Music by Ludwig van Beethoven
(transcription for two pianos by Franz Liszt)
Director and choreographer
Roberto Zappalà
Piano Luca Ballerini and Stefania Cafaro
Soprano Marianna Cappellani
Dancers of Compagnia Zappalà Danza Andrea Rachele Bruno, Corinne Cilia, Filippo Domini, Anna Forzutti, Marco Mantovani, Gaia Occhipinti, Fernando Roldan Ferrer, Silvia Rossi, Damiano Scavo, Alessandra Verona, Erik Zarcone – Maud de la Purification (assistant Choreographer)
Lyrics by
Nello Calabrò
Set and costume design Roberto Zappalà
Assistant set and costume designer Debora Privitera
Technical direction Sammy Torrisi
Sound engineerGaetano Leonardi
Management Vittorio Stasi
Production assistant Federica Cincotti
General managerMaria Inguscio
Produced by Scenario Pubblico/Compagnia Zappalà Danza Centro di Rilevante Interesse Nazionale from the project Transiti Humanitatis – in collaboration with
ImPulsTanz – Vienna International Dance Festival (Vienna), Teatro Comunale di Ferrara, Teatro Garibaldi / Unione dei Teatri d’Europa (Palermo), Teatro Massimo Bellini (Catania) supported byMinistero della CulturaandRegione Siciliana Assessorato del Turismo, dello Sport e dello Spettacolo
LA NONA (dal caos, il corpo) is a choreography by Roberto Zappalà based on Liszt’s transcription for two pianos of Beethoven’s Ninth. Winner of the DANZA&DANZA 2015 prize, LA NONA represents a reflection upon man and humanity, on its condition of perpetual conflict and its hopes of solidarity and universal fraternity. Humanity is in transit, in movement, in opposition to immobility, immutability, absolutistic ideas and lack of doubt. Movement is laic as Beethoven’s spirit and music. Such a laity of thought and behaviour constitutes the basis of creation. The humanity dancing in the show develops from a process of accumulation, a primordial chaos (as claimed by the composer Sciarrino regarding the symphony’s first movement), from a multitude of intertwinings and negative, conflictual micro-stories eventually resolving in a pacifying adagio and in the final joy of the fourth movement in the second part. Even in such a “chamber” version, Beethoven’s Ninth, represents a unique standard of excellency. Silence is an inevitable part of music and the first step towards the reciprocal act of listening and recognition, which is the pacifying effort Beethoven hoped to achieve. At that time, world and hummanity meant something less unifying than what we intend nowadays. Despite the universality of the Ninth, «may this kiss reach the entire world» recites a verse of Schiller’s hymn, the “world” was defined more or less what remained of Europe after the the Napoleonic wars and the Congress of Vienna. Even nowadays, the universal peace ispiring Beethoven would go in such a direction. Perhaps, the current worldwide situation represents the most relatable historical period of such a necessity since the Second World War, hoping that «this kiss may reach the entire world»
The Compagnia Zappalà Danza has represented the artistic though of Roberto Zappalà for the last 30 years,standing out for its wide and articulated repertoire created in synergy by the choreographer, its playwright of reference Nello Calabrò and the dancers protagonists of over 80 productions brought onstage in theatres and festival of international relevance. Such projects are characterized by a rigorous work on language built over time, named MoDem. Among the many received awards: Premio Danza&Danza per A.semu tutti devoti tutti? and LA NONA. In 2002, the Compagnia Zappalà Danza is the resident company in Catania at Scenario Pubblico, a venue that allowed the company and the choreographer to widen and deepen the choreographic research process and to take root locally with activities of production, promotion, hospitality, residences, formation and a rich and structured program. In 2015, Scenario Pubblico/Compagnia Zappalà Danza is recognized by the MIC Centro Nazionale di Produzione della Danza; in 2022, the company achieves the further recognition upgrade by Centro di Rilevante Interesse Nazionale. For the whole three-year period 2022-2024, the company is associated to the festival MILANoLTRE (Milano), Palcoscenico Danza /TPE (Torino), Futuro Festival (Roma) and at Teatro Massimo Bellini of Catania through the project Be resident.
