Roberto Bolle

[ForChicSake]

flickr

 

[ForChicSake]

flickr

 

[ForChicSake]

flickr

 

[ForChicSake]

bew.com.pl

 

[ForChicSake]

bew.com.pl

 

[ForChicSake]

 

[ForChicSake]

bew.com.pl

 

[ForChicSake]

 

[ForChicSake]

bew.com.pl

 

[ForChicSake]

current.com

 

[ForChicSake]

francadesinio.it

 

[ForChicSake]

 

[ForChicSake]

flickr

 

[ForChicSake]

Ferragamo

flickr

 

[ForChicSake]

Vogue US - December 2008

designscene.net

 

[ForChicSake]

nytimes.com

 

[ForChicSake]

Virtuoso dancer Roberto Bolle tells FQR’s Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis why he is so in step with UNICEF’s good work in Sudan


What does it mean to you to be an honorary ambassador for UNICEF?
When I was asked to be a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF 10 years ago, I said yes immediately, because I think it is so important to defend the rights of children. I was very young, so for me it was, and continues to be, a big honour. I have had so much in life and have been very fortunate. I had the passion to dance and I was able to do it, and now I am doing very well working in the most beautiful theatres. I think that for people who are so lucky and to whom others look as role models, doing things for others is not really just a choice but a moral duty.

In what way does your role focus on children?
My focus is on improving the lives of children by dealing with issues of poverty, disease, health and schooling. The role of a Goodwill Ambassador is to support and promote the UNICEF campaigns and related events. I have done a lot in the past 10 years. The most important thing was for the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, where I danced in the opening ceremony. A UNICEF campaign linked to the Games raised about €5m. After that I visited Sudan for my first field trip to deliver the money. Visiting Sudan was a real experience. You know that the people are poor but when you are there, it is such a shock because you realise that they don’t have anything. It was already a poor country but after 20 years of civil war the people can only start to rebuild their lives with the help of organisations such as UNICEF.

So being in Sudan enhanced your understanding of the work you do?
Completely. In life, there are things that you know are going to happen but that can’t prepare you for how you will feel when they do. Well, it was like that for me in Sudan. To actually be there and experience it was a real shock. You feel the poverty and you feel for the children who have such a struggle, such as a two-week-old baby with malaria whose mother doesn’t know what to do and can’t afford help. It’s a terrible situation. It changes you as a person. It was the most powerful and hard experience of my life.

Did you have any experiences of hardship growing up or anything that you could relate to when being there?
I was very lucky; my childhood was really nice, growing up in a supportive family. The contrast between our lives in a Western country – so spoilt and lucky – and theirs made it even harder to accept. It made me realise that we have to do more for those people and that country.

As a dancer you have a very structured life, a lot of discipline. What is a typical day?
We are artists, but we are also like athletes, so we work very hard every day for six to seven hours. We start around 10am, with one and a half hours of training, usually followed by about five hours’ rehearsal. When we have a performance, we do the training, then a shorter rehearsal, then rest and eat a bit, before coming back to do warm-ups and prepare for a two- to three-hour performance.

How long can you take a break from your work – for instance, when you went to Sudan?
We have to be clever to manage a break from our schedule if we want to be able to do our art properly. I was in Sudan for a week and I went in July because it was part of a three-week holiday. Before any performance I need three weeks’ to a month’s solid training to get back in shape. It is often hard to find the time when you can take a break and still be able to prepare for the next performance.

So it is quite a sacrifice for you to take a week out of your rare holidays?
Yes, but I really wanted to have that experience. I knew it was something that was important, to give more meaning to my role as an Ambassador. I got to see a whole other way of life and the amazing work UNICEF is doing in Sudan. There are people who work for UNICEF who give their whole lives to Sudan. And there is nothing there – when the sun comes out you go and work, and when it is dark you go and sleep in the military tents. It is tough.

When you’re not on field trips to Sudan, what is your role with UNICEF?
I do whatever I can. After my field trip I organised a gala performance in the Opera House in Rome to raise money for UNICEF. I try to do one charity performance a year. I also allow my face or image to be used to support their campaigns.

Where would you like to see yourself in 10 years?
That is a difficult question. As a ballet dancer, I have a limited life since our profession is so demanding on the body. Maybe in 10 years I can become a director of a ballet company. It is not something I think about much because I try to enjoy this moment, a very beautiful moment and period for me. I live in the best way: being able to dance in the most beautiful theatres in the world is the passion of my life. It is like being in a dream and I want to enjoy every moment.

- Roberto Bolle is Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF and was recently honoured as a Young Global Leader 2009 by the World Economic Forum
finchsquarterly.com

 

[ForChicSake]

he reminds me of top spanish model oriol elcacho one of my favourites too

 

[ForChicSake]

ohlalamag.com

 

[ForChicSake]

ohlalamag.com