Barbara Weldens, a 35-year-old Frenchwoman who took first prize in last year’s Jacques Brel Young Talent competition and who released her first album in February, was performing at a festival in southwestern France when she abruptly collapsed, apparently having been electrocuted.
Author: Matthew Westphal
The First American Ever To Direct At Bayreuth, And They Chose, Of All People –
“Yuval Sharon has instigated a mobile opera involving 126 performers, 24 limousines and six composers. He’s produced a headphone opera, set among commuters passing through one of the country’s busiest train stations. … And, in 12 months, he’ll become the first American to direct a production at the Bayreuth Festival in Germany, founded by Richard Wagner in 1876.”
They Warned Him Not To Take This Gig With The Bolshoi, But Choreographer Jean-Christophe Maillot Made It Work
“‘It was a huge gamble,” Mr. Maillot, the director of Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, said in a phone interview from Monaco. ‘Everything was in place for it to fail.’ It did exactly the opposite. A success since its 2014 premiere, The Taming of the Shrew has become a calling card at home and abroad for the Bolshoi.” Laura Cappelle reports on the difficulties and delights of the project.
House Appropriations Committee Approves Bill Funding NEA And NEH
“The House bill, part of the process of thrashing out the federal budget for fiscal year 2018, includes $145 million for each endowment. The amounts represent a cut of about $5 million to each agency, but is a stark contrast to President Trump’s proposal to eliminate the endowments entirely as outlined in his first federal budget plan he announced in March.”
The Guy Who Started The Ballet-Hip-Hop Mashup Wants To Launch A Professional Hiplet Dance Company
About 25 years ago, at a rap concert in Canada, Homer Bryant had an idea: “I thought if I put rap and ballet together, I might have a hit on my hands.” Eventually, he did: video of his dancers went hugely viral (and got the pearl-clutchers a-clutching). Now (if he can find the donors) he’s hoping to go fully pro. (includes slideshow and video)
This Man Has Become The New Isabella Stewart Gardner Or Albert Barnes
In life, Federico Cerruti was a solitary bachelor who made his fortune binding books, lived in a small apartment above his office, and visited his villa packed with Old Masters and Modern art every Sunday. In death, he has become the latest equivalent of Henry Clay Frick, Isabella Stewart Gardner and Albert Barnes.
Top Posts From AJBlogs 07.20.17
The Fable of One Turtle and Four Humans: A Story of Community
How did the turtle cross the road? The answer according to Greg Milo: thanks to a cardboard box and a community. … read more
AJBlog: Field Notes Published 2017-07-20
Growing Together
Laura Gisler shares a beautiful meditation on what community means to her through these drawings and reflective, poetic words. … read more
AJBlog: Field Notes Published 2017-07-20
Why You Can Feel Exhausted After Just Sitting At Your Computer All Day
“The human body reacts to stress in many of the same ways regardless of whether the source is mental, like a difficult math problem, or physical, like running. … If you’re conscious, your brain demands your energy, and lots of it. Using your brain takes real, honest, physical work – it’s just not visible to us the way using our muscles to exercise is.”
‘Paradise Lost’ Has Been ‘Translated More Often In Last 30 Years Than Previous 300’
“More than 50 academics around the world collaborated to research a new book, Milton in Translation, discovering that the works of the 17th-century author have been translated more than 300 times and into 57 different languages. These range from Faroese and Manx to Tamil and Tongan, from Persian and Hebrew to Frisian and Welsh.”
Is It Even Possible To Make A Movie About Eating Disorders That Doesn’t Make Things Worse?
Elizabeth King looks at the worries over the new Netflix production To the Bone and the (none-too-encouraging) previous attempts to deal with anorexia and bulimia onscreen.