On December 2nd, the costume designer and dancer Marion Cito died in Wuppertal, at the age of 85.

Born in Berlin in 1938, she completed her dance training with Tatjana Gsovsky, who invited her to join the ensemble of the Deutsche Oper. Here she met the dancer and choreographer Gerhard Bohner, who was appointed director of the Darmstadt ballet in 1972 and invited her to join him as a dancer. Although a ballerina, she was fascinated by modern dance. 1976 Pina Bausch invited Marion Cito to join the Tanztheater Wuppertal – initially as an assistant, but increasingly also as a dancer in the ensemble’s early pieces. She was a striking, memorable performer with a flawless technique. When Rolf Borzik, Pina Bausch’s scenographer and costume designer, died in 1980, it was another turning point in Marion Cito’s life. Pina Bausch asked her to take over work on the costumes. Although she never imagined working as a costume designer, Cito agreed. Fashion, fabrics, patterns and colours had always interested her. She was also very familiar with the theatre and its requirements. For 29 years, until Pina Bausch’s death in 2009, she was responsible for the unique and unforgettable appearance of the Tanztheater. She continued to develop Rolf Borzik’s original aesthetic, modulating the delicate balance between everyday clothes and elegant evening attire. She made the Tanztheater look sumptuously colourful and richly sensual. The challenges were manifold, and costumes often had to be created last-minute. “Sometimes”, she said, “you just have to do a little magic.” She didn’t retire until 2016, after 40 years at the Tanztheater Wuppertal.

Marion Cito joined the Tanztheater Wuppertal in 1976: initially as an assistant and dancer, and from 1980 onwards as a costume designer. She only retired in 2016. Her contribution ensured that the Tanztheater always had an air of magic, while being grounded in reality. Now the magician has departed. With her we lose another part of an important and iconic era.

Norbert Servos