There is something deeply human about rediscovering dance not as spectacle but as possibility. Effetto Danza, the book by Professor Paolo Mariconti, anesthesiologist, pharmacologist and pioneer of the link between science and movement, is not just a scientific work. It is an invitation, gentle but firm, to get back in touch with the most alive-and often forgotten-part of ourselves: the body that feels, moves, frees. And, above all, it heals.
Giving strength and resonance to this vision is the preface signed by international dance icon Roberto Bolle, who lent not only his name but his direct experience to the book’s message. His words, simple and powerful, opened the evening with a shared truth: “Dance is not just art. It is a natural medicine. Professor Mariconti’s work demonstrates what we dancers experience every day: the transformative power of conscious movement.”
Professor Mariconti, with the clarity of one who knows the language of science but also the urgency of human experience, led the audience on a fascinating journey through neuroscience, pain medicine, and bodily practices. His vision is both radical and accessible: the body should not only be treated, but educated to listen to itself; dance, more than an exercise, is a therapeutic gesture.
Leading the dialogue on stage was cultural journalist Francesca Carminati, who with measure and depth was able to give rhythm and depth to the meeting, offering food for thought and bringing the conversation to an accessible but never superficial level.
No less significant was the speech by Marco Sutter, visionary publisher and promoter of the project for The Circle Publisher, who highlighted the unique value of Effetto Danza in the contemporary scene: “There are books that inform and books that transform. This one does both, because it has the courage to propose a new language to talk about health: that of art that listens to the body.”
Dance Effect reminds us that the body is not a vessel to be corrected, but an ally to be listened to. That longevity is not just a matter of years, but of the quality of living. And that, perhaps, the first therapeutic act is to allow ourselves the right to move without judgment.
It is rare today to find a project capable of combining beauty and concreteness. This book succeeds, and it does so gracefully. It leaves a subtle but profound trace: that of a thought that does not want to teach, but to inspire. And it succeeds. Because after all, as Pina Bausch used to say, “we are not interested in how people move, but what moves them.” And this book, gently, moves us.
