Torso Many people inhabiting this Planet are forced by various circum- stances to leave the country in which they were born. The reasons for people to leave their native land or to be forced to do so, might be as diverse as the entire humanity. But no matter what the reasons are, this fact will always have a decisive influence on anybody effected. Such “transplantation” can be caused by famine, war, social or ethnic upheavals, economic situations,natural disasters, religious, sexual or personal persecution and so on... The reasons are endless... Our work “Torso” has much to do with this phenomenon called “emigration”. And as I am an emigrant myself, I felt a very deep need to make such a work. I have tried to portray a situation of two emigrants, who had to leave their native country in order to start a “new life” in their “new homeland”. In the process, they find themselves in a transit room. They are in no man’s land.They are no longer in the possession of their old passports and they don’t have their new documents yet. They are mentally and emotionally not yet able to leave the country in which they were born, and they are not yet able to make the crossing to the new country. They are traumatized. Consequently, all they are able to do in this hopeless moment of their life, is to compress all their emotions, wishes, hopes and frustrations into this small space called “transit room”. The two protagonists in our work, feel not only the unbearable pressure within themselves, but the pressure of the entire situation caused by all the unfortunate circumstances. And all problems are always magnified under pressure. In this claustrophobic situation, there is only one way to create space - by explosion. And such “explosions” are devastating as we experience them.... But this is only partly true. Their potential beneficial effects should not be underestimated. Such cataclysmic events in our lives might also have some purifying side effects. They might supply us with a certain kind of a positive resilience, or ultimately give us a more critical appreciation view of life...
Creating this piece was as difficult as the theme itself. The studio became the “transit room” and the company (NDT) of which I became director only 3 months before, was supposed to become our new “promised land”. In fact it was anything but a calm place. The board of NDT was at war with the charismatic and contro- versial managing director Carel Birnie, and Carel was at war with me. Many of the dancers were not at all convinced that I was the right person to lead them to new and prosperous pastures... In fact the entire situation was like being in a “pressure cooker” in which I felt like a suspect piece of meat imported cheaply from a communist country, which could be easily overcooked..! Choosing my partner Sabine as one of the protagonists of “Torso” did not help. In fact it didn’t go too well with the rest of the company. But I have learned, that there is nothing worse then unrealistic expectations. The work was successful and it played a significant part in the establishment of my role as director, which I did my best to play for the next 24 years. The creation of “Torso” made it clear to everybody, that individual or even personal statements had as legitimate place within the new artistic policy of NDT, as works which showed the entire company in all its talent and potential... Last, but not least: maybe it is good to realize that often we are emigrants within our own body, unable to master the controversy within ourselves - not being able to put an end to the war between “me and myself...” and in fact we always live in a "transit room"..! Jiří Kylián - The Hague, July 6, 2012