Petit's high-wire dance opens BAC film series

It's probably not the sanest thing to fall head over heels in love with wirewalker Philippe Petit. Man on Wire--the suspenseful, Oscar-nominated documentary directed by James Marsh--tells the fascinating back story of Petit's illegal, triumphant dance across a wire stretched between the towers of the World Trade Center. It also demonstrates why you might want to steer clear of this obsessive at the same time that it renders you--like his then-lover Annie Allix and his merry band of accomplices--totally incapable of resisting a man of such heroic imagination, craftiness and discipline.

So, don't risk it. Don't see it...

No! Scratch that! Definitely see it!

Be one of the first to welcome in BAC FLICKS, the new film-and-conversation series presented by Baryshnikov Arts Center in partnership with La Cinémathèque de la Danse (Paris). On Friday, February 13 (7pm), BAC will screen Man on Wire, followed by a Q&A with Petit and
a reception hosted by Les Trois Petits Cochons.

BAC Flicks, a film series comprising four presentations each season, will feature culturally significant films and rare cinematic treasures from the archives of the La Cinémathèque de la Danse that may not otherwise have the opportunity to be seen in the United States. A talk with the director or subject of the film will be included as part of each presentation.

Philippe Petit, universal poet laureate of the high wire, was born in France. On August 7, 1974, Petit walked a high wire illegally stretched between the rooftops of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, making eight crossings over the course of an hour, a quarter mile above the sidewalks of New York. His book, To Reach the Clouds, which recounts Philippe’s WTC adventure, is the subject of the award-winning documentary film, Man On Wire, and a feature film with a tentative release date of 2012.

To Reach the Clouds, re-titled as Man On Wire, was recently released in paperback. Petit has performed on the high wire more than 80 times around the globe, crowning with his wire such architectural monuments as Notre Dame Cathedral and the Sydney Harbour Bridge and creating unique artworks for such momentous events as the French Bicentennial at the Eiffel Tower witnessed by 250,000 spectators, and the 1200th anniversary celebration of the city of Frankfurt before an audience of 500,000. He has done more than a dozen walks in New York City, where he has been an Artist-In-Residence at The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine since 1982. Philippe was presented with the prestigious James Parks Morton Interfaith Award, is the recipient of the New York Historical Society Award, and was recently made Chevalier des Arts & des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture.

BAC FLICKS program Information

February 13 (7PM): Man on Wire (2008)
Directed by: James Marsh
Running time: 94 minutes
Followed by a Q&A with Philippe Petit
Reception hosted by Les Trois Petits Cochons

April 9, 10, and 11 (7PM): Lucinda (1978)
Directed by Cynthia Hampton
Including a discussion with Lucinda Childs

Ticket Information

Reservations are required. A donation of $20 per ticket is suggested to help support artistic programs at BAC. To make a reservation, please call 646-731-3218.

Baryshnikov Arts Center
Howard Gilman Performance Space
450 W. 37th Street (between 9th and 10th Avenues), 4th Floor, Manhattan