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Johan Inger, former artistic director of the Cullberg Ballet and a former dancer with the Royal Swedish Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT), made his debut as a choreographer nearly a quarter of a century ago at the encouragement of the highly influential Jiří Kylián. His first attempt (Mellantid) was immediately crowned with success, followed by numerous further choreographies, including Walking Mad, created in 2001 for nine dancers to Ravel’s Bolero. The work is based on the Socratic observation: "our biggest blessings come to us by way of madness". "The famous Bolero from Ravel with its sexual, almost kitschy history was the trigger point to make my own version. I quickly decided that it was going to be about relationships in different forms and circumstances. I came up with the idea of a wall that could transform the space during this minimalistic music and create small pockets of space and situations. Walking Mad is a journey in which we encounter our fears, our longings and the lightness of being," said the choreographer.

The NDT was turning 30 years old when Jiří Kylián informed Hans van Manen, “You’re going to do the ballet for the anniversary.” Manen replied: “Really? And what should I do?” Kylián replied: “A cake”. This is how the festive parody of five movements built around humour – the irresistibly witty Black Cake – was conceived. Van Manen imagined a cocktail party on the stage with six couples, a waiter and a great deal of champagne. In the bravura finale the guests, already slightly tipsy, dance to the music of the famous Meditation from Massenet’s Thaïs. The celebratory premiere in 1989 was a dismal failure. After the performance, a posh reception was held on the stage, and, as van Manen’s recalled, everybody pretended as if he did not exist. Then, 18 months later, Kylián said to van Manen, “We’re going to do Black Cake again.” Again, all the choreographer could think to reply was, “Really?” It has been performed with huge success all around the world ever since.