Details
Movie Description
Mikhail Baryshnikov stars as Tony, a famous ballet star and faithless ladies' man who gets involved with a young dancer during the filming of the ballet GISELLE. The backstage romantic intrigues and onstage dance triumphs of Tony's ballet company in Italy set the theme of this film as the world-class star undergoes emotional turmoil, struggling to commit his greatest triumph to celluloid--before losing that inner fire that sparks his best work.
Synopsis
Mikhail Baryshnikov portrays Anton "Tony" Sergeyev, a world-famous ballet star who has earned a reputation as a ladies' man among a troupe of ballet dancers. Art mirrors life in this backstage tale of love, lies, and betrayal. As the ballet troupe prepares for a special filming of GISELLE in Italy, the charming and faithless Tony becomes involved with Lisa (Julie Kent), an innocent young ballerina who worships the older ballet star. What Tony had at first considered a mere fling soon becomes serious, and parallels between the ballet's story and his own romance begin to emerge. The two strands come together during the ballet's performance when Lisa disappears--leading Tony to fear that he, like the character of Albrecht in GISELLE, has thoughtlessly caused the death of the woman he loves.
Film Notes
Opened at the Tokyo International Film Festival on September 27, 1987.
Filmed on location in Bari and Trani in southern Italy.
MY BLUE HEAVEN marked the feature-film debut for American Ballet Theatre dancer Julie Kent.
DANCERS is dedicated to director Herbert Ross's wife, Nora Kaye, who died of cancer before the film's release. Kaye had been one of the American Ballet Theatre's most brilliant ballerinas in the 1940s and 1950s. Ross himself was a choreographer for ABT; his most famous work is "The Maids," a short ballet based upon the play by Jean Genet.
Leslie Browne, who portrayed Baryshnikov's love interest in THE TURNING POINT, stars in DANCERS as Nadine.
The film features actual ballet dancers from the American Ballet Theatre.
Elena Tchernichova was the ballet mistress for the American Ballet Theatre.
Thomas Rall, who plays the role of Patrick, also performed in the RING-AROUND-THE-ROSY section of Gene Kelly's 1954 film INVITATION TO THE DANCE, an all-dance movie that featured three ballets.
"Have you noticed his coming on to the new girl? Well, that's just Tony for you. He's been under a lot of pressure. You know how he deals with a headache? He takes two girls and feels fine in the morning."-- Francesca and Nadine (Alessandra Ferri and Leslie Browne) talking about Tony (Mikhail Baryshnikov)
Quotations
"Have you noticed his coming on to the new girl? Well, that's just Tony for you. He's been under a lot of pressure. You know how he deals with a headache, he takes two girls and feels fine in the morning."-- Francesca and Nadine (Alessandra Ferri and Leslie Browne) talking about Tony (Mikhail Baryshnikov)
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