ROMEO E GIULIETTA

Renato Zanella's ballet presents Shakespeare's famous tragedy in a modern interpretation.

In Renato Zanella’s ballet, Shakespeare’s tragedy comes to life with a modern sensibility, reflecting contemporary aesthetics and emotions.

A leading European dance master, Zanella is the artistic director of the SNG Opera in Balet Ljubljana, and a prominent figure in the golden years of the Vienna State Opera Ballet. The sets by Alessandro Camera, a renowned scenographer whose work spans opera, drama, and dance, envelop the stage in a sensual elegance, perfectly aligned with Zanella’s artistic vision.

His "Romeo and Juliet" offers a timeless emotional experience to fans of classic repertoire ballet, free from convention.

The tragedy of the two young lovers from Verona, written by William Shakespeare in 1595, is an eternal love story. Their youth and innocence, paired with their unwavering determination to follow their feelings despite the consequences, are powerfully expressed through the music of one of the greatest composers of the 20th century, Sergei Prokofiev.

The "Romeo and Juliet" ballet, Op. 64, premiered in 1938 in Brno (Czech Republic) and was first performed in the Soviet Union at the Kirov Theatre in 1940. Since then, it has remained a cornerstone of the classical ballet repertoire. The score was revolutionary: not merely an accompaniment to the dance, but a rich and complex composition that elevated the art form. Prokofiev’s exceptional ability to convey character and emotion through music shines throughout the work.

The reason Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet" has become the most refined classical masterpiece for dance – and a staple of every major ballet company’s repertoire – lies in its deeply expressive music. It masterfully encapsulates the emotions of love, evoking the romanticism of the 18th century in its atmosphere, technique, and style.