Louise Lecavalier, longtime member of La La La Human Steps: “A choreographer once told me, we all have our tricks in our pockets. I thought: I have nothing in my pockets. … But then I worked with Benoît Lachambre, who encouraged me to create choreography. He would arrive at the studio and find me already dancing my guts out, and helped me feel that movement was pouring out of me, and I didn’t need anyone to tell me what to do.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Film Actor Robert Loggia, 85
“Strongly built, balding and with a rasping delivery, Loggia suffered from typecasting during the 1970s, obliged to specialise in sharp-suited ‘heavies’ … But in 1982 he took on the role of Richard Gere’s feckless father in the hit film An Officer and a Gentleman … High-profile roles followed – as mobsters in Brian De Palma’s Scarface (1983) and John Huston’s Prizzi’s Honor (1985), and as … the avuncular toy company owner in the ‘age-changing’ comedy Big (1988) with Tom Hanks.”
Was Stonehenge First Erected In Wales And Them Dragged To England Later?
“It has long been known that the bluestones that form Stonehenge’s inner horseshoe came from the Preseli hills in Pembrokeshire, around 140 miles from Salisbury Plain. Now archaeologists have discovered a series of recesses in the rocky outcrops of Carn Goedog and Craig Rhos-y-felin, to the north of those hills, that match Stonehenge’s bluestones in size and shape.”
Pantone Wanted to Celebrate Gender Fluidity With Its Color of the Year – So It Picked Pink *And* Blue
“Everyone hated Marsala, Pantone’s 2015 color of the year, a dark red that critics widely slandered with comparisons to blood, rust, and meatloaf. This year, the company … made an unprecedented move by nominating not one bold color but ‘the blending of two shades’ – Rose Quartz (baby pink) and Serenity (baby blue).”
Opera Critic Rodney Milnes Dead At 79
“An influential and entertaining opera critic who amused, informed and infuriated his readers and editors in almost equal measure … He was the editor of Opera magazine from 1986 to 1999, and, at various times, opera critic of Harpers & Queen, The Spectator and The Times; he also contributed regularly to the Building a Library slot on BBC Radio 3, among many other programmes.”
Top Posts From AJBlogs 12.07.15
The Innovation Imperative (But Will It Get Us An Audience?)
Recently, an orchestra manager told me that his orchestra was going to be “the most innovative orchestra in the world.” I asked what he was doing that was so innovative, and he rattled off …read more
AJBlog: diacritical Published 2015-12-07
BID’s Skid: Sotheby’s Poaches Christie’s Marc Porter, While Stock Hits a 52-Week Low
Could Marc Porter be the turnaround artist that Sotheby’s urgently needs? If so, it may not be soon enough: “Because of a non-compete clause,” writes Kelly Crow for the Wall Street Journal, Porter won’t assume … read more
AJBlog: CultureGrrl Published 2015-12-07
Monday Recommendation: Brad Mehldau
Mehldau assembled this five-hour account of his solo piano mastery from tapes of concerts he played from 2004 to 2014. Applying the power of his technique and the … read more
AJBlog: RiffTides Published 2015-12-07
The Trumpet: A History. A Demonstration.
Trumpet virtuoso Bobby Shew sent a history of his instrument. The trumpet started as a weapon of war. It later became a signal/alert tool. This led it to become utilized for fanfare announcements. It then … read more
AJBlog: RiffTides Published 2015-12-08
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Old Dutch Paintings, Stolen In 2005, Now For Sale By Ukrainian Militia
“The Westfries Museum in Hoorn, 50km north of Amsterdam, said on Monday it suspected members of the Ukrainian state security service, SBU, the far-right Svoboda (Freedom) party, and ‘art criminals with contacts … at the highest political level’ might also be involved in the attempt to sell the canvases.
Understanding ISIS’s Sideline In Selling Looted Antiquities
“ISIS manages oil and antiquities under the same bureaucratic umbrella, the ‘Diwan al-Rikaz,’ an archaic phrase that literally translates to ‘Department of Precious Things That Come Out of the Ground.'”
Marina Abramović Turns Sitting Still And Listening To A Classical Concert Into An Art Installation
“Upon entering the Armory, ticket-holders will be presented with numbered keys, which will lead to individual lockers [for cell phones, watches, etc.] … And for 30 minutes, listeners will be required to wait, in silence and near-darkness. … When the centimeter-by-centimeter approach of the musician and his instrument is complete, listeners will remove their headphones” and listen to the Goldberg Variations.”
Paris Theatre To Offer English Translations Via Google Glass-Type Device
“The team at Theatre in Paris has announced that it is rolling out special glasses for non-French speakers that send perfectly synchronized translations into the air by the stage.” Says company co-founder Carl de Poncins, “It’s very similar to Google glasses, except the screen is larger and the words are positioned closer to where you’re looking.”