Peter Martins - en danser

Peter Martins, the film's star and visual object of fascination, is at the apex of his career as lead dancer and choreographer at New York City Ballet, Martins discusses how he came to New York at age 20 as a product of the Royal Ballet in Copenhagen, an intellectual and physical journey from the Danish Bournonville tradition to Balanchine's laboratory. Meanwhile, Leth is equally consumed with investigating how dance is conceived. How does a piece of choregraphy take shape? How do dancers and director communicate? Looking in on the daily rehearsals, we get a sense of the hard work it takes to achieve a sublime expression. Crosscutting from the daily grind of rehearsal sessions, where details are hammered out, to onstage performances - filmed head on, with the camera standing in for the audience - lends dynamics and perspective to the film.