When Alex Fitzalan first learned about the many achievements of Joseph Bologne, he could not believe that his figure has not been more widely celebrated. Bologne — also known as Chevalier de Saint-Georges — was a master violinist, fencer and composer of African descent whose work was initially championed in pre-French Revolution Paris and mostly destroyed after Napoleon came into power. Now, the artist’s life story is brilliantly highlighted in the new film Chevalier starring Kelvin Harrison Jr. in the titular role and Fitzalan as Joseph’s close friend and main supporter, Louis Philippe II. In our digital cover story, we spoke to Alex about the importance of bringing awareness to Bologne’s career, researching the tragic fate of his character and the film’s spectacular shooting conditions.
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The film is based on the incredible life story of Joseph Bologne. Have you heard much about him prior to being part of the film?
No, I wasn’t aware of his story. Every single thing you read about him is so shocking to the point where you have to ask yourself, “How come this guy isn’t more widely known?” There’s so little and so much about him at the same time – there are not many sources that talk about him but the ones that do, they talk about him with such depth. We were lucky enough to have a group of historians working on the film who were really well-versed in his life, and just generally, life in France on the cusp of the French Revolution. I love history, so I found all of that stuff just so interesting and wonderful to research and learn more about.
Left Alex wear jacket Prada, pants Ami Paris, vintage shirt & waist coat from Fabrique Vintage I Billie wear shirt & skirt N21, shoes Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello
Right Jacket Dior Men
What amazed you the most about Joseph’s life?
I think that the most surprising thing was the fact that he was so multifaceted. He was France’s first celebrity, and rightly so! He was a master fencer and master violinist who became one of the most brilliant composers of his time in France. He was considered Mozart’s contemporary. And then when Napoleon took power after the French Revolution, it was kind of like a step backwards. They reintroduced slavery and were the only nation in history to do so. So most of Joseph’s works were hunted down and burned, and he was effectively wiped down from history.
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That’s why it was so important to tell this story on screen.
Definitely. I think that for everyone who was involved in this project, our main goal was to show his life and get his story out there – making people aware that his music was just as beautiful as Mozart’s and the only reason we don’t know about him is because of his skin colour.
Jacket & shirt N21, vintage pants from Fabrique Vintage.
“Our goal was to show his life and get his story out there – making people aware that his music was just as beautiful as Mozart’s and the only reason we don’t know about him is because of his skin colour.”
You mentioned that you really love history. What was the research that you’ve done specifically about your character, Philippe?
It’s so interesting because Louis Phillipe II was a real guy, but there’s so little information on what he was like. So it was fascinating to marry the two concepts of playing him – approaching the portrayal of him as if he was a fictional character, but at the same time also considering the source material that we were able to look into. He had a huge interest in the arts and that’s how he met Joseph – he would host these lavish nights and invite talented artists to perform during them. He was also a really fascinating guy because he grew up with a lot of privilege but decided to give it all up, which was such an interesting quirk for someone to do at that point in time – it speaks volumes to his selfless nature. He denounced his title in the middle of the revolution because he was an avid believer in democracy and equality. But even though he did that, he was still beheaded because he was a royal and had a claim to the throne. He spent his life campaigning for the rights of the individual and then once that had been achieved, he ended up losing his own life.
Left Alex wear coat & pants Ami Paris, vintage shirt from Fabrique Vintage I Billie wear full look Prada
Right Tank top Ami Paris
This was your first foray into period cinema. Which part of this experience has been the most incredible to witness?
Definitely shooting in the incredible interiors. They created these insanely realistic sets in the studio that were created specifically for the movie, full of this gorgeous sprawling marble and intricate fountain systems. We also shot a lot on location in Prague – for example, we shot in these 15th-century bohemian castles that are still maintained meticulously. It was a really special thing to be able to walk around these spaces and just exist in them. Actually, one of the coolest things was being able to shoot in a Baroque theatre from the 17th century. They were the most popular style of theatre back then and there were over 2000 of them at the time, but now, there are only 4 of them left in the world. And the reason for that is because there was no electricity, so to light the stage, they had to use a huge number of candles with a metallic back plate to reflect the light back. And as the whole thing was made of wood…
Coat Prada, vintage shirt & waist coat from Fabrique Vintage
They all burned down!
Yeah, they all burned down. It’s absolutely mental.
Most of your scenes in the film are with Kelvin Harrison Jr. who plays Joseph – what was it like to work with him and what do you admire the most about him as an actor?
His work ethic was amazing. He would wake up so early, do fencing, violin and dialect training, and then get to set. He just had the most insane dedication to this that I’ve ever seen anyone have. And it was just so inspiring to see someone so in love with what they do – it reignited that love for myself and made me think, “Wow, I want to do that as well!” He really dives deep and you can see his hard work on the screen.
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Interview by Martin Onufrowicz
Photography by Joe Brennan
Fashion by Alex Bainbridge
Hair & skin by Fernnando Miranda
Production by Rebecca Deasy
Stylist’s assistant Billie Bull
Photographer’s assistant Jun Yang Chin
