The only all-American film at the busy Rome Film Festival 23 premiered on Saturday 28. The film was highly awaited by critics and audiences, being one of the few foreign films presented at the festival in Rome. Highly awaited was also the presence on the red carpet of the star of the film – a Golden Globe winner, Jeremy Piven. The film was directed by the sister of Jeremy, Shira Piven and is based on the piece of the famous American playwright Arthur Miller. The film examines how far an artist would go to continue to perform in front of an audience and how hungry artists can be for success.
ENJOY THE EXCLUSIVE VIDEO-INTERVIEW
The film takes place in 1937 and Jeremy Piven plays Harold May, a talented American tip-tap dancer of Jewish origin. This character is a struggling artist without a penny who is willing to sacrifice all in order to continue dancing… The show must go on as they say and Harold and his troupe of dancers go on a European tour through the Balkans where they don’t manage to earn a good living, but at least they continue their performance.
After one of his performances, Harold is approached by a German fan, Herr Fugler, played by Robert Carlyle. Fugler finds American tap dancing amusing and proposes the dancer perform at the Berlin Kick Club in fascist Germany. Harold gets highly paid for the performance and the troupe is given access to the finest hotels, luxury, and a chance to perform on the grand stage with a live band. On the night of the performance, Harold finds out that he has been hired to perform in front of Adolf Hitler himself. Harold must hide the fact that he is Jewish and pretend that he enjoys performing in nazi Germany just for the sake of working. Amazingly played by Piven Harold May gives us the sensation of the fear and doubt he is going through while in Germany.
The authors ask Many questions – like if there is ever a real separation between art and politics. Should a struggling artist accept the compromise to keep working? Should political beliefs influence culture? These all are indeed very current and up-to-the-moment topics that we face every day due to the wars going on in the world. The most important subject of the film is also an extremely current question – antisemitism and discrimination that we face in the modern world.
Jeremy Piven and his character are in the real spotlight of the movie. I am lucky to have met Jeremy just before the Premiere at the Rome Film Festival and to ask him questions about the film.
“I identified myself immediately with this character and my mother knew it somehow. She has been my acting teacher since I was 8 years old. She knew that I would gravitate towards this character. I played Ari Gold for many years and the biggest question that I was asked was how much I was like Ari Gold. But oddly enough, this character – Harold May is more like me than any character I ever played in my life, I identify myself with him, we must be very tenacious and ambitious as actors and put your ego aside”, – says Jeremy our interview in an elegant garden in the heart of Rome just before the premiere of the movie. In the film, he gives a very strong, emotional and touching performance and it’s easy to notice how much he identifies himself with the character.
Looking elegant and stylish in his DV suite Jeremy tells us how this project The Performance came to life. His mother suggested the piece by Arthur Miller and his sister Shira Piven wrote the scenography and directed the film.
“I have done 80 movies and I have never worked with such a brilliant director like her, – says Jeremy about his sister, – She is an” actor’s director” which means she comes from the stage which means she has been articulating herself as a director in terms of crafting performances for decades. She made me better in this role and It’s the best work I have done in my life for sure. “
In the film Jeremy’s dancing tip tap is impeccable, he seems to be a professional tip tap dancer.
“It took me 10 years to learn how to tip tap, – says Jeremy, answering my question about how he managed to dance so well, – 10 years to get to the point where I could play this role. The people around me in the movie are brilliant tip-tap dancers. Everyone in my troupe and Jeremy Grimes who is the choreographer is a genius. It was humiliating, to tell you the truth. They were so good, and I was trying to catch up. Again, you just put your ego apart and just become better.”
The movie was filmed some time ago but is coming out at a very delicate moment in the history of Israel. After many years, the topic of antisemitism is in the headlines again. I ask Jeremy if we can learn from history how to fight antisemitism, hatred and discrimination. The story of The Performance takes Place in the thirties, but this topic has never been so up-to-date as at this tragic moment. “You are right,” says Jeremy, – we need to understand our history. And that will inform all our choices. People right now are revelling in choosing sides as if it’s a football match.
I am against it as anyone would be the killing of innocent people. People were asking me – why are you silent, you are Jewish. But I cannot speak more eloquently than in this film. I am a performer, and this is how I contribute to the conversation. I could post a square, do a podcast, or do a Ted talk, but the best way to contribute is by telling a story where two men gravitate towards each other and have this amazing chemistry as friends. They really love and respect each other and then one person finds out the other is Jewish and, for me, it’s a typical example of that any kind of hatred is insane.
Because it is the opposite of spirituality where you are feeling one thing, but you have been told and you are slaved to that ideology and then you change your life as opposed to the reality you are witnessing. Who knew this would be a topical time for this film to come out.
We ask Jeremy why, from his point of view, people should go and see this film.
“Cinema provides many things; among them, it is a form of escape. You see this tap-dancing troupe, 1937 – it’s all big, splashy, and fun. And then there is a turn, and it gets very serious. And I think and I hope people will come out with questions – “What compromises do they make for success in their lives? If you have hatred in your heart, why?” Jeremy needs to get ready for the Premiere and I thank him for such an honest and open interview. The Performance premiered on the 28th of October at the Rome Film Festival 2023 and had great success, leaving the audience literally glued to their seats wondering what the destiny of the brilliant tap dancer Harold May would be and with a long-standing ovation for the team of the movie, Jeremy and Shira Piven.
Article and interview by Ekaterina Shevliakova