Sharp as a Blade: Jorma Elo and the Bayerisches Junior Ballett München

Elo’s path to ballet was not straightforward. As a boy in Finland, his great ambition was to play professional ice hockey. He was drawn to the speed and physical intensity of the sport. Dance only entered the picture when he followed his sisters to their classes. “I wanted to be more flexible for hockey,” he recalls. “But then I realised dance was movement and physicality with music. That was better than hockey. I have been in love with it since then.” From that moment on, Elo’s focus shifted. A scholarship to the Kirov Ballet School in Leningrad gave him access to one of the most rigorous training grounds in the world. He was particularly inspired by Mikhail Baryshnikov, who had defected to the West and become a symbol of ballet’s expressive freedom. “His joy of dancing really influenced me. I wanted to learn where he learned,” Elo says.

After completing his studies, Elo joined the Finnish National Ballet, which at the time was a part of the opera company. As a young dancer of 15 and 16, he was already on stage a lot, performing in operas, operettas and ballets. “I loved being in that magical box of art and sharing it with the musicians and the singers.” It was a formative time. The company’s varied repertoire exposed him to both classical works and modern choreographers such as Jiří Kylián and Mats Ek. 

Drawn to Mats Ek’s blend of physicality and theatricality, Elo made a bold request. He asked to join Cullberg Ballet, of which Ek was the director. Ek said yes and Elo moved to Sweden, beginning a period that would deeply influence his artistic outlook. “It was like theatre school for me,” he says. “I learned that stillness, or simply looking, could be powerful.” He also found himself surrounded by some of the most distinctive dance artists of his generation. Working under Mats Ek was, as he puts it, “a total experience.” The company was not only defined by Ek’s now-iconic ballets but by the extraordinary individuals he brought together to perform them. “He had gathered this amazing group of dancers who were also dramatic actors,” Elo recalls. “Every day in the studio was inspiring – the level of artistry, the theatrical commitment, the intensity of it all.” Touring internationally with the company, he witnessed the impact that such an ensemble could have. “We performed Giselle, Swan Lake, and the audience treated us like rock stars,” he says. “It was a great time to be a dancer in that company.”

In 1990, Elo joined Netherlands Dance Theater (NDT) under Jiří Kylián. It was there that the seeds of his choreographic career were sown. At NDT, dancers were not only seen as performers but as active collaborators. They were expected to suggest material, to experiment and to contribute ideas. “It was like a laboratory,” Elo says. “We had choreographers coming in month after month, and we were expected to give them something to work with. That prepared me later for making choreography myself.” The company also encouraged dancers to try their hand at creating. In the annual workshop performance, Elo began to explore movement on his own terms. “Everybody was doing it, so I wanted to be part of that. I had no real ambition to be a choreographer, but I slowly fell in love with it.”

In 2000, Elo sent a video of one of his workshop pieces to a company. To his surprise, it led to a professional commission. “That was another level,” he says. “To put your own work in front of an audience and get paid for it – that was powerful.” From there, the commissions multiplied. Over the past two decades, Elo has created more than 60 ballets for companies worldwide, including American Ballet Theatre, the Bolshoi Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet and Stuttgart Ballet. His style, marked by speed, detail and a close relationship to music, soon established him as one of the most distinctive choreographic voices of his generation. Since 2005, he has also been resident choreographer at Boston Ballet. “Having that base has been important,” Elo says. “Choreographers have ups and downs. With a company that supports you, you can take more risks.”

Elo’s international breakthrough came with «Slice to Sharp», created in 2006 for New York City Ballet as part of the Diamond Project. Working with a cast of principal dancers, he found himself in a company known for its intensity and relentless schedule. The title reflects both the challenge and the opportunity: “I thought, what is my slice of their daily brilliance? I’m going to make my slice ultra sharp.” The ballet, set to music by Antonio Vivaldi and Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber, quickly became a signature work. The score, performed with ferocious urgency, gave Elo the spark he needed. “It reminded me of my first love in music – hearing the electric guitar at a live rock concert.” For Elo, music is the foundation of choreography. He immerses himself in the score long before entering the studio. “I try to listen so much that it becomes like water, where I can swim freely,” he says. With «Slice to Sharp», the choice of Baroque music was essential. “Every time I hear it, it fires up my brain cells. The sharpness of the playing, the energy—it gives me something new each time.”

Visually, «Slice to Sharp» is stripped down. Costumes are simple, designed by Holly Hynes, leaving the focus entirely on the movement. The choreography, however, is anything but simple. Fast footwork, off-balance positions, and sudden changes of direction keep the dancers in constant motion. The work challenges the boundaries of classical technique while always remaining tied to the music. Since its premiere, «Slice to Sharp» has been performed by companies across Europe, the United States and Russia, where Elo received the Benois de la Danse award in 2010. Unlike some of his works, which he continues to adapt, Slice to Sharp has largely remained true to its original form. “It doesn’t need much changing,” he says. “It’s stayed close to how it was in New York.”

Restaging for a New Generation

The Bayerisches Junior Ballett münchen presents a very different context. The company offers young dancers aged 17 to 21 their first professional stage experience. They stay for a maximum of two years before moving on to major companies. The group has already performed across Europe, Israel and Hong Kong, gaining a reputation for energy and versatility. For Elo, working with such a group presents both challenges and opportunities. “The ballet has a lot of speed and complex partnering,” he explains. “That’s harder without years of experience. But it also brings freshness. The dancers don’t have fixed habits. They surprise you.”

Rehearsals in Munich have been guided by Elo’s assistant Nancy Euverink. Her knowledge of the vocabulary has been crucial in introducing the young dancers to the style. Elo sees the process as a balance between fidelity to the original and adaptation to the dancers in front of him. “I always try to get as close as possible to the original idea, but every company brings its own character. That affects the look of the piece.”

When asked what dance means to him, Elo pauses. “Dance has given me everything—my life, my love, my partner, my shared moments with people. Everyone should have dance in their life in some form.” For him, performance creates a shared experience that goes beyond words. “On stage, I can expand time. The audience may not always understand it, but they feel it. They are drawn into another world, and that gives them something they want to return to.”

After nearly two decades as Boston Ballet’s resident choreographer, Elo continues to create new works, from abstract explorations to full-length story ballets. His career has been marked by versatility, risk-taking and a deep commitment to the art form. With «Slice to Sharp» in Munich, his focus is on the next generation. For the dancers of the Bavarian Junior Ballet, the process is a chance to measure themselves against one of the most exacting pieces in the contemporary repertoire. For Elo, it is an opportunity to see his work renewed through their eyes. “It’s exciting,” he says simply. “You never know exactly how it will turn out. But when the energy connects, when the music and the movement come together, it has a life of its own.”