Can a madrasa that teaches children of suicide bombers to draw and dance help them get deprogrammed from hours and hours of militant videos? The school is sure trying, but “when they first arrived from Surabaya, the children shrank from music and refrained from drawing images of living things because they believed it conflicted with Islam, social workers said. They were horrified by dancing and by a Christian social worker who didn’t wear a head scarf.” – The New York Times
Tag: 10.18.19
The Nobel Literature Committee Defends Itself For Rewarding A Prize To An Accused Genocide Denier
Sure, Peter Handke spoke at the funeral of Serbian war criminal Slobodan Milošević in 2006, and sure, before that he had compared the fate of Serbia to that of Jewish people during the Holocaust, but Nobel committee members “predicted that in the future, Handke would be considered ‘among the most obvious choices’ for the prize. Writing in the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet, [one member] described Handke as an advocate for peace and said he was ‘anti-nationalistic.'” – BBC
Backup Dancers Are Leaping To The Forefront With The Power Of Smart Social Media
Backup dancers aren’t very “backup” anymore; instead, like the 16-year-old who began touring with Janet Jackson at age 12 and is now a major social media influencer, they’re at the center of the conversation. That’s thanks to Instagram. “Internet popularity can be a dancer’s entree to choreographing and starring in her own viral videos, traveling the world as a guest artist and teacher, and inking lucrative brand deals and endorsements.” – The Washington Post
Why That Picture Of Nancy Pelosi Standing Up To Trump Has Become Iconic Art
Something about the symmetry, the light, and the postures of the figures in the room turned ordinary people into art historians who were captivated by the strength of the composition. “The juxtaposition of the direction the participants are leaning on opposite sides of the table is a strong dynamic.” – Washington Post
There’s A New Dark Horse Contender For Best Ballet Company In South America
In 2010, Argentine dancer and former ABT principal Julio Bocca was named artistic director of Uruguay’s flagship company, the Ballet Nacional del Sodre. Since then, under Bocca and successor Igor Yebra, what was once a small, poorly attended troupe has become a dynamo: it has increased the number of rehearsals and performances, tours within the country and abroad, and sells more than 100,000 tickets a year in a country of only 3.3 million people. – Yahoo! (AFP)
John Schaefer: Why We Still Need Music Curators
“When what we listen to is all based on algorithms, you’re fed things that will already fit your taste. My intention with the show was always to make it like a series of doors. You could peek in and you could go into that door if you liked, or you could choose another.” – The New York Times