Bausch’s “Cafe Müller” & “The Rite of Spring”

Pina Bausch’s Cafe Müller and The Rite of Spring were explosive dance performances that were enriched with body movements that convey meaning and a story to the audience. Cafe Müller began with a woman in a sheer dress walking into scattered chairs. Other characters appeared exhibiting similar behaviors. It appeared to me that several of the dancers were sleepwalking. The dance continues in a chaotic yet mysterious way. Everyone seems to have a specific role. For example, there is a man in a suit that performs a sequence of embracing positions on two dancers compulsively. The repetitiveness of this action outwardly seems comical, but there is a sad undertone. This also repeats when the two dancers who seem to care for one another slam each other against walls in an aggressive manner. The repetitiveness makes it seem comical, yet there is once again a sadness to it.  Throughout this dance, you can’t help but laugh at some parts but there is a consistent eerie, sad, and mysterious tone that never seems to fade. Peculiarity and sadness combine when the main dancer repeatedly takes off her dress and puts her head down on the table. The dance focuses on relationships through body movement, while telling a mysterious story simultaneously. The Rite of Spring similarly told a story through body movement. The setting is solely a large plain of dirt. Division based on gender plays a major role. The female dancers come out first; then the male dancers. They dance separately at first and several times throughout the dance. At times, the two genders dance in unity. There is unity, yet also separation. There is masculine and feminine energy throughout the dance, as at times the female dancers seem petrified when approaching the male dancers and when the male dancers lift the female dancers. The dance is extremely intense and aggressive. The music is loud and overwhelming. The dancers are covered in sweat and dirt while heavily breathing, making you feel the forceful tone of this piece. The intensity of the dance is portrayed through vigorous dance moves, often performed in unity in a circle formation and through harsh actions such as the dancers punching themselves in the stomach. The red dress is symbolic throughout the dance, as it is constantly held, laid on, or passed on throughout the dance, yet in the end it is worn by one captivating dancer who seems to not fit with either gender role, and dances both boldly and powerfully. While both Cafe Müller and The Rite of Spring have different tones, both dances are purely up to the interpretation of the audience. Their stories are unclear, making the audience challenge themselves to figure out the loose storyline and symbolism in the dances. Both contain symbolism as well, such as the chairs and repetitiveness in Cafe Müller or the dirt and red dress in The Rite of Spring, yet it is up to the audience the determine what these symbols mean and what each dancer’s role truly is in each performance.