Thursday, January 7, 2010

Pina Bausch and Tete

Pina Bausch

We didn't even know that Pina Bausch existed until she died last year. Man Yung happened to stumble upon a tribute to her and the two other titans of dance who passed away in 2009 (the other two being Merce Cunningham and Michael Jackson) in a recent edition of Ming Pao's monthly magazine.

I was planning to write about Pina and Tango. And Pina and Tete, because they had met each other and had danced together in one of Pina Bausch's productions in Buenos Aires. There is a page on Tete and Silvia's website about their friendship and collaboration here.

I was thinking: "What won't I give to have a chance to look at footage of them dancing together!"

Then I read sad news on the internet. El Tangauta reports that Tete had gone dancing at El Beso, and then was found dead in bed in his apartment the following day.

The news shook me to the core. Writing about meeting him in Buenos Aires in 2008 in our previous post, it seemed like only yesterday that we danced. The Tete whom we met for a brief moment - filled with vitality, energy, passion, kindness, humour, laughter, music, all the stuff of humanity and of tango and of life - dead.


Although Tete and Pina have passed on, their legacy in dance will continue to live in our hearts and minds.

4 comments:

Tangocommuter said...

Beautiful comments, and a wonderful account of a dance with him.

There is an Argentine film called Bandoneones; Pina Bausch in Buenos Aires. I emailed Sylvia recently to find how to get a copy. Bandoneones is the title of the work she made.

Anonymous said...

I found it so very sadly ironic that you had only just written about him the day before, Irene. I saw a Pina Bausch production several years ago, which included her tango piece.

Irene and Man Yung said...

Dear Tangocommuter and Johanna,

We hope that we will have a chance soon to see footage of Pina's tango piece - she was a fascinating choreographer with a uncanny ability to use dance to show the heart of the question that she asks.

It really seems like yesterday that we met Tete for the first time. Sometimes Tango feels like a vanishing world - we have to take the opportunity to cherish the treasures that we have in Tango before they are gone.

Thanks for your comments and for remembering Tete with us,

Irene and Man Yung

Γιώργος Παναγιωτόπουλος said...

A little contribution to your EXCELLENT blog..: Tete and Pina (the only video i, personaly, have found in YT).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BSmHQsUogo

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