Emio Greco (Italy) and Pieter C. Scholten (Netherlands) have been working together since 1995 and, in more than three decades, have built up a versatile and internationally recognised oeuvre that ranges from contemporary dance to opera, theatre, music and film.
Their first joint work, the solo Bianco (1995), marked the beginning of the trilogy Fra Cervello e Movimento (between brain and movement). In the same year, they formulated their Manifesto with seven principles about dance and its influence on the body and the audience. In 1996, they founded the company Emio Greco | PC, with which they created iconic choreographies such as Double Points: One & Two (1999), Conjunto di Nero (2001) and Rimasto Orfano (2002).
From the outset, they combined their artistic work with research, educational projects and interdisciplinary collaborations. For the Edinburgh International Festival, they directed the operas Orfeo ed Euridice and The Assassin Tree. In collaboration with Toneelgroep Amsterdam, they created the theatre production Teorema. Interdisciplinary projects led to the Dante trilogy HELL (2006), [purgatorio] In Visione (2008) and you Para|diso (2010), which brought them international recognition.
Between 2014 and 2018, Greco and Scholten were artistic directors of the Ballet National de Marseille (BNM), where they developed two thematic lines: Le Corps du Ballet and The Body in Revolt. With BNM, they created Boléro, Passione, Momentum, Corpi Ingrati, Rocca, Non Solo Medea and Les Cygnes et les Autres, among others. This period marked a deepening of their search for a contemporary form of ballet and a broadening of their international network.
Their recent work is characterised by the WE cycle (2020–present), which focuses on the relationship between humans, the body and society. Examples include We, the Breath (2022), We, the Shameless (2022), We, the Eyes (2023) and Nous, le Radeau / We, the Lust (2024, co-production with Philharmonie de Paris). Since 2004, they have been conducting structural research into the relationship between the intuitive body and new technologies, which has led to projects such as DP OUTIS, the European collaborations PREMIERE (2022–2025) and HAMLET (2025–2027), and the development of ICK Online, a digital platform, virtual stage and knowledge centre.
— Manifesto 7 Necessities with 7 dance principles
In 1996 Emio Greco and Pieter C. Scholten wrote their artistic manifest Les Sept Nécessités.
This ‘dogma’, of which the articles are stated in French – “because Il faut que… so much more strongly expresses necessity”, is an attempt to capture dance in words.
In the manifest they laid the basis for a dance language that goes back to the inner necessities of the dancing body, an inner awareness of time and space that is stored in the deep memory of the body.
Today, the manifest has not been diminished in currency or relevance and it still serves as a source of inspiration for the continuous development and deepening understanding of the work.
— 7even Necessities:
- Il faut que je vous dise que mon corps est curieux de tout et moi: je suis mon corps
It is necessary for me to tell you that my body is curious about everything and I am my body - Il faut que je vous dise que je ne suis pas seul
It is necessary for me to tell you that I am not alone - Il faut que je vous dise que je peux contrôler mon corps et en même temps jouer avec lui
It is necessary for me to tell you that I can control my body and play with it at the same time - Il faut que je vous dise que mon corps m’échappe
It is necessary for me to tell you that my body is escaping - Il faut que je vous dise que je peux multiplier mon corps
It is necessary for me to tell you that I can multiply my body - Il faut que je vous dise qu’il faut que vous tourniez la tête
It is necessary for me to tell you that you have to turn your head - Il faut que je vous dise que je vous abandonne et que je vous laisse ma statue
It is necessary for me to tell you that I am leaving you and I am giving you my statue
Prijzen en onderscheidingen
- 2025: Premio Internationale Adriatico recognition of significant contribution to contemporary dance
- 2022: Premio Danza & Danza Italia for best foreign choreographers
- 2021: Zwaan d’Or (VSCD) for an exceptional contribution to Dutch dance
- 2012: ROCCO – Zwaan (VSCD) for best dance production
- 2011: You PARA|DISO – Dioraphte Prize for strong international position
- 2011: You PARA|DISO – nomination for Zwaan (VSCD) for best dance production 2010–2011
- 2007: HELL – Zwaan (VSCD) for best dance production 2006–2007
- 2006: HELL – Prize from professional theatre, music and dance critics, Paris, for best dance performance
- 2004: Double Points: One & Two – Time Out Live Award, London; 2003 – Premio Danza & Danza, Italy
- 2002: Extra Dry – Premio Teatro del Mundo, Argentina; 2002 – Nomination for Nijinsky Prize, Monaco
- 2001: Double Points series – Sonia Gaskell Prize, Amsterdam
- 2001: Double Points: One & Two – Herald Angel Award, Edinburgh
- 1999: Philip Morris Art Prize, Amsterdam
