Short Dance Pieces: ‘Sometimes Less Means Far, Far More’

Judith Mackrell: “[In] a culture where choreographers are pressured to create within standard formats – 30 minutes for a triple-bill piece, 60-90 minutes or more for a full evening’s work – I think we’re missing the point of the very short work, its zest and its challenge. For experimental choreographers, the five- to 15-minute slot is ideal – serious ideas can be addressed without becoming sermons.”

Rush To Finish Work On Barcelona’s Famous Basilica In Advance Of Pope’s Visit

“That construction work, however, is taking place amid a debate that has been waged for decades over whether the Sagrada Família is drifting too far from its creator’s artistic vision. Some also argue that the Sagrada Família’s tourism appeal — it draws an estimated 2.5 million visitors a year — lies precisely in the fact that it is one of the world’s greatest unfinished works of art.”

Director Peter Hall At 80

Since his first professional production, Somerset’s Maugham’s The Letter, which he directed in Windsor just two weeks after leaving Cambridge in 1953, he has never been out of work. “It is amazing to be able to say that in my profession,” he said a few years ago. “And I keep my voice down so the fates will not notice me.”

Chinese Artist Ai Wei Wei Talks About The Government Order To Tear Down His Studio

“Ai, who is a relentless user of the microblog Twitter, is best known for co designing Beijing’s Olympic stadium, the Birds Nest, which some hoped would herald a more open China. Ai suspects that the order may be linked to two high-profile campaigns that have embarrassed and angered the Shanghai government in recent years.”