Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan
54th New York Film Festival
September 30 - 11, 2016
The extraordinary Wendy Whelan, principal dancer at New York City Ballet for 23 years, is followed throughout a passage of life that all dancers must face, when she must confront the limits of her own body and adapt to a different relationship with the art form she loves so madly.
In 1984, Wendy Whelan joined the New York City Ballet as an apprentice; by 1991, she had been promoted to Principal Dancer. She quickly became a revered and beloved figure throughout the dance world. Wrote Roslyn Sulcas, “her sinewy physicality, her kinetic clarity, and her dramatic, otherworldly intensity have created a quite distinct and unusual identity.” Linda Saffire and Adam Schlesinger’s film follows this extraordinary artist throughout a passage of life that all dancers must face, when she must confront the limitations of her own body and adapt to a different relationship with the art form she loves so madly. An NYFF54 selection. An Abramorama release.
It’s a revealing, at times raw, examination of Whelan’s final year with the City Ballet
—Katherine Cusumano, W Magazine
allows us to see her stoic control, her superhuman strength under pressure, and also to see through it — to the self-doubt, the fear of losing her very identity.
—Brian Seibert, The New York Times
an artist documentary that will play movingly—inspiringly, even—for those who aren’t already fans.
—Kenji Fujishima, Paste Magazine
A shocking documentary
—Lisa Jo Sagolla, Film Journal
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