Knees bent low. Arms locked tight. Two bodies spinning faster, faster, faster. This is the polka chinata, a breathtaking dance ritual almost lost to history. Dating back to the early 1900s, it was once a courtship display performed only by men at a time when strict rules forbade unmarried men and women from dancing together. The result? A polka unlike any other – a passionate acrobatic whirl designed to dazzle those looking for love from the edge of the dance floor.

By 2018, few still remembered the steps, but when Alessandro Sciarroni – one of Europe’s most daring contemporary artists – was alerted to this endangered form, he fell under its spell. With the help of dance master Giancarlo Stagni, he began a project that would both preserve and renew it.