First look at the Ralph Fiennes directed ballet biopic.
The most famous name in ballet, Rudolf Nureyev's story is brought to the screen by director Ralph Fiennes and screenwriter David Hare in The White Crow.
Oleg Ivenko stars as the adult Nureyev, with Adele Exarchopoulos, Chulpan Khamatova, Sergei Polunin and Fiennes himself also starring in the film, which tells Nureyev's story from his childhood to his famous defection to the West.
The White Crow opens in UK/ROI cinemas March 22nd, with preview screenings featuring a live streamed Q+A with Fiennes on March 12th. Details of participating cinemas can be found here.
Check out the first trailer below.
The official synopsis reads:
The incredible true story of legendary dancer Rudolf Nureyev is brought vividly to life by Academy Award®-nominee Ralph Fiennes and BAFTA winning screenwriter David Hare. From Nureyev’s poverty-stricken childhood in the Soviet city of Ufa, to blossoming as a student dancer in Leningrad, to his nail-biting escape from the KGB and defection to the West at the height of the Cold War, The White Crow is a gripping, revelatory look at a unique artist who transformed the world of ballet forever.
A young man of just 22, dressed in a black beret and a dark narrow suit, is on an aeroplane flying from St Petersburg to Paris. It is 1961 and Rudolf Nureyev, not yet the imperious figure of legend, is a member of the world-renowned Kirov Ballet Company, travelling for the first time outside the Soviet Union.
Parisian life delights Nureyev and the young dancer is eager to consume all the culture, art and music the dazzling city has to offer. But the KGB officers who watch his every move become increasingly suspicious of his behaviour and his friendship with the young Parisienne Clara Saint. When they finally confront Nureyev with a shocking demand, he is forced to make a heart-breaking decision, one that may change the course of his life forever and put his family and friends in terrible danger.