“Night Fall, a dreamy ballet inspired by the white acts of Swan Lake and La Bayadère, was choreographed specifically for virtual reality by Peter Leung” on the Dutch National Ballet. “Viewers are dropped right in the center of the action, with the dancers and a lone musician swirling around them.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Top Posts From AJBlogs 09.05.16
Labor Day 2016
In the United States this is Labor Day, since 1894 a national holiday that celebrates working peoples’ contributions to the nation. … From 1962 — when the average price of a gallon of regular gas was 31 cents — here is the unofficial Rifftides Labor Day song. … read more
AJBlog: RiffTides Published 2016-09-05
In chains
At some point in my younger days, I got it in my head that a musical composition, like a chain, was only as strong as its weakest link. … More recently, I considered whether a musical composition might only be as strong as its best ideas, weak links be damned. … read more
AJBlog: Infinite Curves Published 2016-09-05
This Week In Audience: Connecting The Dots As Louvre Visits Decline 20%
This Week: Tate goes for an artificial intelligence art project … UK has more amateur orchestras than you can shake a stick at … Does community storytelling take advantage of the storytellers? … Why the Louvre’s attendance is down 20% … When data drives your art experience the art changes. … read more
AJBlog: AJ Arts Audience Published 2016-09-04
This Week’s Notable AJ Stories: An Artist Erased, A Cautionary Tale
This Week: What exactly does cultural equity actually mean? … In our social media world everything is about images … A cautionary tale as an artist is erased from the internet … There’s a difference between culture and art … Why Italy fought to keep Venice off the endangered list. … read more
AJBlog: diacritical/Douglas McLennan Published 2016-09-04
Artists Erased From The Web And Our Growing Problem With Facts
Are we comfortable letting shareholder-driven companies – any private company – have absolute control over infrastructure that is increasingly essential for the functioning of civil society? Deciding who is visible and who is not? … read more
AJBlog: diacritical/Douglas McLennan Published 2016-09-04
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Fear Of Eternity Is A Genuine Phobia
“Woody Allen once said, ‘Eternity is a very long time, especially toward the end!’ Eternity sounds great on the surface, but actually experiencing it may be an entirely different matter. For some people, the very notion of infinity sends chills up the spine. In fact, for many who suffer from ‘apeirophobia’ – a term for the fear of eternity – the thought of an existence that goes on forever amounts to torture.”
Roald Dahl’s Estate Wants To Become A Children’s Entertainment Empire
Luke Kelly, the author’s grandson: “With publishing shifting a lot, there is still, I think, a huge desire to bring his kind of vivid and mischievous world into other medium. We are really transferring from being a literary estate to being more of a story company, and that is a bit of a scary thing for some people. …[But] it just means that we’re also thinking, How do we get these amazing words and stories into kids’ bedrooms, and into their minds and imaginations, in many ways?”
How Edward Snowden Ended Up In A Hollywood Biopic (It Was Pretty Weird)
“Oliver Stone wanted a hit – and the chance to put America’s most iconic dissident onscreen. The subject wanted veto power. The Russian lawyer wanted someone to option the novel he’d written. The American lawyer just wanted the whole insane project to go away. Somehow a film got made.”
Music That Hovers Between Appearing And Disappearing: Alex Ross On The Wandelweiser
“This is not music for everyone. No music is for everyone, just as no language or no religion is for everyone. But [the work of this group of composers] poses a particular challenge to long-established notions of how a piece should unfold. Silence overtakes sound to the point where the work seems on the verge of vanishing.”
How Upright Citizens Brigade Turned Improv Into Big Business
“In 2003, the Times reported that ‘some 500 students’ were enrolled in ’30 or so improvisation and sketch-comedy classes’ at U.C.B. In 2011, New York had the figure at approximately eight thousand. The organization doesn’t reveal numbers (the better to avoid quibbling about not paying its performers), but one current employee let slip the latest tally: last year, U.C.B. trained twelve thousand students. That’s about five million dollars in revenue.”
At North Korea’s Only Film Festival, There’s No Red Carpet, And The Audience Screamed At A Gay Sex Scene
“With three screenings a day in seven theatres across Pyongyang, the majority of films are foreign titles for a local audience. North Korean filmgoers are so excited when the theatre’s doors crack open, they literally run for a seat. Some are left standing in the aisles, some sit on the floor, and many seats have two people squeezed into them.”
The Great Library Of Alexandria Had A Rival – And A Vicious Rivalry
The kings of Pergamon in Asia Minor (now Begrama, Turkey) fought hard to build a collection as large and prestigious as Alexandria’s – and the Ptolemies were not pleased at the competition. The two cities struggled over manuscripts, scholars, and even materials. (Yes, there was a papyrus embargo.)
The World’s First Travel Guide
“In ancient times, tourists and travelers in Greece have gotten into some pretty intense situations. An adventure-seeking traveler would bathe in the river Herkyna, then consume sacrificial meat, wander through a dark cave of Livadeia to seek out the oracle, and emerge ‘paralyzed with terror and unconscious both of himself and of his surroundings.’ And that’s just a one-day itinerary.” So wrote [the] Greek geographer Pausanias.