01.24.18 – Page 2 – ArtsJournal Wayback

Appreciating Ursula Le Guin

She took everything that might have hindered a lesser spirit and made it into a strength. As part of the New Wave in science fiction in the 1960s and ’70s, she and writers like Samuel R. Delany, J. G. Ballard, and Philip K. Dick brought sophisticated prose style and contemporary political and sexual questions into a genre that had often felt artless and blunt.

An Experiment: Why Swearing Helps Ease Pain

It turned out that, when they were swearing, the intrepid volunteers could keep their hands in the water nearly 50 percent longer as when they used their non-cursing, table-based adjectives. Not only that, while they were swearing the volunteers’ heart rates went up and their perception of pain went down. In other words, the volunteers experienced less pain while swearing. It’s an easy experiment to try for yourself at home, or at a party if you have the right kind of friends.

Enjoying The Fleeting Nature Of Theater, In The Wake Of Cancer

Playwright Dan O’Brien: “When you or a loved one are gravely ill you can’t help but feel that now is undeniably, inescapably now. … When one is gravely ill, anything can happen, and sometimes does. In a play, anything can and always does happen. Must do. Every moment a potential calamity. We’ve all seen an actor go up on her lines. Disaster. Beautiful. You can hear a pin drop.”

Former Trocks Dancer Talks About His Allegations Of Discrimination And Harassment By Company

“When it came to the show, we were encouraged to be who we were. But in ballet class, it was a different story. We weren’t allowed to express or present ourselves as we wanted; we couldn’t wear our hair in buns. Even what you wore to the airport was monitored.” Chase Johnsey talks with journalist Candice Thompson about why he left Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo after 14 years.

If ‘Gender Is Performative’, What Exactly Does That Mean?

“The basic idea is that gender is created by the very words and actions that appear, superficially, to be simply describing it after the fact. … Gender is not a thing so much as a process by which patterns of language and action come to repeat themselves.” Will Fraker unpacks Judith Butler’s most famous idea.

Footage Re-Emerges Of One Of Leonard Bernstein’s Last Rehearsals

“Fittingly, it shows him teaching a Copland symphony to students at Tanglewood, the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s summer home in the Berkshires, in 1990 – 50 years after he had studied there with Copland.” (includes video)

Louvre And Musée D’Orsay Begin Emergency Measures As Seine River Floods Paris

With France living through the rainiest January in years, the Seine’s water level is currently 17 feet, twice the normal level, and is expected to crest at around 20 feet by Friday. The Louvre has closed its Islamic art gallery and begun moving parts of its collection to higher floors, and the Musée d’Orsay and Orangerie have joined the Louvre in reducing some visiting hours.

Carlos Acosta’s Dance Company Is Opening Up The Closed World Of Ballet In Cuba

“Since retiring from the Royal Ballet and founding Acosta Danza in 2015 with the aim of fusing classic and contemporary ballet, the 44-year-old artist has brought the work of many renowned foreign choreographers like American Justin Peck to his Caribbean island. Some have created new pieces for the company.”

Comedy ‘The Death Of Stalin’ Banned In Russia

The country’s Culture Ministry has revoked the distribution license for this English-language satire conceived and directed by Armando Ianucci – two days before the film’s release date and two months after culture minister Vladimir Medinsky insisted that it would be shown in Russia. After a special screening Monday night, one culture official called the film “blasphemous”; another described it as “vile, repugnant and insulting.”

Tag: 01.24.18