Founded in 1813 by Francesco Benedetto Ricci as the ‘Imperial Regia Accademia di Ballo’ (Imperial Royal Ballet Academy), the La Scala School has seen famous dancers and prestigious maestros such as Carlo Blasis, Enrico Cecchetti, Ettorina Mazzucchelli, Esmée Bulnes, Elide Bonagiunta, John Field, Anna Maria Prina, to name but a few, take over the direction.
The School has trained artists such as Carla Fracci, Liliana Cosi, Luciana Savignano, Oriella Dorella, Roberto Fascilla, Roberto Bolle, Massimo Murru, Nicoletta Manni, Gilda Gelati, Mara Galeazzi, Marta Romagna, Gabriele Corrado, Alessio Carbone, Rebecca Bianchi, Sara Renda, Angelo Greco, Jacopo Tissi, Virna Toppi, Martina Arduino, Alice Mariani.
Articulated in eight years of course (between 11 and 18 years of age), it allows students to obtain a diploma with a double specialisation in classical-academic dance and modern-contemporary dance, in line with the needs of the great international companies that require professional dancers to master an increasingly broad and diversified repertoire. The School constitutes the heart of the Dance Department, directed since 2003 by Frédéric Olivieri, former director of the Corps de Ballet of the Teatro alla Scala from 2000 to 2007 and from 2017 to 2020.
During their studies, the students participate in several titles of the Teatro alla Scala season and perform on important stages in Italy and abroad. Fundamental to their artistic growth is the interpretation of the most famous choreographies by the masters of the past and present such as Marius Petipa (Paquita, La Bayadère), August de Bournonville (Napoli), George Balanchine (Serenade, Theme and Variations, Who cares?, Tarantella), Maurice Béjart (Gaîté parisienne suite, La luna), Anton Dolin (Variations for Four), Mats Ek (Sleeping Beauty), William Forsythe (The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated), Jiří Kylián (Symphony in D, Evening Songs, Un ballo), José Limón (The Unsung), Roland Petit (Gymnopédie), Angelin Preljocaj (Larmes blanches, La Stravaganza).
Carla Fracci, Liliana Cosi, Luciana Savignano, Oriella Dorella, Massimo Murru, Roberto Bolle, Nicoletta Manni, Jacopo Tissi...
Molti ex allievi della Scuola di Ballo hanno percorso una carriera ricca di successi, fino ad essere etoile internazionali, impegnate non solo sui palcoscenici più importanti, ma anche in luoghi meno convenzionali, per portare la magia della danza in ogni angolo del mondo.
They specifically created for our school: Davide Bombana (Ipnos), Shantala Shivalingappa (Nineteen Mantras), Matteo Levaggi (Largo), Emanuela Tagliavia (Luminare minus, Balthus Variations), Valentino Zucchetti (Canone Allegro). In addition to these choreographies, there are new versions of the great titles in the repertoire signed by Frédéric Olivieri, such as The Nutcracker, Cinderella (commissioned by the Bracco Foundation) and La fille mal gardée.
In more recent years, meetings and master classes with internationally renowned choreographers and dancers such as Kathryn Bennetts, Davide Bombana, Luigi Bonino, John Clifford, Claudia De Smet, Paul Dennis, Vladimir Derevianko, Yvan Dubreuil, Shirley Esseboom, Maina Gielgud, Nanette Glushak, Cynthia Harvey, Akram Khan, Monique Loudières, Piotr Nardelli, Patricia Neary, Pompea Santoro, Suki Schorer, Victor Ullate, Arlette van Boven, Francesco Ventriglia, Aaron Watkin, Jelko Yuresha.