“A story may be things that happened, embellished for interest, but that’s not a book. Many stories don’t get good until the end. Some stories — true ones even — are hard to believe. Other stories are just too short, don’t have enough tension, or frankly aren’t that interesting. The stories we tell that enrapture our friends and families may be extraordinarily boring to those who don’t know us. Those stories are not a book.”
Tag: 07.25.18
Alex Ossadnik Named Artistic Director Of Ballet Wichita
“Ossadnik was a principal dancer with the German National Theater from 1987 to 1991, after which he danced in France with the Ballet Theatre de Bordeaux from 1991 to 1995. Since moving to the United States in 1995, he has worked with various companies across the country and maintains a relationship with the Balanchine Trust.” For the last decade, he was ballet master at Ballet Idaho.
Most Academic Texts Aren’t Written To Be Read. Why?
“After I earned my doctorate in 2015, I was left with a persistent disquiet about how people read and write in higher education. Because gutting or breaking a book easily is only possible if books are written in a way that allows them to be gutted easily.”
There Are Three Movies About The Demise Of Gawker In The Works – What Do Ex-Gawker Staffers Think Of Them?
“It’s unclear how many of the projects, if any, will end up panning out, but drafts of the first two have been going around the film and media worlds for a few months now. … But what do the people who lived through the whole ordeal think? We decided to ask the Gawker diaspora, a cadre of writers who were never shy about sharing their opinions, what they thought about the idea of a movie about the demise of their beloved site.”
A Literary Agent Wants You To Know That You Really Do Not ‘Have A Book In You’
Ouch, but also, too real: “Every story is not a book. A story may be things that happened, embellished for interest, but that’s not a book. Many stories don’t get good until the end. Some stories — true ones even — are hard to believe. Other stories are just too short, don’t have enough tension, or frankly aren’t that interesting. The stories we tell that enrapture our friends and families may be extraordinarily boring to those who don’t know us. Those stories are not a book.”
How Opera Became A Tool For Empowering Young People In South Africa’s Townships [PODCAST]
The founder of Umculo, an organization that uses musical theatre and opera to get both young people and adults interested in the power of the music for social change, was inspired by El Sistema in Venezuela.
New Technology Could Finally Make Lightweight Braille Books And E-Readers Workable
“Harvard researchers … [have] crafted reprogrammable braille that could eliminate the need for unique pages without the bulk of a display. The concept is straightforward. The team compressed a thin, curved elastic shell using forces on each end, and then made indents with a basic stylus (similar to how you print a conventional braille book). Once you remove the compression, the shell ‘remembers’ the indents. You can erase them just by stretching the shell. … There’s no lattice holding it up, and it works with everything from conventional paper to super-thin graphene.”
Patrick Williams, Grammy-Winning Jazz-Band Leader And Emmy-Winning Composer, Dead At 74
“Williams was among the most versatile composers of his generation, earning an Oscar nomination (for adapting opera in Breaking Away, 1979), four Emmys (for dramatic music including Lou Grant, 1980) and two Grammys (for arrangements including his classic jazz album Threshold, 1974) during more than 50 years of music-making in New York and Los Angeles.”
A Sistema For Opera, Founded By A Music Critic, In South African Townships
“Inspired by the successes of Venezuela’s music education programme El Sistema in effecting social change, South African-born [Shirley] Apthorp was convinced that opera could be a tool for empowering people. She founded Umculo, an organisation that brings music theatre to young people and adults alike, working with professional singers and instrumentalists to give performances that have garnered international acclaim. (podcast)
Iranian Gallerists Released After Paying $10 Million Bail
The couple, who own the Aun Gallery in Tehran, were arrested by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in July 2016. In January this year, the couple were sentenced to draconian jail terms of 16 years for Neyssari, and 27 years for Vafadari on accusations that have ranged from “assembly and collusion against national security”, “spreading corruption”, “storing alcoholic drinks” and “dealing in indecent art.”