Documentary “Restless  Creature:  Wendy  Whelan” at Miami Beach Cinémathèque

Sat Aug 4, 2018

Restless  Creature:  Wendy  Whelan offers  an  intimate  portrait  of  prima  ballerina Wendy  Whelan  as  she  prepares  to  leave  New  York  City  Ballet  after  a  record-setting three  decades  with  the  company.  One  of  the  modern  era’s  most  acclaimed  dancers, Whelan was a principal ballerina for NYCB and, over the course of her celebrated career, danced  numerous  ballets  by  George  Balanchine  and  Jerome  Robbins,  as  well  as  new works by more modern standout choreographers like Christopher Wheeldon and Alexei Ratmansky; many roles were made specifically for Whelan.

As the film opens, Whelan is 46,  battling  a  painful  injury  that  has  kept  her  from  the  ballet  stage,  and  facing  the prospect  of her  impending  retirement  from  the  company. What  we  see,  as  we  journey with  her,  is  a  woman  of  tremendous  strength,  resilience  and  good  humor.  We  watch Whelan  brave  the  surgery  that  she  hopes  will  enable  her  comeback to  NYCB  and  we watch her begin to  explore the world of contemporary dance, as she  steps outside the traditionally  patriarchal  world  of  ballet  to  create Restless  Creature,  a  collection  of  four contemporary vignettes forged in collaboration with four young choreographers.

Documentary directed by Linda Saffire, Adam Schlesinger,
2017/1hr, 30mins

Miami Beach Cinematheque
1130 Washington Ave,
Miami Beach, FL 33139
305 673-4567
www.MBCinema.com

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