Gerard Wilk danced alongside Irena Santor. Polish women sighed at him

Gerard Wolf was born on January 12, 1944 in Gliwice. Initially, there was no indication that he would become a dancer. He loved drawing and – as his teacher Halina Hulanicka recalled – he came to ballet school by accident. He was 13 years old at the time and was just learning the basics, but he quickly caught up. His talent was quickly noticed – after graduating from the Warsaw ballet school in 1964, he was employed at the Grand Theater, where he followed the entire career path: from a member of the corps de ballet to the first soloist.

Critics called him “a revelation in Polish ballet”, and his performances attracted crowds of viewers. Viewers loved his elegance, expression and cinematic beauty. No wonder Wilk quickly became a well-known figure outside the theater stage.

A dancer from screens and music videos

Wilk appeared in popular entertainment programs and films by Stanisław Bareja, including: “Marriage of convenience” and “Adventure with a song”. However, he became famous among a wider audience thanks to his appearance in Piotr Szczepanik’s music video “Kochać”, where he danced with Krystyna Mazurówna. A few years later, he also appeared in a music video by Irena Santor, which ultimately cemented his position as one of the most recognizable television dancers of the 1960s.

He was also a photo model – Barbara Hoff, the legend of “Przekrój”, invited him to her fashion sessions. “He promoted a bold style, full of colors and courage, which was missing in the gray Poland of those years,” a journalist wrote about him in one of the archive issues of the magazine.

A romance that was kept silent

In 1968, during the festival in Sopot, Gerard Wilk met the young actor Marek Barbasiewicz. There was an instant spark between them. Their relationship was shrouded in mystery for years – only a few of their closest friends knew about the affair.

“It was in the morning, we were waiting in the hall for the artists, and suddenly Gerard came down from the landing! Spectacular, tanned, in sandy pants and a purple shirt,” Barbasiewicz recalled years later in the book “Gerard Wilk. Dancer” by Zofia Rudnicka (2019).

Even though Wolf was friends with women, he never hid the fact that his heart beats for men. As Rudnicka described: “He was young, free (…). He threw himself into the vortex of social life, which included adventures.”

At Béjart’s and on world stages

In 1970, Wilk left Poland to join the famous Ballet of the 20th Century by Maurice Béjart in Brussels. He spent eleven years there, performing on the most important stages in Europe and the world. During this time, he gained recognition as a dancer with exceptional expression and stage magnetism. Krystyna Mazurowna recalled years later in her book “Oh, these guys!” that Gerard even had an “erotic episode” with Rudolf Nureyev, a legendary dancer and artistic director of the Paris Opera Ballet.

After ending his stage career, Wilk settled in Paris, where he devoted himself to teaching. He taught classes at dance schools in Berlin, Monte Carlo, Florence and Munich. The students sarcastically called him “She-Wolf” – he was demanding, but fair.

The Last Dance by Gerard Wilk

In the early 1990s, Wilk contracted AIDS. At that time, his partner was the painter Jean-Jacques Le Corre, with whom he shared life in Paris. Few knew about the disease – the dancer tried to remain discreet, even though he was one of the first known Poles to openly talk about his orientation.

He died on August 28, 1995 at the age of 51. He was farewelled in a Parisian chapel to the sounds of music he chose himself – Montserrat Caballé and Cesaria Evora. “Beautiful music was playing, which, as I later learned, Gedi had chosen for this ceremony himself,” recalled Zofia Rudnicka.

His body was cremated and the urn with the ashes was given to his partner who – according to legend – scattered them around his estate in La Piserot. To this day, Gerard Wilk does not have his own grave.