The Compagnia Nazionale di Danza Storica has traditionally engaged in promoting a philological recovery of the past, rejecting any temptation of a nostalgic reading of history and facts. Instead, it redefines them in the present. The CONTEMPORARY CNDS project brings history and tradition in constant dialogue with the present and the contemporary, making the language of historical dance interact with other forms of artistic expression, as in the following examples:
Villa Giulia, Rome. VOGUE ITALIA and ALTAROMA invited the Compagnia Nazionale di Danza Storica to perform at the closing Gala of Who's On Next, a brand new and highly anticipated competition created by Franca Sozzani for young designers in Italy. The CNDS dancers performed all of the dances from the show The Leopard. They wore Gattinoni’s asymmetrical costumes, disorienting fencer masks, and wore earphones playing the original soundtrack of Luchino Visconti's film while the audience listened to a mix of original music and “chill out” melodies.
Spazio Field, Rome. The Grand Ball of the Compagnia Nazionale di Danza Storica was performed against the backdrop of the splendid photographic exhibition of ANTON YELCHIN Russian born/American naturalized actor who became internationally known for his role as the young Pavel Chekov in the 2009 film Star Trek, followed by the success of Into Darkness - Star Trek (2013) and Star Trek Beyond (2016). Yelchin is also known for his performance in 15 Minutes with Robert De Niro, in Along Came a Spider with Morgan Freeman and Hearts in Atlantis with Anthony Hopkins.
The Compagnia Nazionale di Danza Storica was a guest on an episode of a show dedicated to Rome aired by RAI 1 and RAI 4. The program presents a series of documentaries on several European cities: London, Paris, Prague, Belgrade, Barcelona, and Rome. The unique aspect of the show is that the itineraries steer away from famous monuments and attractions to focus on museums, places, shows and attractions that are not a secret to the residents of those cities. In the program, the CNDS corps de ballet danced together with the famous D.J. Ema Stokholma and the singer Briga.
We all communicate daily in many different ways. The world of news outlets makes use of a wide range of media to disseminate information about events and individuals. A task that in the past was performed by different forms of art - painting and sculpture. This is why the Compagnia Nazionale di Danza Storica has chosen to partner with
numerous artists over the years in an effort to match a Grand Ball with the creation of works of art capable of conveying its emotions and sentiments or alternatively engaging artists with a powerful communication voice to display their creations.
Among the artists, it is particularly worth noting a few: Natalia Tsarkova, the official portraitist of the Holy See and an internationally renown artist who painted the portraits of Popes, Kings and Queens, Cardinals, and Presidents (Pope John Paul I, Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI; President of the Republic of Malta, H. E. George Abela).
She is the author of the painting symbolizing the Grand Russian Ball; Giuseppe Bennardo, a sculptor whose pieces are known all over the world, especially his large-sized nativities. “Angelica and Don Fabrizio” is the sculpture he has made to celebrate the Grand Ball of the Leopard. The Grand Ball of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies at the Royal Palace in Caserta is the work of two painters, Gaetano Imparato and Gianluca Capozzi. The former is well known for his talent in using new technologies to conduct his artistic research, while the latter has been called “one of the best Italian contemporary artists” by curators such as Achille Bonito Oliva, Vittorio Sgarbi, Massimo Sgroi, Alberto Mugnaini and Maurizio Sciaccaluga.
