The Fondazione nazionale della Danza was born in 2003. The members of the Fondazione are Emilia-Romagna Region and the Municipality of Reggio Emilia.
The Fondazione Nazionale della Danza develops its producing and touring activity under the name Aterballetto, the leading dance company in Italy and the first permanent ballet-producing organization apart from Opera House companies.
Born in 1977 as Compagnia di Balletto dei Teatri dell’Emilia – Romagna directed by Vittorio Biagi, since 1979 the company has been calling Aterballetto under the direction of Amedeo Amodio. Composed by soloist dancers capable of performing in every dance style, Aterballetto has gained wide recognition on Italy and the international scene, thanks to the high quality of the performers and the artistic directors: Amedeo Amodio (1979-1997), Mauro Bigonzetti (1997-2007, until 2012 principal choreographer) and Cristina Bozzolini with Giovanni Ottolini (2008-2017).
Throughout its recent history many Italian and international choreographers have collaborated with the company, such as Mauro Bigonzetti, Michele Di Stefano, Andonis Foniadakis, William Forsythe, Johan Inger, Jiří Kylián, Cristiana Morganti, Jiří Pokorny, Cristina Rizzo, Hofesh Shechter and Giuseppe Spota.
In 2015 the Fondazione Nazionale della Danza obtained the recognition of Dance Production Centre, opening to artist residencies, hospitalities, performances by Italian and international companies. It offers some of the most significant dance projects both regionally and nationally, making it unique in Italy. The Fondazione organizes events, dance seasons and a variety of projects promoting and educating wider public interest and awareness of the world of dance.
The Fondazione Nazionale della Danza / Aterballetto is a National Choreographic Centre by ministerial recognition from June 2022.
The new course
Thanks to Gigi Cristoforetti, director since September 2017, the new course that Fondazione Nazionale della Danza – Aterballetto has embarked is driven by renewed guiding principles: to produce performances belonging to diverse artistic and choreographic universes, targeted at different audiences and individually designed to suit all kinds of theatre spaces. While keeping up and developing its widely recognised standing, it aims to turn its attention to both the national panorama and the international one, and broadening the scope of Italian dance beyond the boundaries.
Creating a dialogue with the visual arts, the music, the theatre and the education, the Fondazione Nazionale della Danza / Aterballetto initiates partnerships and collaborative projects, playing a key promotion and programming role within them, independently of works from its own repertory.
The activity of the Fondazione Nazionale della Danza/Aterballetto is supported by the Italian Ministry of Culture and by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the Italian Institutes of Culture and the Italian Embassies.