La Scala’s Federico Fresi returns in Sleeping Beauty after a two-year battle with cancer
La Scala Ballet Soloist Federico Fresi returned to dance on the opening night of the season as Puss-in-Boots in Sleeping Beauty after two years away from the stage. It was his first major appearance after a two‑year battle with a rare tumour.
On 31 December 2023, during a performance of Alexei Ratmansky‘s Coppélia, a lift went badly, and he tore a bicep. While treating this injury, a scan revealed a hole in his humerus, and further tests led to the diagnosis — phaeochromocytoma.
Phaeochromocytomas occur in about 2 to 8 out of every one million people and can affect people of any age, but they are typically diagnosed among those in their 30s and 40s – Fresi is now 39. They are usually benign, though in 20% of cases, they are cancerous and can metastasise, as did Fresi’s tumour.
“I immediately went to talk to the director at the time, Manuel Legris, and the staff and the company supported and pampered me,” he told Valeria Crippa of the Corriere della Sera. “My colleagues gave me the strength to start the treatment process, without ever leaving me alone, not even when I was in the hospital during their tour in China – they shot a video for me after the first performance. It helped me to keep going.”
“It’s not over yet, because the treatment is ongoing, but my condition has improved greatly since my initial diagnosis.
“When I arrived at the Spedali Civili hospital in Brescia, I couldn’t stand up – the metastases had spread to all my bones, including my spine. The doctors couldn’t understand how I had been able to dance just a month earlier. They told me that I probably wouldn’t be able to dance anymore, but I never gave up. I took it as yet another challenge in my career.”
Fresi is timid off stage, yet known for technically demanding, fearless roles such as The Golden Idol in La Bayadère, Puck in George Balanchine‘s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and the head gypsy in Rudolf Nureyev‘s Don Quixote. But although his mother was a ballerina, he didn’t start dancing until he was 13. “I liked Michael Jackson and hip hop, then I started studying ballet in Spain. I had to catch up quickly – my classmates were way ahead of me. The great Maria de Avila was my teacher. She recognised my potential, and within a year and a half, I had caught up. I watched videos of Baryshnikov and Nureyev until the video recorder caught fire.” He joined English National Ballet in 2005 for a short time, and in 2008 went to La Scala, where he danced The Golden Idol in Natalia Makarova‘s version of La Bayadère. In 2014, he became Soloist.
Two cycles of nuclear medicine treatments, including a month of isolation due to iodine injections, slowly began to turn the tide. By early 2025, his doctors cautiously allowed him to resume training. After the summer, he felt his body responding again. Movements that once seemed impossible began to return.
Throughout his illness, his mother remained his emotional anchor. Having lost her own mother to cancer, the diagnosis struck her deeply. Doctors considered assigning Federico a psychologist, surprised by his constant optimism. “Has your son understood his situation?” they asked her.
“Returning to the stage seemed impossible. At the beginning of my illness, I watched my videos and thought I would never be able to do it again. I went through moments of sadness and inevitable depression. I went from performing at 100% to 0%, even mentally. Although my positive attitude and willpower were always strong, it was really hard. After the first cycles of chemotherapy, I couldn’t even do basic dance steps.”
Yet on 18 December, he stepped back on stage to dance in the opening night of Sleeping Beauty with Nicoletta Manni and Timofej Andrijashenko in the leading roles.
“I want to share what I’ve been through,” he says. “To tell those who are unwell – stay strong, you can make it.”
Sleeping Beauty continues at La Scala until 13 January 2026
Sleeping Beauty – Teatro alla Scala
