"Let's have skater kids come see dance!" That was the idea behind Stuttgart's new dance company, Gauthier Dance. Canadian Eric Gauthier has a reputation in the city for unorthodox ways of doing things.

Many on the scene thought he was crazy to give up a prime post as soloist with the renowned Stuttgart Ballet and set up his own dance group. Gauthier, however, wanted to break with classical repertoire.

Having persuaded the city's private Theaterhaus to give his idea a try, he recruited six young dancers, and Gauthier Dance was born. What started as an experiment has now established itself as Stuttgart's "other" dance company.