“Almost overnight, Youth America Grand Prix created a central ballet marketplace, and just as suddenly it upped the ante even higher on ballet’s infamously demanding training regimen. Competitions, though controversial, do have their supporters. They argue that contests give American students valuable performing experience, which they generally lack in comparison to their European counterparts.”
Tag: 04.29.12
Theatre For Kids With (Super) Short Attention Spans
“The teacher said an awareness of the short attention spans of children with developmental disabilities was crucial to reaching them. She tries to divide her class into different activities lasting around 10 minutes each; at the recent class, because the theatrical signing and charade-type games were ‘really cooking,’ she said, she allowed them to run longer.”
Hey Visitors To London, Don’t Expect Friendliness; Do Expect Curry
As tourists plan to flood London with people for the Olympics, what should they know? A.A. Gill: “London is a city of ghosts; you feel them here. Not just of people, but eras. The ghost of empire, or the blitz, the plague, the smoky ghost of the Great Fire that gave us Christopher Wren’s churches and ushered in the Georgian city. London can see the dead, and hugs them close. If New York is a wise guy, Paris a coquette, Rome a gigolo and Berlin a wicked uncle, then London is an old lady who mutters and has the second sight. She is slightly deaf, and doesn’t suffer fools gladly.”
After A Terrible Year For The Detroit Symphony, Trial By Fire For Concertmaster Candidate
“The appointment of a new concertmaster is always a landmark in the life of an orchestra, but for the DSO the stakes are even higher. A standout hire would signal an artistic and psychological turning point in the drive to rebuild the ranks after last season’s tumultuous strike.”