How brave of Wayne McGregor to choose Dante’s The Divine Comedy as the subject matter for his latest full-length work for the Royal Ballet. In this, the 700th anniversary year of Dante’s death, McGregor gives us his very individual take on the Italian poet’s epic journey through the afterlife, from hell and purgatory, to eventual paradise.

Part one of the piece (Inferno) received it premiere in 2019, but lockdown meant that we have had to wait until now to see the ballet in its entirety. It is a challenging work, with hell depicted, not as a fiery pit, but a black, cold abyss surrounded by inverted, monochrome mountains. It is a little too dark – sometimes it is hard to make out the dancers amidst all the gloom. The set design, by Tacita Dean, is one of the highlights of the ballet. This act is episodic; the various sins are depicted by groups of dancers in fast, erratic and frenzied movements, wearing all-over leotards spattered with chalk (which forms clouds of dust as the dancers move). Dante is sometimes an observer, sometimes a participant, with the poet Virgil as his guide through the various dimensions.

Purgatorio is the second act, set against the backdrop of a large, green Jacaranda tree.  Whereas in Inferno, composer Thomas Adès draws upon Liszt, among others, for inspiration, here he uses recorded cantorial chanting from a Sephardi synagogue in Jerusalem, though it is more of a distraction than a welcome addition. Everything is brighter, both literally and metaphorically, and at the heart of this act is a powerful pas de deux between Dante (Edward Watson, in his final role before retiring as a Principal with the company) and his lost love Beatrice (a serene Sarah Lamb).

The final act, Paradiso, is a climax of light, in which planet images are projected onto a screen at the back of the stage while the dancers spin in circles. There is a feeling of otherworldliness as Dante is guided to a heaven by his beloved Beatrice, and the whole ballet ends with a moment which owes more to Close Encounters of the Third Kind than anything else. I won’t give anything else away.

The Dante Project does not always work, but there are points of stunning beauty, particularly in Paradiso, and the dancers commit fully to McGregor’s often challenging choreography. What a parting gift for Watson, who has given so much to the company as a dancer of unique talent for so many years.

The Dante Project is at The Royal Opera House until 30 October. A performance will be streamed on 29 October and available on demand for 30 days. www.roh.org.uk