NEW YORK (AP) — Fifty years after his legendary tightrope walk between the twin towers of New York’s World Trade Center, Philippe Petit recreated the death-defying stunt with a performance about 7 miles north of the World Trade Center at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine.
The 74-year-old artist wanted to celebrate the “glory days of the Twin Towers” rather than focusing on their tragic end in a terrorist attack on September 11, 2001.
“I don’t need to remind people of that fateful day,” Petit told the Associated Press after Wednesday’s appearance.
Petit said his goal was to honor both his remarkable achievement and the towers’ legacy.
“When you talk about a legend or a piece of history, it gives the whole thing a certain meaning, even if the subject of that story is no longer present. That is the miracle of memory,” said Petit.
The performance, titled “Towering!!,” recreated Petit’s unauthorized walk between the towers on August 7, 1974. After ascending to his seat inside the cathedral and reflecting on memories of the day, Petit walked the tightrope while Grammy-nominated jazz clarinetist Anat Cohen played below him.
As Petit continued his daring walk, Sting took the stage to sing “Fragile.” Later, Petit donned a gold sequined tunic while “Fields of Gold” played in the background.
Petit used the stunning visual and aural splendour of the world’s largest Gothic cathedral to recreate the grandeur of his historic walk 400 metres up in the air. Conceived and directed by Petit himself, the production included a series of short scenes that brought his 1974 feat to life.
Petit was arrested after crossing the towers and portrays this in the performance, which enters its second night on Thursday.
At one point in the show, reflecting on the success of the Oscar-winning documentary “Man on Wire,” which documented his famous march, Petit admitted that he had handled the success poorly, including by distancing himself from his friends.
“I was really bad to my best friend Jean-Louis Blondeau, who was more the mastermind of this adventure than I was,” said Petit.
After the performance, Petit received a proclamation from the office of New York Mayor Eric Adams declaring the day Philippe Petit Day.
Petit has been Artist in Residence at St. John the Divine for over 40 years and has performed 23 times in support of the cathedral.
