The Saloni are carrying forward their cultural and didactic campaign with an event / show illustrating man’s development through a unique focus on design. The show is based upon a learning curve of man’s progress over the years, as seen through a multitude of objects tracing his evolving needs and, especially, his dreams.

Design Dance is an original show consisting of Design Objects (exactly 456 objects to be precise). Many of these 456 Design Objects have already proved their worth but some Objects are just starting out. They are all the true protagonists of “Design Dance”.

Actors and dancers on stage, moving and moving among armchairs, chairs, beds, bookcases, tables, coffee tables, poufs and bedside tables, because the greatness of these objects lies in their precise relationship with the human body. The sorts of objects designers know by name, know their colours, their types and the years they were made.

“Design Dance,” follows in the Cosmit tradition of linking the trade fair proper with art and communication.

Teatro dell’Arte at the Triennale di Milano.
Viale Alemagna 6,

Conceptual Ideas

Rehearsals

“Design Dance” – a project by Michela Marelli and Francesca Molteni, who has curated several events for past Saloni, including “A Celestial Bathroom” at the Milan Planetarium in 2010 – was born of a creative workshop involving acrobats, scenographers and costumiers.

Over 60 people were involved – including authors, interpreters and technicians, as well as 30 students from the Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti di Milano (NABA).

Six months have been devoted to the project, not to mention 500 hours of rehearsals, 20 scene changes, 3 selected thousand archive images and over 200 companies whose products form part of the challenge to transform the objects on stage into protagonists: flying sofas, tables that play music, lamps that dance.

An hour and a quarter of ceaseless activity.

This will form the third part of the trilogy on the genesis and evolution of Italian design, which the Saloni promoted and celebrated last year with “Great Hands, Without End” – a theatrical event produced with Piccolo Teatro* and the fourth edition of Triennale Design Museum “Dream Factories”.

Project and Production: Michela Marelli and Francesca Molteni

Script: Francesca Molteni, Michela Marelli, Filippo Soldi

Scenery: Margherita Palli in collaboration with the NABA School of Scenography, with Francesca Pedrotti, Alice De Bortoli from the teaching staff and students Matteo Patrucco, Laura Galmarini, Federica Barbino, Lidia Musio e Francesca De Francesco

Video: Muse Factory of Projects with Studio Due Effe and Marco Dinoia

Choreographic Director: Francesco Sgrò

Choreography: Collettivo 320 Chili, winner of the Premio Equilibrio Roma 2010 award for contemporary dance

Costumes: students on the NABA Three-year Fashion Design Course, project curated by Colomba Leddi and Caterina Filice with Andrea Trinceri and Bruna Garabelli (NABA Department of Fashion Design)

Lighting: Claudio De Pace

Music: Fabrizio Campanelli

Performers: Giorgia Antonelli, Roberta Biagiarelli, Titino Carrara, Alice Melloni, David Remondini, Diego Runko, Giulia Versari

Dancers: Elena Burani, Piergiorgio Milano, Fabio Nicolini, Roberto Sblattero, Francesco Sgrò

Organization: Fabio Ferretti

Production: Muse Factory of Projects/teatro in-folio Residenza Carte Vive with the support of Fondazione Cariplo-Progetto Être and NABA, Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti Milano