QUesto marriage was to be done. After all, still of creativity and body it is. Pioneer was Coco Chanelwhich in 1924 collaborated with the Russian ballets, but in the decades the union couture & dance has expanded in new directions, in unpublished short circuits.
The same Coco, for example, has become the protagonist of Gabrielle Chanelstaged in 2019 to Bolshoi from the Svetlana Zakharova and currently on tour. The latest example? Afanadorthe ballet of the very launched Spanish choreographer Marcos Morau who made his debut on September 4th at Romaeuropa Festival: is inspired by the figure of Ruvén Afanador, a celebrated Colombian photographer of fashion (and flamenco). Consistent with the zeitgeist, with the spirit of time, The 2025 edition of Milanolterwhich for 39 years has anticipated the trends in an Italy quite “fasting” of contemporary.
Milanoltre 2025, the boundaries between fashion and fading dance
«We entitled this edition Bodies-in-Boweenthatin Between It means: bodies at the turn of different cultural and artistic languages and expressions, but capable of transforming the present. This year we will dialogue with fashion »explains the artistic director Lorenzo Contiwhich collects the prestigious witness from Rino De Pace. «In a historical moment like ours, the Body Language He still succeeds where the words fail ».
«Dance has had an immense place in the fashion industry and vice versa. They are worlds that have so much that they offer each other and that are so interconnected through the visceral power of the body … Now we see more than ever the boundaries, blend, both through performance during the fashion shows (they enrich the live experience and show the collections under a different light), and with the brands that invest in shows (Roman nights by Dior, the program Dance Reflections Of Van Cleef & Arpelsed).
The “Afanador” ballet by Marcos Morau, inspired by the fashion photographer (and Flamenco) Ruvén Afanador, just staged at the Romaeurope Festival (Laurent Philippe/Divergence-images.com-Merca Burgos).
“We can perceive the need for hybidity through many forms of art, and these spaces are faded and full of wealth to explore” intervenes The Colombian choreographer Andrea Peñawhich at the Festival will not be limited to bringing Replicabut will participate in the initiative Dans (e) the atelierwhere three couples of choreographers and fashion designers (his partner will be Alessandro Vigilante) will be joined to present – on the final days – an installation or performance. “Alessandro and I” continues “we both work with the body, but we trained in different ways: I imagine how a team aimed at understanding how to sculpt the body in time and space”.
A moment of “red carpet”, which debuted in June at the Opéra in Paris and is now on tour: the choreography is by Hofeh Shechter, the costumes are Chanel (Julien Mignot – Chanel).
Applause couples
The list of Recent, authoritative partnerships It is nourished: Hofesh Shechter and Chanel; Sharon Eyal and Dior; Anne Teresa de Kemersmaeker and Dries Van Noten; Sasha Waltz and Iris Van Herpen … “Today We have a slightly different idea than in the 1920s: The “owners” of a ballet are choreographersthey are looking for the right companions in terms of music, decor, costumes. At the time of Coco Chanel (which, however, of the Russian ballets was also patron) It was the impresario who took care of the choices.
In his case, the famous Sergej Pavlovič Djagilev »explains the scholar Elisa Guzzo Vaccarino, consultant for the dance of the Venice Biennale. «But for her it was not only a matter of artistic expression: the costumes he designed for Le Train Bleu They allowed her to explore new, elastic fabrics, which left free to move. They allowed her to imagine a sporty woman ».
The performance of the Russian ballets of “Le Train Bleu” – subject of Jean Cocteau, Coco Chanel costumes, choreography by Bronislava Foninična Nižinskaja – at the Coliseum Theater in London in 1924 (photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images via Getty Images)
From Gianni Versace to Valentino, the link between fashion and dance
“We do not force characters and myths in the traditional cage” invoked Gianni VersaceThat He linked his name (also) to the partnership with Maurice Béjartstarted in 1984 with Dionysos. But among the key moments it is impossible to leave out The Notre Dame de Paris of 1965 with The choreography of Roland Petit e Yves Saint Laurent’s costumes; The défilé by Jean-Paul Gautier and Régine Chopinot, in 1985; The binomial Christian Lacroix-Oopéra de Parisstarting from 1987 and from Les Anges Ternis by Karole Armitage; the Scenario of Cunnigham goods by Comme des garçons; the sumptuous Bata de Cola (the skirt with the typical flamenco train) designed for Joaquín Cortés in Soul by Giorgio Armani in 2000; The fifty anniversary of the New York City Ballet celebrated in 2012 relying on Valentino…
Tiler Peck and Robert Fairchild of the New York City Ballet in “Not My Girl”, with the costumes designed by Valentino (2012 – Paul Kolnik).
And the future of the fruits Liason coreutic-Couture? For Andrea Peña, we must widen our gaze, from the artistic question to the whole society. «We are finding more complex ways of existing in our bodies and, therefore, in our kind: seeing how this impact fashion and dance, and siderers, is beautiful. The queer communities have been tracing new possibilities of expression for years who reflect our complexities, but now more than ever the boundaries between the genres are blending to the common eyes and of the general public ».
Milanoltre 2025, showcase of excellence
There is only spoiled for choice to Milanolter (September 23-19 October): 50 events -Among international first, Site-Specific, Talk, Masterclass, installations (including Manus manus by Antonio Marras) – that they will be held at the Elfo-Puccini Theater (and not only) with the patronage of the National Fashion Chamber.
Unmissable appointmentstogether with Andrea Peña: the Spellbound Contemporary Ballet; The Center Chorégraphique National de Nancy – Ballet de Lorraine, directed by Maud Le Pladec (with the diptych Twelve Ton Rose by Trisha Brown e In Folia by Marco da Silva Ferreira); the company Susanna Beltrami, Dance Haus; Cullberg.