In Milan debuts 'Catalogo', a work on a dancer's farewell

On November 1, 2026, "Catalogo" will debut in Milan—a contemporary dance piece exploring the theme of farewell from the stage. The show, orchestrated by Ubu Prize-winning choreographer Marco D'Agostin together with Marta Ciappina, brings together in a single evening the choreographies of some of the most important artists from the Italian and international scene: Silvia Gribaudi, Francesca Pennini for CollettivO CineticO, Sotterraneo, and Emio Greco together with Pieter C. Scholten.

The performance is conceived as a "choreographic blind date": the choreographers created pieces for M., a dancer who intends to take her leave from the stage, without ever having met her in person. The various fragments, woven together by D'Agostin's dramaturgy, compose a score about farewell, endings, and survival, with outcomes described as unpredictable.

"Catalogo" is not simply a dance performance, but an artistic project that investigates the profound meaning of a performer's farewell to the stage. The idea originates from the intention of a dancer, referred to only as M., to retire. Marco D'Agostin, an Italian choreographer and winner of the Ubu Prize (one of Italy's major theater awards), and Marta Ciappina decide to build a collective work around this desire.

The chosen method is innovative: instead of a single author, a selected group of internationally renowned choreographers is involved. Each of them—including prominent names like experimental artist Silvia Gribaudi, the companies CollettivO CineticO and Sotterraneo, and the duo Greco|Scholten—creates a dance fragment for M. without direct consultation with her. This remote process generates what D'Agostin calls a "network of collaborations, gazes, intentions, and perspectives around the body and dance," transforming the farewell into a choral and multifaceted work.