One of Billy Joel’s most famous songs – his first big hit, “Piano Man” – was released when he was twenty-four years old. It was based on his real-life experiences: “Piano Man” is a fictionalized retelling of Joel’s own experience … Continue reading →
This post was sparked by this question from commenter “IrishOtter49”: This is a serious question. Can women with an, er, “ample” bust be ballet dancers? Commenter “om” replied thusly: If you are jumping, spinning, bending at the waist, rapidly at … Continue reading →
Laurence Tribe is a law professor at Harvard specializing in the US Constitution. But leftism and partisan Trump-hatred so blinds Tribe that he sounds incredibly stupid here. Maybe he really is incredibly stupid, but I doubt it – at least, … Continue reading →
I’ve recently discovered a YouTube channel featuring two sisters, dancers who speak about ballet. They are delightful as well as knowledgeable, in their very early twenties, and I’ve been having a good time watching their videos. I was going to … Continue reading →
[NOTE: Today is Presidents’ Day, and this is a repeat of a previous post.] I’m not that old, but pedagogical practices in my youth seem absolutely archaic compared to whatever passes for education these days. For starters, we had Washington’s … Continue reading →
Same scene, two versions of War and Peace. Hollywood, circa 1956. Ferrer and Hepburn were married in real life at the time: Here’s the Russian version made in the 1960s, which I saw in movie theaters long ago. I found … Continue reading →
This “Bacchante” variation from Walpurgis Nacht was Maya Plisetkaya’s forte, and nobody else is Plisetskaya or even close. But many give the variation a try, especially in dance competitions where they face a particularly daunting task: to perform the variation … Continue reading →
First of all, I dislike this particular ballet variation even when adult soloists perform it. It’s herky-jerky and show-offy in a sharp and to me unpleasant way. There’s a tendency for the women to look as though they’re ferociously looking … Continue reading →
… named Chloe Helimet has a lovely lyrical upper body for her age, and a calm presence. The variation she’s dancing is harder than it looks because the slow tempo requires so much control. Her feet are unusually flexible, which … Continue reading →
The outcome seems to me to be a foregone conclusion. But you can talk about it all here. Or the weather, which is very cold in Iowa today. Or this song: I saw the original Broadway production as a very … Continue reading →
Seventy thousand dollars or so? Someone shelled that out back in 2020. I looked that fact up because of this comment by “Oligonicella”: I have a long running joke of a habit as I paint. I clean my palette board … Continue reading →