Diversity in the ranks of dancers at U.S. ballet companies is an ongoing concern. American Ballet Theatre’s CEO, Rachel Moore says that “the real issue is the pipeline” – not enough minority dance students have the opportunity to get top-level training. So ABT created Project Plié to start addressing that problem.
Tag: 11.12.13
Europe’s Flailing Capital Of Kitsch
“Jets of water spurt into the air in front of the warriors: red, yellow, blue, violet. The eight bronze men stare fiercely through the spray of the fountain, while far above their heads, Alexander the Great sits enthroned, raising one sword up at the sky. Wagner and Tchaikovsky blare out of the speakers and the water shoots more or less in time with the music.”
Reading The Prayer Journal Of The Young Flannery O’Connor
“The addressee here is God, but already O’Connor is rehearsing her role as speaker, anticipating how she will address a mortal audience. Learning to avoid cliché and speak authentically is a predicament of both prayer and literature, and solving the problem in her prayer life allowed O’Connor to solve the same problem in her fiction.”
Dia Art Foundation’s Founders Withdraw Lawsuit
“Two founders of the Dia Art Foundation who have been vehemently opposed to the organization’s decision to raise money by selling several notable pieces from its collection have decided to withdraw a lawsuit filed last week to block the sale.”
Bolshoi Acid Attack Trial: Accused Demanded Roles From Filin, Says Witness
Bolshoi Ballet director Sergei Filin’s assistant testified that the accused mastermind of the attack, dancer Pavel Dmitrichenko, demanded principal roles for himself and for his girlfriend and argued with Filin over docking the pay of dancers who skip morning class.
England’s Latest Theatre Kerfuffle: Critic Walks Out On Stand-Up Comic, Audience Member Fights Back
“Accusations and counter-accusations are flying this week, after the Telegraph‘s comedy critic walked out of Stewart Lee’s Much A-Stew About Nothing – and wrote a combative article explaining why.” Now an audience member accuses the critic of omitting key information from the story.
Pianist Faces Prison For Noise Pollution (She Was Practicing)
“Spanish concert pianist Laia Martin is on trial and could face more than seven years in jail after a neighbor complained her practicing caused psychological damage.”
Fans Rescue Iconic Comics Publisher In Kickstarter Campaign
Luckily for the fiercely independent publisher, fans were willing to buy in, showing up with cash and “happy to back the best book publisher in America, period” sentiments. All told, more than 2,300 people had contributed as of Tuesday, four of them even opting for the $2,000 pledge which snags them every Fantagraphics book put out in 2014.
British Museum, Royal Opera House Should Move Out Of London, Says Former Blair Advisor
Moving prestigious London-based institutions like the British Museum and Royal Opera House could “have a catalytic effect that will strengthen the position of those economies outside the south-east.”
The Last Movie Ever To Be Rented At Blockbuster Was…
“The final rental at the once-ubiquitous video rental chain took place in Hawaii at 11 p.m. local time November 9. The moment was captured in a photograph for posterity, though posterity probably won’t spend a lot of time looking at it.”