Ralph Fiennes and David Hare discuss need for authenticity

Ralph Fiennes and David Hare came into the Simon Mayo show at Scala Radio to talk about their new film The White Crow. They spoke about the need for authenticity in the film which tells the story of one of the world’s most acclaimed ballet dancers, Rudolf Nureyev.

Scheduled for release this month, The White Crow follows Nureyev and his life-changing visit to Paris. Fiennes directs and stars in the film, and screenwriter Hare brings to life the book Rudolf Nureyev: The Life.

Fiennes told Simon Mayo on his decision to enlist the professional dancer Oleg Ivenko, saying,"Given I knew we would have huge constraints on time…casting an actor who was not a dancer (would mean) I would have to work hard to use body doubles to cover that. We searched all of Russia, and I watched many tests and met many ballet dancers – Oleg has a screen acting ability that the camera loves."

Music plays an integral role in the film. Scala Radio listeners were treated to premiere plays of 2 cues from the score: Nureyev and La Sainte-Chapelle, both by Ilan Eshkeri, who worked with Ralph on his earlier film The Other Woman (2013).

Fiennes went on to say that although he speaks enough Russian, developing it for the film ‘’was tough!’’

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