“I tell you about my life at the top” – Corriere.it

When I entered the Paris Opera dance school, I was the only Italian and the mothers of the other dancers called me la small mafia. Today it would be an insult, back then I didn’t realize the meaning of the word mafia and I laughed about it… I was only 14 years old. In 2013, she became the toile of Opra for the little mafioso Eleonora Abbagnato, the first Italian to take on this role. A story of tenacity, sacrifice and determination of the great dancer from Palermo, current director of the Corps de Ballet of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, now told in the documentary Eleonora Abbagnato. A dancing staron Rai3 on March 29th, directed by Irish Braschi, produced by Matteo Levi.

Defined as mafia, why Sicilians?

I don’t know, but the connection between Mafia and Sicily is possible. And when I was Toile I even received an anonymous letter saying: Let’s get rid of the Sicilian Mafia.

Who did you inherit your passion for dance from?

I don’t have anyone in my family who was ever interested in this art, because when I was very small, my mother, who had to go to Palermo for work, put me in her friend Marisa Benassai’s dance school. I attended classes from morning to evening. And from there it all started.

A difficult path, built step by step, so to speak, to reach the pinnacle of success.

I’ve always been very determined…

So determined that even as a young girl she allowed herself to tell the teacher not to take another dancer with her because she wasn’t any good…

Oh well. I was 8 years old and already the school’s main dancer, but there was no malice or envy towards my classmates. The natural competition in our profession is to compare ourselves with others and create our own dimension.

A 360 degree dimension without a moment’s hesitation?

There were never any moments of hesitation. When I was preparing for a role with the teacher and perhaps didn’t know how to do a performance well, I pretended that I had to go to the toilet and left the room, I didn’t want to be seen in trouble.

Among the most demanding teachers?

First of all, Roland Petit: extraordinary, sometimes very violent. If I didn’t achieve what he wanted, chairs would fly at me and even harsh words… Today he should be reported because he strengthened me. And then Claude Bessy, director of the opera school, who once forced me to skate even though he knew I wasn’t capable of it. The choreographers were always very tough, they wanted the best from me because they understood that I had the possibilities.

Even Pina Bausch?

An extraordinary experience with his dance theater: a completely new commitment for me. She was meticulous in detail: to explain a particular movement to you, her explanation could take two hours.

Another unusual experience is the film Il 7 e l’8 with Ficarra and Picone, his fellow citizens.

Very funny. I accepted the proposal because I wanted to escape a difficult situation of waiting, namely the nomination of Toile… I had to distract myself.

Many successes, many awards, much applause…

And a lot of loneliness, the distance from your own affections that you have to deal with: painful but necessary and in some cases even exhilarating. The price for success is quite high.

Julia follows in her footsteps for her daughter: a talented twelve-year-old who appears in the role of the child’s mother at the end of the documentary…

Yes, but I wasn’t the one who made her follow in my footsteps. And – she laughs – our son Gabriel plays football instead, following his footballer father, my husband Federico Balzaretti. Crossed fates.

Future projects?

The ballet Roman nights from April 26th at the Palais des Congres in Paris, then on tour.

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