Overview
- The Nationale Opera & Ballet announced that van Manen died of natural causes Wednesday evening at his home in Amsterdam.
- Biographer Sjeng Scheijen said van Manen had been briefly hospitalized, returned home to die, and declined rapidly in his final 48 to 72 hours.
- A formative force behind Nederlands Dans Theater, he later served as house choreographer at Het Nationale Ballet from 1973 to 1987 and created more than 150 works, including the acclaimed 1997 piece Solo.
- Often likened to the 'Mondrian of ballet' for his less‑is‑more precision, his ballets were staged across Europe, the United States, Japan, Russia, and China.
- His oeuvre is safeguarded through the Hans van Manen Foundation linked to Nationale Opera & Ballet, he received honors such as the Erasmus Prize, and funeral details will be announced later.