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[dirac]

An article on Edgar Degas and ballet by Alastair Macaulay in The New York Times.

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Keep looking at his works, early or late, and they reveal just how much his mind relished complexity. Theatergoers detest restricted views; Degas, when painting, loved them. And whereas balletomanes deplore alternative renditions of the same step, Degas relished them too.

Even in rehearsal scenes he depicted walls, constrictions, objects and people interrupting his view of dance. The foreground of “The Dance Class” (1873) — one of the works in the Phillips exhibition — features a spiral staircase (with dancers descending it) and dancers stretching. The whole painting glows — you see at once why his dance pictures soon became a large part of his international fame — and yet the thought within it is multilayered.

[dirac]

A preview of Ballet Theatre of Maryland's new season.

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This weekend, the company will be performing excerpts from Romeo and Juliet and Excalibur at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. All three days, BTM is scheduled on the Royal Stage at noon.

From medieval times to present, the public is invited to celebrate a very big milestone for BTM: On Sept. 17, BTM will be hosting the Grand Opening of their new studios, located off of Moreland Parkway.

[dirac]

A Q&A with Diane Booth of the Pure Barre studio, about her volunteer work for Boca Ballet Theatre.

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Q. Why do you volunteer?

A. Each of us has a passion. For some of us, it takes time to see what that is. As an adult, my mother discovered her passion for painting. Dancing is mine and has been my entire life. It does not matter what your age is or where you are in life — if you find something you feel strongly about, you owe it to yourself to explore the possibilities. Raising money for the theater's scholarship program gives me a chance to help open a new world to an individual who might not have a chance any other way.

[dirac]

Fall season dance listings by Allan Ulrich in The San Francisco Chronicle.

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Smuin Ballet: The fall premiere comes from the protean Amy Seiwert, who moves from last spring's Mozart to country-western diva Patsy Cline for inspiration. The program also includes Michael Smuin's "Requiem" (Dvorák), "Eternal Idol" and "Tango Palace." Five new dancers, all male, join the company this season.

[dirac]

A preview of Northern Ballet's 'Hamlet' by David Dunn in The Star.

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“It was daunting as we couldn’t use any of the text – the famous soliloquies – but instead we have to express these in dance and with emotion,” says co-director Patricia Doyle.

“Through dance we can interpret the story and its central character in another way, staying true to Shakespeare’s inspiration and imagination, but at the same time making it a little more contemporary by relating it to a fairly recent past.”

[dirac]

Via Class Act Tutu, a video interview with Mikhail Baryshnikov talking about appearing in Dmitry Krytov's "In Paris."

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The interview was filmed by dance2film

[dirac]

A minor note of political conflict at the opening of Kansas City Ballet's new digs.

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As you would expect, elected representatives — including Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon and U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver — sent emissaries bearing proclamations. But eyebrows arched at the introduction of David Kensinger, chief of staff to Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, the man who defunded the Kansas Arts Commission.

“Congratulations on the opening of the Todd Bolender Center for Dance & Creativity,” Brownback’s proclamation read in part. “It will serve, now and in the future, to propel Kansas City Ballet towards its vision of making Kansas City a destination for dance.” There was no audible hooting, but a few in attendance reportedly exchanged words with Kensinger before he made it back to his car.

[dirac]

Q&A with Emily Coates by Akbar Ahmed in The Yale Daily News.

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Q. So, you’re fighting to turn the tide and “change the culture.” But you’ve only been here 6 years. What was it like to transition from professional dance to an academic point of view?

A. I’m very fortunate to have worked with some of the most major figures in American dance history. That means that when I teach, my personal experience is a wonderful resource. It’s all about a recontextualization of the knowledge I gained during my full-time professional years – instead of spending countless hours in the studio, I’m now talking about dance and teaching. And it’s wildly awesome to take that knowledge and think about how I can use it to find common ground with a particle physicist.

[dirac]

A review of Scottish Ballet by Thom Dibdin in The Stage.

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Comparable only in its minimalism, MacMillan’s Song of the Earth, set to Mahler’s song cycle, has an organic simplicity which the company find and exploit. Against the songs performed by mezzo-soprano Katarina Karneus and tenor Peter Wedd, the company create the breathing beat of the seasons. Here, in lifted, cart-wheeling ballerinas tumbling through waves of dancers, the tides ebb and flow, in fleeting moments the glory of the sun shines through, and ultimately winter pulls all into its heart.