dirac

Well, this is getting interesting. Take an even strain, everyone. Thanks for starting the topic, Mashinka. Not having been to London I can't comment from that angle, but from what I've read here and elsewhere my thoughts fall between the two stools. The article is really comparing apples and oranges - there's a clear difference between a drunken yobbo making a nuisance of himself at one of these shows and audience members using their cell phones during performances of Beckett, not that the latter are any less annoying. The point is that people going to see Sondheim are generally respectable folk who purchase their tickets with the reasonable expectation of having a respectable evening at the theater, an expectation that doesn't usually include public urination. So yes, context does matter. And even if it's a horrible show, there are certain baselines for behavior which should be respected. (I agree in principle that some kinds of theater lose something with the Frozen Chosen etiquette that's now customary but on the other hand it's nice to know you'll be able to watch the perfomance in peace, if you want to.) One does read these stories of hooliganism at football games and bars, though. Troubling. Thanks for this historical context, Simon G. Those were the days, all right.

Occupational hazard for writers, especially those employed by the Post.

Thanks, vagansmom. I really don't read enough fiction these days, so it's good to hear from those who do.

Thank you for that link! What Simon says. Part was delightful and it was a nice little segment, even if she's so bee-yoo-ti-ful she makes me want to go sit in a corner with a bag over my head. Her next stop should be The Daily Show. Stewart would be totally zonked by her.

Right. (A few of these issues were discussed earlier in the thread.) A short dancer who has the long lines needed for ballet will seem taller than he really is, in my experience. I must confess that when I saw Herman Cornejo in Berkeley, the first thing that entered my head was, “Wow, he really is short." I remember reading that Joffrey said he would have liked taller dancers but Balanchine had all the good ones. Thank you for reviving this thread, SanderO. I'm not sure exactly how tall Part is and would be interested to hear from anyone who does know.

Thanks, Dale. The fee doesn't seem too bad.

I expect that the reviewer meant only to say that both books are epic sized period stories set in turbulent times. Some readers could certainly be led astray, though. Certainly, Mitchell isn't Lampedusa. Gone with the Wind is a better book than it's usually given credit for being, however. But, like GWTW, I'm a hardcore fan. (It's off topic, but the film of Gone with the Wind is better than Visconti's picture -- and I don't think it's even that close.) And Mitchell is actually pretty good about making distinctions among those in the ruling classes - it 's one of the things people miss about her. The book isn't really about moonlight and magnolias. Was 'The Mind of the South' really hateful, Patrick? I didn't detect hatefulness. (Love-hate, yes.) Thank you for chiming in, GWTW. The only book of Byatt's I tried was Possession, and I was unable to get through it, I fear.

Clipping innopac's post from another thread: I'd like to ask BTers about documentaries they've seen and liked, or disliked. (Would prefer to keep discussions of ballet documentaries to a minimum, as those tend to be discussed elsewhere on the board, but by all means list them if you like. ) What was 'The Real Dirt on Farmer John' about, innopac - the meat producer?

Very early, if indeed it is he. He looks so young! Thank you for the pic.

No worries, DeborahB. Didn't mean to sound tetchy, although I probably did. It will be interesting to see how this works out, as bart notes. On the surface it looks quite flattering to Wheater, if it takes two to do his job. No doubt there will be some jostling for position, even if everyone takes pains to behave in an after-you-Alphonse manner.

innopac, you are quite right to note that not all BTers hail from the States, but since the site is based in the US our general perspective is American as a rule. Ideally we'd like to keep this thread to "foreign" films. However, we don't have a thread on documentaries, so I'm going to cut and paste your post into a new one. Thanks for posting!

Obituary for Merce Cunningham.

I posted an early version of the article last night in the Links, and the new one today. Congrats to all involved, although I am obliged to note that two guys were hired to replace another guy. No female candidates available? interested? Do try to remember the ladies, Helgi. Just saying.

He certainly photographed well.

I had the impression from the way McBride spoke of the partnership that it wasn't the happiest of pairings. Things might have been very different for Baryshnikov at NYCB if Balanchine had been healthy enough to work with him more closely and make new roles on him. A lost opportunity for both men.

Thank you for posting this sad news, rg. I too know of Beard only through Secret Muses, but I thought his comments as relayed by Kavanagh stood out for their candor and intelligence.

Thank you for linking to the article, bart. I’ve seen “she” and “her” are used in general interest publications, as well.. And it’s not always possible or desirable to make everything into a plural in every context. I don’t have much use for s/he and suchlike, and ‘they’ might have been good enough for Chaucer but it just looks and sounds clumsy to me. These days I find that more and more people are using, in writing, “she/her” or “he/his” – sometimes the one, sometimes the other – and I like it fine, although years ago when I first saw the feminine pronoun used this way it took me aback. It may also turn out that we who were taught not to use ‘they’ in the singular will die off and not be replaced, in which case ‘they’ will come full circle and be used interchangeably as singular and plural again. (I’m assuming the history as set forth in this article is accurate.) If forced to choose, I'd prefer such a development to inflicting some awkward neologism on the language.

Thank you for that quote, Quiggin.

$700 or 800K is being paid like a king? Martins could probably have taken a bigger cut in pay than he did. But I haven't seen any evidence presented here that would convince me that he or his wife are motivated by cupidity. CEOs in general these days make too much money in proportion to the rank and file and some companies are often too quick to resort to layoffs, but I agree - no one could run a sizable organization based on such reasoning.

You get all kinds in blog comments sections and the source should always be considered. The query sure isn't in the best of taste, though.

There is no pleasing many people who get the boot, for obvious reasons. There are Nilas fans on Ballet Talk?

I read that Nathan Lane used to do something similar to latecomers for 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,' singling out the unfortunate late arrivals and launching a rapid fire summation of what had gone before.

Redundancy in UK law is not a euphemism for dismissal, (although you could argue that it merely serves to obfuscate).

Dancers are dedicated people, but they are not the only ones who feel a special bond to their work. They are also privileged in that not only do they love what they do but they can earn money doing it, which is rare in the working world. I understand that’s a tough thing to lose. But many people who have been laid off, even those who don’t love their work as dancers do, often feel the same way – their work gave them a focus and meaning that vanishes when they are unemployed. When workers who’ve spent decades at one firm get fired, it’s like losing a part of themselves. They feel the same feelings described by the dancers in the NYT article, often accentuated by concerns about such matters as health insurance coverage. Marriages break down. People fall into severe depressions. I'm sorry that Ms. Flack lost her childhood dream. Other people are living in tent cities. I know the fact that other people are worse off doesn't help much when you're the one in pain, and that's perfectly understandable. I don't think that we as observers should lose sight of the big picture, though.

You’d say “You’re fired” directly only as a way of being deliberately harsh to an employee who’s being dismissed under very unpleasant circumstances. The use of euphemisms can be an attempt at kindness as well as a self-interested effort to defuse a fraught situation. I understand that, certainly. But all over the country people are getting tossed out of their workplaces far more unceremoniously. Some of them are older people who will have a much harder time than these dancers in their efforts to rebuild their personal and professional lives. The dismissed dancers are receiving high level media attention, if they want it, and people seem to be reaching out to help and sympathize. Many are not so fortunate.