The Red Shoes + Black Swan

Insanity and obsession en pointe as the Summer Classic Film Series brings together two of the greatest and most disturbing movies set in the body-breaking and mind-wrecking world of professional ballet. First, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger rewrite Hans Christian Andersen’s tale of a dancer who can never stop into a Technicolor horror, as Moira Shearer is driven to madness and death by her three passions: the love of a composer, the promise of stardom, and dance. Then Natalie Portman implodes in a dangerous pas de deux with Mila Kunis in Darren Aronofsky’s twist on Swan Lake. [Editor’s note: Special for this screening, local drag icon Louisianna Purchase delivers a dreamy performance before the double feature.] – Richard Whittaker