A Choreographic Liaison: Collaborating with Stanley Kubrick

Contemporary feminist choreographer Yolande Snaith worked on the production of Eyes Wide Shut and so provides a key interpretation and perspective – from the inside of the production – rather than the standard academic approaches to look at her role in choreographing the infamous orgy sequence. Her chapter offers a unique lens into Kubrick’s working process. Snaith recounts in detail the genesis of what was to become the apex of the film and the painstaking selection process throughout the search for the ideal male and female bodies for these controversial scenes. Snaith demystifies some assumptions about the choreographic process and filming of the masked ball, and illuminates the nature of the relationship between cast, choreographer, director and crew, offering some insight into Kubrick’s complex modus operandi as a visionary and uncompromising film director.