During the exterior shooting of her film The plaint of the empress Pina Bausch was told that the lead dancer performing the role of the sacrificial victim in The rite of spring had fallen ill. The performance was scheduled for the following evening so Pina Bausch called off the filming and immediately organized a rehearsal in order to prepare Kyomi Ichida for the role. Some of the film crew also came to the rehearsal room. Recognizing an opportunity, they began to film the rehearsal, which was already underway.
