FILM SCREENINGS

La Danse—The Paris Opera Ballet

2009. USA. Directed by Frederick Wiseman. Acclaimed as one of the finest dance films ever made, Wiseman’s La Danse has become a true phenomenon, playing to sold out audiences in Paris (in an astonishing eight theaters) and now enjoying tremendous success across the United States. The Paris Opera Ballet, which captivated Edgar Degas in the nineteenth century, is a beehive of activity—quite literally: the film’s opening shots atop the Palais Garnier are an apiarist’s delight—as seamstresses toil away in the theater’s underground chambers, construction workers patch cracks in the opulent theater’s ceiling, and Aurélie Dupont, Nicolas Le Riche, Marie-Agnès Gillot, and Agnès Letestu rehearse the choreography of Mats Ek, Wayne McGregory, Rudolf Nureyev, and Pina Bausch. Nearly stealing the show is the troupe’s artistic director, Brigitte Lefèvre, who is at once imperious and lovable as she seduces potential corporate donors and keeps her corps de ballet in line. 158 min.