“In the world of classical ballet, the presentation of flowers to the lead ballerinas is a carefully choreographed ritual, one steeped in tradition and rules, and perfected by decades of practice. It’s also a study in contrasts, as ushers with no stage experience must walk across the stage to meet the most graceful of performers at center stage. What could go wrong?” You’d be surprised. Peggy McGlone talks with ushers at the Kennedy Center who do it.
Tag: 09.07.17
Photographer Stripped Of Award Because She Submitted Somebody Else’s Work
Madeleine Josephine Fierz of Switzerland won a gold medal at the Moscow International Foto Awards for a series of images of young Thais which she titled “I look at the world with the eyes of a child.” Turns out they were the work of a Thai photographer, and Fierze downloaded them from Pixabay.
Keith Haring Mural In Paris Saved From Wrecking Ball, Restored
Haring had assumed that his South Philadelphia mural would disappear, and it hasn’t. For this 88½-foot mural, it was the opposite: “I made this painting to amuse the sick children in this hospital, now and in the future,” he wrote in his diary – but by 2011 it had deteriorated badly, and the hospital was going to demolish it as part of an expansion. Roslyn Sulcas recounts how the piece, called Tower, was rescued.
Kate Millett, Author Of ‘Sexual Politics’, Dead At 82
“Dr. Millett was a contemporary of Gloria Steinem’s – the Ms. Magazine co-founder was six months her senior – and along with Steinem became a driving force behind feminism’s ‘second wave’ that transformed the movement in the 1960s and 1970s.”
Brussels’ La Monnaie Opera House Finally Reopens – With A Brand-New Opera That Brought The House Down (Figuratively)
The grand old theater shut down for renovations two summers ago; the work was supposed to take only one season, and the extra year of delays forced the company to (literally) put up a tent to perform in. Now the company has come back to its home stage with a brand-new work about which Corinna da Fonseca-Wollheim writes, “It’s undeniable: Philippe Boesmans’ Pinocchio is a hit.”
Top Posts From AJBlogs 09.07.17
Berserk in the Berkshires: Museum’s Perverse Plan Underscores Need for Government Regulations
The sad saga of the Berkshire Museum’s descent into madness — its wrongheaded, self-destructive obsession with solving its financial problems by selling off the best works in its collection — reaffirms my long-held conviction that strict laws and/or ironclad … read more
AJBlog: CultureGrrl Published 2017-09-07
Jazz on Millennium Park’s big screen – PoKempner photos
A 40-by-22½-foot LED screen is a dominating feature of the stage in the Pritzker Pavilion of Chicago’s Millennium Park, difficult to ignore though many try. … read more
AJBlog: Jazz Beyond Jazz Published 2017-09-07
Changing Of The Guard: Graydon Carter To Step Dwon From Editing Vanity Fair After 25 Years
“Mr. Carter’s influence and stature in the magazine and entertainment world is so great that to call his exit a changing of the guard seems insufficient: This is more of a regal passage. One of the few remaining celebrity editors, Mr. Carter — famous for his double-breasted suits, white flowing hair and a seven-figure salary — is a party host, literary patron, film producer and restaurateur who presides over a monthly publication that can still break news in a round-the-clock media age.”
Study: Listening To Vivaldi Boosts Creativity
The key result: Compared to working in silence, listening to the uplifting Vivaldi was “associated with an increase in divergent thinking.” Convergent thinking, on the other hand, was not significantly affected by background music. The researchers argue that this suggests the music inspired higher levels of “fluency and flexibility,” which are needed to come up with original ideas, but are less important in the paring-down process.
Want To Make Dance Appealing To Millennials? Here’s How
“Dance is a physical manifestation of abstract thought, and I can’t think of a better way to demonstrate this than by making work inspired by independent thought, by self-starting businesses. Using dance as a device for work advancement and learning also taps into something that Millennials increasingly desire in their work experience, something not only fun outside of work, but something applicable to professional growth.”
Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes: Hollywood Blames Review Website For Its Rotten Summer
Rotten Tomatoes has become the enemy for many studio bosses, writes Brooks Barnes: “Over lunch last month, the chief executive of a major movie company looked me in the eye and declared flatly that his mission was to destroy the review-aggregation site.” The site’s editors claim they love movies and movie fans and just want to help them. “How did a clunky website that has been around for 19 years amass such power?” Barnes explains how.