What a luxury it is to have seen the ballet company of La Scala, Milan, on its first visit to Australia. An ensemble of sixty-six dancers, it has become, under the artistic direction of Frédéric Olivieri, a prized instrument of Italian culture. Established in 1788, it engaged with a new wave of contemporary choreographers and styles in the 1960s. Today, it tours globally with a repertoire drawn from two centuries’ classics and works of contemporary genius. It also engages many guest artists, whom it graciously lists before its own principals.