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IMDbPro

Afternoon of a Faun: Tanaquil Le Clercq

  • 20132013
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 31m
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
246
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
118,753
58,178
Afternoon of a Faun: Tanaquil Le Clercq (2013)
A documentary on the great ballerina, Tanaquil Le Clercq.
Play trailer2:22
1 Video
1 Photo
DocumentaryBiographyDrama
Of all the great ballerinas, Tanaquil Le Clercq may have been the most transcendent. With a body unlike any before hers, she mesmerized viewers and choreographers alike - her elongated, race... Read allOf all the great ballerinas, Tanaquil Le Clercq may have been the most transcendent. With a body unlike any before hers, she mesmerized viewers and choreographers alike - her elongated, race-horse physique became the new prototype for the great George Balanchine. Her unique style... Read allOf all the great ballerinas, Tanaquil Le Clercq may have been the most transcendent. With a body unlike any before hers, she mesmerized viewers and choreographers alike - her elongated, race-horse physique became the new prototype for the great George Balanchine. Her unique style, humor and authenticity redefined ballet for all dancers who followed. Amazingly, she was... Read all
IMDb RATING
7.3/10
246
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
118,753
58,178
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Nancy Buirski
    • Writer
      • Nancy Buirski
    • Stars
      • Tanaquil Le Clerq(archive footage)
      • Jacques d'Amboise
      • Barbara Horgan
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Nancy Buirski
    • Writer
      • Nancy Buirski
    • Stars
      • Tanaquil Le Clerq(archive footage)
      • Jacques d'Amboise
      • Barbara Horgan
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 4User reviews
    • 13Critic reviews
    • 76Metascore
    • Awards
      • 3 nominations

    Videos1

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:22
    Official Trailer

    Photos

    Add photo

    Top cast

    Edit
    Tanaquil Le Clerq
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Jacques d'Amboise
    Jacques d'Amboise
    • Self
    Barbara Horgan
    • Self - George Balanchine's assistant
    Randall Bourscheidt
    • Self - Tanaquil Le Clercq's friend
    • (as Randy Bourscheidt)
    Patricia McBride
    • Self
    • (as Pat McBride Lousada)
    George Balanchine
    George Balanchine
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Larry Mackenzie
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Joya Moore
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Jerome Robbins
    Jerome Robbins
    • Self
    Arthur Mitchell
    Arthur Mitchell
    • Self
    Allegra Kent
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Suzanne Farrell
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Virginia Johnson
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    Martha Swope
    • Self - photographer
    • (archive footage)
    Marianne Bower
    • Tanaquil Le Clercq
    • (voice)
    Michael Stuhlbarg
    Michael Stuhlbarg
    • Jerome Robbins
    • (voice)
    • Director
      • Nancy Buirski
    • Writer
      • Nancy Buirski
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Connections
      Features The Red Shoes (1948)
    • Soundtracks
      Prelude to Afternoon of a Faun, L. 86
      composed by Claude Debussy

      courtesy of CBC

    User reviews4

    Review
    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    Moving portrait of a great artist
    Even those with little or no interest in ballet will be moved by "Afternoon of a Faun: Tanaquil Le Clercq," a documentary about one of the finest dancers ever to grace the stage, one who, like Lou Gehrig, was struck down by a disease of unspeakable awfulness in the prime of her life (though, unlike Gehrig, she managed to live to almost 80 despite her illness).

    A favorite pupil of famed choreographers, George Ballanchine and Jerome Robbins, Tanaquil, or "Tanny" to her friends. stood out from her ballerina contemporaries due to her unusual tallness and angular frame. The film chronicles her rigorous, sheltered youth, her tumultuous marriage to Ballanchine, her phenomenal success on the stage. And, then, just as she was on the top of the world professionally, tragedy - of a particularly cruel nature for a person used to making a living and perfecting her art with her body - befell her in the form of a severe case of polio, a case so severe, in fact, that she was forced to endure time in an iron lung and ultimately to spend the rest of her life in a wheelchair.

    Through an abundance of stills and kinescope recordings, we get to see a great deal of Tanaquil's work. These are supplemented by interviews with those who knew Tanny both on a professional level and as personal friends. Most poignant are the recitations of the letters Tanny wrote at the height of her illness, many of them from a rehabilitation center where she was receiving treatment. Her resolve and inner strength, along with her almost naïve hope for the future, pour forth in great abundance from the writings.

    One thing that strikes us most in Tanny's post-polio life is her determination to remain independent in the face of her disability. And, indeed, the movie ends on a high note, as we learn that Tanny spent the better part of her life imparting her priceless wisdom and insight to young dancers from her wheelchair.

    The movie provides an inspiring portrait of an inspiring person.
    helpful•7
    1
    • Buddy-51
    • Oct 14, 2014

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 30, 2013 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • Official Facebook
      • Official site
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Το απομεσήμερο ενός φαύνου: Τάνακιλ Λε Κλερκ
    • Production companies
      • Augusta Films
      • Steeplechase Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $172,450
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $15,292
      • Feb 9, 2014
    • Gross worldwide
      • $172,450
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 31 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
      • Black and White

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