That kind of tinkering with a dance, or with dancers, is something Bejart is famous for. The company is also famous for its open rehearsal day in Lausanne.
"Each year we have one day like this in Lausanne. It's very interesting for the dancers, for the audience -- to see how the dancers rehearse, [how they] work with Mr. Bejart," De Bourgknecht said. "Usually its full, full, full."
"A lot of people are interested in our reheresal but it's difficult to see in our studio. Perhaps 10 or 15 persons could watch [a reheresal] there," he said, noting that the Nationl Theater can hold 1,800 people.
"We've been doing it about 10 or 12 years ... 1992 or 1993 was the first time," he said.
De Bourgknecht said the open rehearsals are one reason that Lausanne residents feel the Bejart Ballet Lausanne is really their company.
The troupe was established there in 1987, becoming Bejart's third company after the Ballet de l'Etoile in Paris, which was founded in 1955, and the Ballet du XXe Siecle (Ballet of the 20th Century), which was founded in 1960 in Brussels.
In 1992, Bejart also established a ballet school, Rudra Bejart Lausanne, from which the company draws many of its dancers. Open auditions for places in the company are held every year.
But while Switzerland might be its home, the company spends between seven and eight months of every year on the road.
"We visit very nice countries, meet very nice people. It's very different in Rio [de Janiero] than Japan," De Bourgknecht said. "The dancers like it. They don't like to stay so long in Lausanne."
This trip to Asia has been a short one, however, just Japan and Taipei.
"The company will go home for four performances and then heads to Madrid later in the month," De Bourgknecht said.
Given that this is the company's third visit to Taiwan in six years, it had to be asked if Taipei might become a regular stop on the troupe's calendar.
"Why not? It's a very nice town and a very nice theater," he said.
Performance notes:
What: Bejart Ballet Lausanne
Where: National Theater, Taipei
When: July 6-8 at 7:30pm and July 9 at 2:30pm
Tickets: NT$800, NT$1,000,NT$1,500, NT$2,000, NT$2,500, NT$3,000, NT$3,500, NT$4,000
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