In his youth, Wim Vandekeybus was busy with photography and cinema, and he studied theater at the university level. But it was a stint with contemporary theater phenomenon Jan Fabre that veered the Belgian choreographer off into another direction, in part by accident.

Vandekeybus thought he was constructing performance art for his first work, "but it got so physical that it got a lot into movement." That piece, "What the Body Does Not Remember," won the young choreographer a Bessie, the New York equivalent of a dance Oscar.

Fragments of that very first show will be seen in "Spiegel," an amalgamation of Vandekeybus' 20 years in dance that will conclude the Pittsburgh Dance Council season at the Byham Theater on Saturday. One of the most famous segments involves throwing bricks, creating a "whole world" where the dancers toss them above the head and have to remain as long as possible.

Dance can be risky, but Vandekeybus' company, Ultima Vez, takes it to a whole other level -- so much so that the group has a comprehensive health policy for injured dancers, who remain on full salary until they heal.

Some dancers elect not to perform with Ultima Vez, given the short shelf life of a career. Even so, Vandekeybus still has 500 show up at an audition.

"For me, a good dancer must have a lot of technique that he can hide," says the Belgian. "Nothing belongs only to technique. [Mine] is a more eclectic way of working in the function of what we do. I don't work with classical ballet, but I use steps of ballet."

Toward that end, Vandekeybus brings in different teachers who know the styles that might be required for a work. "I wanted dance out of necessity, where people can understand why a movement happens, and not only dance as an aesthetic [but] out of an impulsive, uncontrolled necessity,'' he says. "That's why the first piece was called 'What the Body Does Not Remember' -- like what you cannot suppress in you. It's instinctive; it's an impulse."

Vandekeybus honed 100-plus minutes from 36 hours of material. He says of "Spiegel," "You're not going to see fragments. You're going to see one piece -- it has its own incredible drive. It's like remixing it, forcing you to do new work besides."

He took pieces that could exist by themselves, those that dealt more in the abstract movement. "It's like a meal," says Vandekeybus. "You have an aperitif, the stronger meals arrives and at the end comes the cognac. It's how I see the mood changes."

And leaves the audience well-satisfied.