Pentesilea Ultras: CollettivO CineticO and Enzo Cosimi Merge Tragedy and Pop

Pentesilea Ultras, a new work by CollettivO CineticO directed and choreographed by Enzo Cosimi, premiered at Teatro Comunale di Ferrara in December 2019. The piece is the second episode of Dialoghi, a project by Francesca Pennini that opens the company's practice to external authors. Cosimi revisits the figure of Penthesilea, which he had explored in earlier works (Sacrificio Ritmico, 1996; Super Deluxe, 1997; Eliogabalo ‒ Climax no stop, 1998), now infusing it with a tragic imprint. The choreography draws from Heinrich von Kleist's radical reinvention of the Amazon queen myth. The performance is structured in four chapters of fury, illuminated by Gianni Staropoli's alabaster and digital lighting. The score includes Johann Strauss II's Egyptian March. The cast features Francesca Pennini as Penthesilea and Angelo Pedroni as Achilles, with a male chorus (Simone Arganini, Carmine Parise, Giulio Santolini, Stefano Sardi) that alternates between Achaeans and Amazons. The work incorporates texts from von Kleist, Nietzsche, Bataille, and company members. Props such as jockstraps, gagging balls, and dog feeders are detourned. The third section, Paradise Now, offers a pause. The finale depicts Penthesilea alone after devouring Achilles, ending with a howl. The title reflects the encounter between Cosimi's and CollettivO CineticO's universes, mixing high and low culture.