Evoking an India of legends, intrigues, and dramatic love, La bayadère is one of the cardinal ballets of the classical repertoire and an expression of the consummate mastery of Marius Petipa. Nureyev’s production, the last of his interpretations of the great classics, came to La Scala for the first time in December 2021 with new sets and costumes designed for the occasion by Luisa Spinatelli.

An extraordinary debut for a sumptuous production, rich in virtuosity and variations, which concludes with the third act, a memorable evocation of the classic in the purity of the whiteness of the Kingdom of the Shades, a vision that has embellished the success of this ballet in the West and the brilliant star of Rudolf Nureyev, who both danced in and choreographed this extraordinary ballet.