Reuters dispatch:
MAURICE BEJART HAS DIED IN A SWISS HOSPITAL, A SPOKESWOMAN FOR BEJART BALLET LAUSANNE SAID ON THURSDAY.
Bejart, a former dancer who turned 80 on Jan. 1, had been in and out of hospital in recent months, suffering from exhaustion as well as kidney and heart problems. "He died early this morning at Lausanne hospital," spokeswoman Roxanne Aybek told Reuters.
He moved in 1987 from Brussels to Switzerland where he founded the troupe in the lakeside city of Lausanne. Its 35 dancers are in rehearsals for a new production called "Around the World in 80 Minutes", to be premiered on Dec. 20 in Lausanne.