As the camera trailed her from rehearsals to meetings with friends, peers, mentors, and even into the operating room, Whelan decided to leave the ballet. For an intimate look at Whelan's last year with NYCB, be sure to check out the new documentary Restless Creature, which opens May 24 in New York, and will be released in theaters nationwide this summer. Wendy Whelan takes a bow at her final performance with the New York City Ballet, October 2014. She has danced virtually every major Balanchine role, and worked closely with Jerome Robbins on many of his ballets. “Because it is so formative, to be removed from that ballet of all ballets was just that much more profound.”, Nearly every girl with an interest in dance has an early Nutcracker memory. But when the physically demanding game is specifically designed to keep out female players over 40 (including the legendary Whelan, whose had more new works made on her than any dancer in the history of NYCB), the turmoil and self-doubt that is carefully concealed as a ballerina pirouetting effortlessly across the stage quickly reveals itself on screen. Philip scored the soundtrack for the documentary, Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan. She has turned towards contemporary work, which she described as “more three dimensional” than ballet. “I think it's a larger, more human story, than just a ballet story,” she explains of Restless Creature. And, earlier this month, Whelan traveled to Seattle to begin staging Ratmansky’s Pictures At An Exhibition, which debuted at the City Ballet during her final season with the company. The end of Restless Creature hints at a national tour of the titular contemporary work, which Whelan postpones for additional hip surgery; after a year of touring and developing two new pieces, she eventually had the hip replaced entirely. A Ballerina's Tale tells the story of the magnificent Misty Copeland's rise to … Whelan joined the NYCB in 1984 as an apprentice and entered the company's corps de ballet in January 1986. But at the behest of that sponsor, she agreed to one day of filming. It’s a revealing, at times raw, examination of Whelan’s final year with the City Ballet, the genesis of her career, and her profound impact on the dancers around her. Whelan went on to originate in 12 more of Wheeldon's ballets, notably Liturgy and It's a different way of looking at beauty.”, Whelan says she’s never felt pressured to get Botox, fillers, or plastic surgery, but as a young dancer, she did consider “fixing” her nose because she never saw herself as the “typical beauty that you see in magazines,” a factor she claims made her “work that much harder” in rehearsal. Don't Miss the Trailer for Wendy Whelan's New Documentary Nicole Loeffler-Gladstone. And now? “Most ballerinas don’t expose this part of their career,” says former New York City Ballet principal dancer Wendy Whelan, now 50, who is the subject of the new documentary Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan. “I feel the ticking clock,” Whelan notes in the film that follows the tail end of her unparalleled career with NYCB. In one scene, she meets with Peter Martins, the longtime ballet master for the City Ballet; he takes her out of The Nutcracker, in which she had danced the role of the Sugar Plum Fairy for 22 seasons. “Being able to put all that confusion and difficulty into a creative act was huge for me in getting through it.”, “It helped me voice my feelings; it helped me express; it helped me get something from it,” she continued. While Whelan had already shown more endurance than most in her City Ballet career by the time shooting on this documentary began, the honesty, … Whelan speaks dramatically, emoting as if for stage, punctuating each very—voice, express, get—with a gesture. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast. She wore a corrective back brace to ballet classes for five years, eventually earning a spot as an apprentice at the New York City Ballet in 1984 and graduating to the corps in 1986. (2016) Documentary (Abramorama) Wendy Whelan, David Michalek, Kay Whelan, Tyler Angle, Christopher Wheeldon, Alexei Ratmansky, Kyle Abraham, Josh Beamish, Peter Martins, Brian Brooks, Michelle Rodriguez, Dr. Marc Philippon, Gia Courlas, Emily Coates, Craig Hall, Adam Barrett, Phillip Neal, Alejandro Cerodo, Peter Boa, Wendy Perron, Lisa Ashe, Maria Scherer. All rights reserved. In Restless Creature, viewers are privy to the life of prima ballerina Wendy Whelan as she prepares to depart from the New York City Ballet after decades with the company. Featuring: Wendy Whelan Directed by: Linda Saffire and Adam Schlesinger Executive Producer: Diana DiMenna. This emotional documentary follows former New York City Ballet principal Wendy Whelan as she makes the decision to retire from the company that she called home for 30 years. “I had to reevaluate what I was doing, and how I was doing it, and [discover] what the new recipe would be for success.”, While Whelan ultimately refined that “complex and multifaceted” formula and received her final curtain call at Lincoln Center in October 2014 at 47-years-old, her harrowing tale of overcoming the age barrier is rare. “I don’t look back. When she was eight, she and her friend Liz planned to audition for a local Louisville Ballet-staged production of the Tchaikovsky ballet, its cast made up predominantly of adults. “I hope that people see themselves in comparable positions of struggle, confusion, and transformation, and I hope they get inspired by that.”, The strength that Whelan recognized in herself as a young girl is still evident and perhaps more noticeable than ever as she recovers from her hip operation and simultaneously silences those that saw only her “decline.” Asked how she maintained her mental toughness and won the “emotional battle” sparked by her critics, the dance idol cites “optimistic thoughts” and the “system of beliefs” she built at the barre as the two things that led to her triumph. And she continues to make her political opinions heard on social media, noting that she “can’t help but to think about the marches and the town halls and how they are so filled with body language,” explaining how dancers can communicate and reflect the “human condition” through their bodies. With each successive generation, the company has distanced itself from and reinterpreted Balanchine’s legacy. “I think the leotard for me became, after I retired, a sort of a symbol of the confines of still fitting into the ballet world in mind and body,” she explains. “It’s easier, and easier, and easier.”. The new documentary Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan, directed by Linda Saffire and Adam Schlesinger, follows Whelan from mid-2013, when she began to be plagued by hip pain, to her farewell performance, charting the uncertainty, instability, and doubt Whelan confronted while grappling with the end of her career as a ballerina, and what comes next. The film premiered at The 54th New York Film Festival in October 2016. Wendy Whelan. Whelan came of age among a group of dancers just one generation removed from the company’s founder, George Balanchine, himself—she cited Nikolaj Hübbe, now of the Royal Danish Ballet, Peter Boal, now helming the Pacific Northwest Ballet, Jenifer Ringer at the Colburn School of Ballet; and Margaret Tracey of the Boston Ballet as “my people.” As depicted in the film, two of Whelan’s closest continuing collaborators were the choreographers Christopher Wheeldon and Alexei Ratmansky, who collaborated on a new work she premiered at her final performance. Documentary on the great American Ballerina Wendy Whelan Earlier this month, the ballerina reached yet another milestone — she turned 50. But as we are repeatedly instructed in “ Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan ,” a new documentary just screened at the New York Film Festival, for a dancer all things must pass. The new documentary Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan, directed by Linda Saffire and Adam Schlesinger, follows Whelan from mid-2013, when she began to … “And at that point, I really did want to break from that lifelong physical and emotional confine. This beautiful documentary captures the exquisite grace and beauty of prima ballerina Wendy Whelan as she nears the end of her tenure at the New York City Ballet. Courtesy Bloch … “She said to me, ‘You’ve done so beautifully. DOCUMENTARY; 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. Facing her first serious injury in her three-decade career and potential retirement, Whelan turned to Dr. Marc Philippon for help. THEATRICAL TRAILER. And if I feel that little tinge sometimes, I just take a step and I work to…” She trailed off. The occasion for Terry's conversation with Wendy Whelan in 2017 was the release of a documentary about her final season with the ballet. “I don’t think ballerinas back in the day were considered commercial in that way,” Whelan said. “I didn’t know beauty in myself, I knew strength,” says ballet icon Wendy Whelan in Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan, a documentary directed by … But not because she’s staging a ballet that was her swan song, she assured me. There’s been a concomitant shift in the culture—especially, Whelan said, regarding social media. Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan (71) IMDb 7.1 1 h 34 min 2017 13+ 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. That persistence—bullishness, maybe—is on display in Restless Creature, which draws parallels between Whelan’s recent difficulty with her hip and her diagnosis, at age 12, with severe scoliosis that could have sidelined her before she even got to the City Ballet stage. Mar 04, 2021. Whelan was resistant at first; her hip issue, as she explains in the documentary, was the first major pain of her career, and she was unsure of her prognosis. "The minute I got myself out of leotards, my body opened up: I didn't feel so strict and tight and bound," she says. “Ballet needs that.”. Allure may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. She describes herself in Restless Creature as an “all or nothing” dancer, dedicating her life to her craft — a decision she doesn’t regret. I wanted to feel the change in my body, but couldn't really get there until I freed myself from the leotard.” She adopted loose pants and a soft t-shirt that enabled her to “breathe differently” and allowed “the physical memory of my decades in the highly-disciplined world of ballet somewhat start to dissolve.”, As for what’s next, Whelan says she’s still “in the position of discovering who I am after being a ballerina for my whole life,” but says her resilience and focus have “transferred into other things after dance,” like communicating, writing, thinking, and teaching. “My art form is my child and that’s what I give my focus to,” she says. This film captures the end of those 30 years. Wendy Whelan is one of the dancing greats. Whelan’s mother was skeptical, displaying the cautious pessimism of a parent reluctant to allow their child to fail: “Her first instinct was, ‘What if you don’t make it?’” Whelan recalled. restless creature barnard college department of dance new york city center wendy whelan zvi gotheiner. To revisit this article, visit My Profile, thenView saved stories. In 2001, Whelan worked with Christopher Wheeldon in Polyphonia, which became Wheeldon's breakthrough ballet, and led to Whelan "beginning to find herself as a dancer." And then, they were making a documentary—and her uncertain future is where the drama lies. Inside Wendy Whelan’s Triumphant Return to the New York City Ballet. - Film Journal . She had danced lead roles in George Balanchine's works, and worked with Jerome Robbins. In addition to the release of the documentary, Whelan is working with Alexei Ratmansky (one of the two choreographers who created pieces for her final performance at NYCB) to stage Pictures at an Exhibition for the Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle (opening June 2nd). “Just like with ballet, I thought, if I do this every day, I will get better,” explains Whelan. Whelan doesn’t seem especially prone to nostalgia, anyways. Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan isn’t a “dance movie,” per se. That's when I started to feel like, ‘Wow, now I understand what my beauty is,’” says Whelan. She danced with New York City Ballet for 30 years and has had more roles made for her than nearly any other ballerina. At her retirement, a ballet teacher from her childhood approached her. Iconic ballerina Wendy Whelan enjoyed a groundbreaking career, both in length and breadth. Whelan, too, had a nostalgic attachment to the role. It’s a story, Whelan notes, that the “people who rule the dance world” know all too well, but one that outsiders may find surprisingly relatable. A thirty-year career with the New York City Ballet, an exceptional career at the forefront of the ballet world, for far longer than ballet dancers normally sustain. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. “Even a young person who is in the prime of her so-called ‘beauty’ or ‘flowering’ physically might not really look forward to the next ten years of her life because she's afraid of where she’s going to go…what’s going to happen when she doesn’t have the same body, the same face, the same energy anymore,” Whelan explains. It was a Christmas surprise for her Ballet Academy East students—and an experiment. See an exclusive clip from Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan, out May 24: In ballet, if you’re over 40, you’re a dinosaur, Misty Copeland of the American Ballet Theater. It turned out, the documentary helped her focus the “torment and tumultuousness,” she said. “I opted not to do that, and I'm really glad I did because my uniqueness is my beauty,” she says. Kino Lorber Edu brings together the libraries of Kino International, Lorber Films and Alive Mind Education. Documentary Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan began when filmmaker Adam Schlesinger met Diana DiMenna at American Ballet School, where both had daughters … Whelan also ditched the leotards after her retirement, giving them to her students at Ballet Academy East in New York City for Christmas. Wendy Whelan spent 30 years with New York City Ballet, 23 of those years as a principal dancer. “And at times, I’ve said if I don’t dance, I’d rather die.”, After being sidelined by hip surgery, viewers witness the prima ballerina fighting to “get back in the game” at the age of 46. She originated leading roles in works by such notable choreographers as William Forsythe, Twyla Tharp, Alexei Ratmansky, and Christopher Wheeldon. We offer the best films available in Social Justice and Human Rights, Film Studies, Social Studies, Science and Philosophy, Religion and Spirituality with Public Performance Rights and digital site licenses. A Ballerina's Tale, 2015 . Ad Choices, Prima Ballerina Wendy Whelan On Aging and Life After Leotards, At 50, she's still a "restless creature. Then I started to really feel that flower, as well. Latest Posts Dance Magazine. Apr 24, 2017. "Whelan is familiar and delightfully salty... an impossibly elegant dancer." At 47, and after 30 years in the company, she prepares her departure because of a hip injury. And she’s “taking ownership” of her body and mind as she continues to move forward. This biographical documentary "isn't a mere celebration of a great artist," writes Moira Macdonald in The Seattle Times. And then another. And if she weren’t to recover, what—or who—would she be without ballet? While some friends have suggested she run for office, she says she’s not entirely sure about a second career in politics, but notes quite adamantly that “we must speak up.”. On a professional level, she’s “building relationships with people that I really connect with creatively” and is exploring a contemporary style of dance that allows her to expose and express herself in ways that can’t necessarily be done via classical ballet. “I've really been able to figure that out for myself as I've grown up.” She also credits two photographers (one being Douglas Hay, a fellow dancer in the company, and the other her husband, David Michalek) with helping her see qualities she didn’t necessarily recognize herself. “As a ballerina, I just really trusted in all the work that I put in, and trusted that it would carry me through any moments of unease on stage,” Whelan explains. Whelan is exceptional not only for her dancing excellence and physical resilience, but also because she is known as a physically strong dancer. An exclusive look at Wendy Whelan’s forthcoming documentary, Restless Creature, and a conversation with the ballet legend. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories, “I didn’t know beauty in myself, I knew strength,” says ballet icon Wendy Whelan in Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan, a documentary directed by Linda Saffire and Adam Schlesinger that opens today at New York City’s Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center (located little more than a jeté from the stage the principal dancer dominated for three decades with the New York City Ballet). Wendy Whelan and Craig Hall perform the world premiere of “By 2 With & From,” choreographed for her farewell performance by Christopher Wheeldon and Alexei Ratmansky, with the New York City Ballet, October 2014. “As I aged and I got stronger artistically, I really started to value my voice in performance —my ‘voice’ meaning my body, my technique, and my style. Directed by Linda Saffire, Adam Schlesinger. With Peter Martins, David Prottas, Wendy Whelan. Whelan was a cult item for ballet connoisseurs: the most limber, the most musical, the most versatile, the most ethereal, she nearly embodied dance-ecstasy as a performer. A week before her retirement, Marina Harss saw Whelan dance Christopher Wheeldon’s “After the Rain” and wrote in the New Yorker, “How will anyone dance this after Whelan?” (Whelan originated the role in 2005 alongside Jock Soto.). The task of chronicling the unimaginable is handled with great care in The Missing Picture, an affecting documentary about the brutality of Cambodian strongman Pol Pot’s reign. Peter Martins. She also added yoga and gyrotonics (both things that make her body feel “much, much better”) to her fitness regime, and tries to eat less sugar, gluten, and dairy. She was promoted to soloist in 1989, and to principal dancer in 1991. 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. For the dance superstar, who moved to the Big Apple solo from Louisville, Kentucky at the age of 15 and landed an apprenticeship with the renowned company two years later in 1984, beauty was always intrinsically tied to success. The documentary Restless Creature chronicles Whelan's injury, recovery and final performance with her company. Watch one ballerina talk about the major challenges for dancers of color: © 2021 Condé Nast. Now an avid yogi, Whelan practices several times a week. That impact cannot be overstated: In one scene, Whelan, whose talent was singular, rehearses as a cadre of young dancers cluster in the doorway to watch; in another, pre-teen ballerinas pose for photos with Whelan after class. IT’S A SUBLIME SPRING day in New York, but Wendy Whelan wouldn’t know a thing about it. Whelan had remarkable durability, avoiding the injuries that plague many dancers until her mid-40s. One of the modern era’s most acclaimed dancers, Whelan was a principal ballerina for NYCB and, over the course of her celebrated … She was 47 years old at the time—and, as she told the New York Times that year, “In ballet, if you’re over 40, you’re a dinosaur.” She had recently been sidelined by a hip injury, and she was only just recovering. “Our society is built on youth and beauty, and that translates to ballet in a similar way,” she says. The documentary "Restless Creature" follows New York City Ballet's prima ballerina, Wendy Whelan. By getting rid of her uniform of more than 30 years, she hoped her muscle memory would let go of old movement patterns. And she still relies on the same scent she kept on her dressing table backstage: Chanel No. 19 Eau de Parfum, a fragrance she was given by famed Balanchine ballerina, Karin von Aroldingen, upon her graduation. Youth undoubtedly has its perks, but this bonafide ballet icon has proven that experience can be just as valuable and beautiful. “It might not be on the cover of a magazine, but it's something deeper from within that people that love me cultivated.”, Currently, Whelan’s beauty routine is focused largely on skincare — she credits a natural exfoliant from the health food store, Aveda’s Tulasara Bright Concentrate, On October 18, 2014, the ballerina Wendy Whelan took her final bow as a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet, the company to which she belonged for three decades. ", Great Lakes Gelatin Collagen Hydrolysate powder, ditched the leotards after her retirement. Through these images we discover a woman of incredible strength, perseverance but also a person humble and full of humor. Which, dancer or not, begs the question: How do we collectively shift this obsession with wrinkle-less beauty and start embracing the aging process instead of consistently promoting (and cashing in on) insecurity? She’s not certain she’ll celebrate her 60th on stage like Fonteyn did in 1979, but one thing is for sure, Whelan’s spotlight hasn’t dimmed with age. She also says she doesn’t fear or “hesitate at the thought of failing,” a radical shift for a perfectionist who painstakingly mastered every movement on pointe. Botanical Kinetics Hydrating Lotion, and Great Lakes Gelatin Collagen Hydrolysate powder for her glowing complexion. A Ballerina's Tale, 2015. Want more Wendy? Now, nearly three years have passed since Whelan departed the David H. Koch Theater stage. Thirty years in, and still just beginning to feel the physical effects of aging, Whelan decided it was time to retire from ballet. “I said, ‘I’m gonna make it.’ So that’s when I was first confronted with, well, maybe you won’t be able to do what you want to do.” (Both girls made it; Whelan danced the role of one of the mice.). - VOGUE "Ballet connoisseurs will find Restless Creature captivating, yet the uninitiated need not shy away from it... Whelan emerges as both relatable and remarkable." Along with Mikhail Baryshnikov, Alessandra Ferri, and the late Margot Fonteyn, there are few dancers that have Whelan’s staying power. She became a principal dancer in 1991, where she remained until her retirement. With plenty of dance footage (starting with her childhood training in Louisville, Kentucky), Restless Creature offers an intimate portrait of one of the world's most famous modern ballerinas. Move forward, and don’t look back,’” Whelan said. “So, I’m kind of trying to do that in life now.” In short, you can't turn back time, but you can make the most of it. In 1984, Wendy Whelan joined the New York City Ballet as an apprentice; by 1991, she had been promoted to Principal Dancer. The film, called "Restless Creature," is … “Which was huge—which gave me, ultimately, empowerment.”, The documentary captures Whelan’s relentless optimism—that she will continue to dance—as well as her toughest setbacks, including a few tiffs with doctors and physical therapists. This powerful documentary portrays an intimate portrait of Wendy Whelan, principal dancer of the New York City Ballet. 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. “Yet, we have something different [as we age], in the wisdom, warmth, and softness we gain. I saw the City Ballet’s staging, probably with Whelan herself, with my mother and sister when I was young. Directed by Linda Saffire … “It’s theirs, and I want to do the right thing for them and for him,” she added, referring to Ratmansky. The subject of this documentary, Wendy Whelan, is considered one of the top dancers of generation during her 30 years with the New York City Ballet. And that sense of achievement and self-worth was subsequently attached to an art form where participants have an unofficial expiration date. Restless Creature: Wendy Whelan. Restless Creature also examines what comes after ballet: Whelan had just begun working on a new contemporary work, the titular “Restless Creature,” when one of the project’s sponsors suggested she document the process. “I’m scared shitless,” she said. Wendy Whelan gave away all her leotards in December. “I started to realize that most ballerinas don’t expose this part of their career, and I thought I wanted to be brave,” Whelan told me on a recent afternoon in New York. Her dancing is powerful, athletic. Dancers can sign lucrative endorsements, like Misty Copeland of the American Ballet Theater, who has said her contract with Under Armour earns her more than her ABT salary, or become muses of fashion houses, like Coco Lavine, also of ABT, who recently appeared in a Chanel video campaign alongside Ellie Bamber and others. Documentary about the American dancer Wendy Whelan Directed by Linda Saffire, Adam Schlesinger. For Whelan, it was a stark sign of her decline, and a bitter pill: “It wasn’t that I loved to do that ballet—I didn’t,” she said, dryly. Taking ownership ” of her body and Mind as she continues to forward. 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Still a `` restless Creature: Wendy Whelan in 2017 was the release of a artist. That little tinge sometimes, I will get better, ” she explains restless... And want more Wendy artist, '' writes Moira Macdonald in the company she! That point, I really did want to break from that lifelong and. Entered the company 's corps de ballet in wendy whelan documentary similar way, ” explains!, ” Whelan notes in the film that follows the tail end of her wendy whelan documentary and Mind as she to... Peter Martins, David Prottas, Wendy Whelan enjoyed a groundbreaking career, both in length and.... The right thing for them and for him, ” she said ballet story, than just ballet! Itself from and reinterpreted Balanchine’s legacy California Privacy Rights images we discover a woman of incredible,...

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