IU Auditorium and Ryder Film Series are partnering to co-present two screenings of “Ballerina Boys” with the Jacob’s School of Music at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 2 and 23 at the IU Radio and TV Building theater.
The documentary is a behind-the-scenes portrait of the Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo while they tour in the Carolinas, an epicenter of struggle for LGBTQ+ rights.
Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, also known as “The Trocks,” describes themself as a gender-skewering comic ballet company. The group will also perform at 8 p.m. Feb. 24 at the IU Auditorium. The Feb. 23 documentary screening will be followed by a Q&A with the company’s ballet master Raffaele Morra.
The group is all male and has been sharing a message of equality, inclusion and social justice all over the world. Their shows feature classical ballet performances by men in drag executing rigorous dance techniques with comedy and satire.
Inspired by the gay rights movement unleashed in the Stonewall Riots of 1969, the company was formed in 1974 and aims to challenge ballet’s rigid gender norms through their performative dance.
“The Trocks” are celebrating their 50th anniversary in 2024.
Fifty percent of proceeds from the Feb. 2 and 23 events will be donated to Bloomington Pride by the Ryder Film Series.
Tickets for the film screenings are $8 and are available for purchase online or at the door on the night of the show.
