JANE AVRIL - THE LIFE OF A MOULIN ROUGE DANCER

​​So, here it is - Jane Avril - The Life of a Moulin Rouge Dancer.

​Please do enjoy the film. 

​The following is Maria's own comments and useful Chapter breakdown to her film. 

​Jane Avril – The life of a Moulin Rouge Dancer is an artistic documentary where I tell all the facts I have discovered about French dancer Jane Avril’s life in detail. Starting from her birth in 1868 to her death in 1943. I reference all the historical facts and plausible stories I had found up until 2022. I often present information  in front of places linked to the presented period in Jane’s life.

The documentary was made while on a residency at Cité Internationale des Arts. It was shot in Paris and in Jouy-en-Josas, France. The documentary is part of the larger body of work about my relationship to French dance performer Jane Avril (1868-1943), who was a model and friend of artist Toulouse-Lautrec.

I’ve felt connected to her personality and artistic expression ever since the very first time I saw images and photos of her in 2004.

CHAPTER BREAKDOWN

  • Early childhood, Ètampes, domestic abuse - 0:00:00
  • Teenager, Salpêtrière Hospital, Hysteric ward, The Mad Ball - 0:04:34
  • Early youth, Latin Quarters, her first love, Bal Bullier, cultural friends - 0:10:09
  • The World Exhibition 1889, Arsene Houssaye - 0:14:35
  • Jane's early 20s, The Moulin Rouge opens, the history of the cancan - 0:16:55
  • A quote on her style, feelings towards dance, and being filmed - 0:20:48
  • Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Jane: his favourite model - 0:23:05
  • Eyewitness quote on Jane's dance, nervous breakdown, sanatorium, the Riviera - 0:27:08
  • Jane's love life, possible lover May Milton 0:30:03
  • Montmartre queer history - 0:33:34
  • Anitra's dance in Peer Gynt, London visit, Anglomania - 0:35:12
  • Pregnancy, birth of son - 0:39:40
  • Jane's 30s, tours France, death of Toulouse-Lautrec, dates Maurice Biais - 0:42:43
  • ​Lives with Maurice and her son in New York, moves back to France - 0:44:35
  • Madrid tour, theatre work, on and off with Maurice, last Moulin Rouge performance 0:48:01
  • Moves to Jouy-en-Josas, marries Maurice, last performance 1911 - 0:49:41
  • World War 1 outbreak, the fate of Jane's son, war years, war end 0:52:29
  • Maurice's secret life, disappearance and death - 0:57:06
  • Journalists seeking out the elderly Jane - 1:00:01
  • A new life, meeting biographer Jose Shercliff, Jane's memoirs 1:03:13
  • Moves to an old folks home in Paris - 1:06:30
  • The Toulouse-Lautrec Ball at Moulin de la Galette - 1:07:29
  • Jane's daughter-in-law and grandson, health issues - 1:09:06
  • A benefit concert, visits daughter-in-law and grandson - 1:11:40
  • World War 2 outbreak, last goodbye to Jose Shercliff - 1:14:14
  • Health problems and death - 1:15:59

My sources for making Jane Avril – The life of a Moulin Rouge dancer are: population censuses, the archive of Performing Arts – Bibliothèque Nationale de France, the archive of Museé Montmarte, a biography on Jane Avril from 1952, and my translation of Jane Avril’s memoirs from 1933, as well as biographies on Toulouse-Lautrec and the catalogue from the Courtauld Gallery’s exhibition Toulouse-Lautrec and Jane Avril – Beyond The Moulin Rouge.ick here to edit.