About

Join the dance.
ÜNI is a distinctive online platform that invites all to experience art through the movement of dance.
Captured, enraptured, and served up virtually – ÜNI showcases an evolving collection of dance films curated by Mikko Nissinen, Artistic Director of Boston Ballet, created with unexpected collaborations from across the globe. Each piece is charged with bold new perspectives and shared through the movement and rhythm of life.
ÜNI means oneness through many, welcoming you to a personal journey of shared discovery – ünity, reünion, commünity, commünication.
ÜNI is a reflection of our world – a multi-sensory, multi-cultural incubator of ideas with dance at its core.
Dream with us. Dance with us. Move with us.
“Everybody is a dancer.
You have a heartbeat,
that is music.”
–Mikko Nissinen
ÜNI cannot be fully translated – as is the conscience and consciousness of our time.
Our name brings with it a variety of meanings and mystical dimensions. Its universality and multi-cultural appeal sits at the heart of this new compelling ÜNI story.
In parts referencing the culinary delicacy the sea urchin –
a spiny, rare, mystical sea creature of the deep ocean, mixing beautifully with the Finnish term “üni” which conjurs a spiritual dream state.
Inspired by Mikko Nissinen’s heritage, Boston Ballet’s Finnish Artistic Director and warrior of free-form ideas, mapping dance to the human condition. Roughly translated into English, ÜNI symbolizes a strength of will, determination, perseverance, while acting rationally in
the face of adversity.
ÜNI as a Latin root means “one” but through its use in many words, brings out concepts of not the individual but oneness through many.
Boston Ballet believes in the transformative power of dance to inspire positive change in our community
and beyond. We step toward the future, where our art breaks down barriers, opens minds, strengthens our connections to each other, and is shared more widely with all. Learn more about our commitment, vision, and the artistic directors coalition.
