Português 
12 November 2026 • 21h00
Pedra Dura | Save the Last Dance for Me, by Alessandro Sciarroni
12 November | 9pm
Venue: Igreja da Nossa Senhora do Carmo (Church of Our Lady of Carmo)
Organised by: CAMA a.c., with support from Lagos Municipality and DGArtes
Duration: 20 min
Age rating: 6+
Free entry with a ticket collected from 30 minutes before the show
Part of the 5th edition of Pedra Dura – Algarve Dance Festival.
In “Save the Last Dance for Me”, Alessandro Sciarroni creates a rare and captivating encounter with the polka chinata — a courtship dance from Bologna dating from the early 20th century. Performed by Gianmaria Borzillo and Giovanfrancesco Giannini, it is an intimate duet that unfolds in a continuous spiral of tension and trust: intertwined bodies turning, lowering and rising in demanding, almost acrobatic choreography.
Once danced only by men, the polka chinata survives today thanks to the meticulous work of Giancarlo Stagni, who reconstructed it from archive footage. When Sciarroni discovered it in 2018, only five dancers were left.
Between performance and act of preservation, “Save the Last Dance for Me” is an invitation to witness, share and keep alive a tradition on the verge of disappearing.
Free parking: the Centro Cultural de Lagos and the Municipal Library offer free parking at the Frente Ribeirinha car park (Avenida dos Descobrimentos) to their audiences. Show the stamp from the Cultural Centre box office or the library entrance at the car park reception. Valid from one hour before to one hour after each event.
Venue: Igreja da Nossa Senhora do Carmo (Church of Our Lady of Carmo)
Organised by: CAMA a.c., with support from Lagos Municipality and DGArtes
Duration: 20 min
Age rating: 6+
Free entry with a ticket collected from 30 minutes before the show
Part of the 5th edition of Pedra Dura – Algarve Dance Festival.
In “Save the Last Dance for Me”, Alessandro Sciarroni creates a rare and captivating encounter with the polka chinata — a courtship dance from Bologna dating from the early 20th century. Performed by Gianmaria Borzillo and Giovanfrancesco Giannini, it is an intimate duet that unfolds in a continuous spiral of tension and trust: intertwined bodies turning, lowering and rising in demanding, almost acrobatic choreography.
Once danced only by men, the polka chinata survives today thanks to the meticulous work of Giancarlo Stagni, who reconstructed it from archive footage. When Sciarroni discovered it in 2018, only five dancers were left.
Between performance and act of preservation, “Save the Last Dance for Me” is an invitation to witness, share and keep alive a tradition on the verge of disappearing.
Free parking: the Centro Cultural de Lagos and the Municipal Library offer free parking at the Frente Ribeirinha car park (Avenida dos Descobrimentos) to their audiences. Show the stamp from the Cultural Centre box office or the library entrance at the car park reception. Valid from one hour before to one hour after each event.
