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MAY 6
BALLETS RUSSES FESTIVAL IN BOSTON
On May 18, 2009, the eve of the 100th Anniversary of the first performance of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris - Ballets Russes 2009 will be hosting a four day conference - The Spirit of Diaghilev - to explore the enormous cultural impact of Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes on the world.
The conference, organized by noted dance writer and scholar Lynn Garafola, features an impressive roster of international speakers known for their research and writings on 20th century culture. Part of a weeklong festival in Boston celebrating the centenary of the Ballets Russes, The Spirit of Diaghilev conference will be held at Boston University's George Sherman Union.
The Ballets Russes (Russian Ballet) was established in 1909 by the Russian impresario Sergei Diaghilev. It became one of the most influential performing companies of the 20th century, and was renowned for its groundbreaking artistic collaborations among choreographers, composers, artists, and designers.
The BR2009 Conference will examine Diaghilev's impact on artists in the fields of music, visual arts and dance; examine the process and challenges of restaging Ballet Russes works; and unveil new research about Diaghilev the Man. Diaghilev's relationships with an astounding array of 20th century artists - Igor Stravinsky, Sergei Prokofiev, Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Natalia Goncharova, Giorgio de Chirico, Enrico Cecchetti, Alexandre Benois, Juan Gris, Leon Bakst, Michel Fokine, Vaslav Nijinsky, Leonide Massine, Bronislava Nijinska and George Balanchine will be discussed.
[Ballets Russes 2009 Festival Details]
APRIL 1
DANCE UPS THE ANTE EVERY GENERATION
As most dance people know, dance moves have become crisper, more extended and higher in character. Where once the free leg in an arabesque was parallel to the floor, now it reaches upward.
A research paper recently published in the online journal PLOS has documented the changes occurring over a sixty year period from ballet's The Sleeping Beauty. "Classical ballet is traditional and conservative: dancers today use the same positions that were codified in 1760, and often follow choreographies established in the 19th century. The body positions appropriate at each moment in the ballet are transmitted between generations within ballet companies by observational learning and instruction, by books of notation and more recently by video records. More importantly, body positions can be easily measured from the archive material, providing a suitable database for scientific investigation."
Although the researchers jump to a conclusion that they have certainly not proved, the research itself is fascinating.
[Ballet Postures Become More Extreme or see the original paper at A Dance to the Music of Time ]
MARCH 20
NEW COLUMN - BALLROOM DANCE TECHNIQUE
New this month to riDance is a column by noted ballroom dance author, Jeff Allen. Jeff's columns will cover various aspects of ballroom technique and the first one is about the perils of too much speed. [Momentum in Dance, Friend or Foe? ]
MARCH 18
PC'S JUNE OPEN DANCE CLASSES BACK ON TRACK
Great teachers, great prices, and you'll be dancing on a hugh wood floor in a room of soaring windows. There's no better way to celebrate the coming of summer than at Providence College's June Dance Classes running from June 1 through 26. [Click here for full schedule.]
FEBRUARY 2
NEWBORNS ABLE TO PERCEIVE RHYTHMS
One of the typical responses from non-dancers and non-musicians about why they don't dance or play an instrument is that they have no ability to perceive rhythm. A new study suggests that newborn babies are able to perceive rhythm. Although the number of babies tested was only fourteen, the assumption is that everyone is born capable of parsing rhythm. [Newborn babies feel the beat New Scientist 26 January 2009 also see Do newborn infants have a sense of rhythm? on Music Matters, a treasure trove of a blog run by one of the scientists who did the study ]
SEPTEMBER 30
DANCE TEACHERS - DON'T BE FOOLED
There's been a dramatic increase in the number of dance teacher scam emails.
If you have received a letter anything like the following....
Good day to you over there, I need a Private dancing Teacher for my wife (Reta) and my son (Jenny) for 3 months. I got your advert while surfing through the internet and I really want them to be taught by you. Reta is 37 year old and and Jenny is 15 years old. Although, I understand you are in U.S.A, but I am working on the arrangement for their accommodation since they are coming on 3 months Vacation Holiday. The both of them are beginners, I just want to fix this to make them busy at times. We are based in London, UK and they will be arriving on 28th of Desamber. Kindly get back to me with.
1.YOUR PRIVATE CLASS CHARGE FOR AN HOUR?
2.TOTAL CHARGES FOR 3 MONTH THAT THEY WILL BE TAUGHT 3 TIMES PER WEEK?
3.FULL NAME AND ADDRESS?
4.YOUR PHONE NUMBER?
Don't hesitate to e-mail with your total charges for the 3 months Private lesson.
Just delete it.
If you have already corresponded with the con artists, do NOT under any circumstances send out a check to them or anyone else. The certified check they will send you is a fraud. [Internet Dance Scammers
Improve Their Techniques]
DECEMBER 5
DANCE STUDIO STATS
Dance Studio Life recently did a survey of 753 dance school owners. The majority of studios had no downswing in enrollment in their 2007/2008 year in fact slightly more than 40% saw an increased enrollment. In addition, now almost 80% of the studios are doing competition. The number of non-competition dance schools continues to drop. [dance studio statistics]
NOVEMBER 29
THE PERFORMING ARTS NEED TO THINK GREEN
"EVERY theatre has a green room, but few are green in the modern sense. With their banks of dazzling stage lights and foyers ablaze nightly, theatres are energy-hungry beasts. Add to that the costs and waste associated with sets and props and the mountains of paper generated with every production and the world of make-believe begins to look grim..."
Down in Australia, they are already working to lessen the performing arts environmental impact. Andrew Upton, who will be co-artistic director (along with Cate Blanchett) of the Sydney Theatre Company, issued the following statement at a forum about the arts and pollution, "Theatre's role in any society is to be in engaged dialogue with the fundamental questions of the day...A person cannot simply talk about climate change, write plays about climate change and have forums about climate change; it's an issue that demands active engagement."
[Enter a greener limelight by Fiona Gruber The Australian 11/29/07]
NOVEMBER 29
WHY THE YOUNG DON'T DANCE
This from an article about the slow demise of polka in the rural west - "It's our generation's fault...When we were growing up, our parents would take us to the dances. We'd fall asleep on the side of the stage, or in the booths. But then when our generation grew up, we got baby sitters."
It does seem as though now social dancing is for adults unencumbered of child for an evening. The Hispanic culture has a tradition of bringing even the babies to dances with the result that by the time their children hit puberty, they are passable to good dancers. Maybe it's time for all dancing parents to start bringing the young ones so they can learn early rather than too late. Spread the wealth! [A rural dance tradition in twilight by Ben Ratliff Herald Tribune 11/29/07]
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