Roberto Bolle brings dance to Beccaria juvenile prison: "Nurturing the beauty within us"

Roberto Bolle, international étoile and symbol of Italian dance, brought dance inside Milan’s Cesare Beccaria juvenile prison. An event made possible thanks to the Roberto Bolle Foundation and the collaboration with the PuntoZero Association, which transformed the prison’s austere hall into a stage for a day, offering young inmates an unforgettable experience of culture and inspiration. Performing before the audience of young inmates were highly talented artists from different choreographic worlds in a fusion of styles that demonstrated the universal power of dance.

Opening the event, it was Roberto Bolle himself, who from the stage reminded the young inmates “to nourish every day the beauty that is in all of us.” With this phrase, the étoile wanted to emphasize how art can become a tool of redemption and transformation, even in the most difficult contexts.

After the introductory speech, Bolle introduced the artists who took turns on stage. They included Teatro alla Scala dancers Rebecca Luca and Alessandro Francesconi, who moved the audience with excerpts from two masterpieces of the classical repertoire, The Nutcracker and Grand Pas Classique. Alongside ballet, there was no shortage of expressive power from urban cultures. Roy Ilagou, a dancer and choreographer originally from Central Africa, together with his hip hop and Afro dance crew, brought to the stage movements charged with energy and vitality, demonstrating how dance can also be a street language, capable of breaking down barriers and creating deep connections.

At the end of the performance, the artists lingered with the audience to recount their personal experiences, offering a message of hope and determination. Filippo Pieroni, the first Italian break dancer in the Cirque du Soleil Company, shared his journey, which started on the street and culminated in theaters around the world. His story was a concrete example of how passion and sacrifice can turn even the most difficult dreams into reality.

“I really wanted one of the Foundation’s first steps to be this,” Bolle said on the sidelines of the meeting. “I have always supported the educational value of dance especially for the younger generation. Here, dance can not only be at home, but can be a valuable tool for education and re-education in respect, beauty, inclusion, and a discipline that teaches that shortcuts cannot give the same results as a daily commitment, a sacrifice for one’s personal growth. To all this I add that dance can also have great therapeutic value in healing the wounds that each of these children carries.”

Roberto Bolle brings dance to Beccaria juvenile prison: "Nurturing the beauty within us"

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