Cast
Patrice Bart
Program notes
A former ballet master at the Paris National Opera, Patrice Bart, was formed from childhood by this prestigious company in which he has since held every possible role. After a brilliant career as a star dancer, Bart became the principal assistant to Rudolf Nureyev before later taking on the mantle of the supreme ballet master of the Paris Opera.
A choreographer of international reputation, Patrice Bart reveals the secrets of his art to the viewers of this documentary, focusing on one of his masterpieces, Degas' Little Dancer. The camera allows the viewer not only to watch Bart's direction of dancers in rehearsal, but it also follows him to the upper reaches of the Orsay Museum, where he shows us the paintings and sculptures that inspired his remarkable ballet.
Patrice Bart is a veritable living memory of the world of ballet, and he shares his knowledge by taking the viewer to the heart of the Opera Garnier. There he invites us to view its rare photographic archives, including those taken at the great Moscow dance competition of 1969, at which Patrice Bart became the first non-Soviet ever to walk away with the grand prize.