historical context, genre, and analytical depth. The dance, a noir masterpiece, is examined in relation to Bausch's unique style, the disturbing characters, and the war-stricken European setting it evokes. The analysis delves into the use of repetition to build tension and the fluid gestures of the performers, contextualizing them within the historical period, particularly wartime Germany during the Nazi era. The essay also draws connections between Bausch's experiences and the disturbing scenes depicted, highlighting the impact of war and cataclysm on people, and emphasizing the power of human connection amidst the chaos. The conclusion underscores the intention behind the disturbing details, emphasizing the simplicity of human caress and the enduring spirit of humanity.

Name: CONTEMPORARY DANCE ANALYSIS Last name:
Instructor name:
CONTEMPORARY DANCE ANALYSIS
Name of student:
Name of university:
Author note:

2CONTEMPORARY DANCE ANALYSIS
MLA format
Introduction:
The aim of the paper is to engage in a critical analysis of contemporary dance Café
Muller and examine its historical context, genre and the analytical leap. Café Muller is
masterpiece conceptualized by Pina Bausch who is revered for signature style of contemporary
dance. The macabre characteristic of the dance needs to be contextualized to understand the
circumstances under which the dance piece was produced and the motivation of the artist.
Café Muller: Analysis and historical context of the dance
Café Muller is a noir masterpiece conceptualized and created by Pina Bausch who was
a German choreographer known for creating modern dance, ballet director and dance teacher
(Climenhaga: 25-45). Bausch was known for her unique and distinctive dance style combined
with a set of fluid movements and conspicuous stage sets. Café Muller belongs to the genre of
modern dance. The dance piece features six unique disturbed and macabre scene with even more
disturbing characters. It is dark and quintessentially representative of the impervious café scenes
reminiscent of the war-stricken Europe. The dance unfolds in a nihilistic, paranoid and dystopic
environment where women are lingering blindly into chairs and tables which are hurled across
violently by a burly man. There are bodies that were crashing into each other in the backdrop of
a wall that was sinking into the floor (Café Müller/The Rite of Spring Review). It features a
woman in strange wig tottering and drifting all around the stage that leads to the climax. The
device of repetition has been generously used in Café Muller to build up the tension and add to

3CONTEMPORARY DANCE ANALYSIS
the anxiety of the audience. The performers have demonstrated a fluid gesture that is seamlessly
timed and deeply contextualized in the then historical period.
The conceptualization of Café Muller has been a cathartic experience for Bausch
as it is redolent of her childhood experiences. The disturbances and dystopia depicted in the
dance performance is representative of the wartime Germany during the Nazi era. Nazi era was
exemplified by conflict, ethnic cleansing of the Polish, Jews and communities who posed threat
to the dominant identity of the blue-blooded Nordic Aryans (Voigtländer and Hans-Joachim
Voth: 1339-1392). The structure and content of the dance also brings out the essence of power
structure and hierarchy that characterized the Nazi Germany. The logic behind the incorporation
of the disturbing scenes was to amplify the trials and tribulations of the ethnic minority in
Germany. Some critics have found analogy between Bausch’s role in Café Muller with the five
areas from Purcell’s Fairie Queen. The macabre and ghoulish effect of the dance is meant to
leave a profound impact on the viewers.
Conclusion
The disturbing details shown in Café Muller were done with the intention of highlighting
the impact of war and cataclysm on people in war-stricken Germany. In Café Muller when the
lovers are shown hugging each other, it underlines the simplicity of human caress. This reaches
out to the audience and makes them realize the power of sympathy, benevolence and the spirit of
humanity.

4CONTEMPORARY DANCE ANALYSIS
Reference
Café Müller/The Rite of Spring Review. DANZ, 2018. Online. Internet. 20 Apr. 2018. .
Available: https://danz.org.nz/caf%C3%A9+m%C3%BCller+the+rite+of+spring+review.
Climenhaga, Royd, ed. The Pina Bausch sourcebook: the making of Tanztheater. Routledge,
2012.
Voigtländer, Nico, and Hans-Joachim Voth. "Persecution perpetuated: the medieval origins of
anti-Semitic violence in Nazi Germany." The Quarterly Journal of Economics 127.3 (2012):
1339-1392.