Jiří Kylián, born in Prague in 1947, received his dance training at the Ballet School of the Prague National Theater and at the Prague Conservatory. In 1968, he was hired by John Cranko to join the “Stuttgart Ballet.” In 1975, Kylián became co-artistic director of the “Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT),” which had been founded in 1959. In 1978, he became the sole artistic director of the “NDT,” which established a junior company (later “NDT 2”) in 1978 and an ensemble for dancers over the age of 40 (“NDT 3”) in 1991. Among others, Kylián invited Nacho Duato, Mats Ek, Christopher Bruce, William Forsythe, Ohad Naharin, Sol León and Paul Lightfoot, Jorma Elo, Johan Inger, and Medhi Walerski to collaborate with the “NDT” as choreographers.

Kylián stepped down as artistic director of the “NDT” in 1999 but remained associated with the company as its resident choreographer until 2009. He has received numerous honors for his work; among other accolades, he was personally presented with the “Order of Orange” by Queen Beatrix in 2008. In 2019, he was awarded the “Prix Benois de la Danse” for his life’s work, and in 2024, he received the “Order of the White Lion,” the highest honor in the Czech Republic, at the rank of Commander.