Persona

The performance hasn't even started yet, and the warm-up is already in full swing. The dancers have gathered on the stage of Monaco's Grimaldi Forum to follow the instructions of Bernice Coppieters. Dressed entirely in black, the former star ballerina of the Ballets de Monte-Carlo is instantly recognizable. She is barely audible. Her presence is all the more evident in the movements of the ensemble: the way arms caress the head could suggest a Swan Lake performance to which the black-draped mountain scenery in the background would certainly be appropriate. But the piano sounds hint at a different ballet: they are by Ludwig Minkus, preluding Das Königreich der Schatten.