Author: Douglas McLennan

In Ireland, the Arts Council has awarded £433,000 to stage a major dance festival. Great – but even in Ireland’s prosperous times, its dance infrastructure is in need of major repairs. Irish Times

“Less than a year after Philadelphia’s modern dance community lost its most important rehearsal space, [a prominent local dancer] is making plans to turn a cluster of garage buildings in the Spring Garden neighborhood into the city’s first theater dedicated exclusively to modern dance.” Philadelphia Inquirer

“Each year, any permanent member of the Paris Opéra Ballet wanting promotion to leading dancer, soloist or coryphée (a kind of demi-soloist) can apply to take part in a competition created for the purpose. More than half of them do so.” The Independent (London)

One of the great mysteries of the arts world is why one discipline can thrive while another dies a lonely death in the very same city. Yet it happens all the time, and Boston is the latest case in point. One of America’s great arts towns, full of top-quality music, fine museums, and a famous theatre scene, it has simply never embraced dance, and several companies are currently paying the price. Boston Globe 0

When Maina Gielgud left the Boston Ballet six months before she was even scheduled to begin work as the embattled company’s new artistic director, accusations flew over whose fault it was, and speculation over the “real” reason for her dismissal was rampant. The latest theory: it’s (almost) all about the money, baby. Boston Globe

Nearly forty years after Merce Cunningham burst onto the scene and changed dance forever, the 81-year-old choreographer is still one of the most innovative figures in modern dance. “The work is not and has never been trendy or appealing to popular taste. When making a dance, Merce has never considered what might be commercially viable.” Yet somehow, Cunningham has been embraced by the public like few other choreographers before or since. The New York Times (one-time registration required for access)

The ramrod straight perfect vertical line, the perfect split arabesque, is one of the most beautiful positions for a ballerina. So how did it come about? The Telegraph (London)

Performers aren’t always the most suited to be arts administrators, but David McAllister might be the exception. After giving his last performance at the Sydney Opera House on Saturday, he will step into his new role as artistic director of Australian Ballet and plans for his inaugural season already include a new “Swan Lake” and “Sleeping Beauty”, and adding 10 new dancers to the company. “His dressing room tells the tale. On one side of the table is eye makeup, foundation and powder. On the other is an ever-increasing stack of business papers.” Sydney Morning Herald

When the Boston Ballet unexpectedly dismissed several of its dancers last month, and then fired the incoming artistic director who had apparently ordered the action, the troubled company went into full defense mode, with everyone involved desperate to blame someone else. Now, two of the dismissed dancers paint a dismal picture of an organization where the buck stops nowhere. Boston Herald

If you haven’t taken Hong Kong action movies seriously, now may be the time to start. Dance critic Joan Acocella of The New Yorker pays particular attention to “wirework, whereby the fighters are attached to wires, like Peter Pan, so that they can move upward as well as in the usual directions… such feats leaven the film’s violence with a sort of joy. By producing a longer arc of action, wirework allows for longer takes–hence, expansion, afterthoughts, fantasy.” The New Yorker