Tag: 09.21.07

Dance And Popularity – At Odds With Tradition?

TV dance shows are popular. But there is a tension between “new” dance and “old.” Traditional dance company dance has a certain artiness that can be at odds with those who are fans of the TV shows. “That perception hints at the gulf separating classical dance, often characterized as elitist and old-fashioned, and popular culture. While some on the show found him haughty, some ballet fans were incredulous that he would stoop so low.”

Critics Blast US Prisons Policy On Book Purge

“The federal Bureau of Prisons is under pressure from members of Congress and religious groups to reverse its decision to purge the shelves of prison chapel libraries of all religious books and materials that are not on the bureau’s lists of approved resources. Outrage over the bureau’s decision has come from both conservatives and liberals, who say it is inappropriate to limit inmates to a religious reading list determined by the government.”

Would Museum Help Or Hurt Chicago’s Waterfront Park?

Chicago’s Children’s Museum wants to relocate to Grant Park. “While it’s easy to get lost in such to-and-fro, the issue, in the end, is all about balancing precedent and progress: To allow one more museum to enter the park (the Art Institute of Chicago was granted an exception before its construction began in 1891) means that others invariably will follow. The risk is that more museums will clutter the park’s magnificent clarity, chipping away at Ward’s vision of serene open space. Is that where we want to go in the midst of a major buildup of residential high-rises around the park — even more buildings around its edges?”

Muti Stops Concert To Lecture Audience

When Chicago Symphony audience members clapped between movements at a concert Wednesday, conductor Riccardo Muti turned to the audience and lectured them about how to listen. “Some audience members no doubt found his comments condescending, but he made a valid point without bullying the newbies; and it seemed to me that everyone then listened to the finale with a greater understanding of how art and reality mingled so tragically at the end of the Russian composer’s life.”

Gerard Mortier Talks Opera And New York

Mortier has big plans for NY City Opera. He “thinks that New Yorkers, since the attacks of September 11th, 2001, are more aware of the fragility of life and cognizant of what art can contribute to a fulfilled existence. ‘We live in a world where if you show emotion, you’re a loser. In theater, we show that losers have a right to live, too. All the heroes of Verdi are losers’.”