“Carme Font, a lecturer in English literature at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, has been awarded a €1.5m grant by the European Research Council to scour libraries, archives and private collections in search of letters, poems and reflections written by women from 1500 to 1780.” — The Guardian
Author: Matthew Westphal
Deborah Zall, Who Portrayed Great Women In Solo Dance Works, Dead At 84
“Ms. Zall was known for vivid portrayals of women drawn from history, including Mary Queen of Scots and the French author who wrote under the pseudonym George Sand, as well as fictional characters, like Amanda Wingfield from Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie. Lean, small of stature and angular of build, she gave performances that were praised for their commitment and focus.” — The New York Times
Through Venezuela’s Chaos, Dance Company For Disabled Carries On
“Caracas-based AM Danza works with 50 young Venezuelans who are pursuing their passion for dance despite limitations like broken spines, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome or blindness.” — Yahoo! (AP)
Mapping The ‘Cartography’ Of Conscious Feelings Onto The Body
When a team of research psychologists asked subjects to describe where in their bodies they experience various emotional states, they were surprised by just how consistent the correspondence of emotion to bodily area was. — Aeon
In The Broadway Production Of ‘Network’, The Stage Manager Is Part Of The Show
In Ivo van Hove’s multimedia theatrical adaptation, the broadcast control room is a glass booth built into the set, and stage manager Timothy Semon calls the entire show from inside of it, in view of the audience. — The New York Times
Ah, That Simpler Time When Children Made Their Own Toys …
Rebecca Onion: “In mid-December, as I struggled to keep my own toy purchases under control, the idea of 19th-century children constructing their own playthings — probably by the fire, while calmly listening to their mother playing the piano — is eminently appealing. But as with many things in the history of childhood, children’s toy-making was less idyllic than it seems.” — Slate
Ireland’s Old Storytelling Tradition Revived By Rappers And Spoken-Word Artists
“The seanchaithe were Ireland’s traditional storytellers, itinerant poets, entertainers and historians who travelled the island regaling audiences with ancient lore. They thrived for centuries … before petering out in the era of radio and television.” But now they’re back. — The Guardian
How A Surrealist Painting Saved The Lives Of The Family Of The World’s Most Dangerous Drug Lord
Victoria Eugenia Henao, widow of Pablo Escobar of the Medellín drug cartel (yes, Millennials, he was even worse than El Chapo), says that Salvador Dalí’s The Dance accomplished something that even the hippos couldn’t: it kept her and her family safe more than once. — The New York Times
Now Here’s An Inventive Re-Purposing Of An Old Church: A Skate Park
“Before its official closing in 1992, St. Liborius was declared a City Landmark in 1975 and recognized as a National Historic Place four years later. Today, it exists as a shell of a church, where the stained glass windows shine vibrant light on skate ramps instead of pews.” — Atlas Obscura
105-Year-Old Music School For The Blind Is Being Evicted — By A Famous Nonprofit For The Blind, No Less
“The Lighthouse Guild sent a letter to students in June — in large print, for the visually impaired — notifying them that [the Filomen M. D’Agostino Greenberg Music School] would no longer be part of the Guild’s future and that it must leave the Guild’s building on West 64th Street [in Manhattan].” — The New York Times