The successful format of presenting a triptych of distinct choreographies within a single performance has now arrived at Teatro alla Scala. The program, titled McGregor / Maillot / Naharin, brings together three internationally acclaimed figures in contemporary choreography: Wayne McGregor, Jean-Christophe Maillot, and Ohad Naharin. They were invited to restage three of their original creations for the versatile La Scala Ballet Corps, directed by Frédéric Olivieri. These three choreographies are now officially part of La Scala’s repertoire.
Wayne McGregor’s Chroma, originally created in 2006 for the Royal Ballet and earning the choreographer a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Dance Production, features a minimalist set by architect John Pawson. It comprises a geometric and luminous white wall—designed to subtly shift in color—with a rectangular opening from which the dancers emerge to fill the stage. They are greeted by a musical score that transitions from raw, distorted, and powerful sounds to cinematic sonorities.
The dancers navigate the space, forming various configurations—solos, duets, trios, and ensembles—alternating between stillness and acceleration, statuesque sideline poses and focused duos. Their movements feature formidable extensions, torsions, and sudden dynamics, executed with astonishing clarity. Sharp, sinuous gestures, in continuous tension and propelled by the music of Jack White III and Joby Talbot (arranged by the latter), create initially classical lines (women en pointe) that are immediately fractured, diverting trajectories to forge new bodily expressions. All the dancers showcased exceptional technical prowess.
Jean-Christophe Maillot, director of Les Ballets de Montecarlo, describes his Dov’è la Luna (Where is the Moon) as a work of intimate depth and pure poetry: «This ballet has neither beginning nor end. It remains in transit. Transience seems to me the only permanent state of being, perhaps the only authentic one.» This abstract, neoclassical choreography immerses the audience in a bluish, chiaroscuro atmosphere—a realm of light and shadow (with lighting design by Dominique Drillot). Here, seven dancers explore the space suspended between life and death, representing a transition towards rebirth. Maillot himself characterized it as a ‘secular prayer’.
The theme originated from Maillot’s personal grief following the sudden death of his father, and from the profound need «to hold onto each other when forced to confront the loss of a loved one».
Accompanied by the piano notes of Alexander Scriabin’s Preludes, performed live by Leonardo Pierdomenico, the continuously evolving music evokes moods, feelings, and images. The seven dancers express these with an essentiality of gestures, plastic postures, and elegant movements that seem to suspend time. The piece opens with a ballerina’s initial solo, her body stretched in tension towards a mysterious presence she senses. Duets and trios then alternate in a sensitive and delicate intertwining of relationships, taking on various forms that evoke the two faces of the moon. This theme is further suggested by the chiaroscuro striped bodysuits (designed by French costumier and set designer Jérôme Kaplan) and two evanescent circular panels positioned laterally, one forward and one at the back. The La Scala cast observed that evening displayed remarkable interpretive intensity, featuring Maria Celeste Losa, Navrin Turnbull, Nicoletta Manni, Domenico Di Cristo, Agnese Di Clemente, Gabriele Corrado, and Saïd Ramos Ponce.
The enduring masterpiece by Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin, Minus 16, has achieved cult status and is a piece one never tires of seeing. Now part of the repertoire of many companies globally, including La Scala, it is described by Naharin as a ‘patchwork’ of earlier works, addressing ‘body, muscles, and knowledge of our physicality’ (referencing his Gaga method). This vigorous, dazzling, sensual, and entertaining choreography features abrupt shifts in tone, alternating vibrant explosions of collective energy with contemplative moments.
The initial carefree, joyful solo, performed with the curtain open and house lights on (featuring the excellent young Francesco Della Valle), gradually expands to the entire group. It then narrows to duets before returning to the full ensemble, set to a diverse array of music—including klezmer, baroque, mambo, and techno sounds. A central component is the traditional Hebrew song Echad Mi Yodea, during which the celebrated semicircle of chairs is formed. Dancers stretch on and around these chairs, rapidly executing jumps, falls, and domino-effect acrobatics, while impetuously shedding hats, jackets, and trousers, ultimately remaining in tank tops. After redressing, they move into the audience to select individuals to invite onto the stage to dance the cha-cha-cha. The entire theater comes alive, creating an engaging commotion that sparks applause, smiles, and widespread participation.
