I saw this Kirkland/Barishnikov performance live on TV in 1978 when it first aired; I’d also seen the two do the same ballet in person. They were a magical pair in the short time they were partners. They were a … Continue reading →
I can’t imagine why 🙂 : As a child, I would have practically killed for those costumes and those fans. But my ballet teacher, who was British, had a very austere attitude towards recitals and fancy costumes: none. Here’s the … Continue reading →
The difference between these two speeches is abundantly clear: Trump offered bleakness, hostility, bigotry, and division. Kennedy offered hope, honesty, integrity, and unity.#SOTU — Charlotte Clymer???? (@cmclymer) January 31, 2018 Made me think of the first paragraph of Hans Christian … Continue reading →
“The Most Happy Fella” is a musical by Frank Loesser (I wrote about Loesser and his oeuvre here) that opened on Broadway in 1956. “Fella” is an odd bird in that it requires many operatic voices. Perhaps that’s why it’s … Continue reading →
Ever since I first saw the play “Noises Off” on Broadway around 1984 I’ve been deeply impressed by Michael Frayn, its author. I’d read about the play before I attended it. It was said to be very funny and very … Continue reading →
Margaret Atwood, feminist icon, has gotten into trouble. It’s part of what I’ve come to see as a generational war between certain older feminists who still hold to quaint old-fashioned notions such as due process, and certain younger ones who … Continue reading →
There are walls, and then there are walls. Robert Frost wrote: Something there is that doesn’t love a wall, That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it, And spills the upper boulders in the sun; And makes gaps even two can pass … Continue reading →
British ballerina Margot Fonteyn was never showy, never athletic, never gymnastic. She was restrained, delicate and refined, light as air. She seemed like a real (although ideal) human being rather than an infinitely stretchable creature with elastic for connective tissue. … Continue reading →
Robert Louis Stevenson is one of those writers I connect with childhood, where he loomed large. A Child’s Garden of Verses and Treasure Island, of course (which I now see were published in the same year), and then the Strange … Continue reading →
This story may not mean much to you, but it does to me: in the midst of allegations of abuse, Peter Martins has retired from the directorship of the New York City Ballet, although he denies any wrongdoing. Here’s more … Continue reading →
[NOTE: Here’s the original post.] Commenter “skeptic” writes: Neo, I think you are on to something here even if you may not realize it. The dweeb couple in the video also raised my, and many of your commenters’) hackles even … Continue reading →
Here’s a rousing demonstration of dance as male competition. As part of 1954’s “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” (which has a plot that would never, never fly these days) it features actors who were mostly dancers, and thrills and chills … Continue reading →