‘The Dance is Not Over: The Patrick Scully Story’

The most challenging part of making a movie about Patrick Scully was editing it down to 93 minutes, according to director Mark Wojahn.
Scully is an internationally known dancer, choreographer, activist and publicly HIV-positive gay man.
Wojahn has documented his life on film in the documentary The Dance is Not Over,” which will be showing at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF) at the Main Cinema, 115 Main St. E. in Minneapolis. MSPIFF will run April 2-13, 2025.
“Patrick is a mountain of creativity and ideas,“ said Wojahn. “The biggest challenge was finding which signature works of his to tell and how to tell it. The other thing was trying to incorporate the Cabaret into the story.”
Scully founded Patrick’s Cabaret in 1986, and for more than 30 years the site was a home for performing artists who brought edgy and controversial work to the stage, giving audiences an opportunity to see nonconformist dance and theater. Patrick’s Cabaret was at 3010 Minnehaha Ave. in Minneapolis where the Hook and Ladder is now in the Longfellow neighborhood.
“Patrick has had so many performers influenced by their work at the cabaret, and so many visitors,” Wojahn continued. “He has touched so many, and I could have interviewed even more people than I did.” According to Wojahn, it was difficult to edit the film down to 93 minutes and still honor Patrick for all that he has done.
Wojahn said he has known Scully since 2011, and their long friendship was helpful in making the film.
“We’ve been working on this for about six years,” he said. “When we started the project, we thought there would be one film. And then the pandemic happened, and it gave us a second film.” He said that during COVID, he edited the film “Leaves of Grass Illuminated,” about Scully’s one-man show on Walt Whitman and the performance he gave of that show at the Guthrie Theater.
“That film came out in 2021, and we showed it at the Twin Cities Film Festival. The film was ready in the fall, and it was a matter of timing to get it into that festival.” Wojahn said that the collaboration between Scully and himself resulted in two films being made.
“For sure, working with a friend provides access to the person the story and the institution,” Wojahn stated. “Because of our long friendship, Patrick felt safe and comfortable with me telling his story. It was clear that he didn’t want just anyone to film him. He knew that I would respectfully and honorably make the documentary about him.”
Scully has seen some versions of the film, according to Wojahn, and provided feedback regarding accuracy. “He knows this is my documentary, and the story is about him.
“The film does not include everything. It’s not easy to tell, because Patrick produced so much work over his career of nearly 50 years. And although the movie entwines his life and art, it is not so much about his personal life. There is a chapter about HIV and AIDS, but we do not delve into his relationships.”
Wojahn said the documentary shows the process of Patrick’s dance career and how his work evolves from someone who is interested in storytelling and has performed with different companies to founding Patrick’s Cabaret and his appearances as Walt Whitman in “Leaves of Grass.”
Wojahn pointed out that film is the ultimate collaboration. “From the visual and photography to the producers to the sound men to the lighting artists, film is one of the most collaborative arts,” he said.
He has made documentaries for years. “I believe life is stranger than fiction,” he stated. “I love celebrating artistic achievements and how a documentary can validate someone’s story by putting the lens on them. I like how documentaries can reveal secrets. You’ll see the intricacies of Patrick as a choreographer and human being, and I hope that inspires people.”
The director said he thinks documentaries can reflect the current political scene of a country. He cited “No Other Land,” the Academy Award-winning film that was shot by a Jewish activist and Palestinian activist, showing the destruction of Palestinian homes on the West Bank.
“That is a very important film for the times we are in,” he noted. “Because Patrick is about freedom and living his life as a very well-known homosexual, it is good to be releasing this film in a year with politics as they are. I’m proud to be an ally of that community and make this important film about Patrick.”

TIED TO MINNEAPOLIS
Wojahn said he grew up in the Longfellow area and fell in love with film when he attended the Riverview Theater. “I still live in southwest Minneapolis, just outside the Longfellow neighborhood,” he said.
He said it might be easier to be well known as a filmmaker if you lived in Los Angeles or New York City, but the Minnesota film community is very supportive.
“It’s easier to make films in a place where we hibernate for awhile. Prince came back because he liked the solitude. There is something to be said for the ingenuity and good community of artists here, and I think our film scene reflects that.”
Wojahn said he works in film production and makes documentaries when he is not “working for the man” in commercial film. He also started Casket Cinema, where documentaries are shown to the public at the Casket Building, 681 17th Ave. NE in Minneapolis. “We’re trying to build community through documentary film,” he noted. “Ninety percent of the door goes to filmmakers and causes.”
“The Dance is Not Over” is a documentary that Wojahn said he hopes will reflect the historical record of all the work that Scully has done. “He first danced professionally in 1976, and he is still performing today. Not that many dancers still perform in their 70s. But Patrick just keeps on going. That’s why the film is called ‘The Dance is not Over.’”