Apollo's Fire Playing Now Online In 'Playing With Fire'

Like so many musicians and musical groups, Cleveland's Baroque orchestra Apollo's Fire will not be seen nor heard in the near future.

Its spring concerts have all been canceled and the group's summer tour is highly questionable.

However, fans of Jeannette Sorrell and her award-winning group can see and hear them perform in the new documentary "Playing With Fire."

"Our patrons have been asking all year, 'When are we going to see the film?'" Sorrell said. "It had a splashy premiere in New York City."

Directed by Allan Miller, the film was scheduled to debut in Northeast Ohio during the Cleveland International Film Festival in March, but it's available now via CIFF44 Streams, the online festival.

"I'm glad people will finally be able to see it. We're sad to lose the festive opportunity to gather together," she said.

Jeannette Sorrell walks the grounds of the Aspen Music Festival. ["Playing with Fire" / Apollo's Fire]

The film shows how Sorrell overcame the odds to become a female conductor and the company's founding artistic director in 1992.

It also reveals rehearsal video, which was odd for Sorrell and her musicians.

Jeannette Sorrell leads Apollo's Fire musicians in rehearsal. ["Playing with Fire" / Apollo's Fire]

"It was a different feeling to have it filmed in rehearsal and to know it's going to be part of a major film release," she said. "We all tried to forget that the cameras were there, and I think eventually we succeeded in that."

With the spring and summer concerts lost, Sorrell hopes to restart in the fall on an appropriate note.

"A very festive Mozart program called 'Triumph of the Spirit,'" she said.

" Playing with Fire" is available on CIFF44 Streams through Tuesday, April 28