71st Anniversary of the British Film Sensation ‘The Red Shoes’ Release.

As we celebrate our 90 year anniversary, Freed of London cannot help but look back and feel incredibly lucky to have been involved with so many wonderful projects. For many years, Freed of London have been a part of and created for theatre, musicals and films, but today we celebrate the 71st year since British iconic film ‘The Red Shoes’ was released.

‘The Red Shoes’ (6th September 1948), a film inspired by Frederick Ashton’s ballet ‘Leda and the Swan’, has been highly praised by Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and Francis Ford Coppola amongst many other directors, critics and avid film fans. So today we feel especially honoured as the famous red shoes that are featured throughout the film were made by none other than us right here at Freed of London.

A dancer must face what seems like an endless amount of demanding and relentless obstacles in both their personal and professional life, and this film is an artistic and surreal depiction of just that. The directors were so dedicated to creating an authentic ballet based drama that they went the extra mile and cast real ballet dancers such as Moira Shearer (as main star Vicky Page), Robert Helpman (as Ivan Boleslawsky) and Ludmilla Tchérina (Irina Boronskaya).

Moira Shearer, a former featured dancer at Sadler’s Wells, was a prominent and gifted British ballerina. This made her the perfect casting choice for the part of Vicky Page, a young ballet dancer torn between her dedication to her art and her loyalty to love. Through the 15 minute ballet sequence, using Freed of London’s red pointe shoes, Shearer beautifully represents isolation, confusion and inner conflict – all through the interpretation of dance, showing how impactful ballet can be both visually and emotionally.

This film is incredibly meaningful to both the cinema and ballet world, and Freed of London are proud to have been such an integral part of this magnificent film.

As we celebrate our 90 year anniversary, Freed of London cannot help but look back and feel incredibly lucky to have been involved with so many wonderful projects. For many years, Freed of London have been a part of and created for theatre, musicals and films, but today we celebrate the 71st year since British iconic film ‘The Red Shoes’ was released.

‘The Red Shoes’ (6th September 1948), a film inspired by Frederick Ashton’s ballet ‘Leda and the Swan’, has been highly praised by Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg and Francis Ford Coppola amongst many other directors, critics and avid film fans. So today we feel especially honoured as the famous red shoes that are featured throughout the film were made by none other than us right here at Freed of London.

A dancer must face what seems like an endless amount of demanding and relentless obstacles in both their personal and professional life, and this film is an artistic and surreal depiction of just that. The directors were so dedicated to creating an authentic ballet based drama that they went the extra mile and cast real ballet dancers such as Moira Shearer (as main star Vicky Page), Robert Helpman (as Ivan Boleslawsky) and Ludmilla Tchérina (Irina Boronskaya).

Moira Shearer, a former featured dancer at Sadler’s Wells, was a prominent and gifted British ballerina. This made her the perfect casting choice for the part of Vicky Page, a young ballet dancer torn between her dedication to her art and her loyalty to love. Through the 15 minute ballet sequence, using Freed of London’s red pointe shoes, Shearer beautifully represents isolation, confusion and inner conflict – all through the interpretation of dance, showing how impactful ballet can be both visually and emotionally.

This film is incredibly meaningful to both the cinema and ballet world, and Freed of London are proud to have been such an integral part of this magnificent film.