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Q&A with Martha Ullman West about her new book, “Todd Bolender, Janet Reed, and the Making of American Ballet.”

Q&A with Emily Coates.

Oh, certainly not, ECat! Some of our elders would make Pazcoguin sound like Jane Austen. Not to take the thread down the side alley of Profanity Through the Ages, but to take only one example, there is reason to believe that the now almost universal use of the F-word as an intensifier and otherwise was first made commonplace by American GIs in World War II, who had a lot to be intense about (another favorite was "chickensh--;" the men had many good reasons to employ that one, too). I would expect there's a lot of it in the ballet world as well). These uses could be rather ingenious and funny. All I can tell you is that the swearwords and hyper-colloquial style did not work for me in this excerpt and made it a slog. I just hope I get a few breaks from it in the book.

An interview with Georgina Pazcoguin.

A review of the National Ballet of Japan by for Bachtrack.

A review of the Royal Ballet by Graham Watts for Bachtrack.

A story on the newly formed Perth Youth Ballet.

Amar Ramasar will retire from the New York City Ballet next year.

Ballerinas from the early days of Dance Theatre of Harlem talk about their era.

A WBUR story on the charges filed against Mitchell Taylor Button, Dusty Button's husband.

American Ballet Theatre's executive director announces her departure.

Dusty Button's husband Mitchell is accused of sexual assault.

Ballet book recommendations from Moira Macdonald for The Seattle Times.

The Joyce Theater announces its season schedule.

New York City Ballet's Clara Miller talks about her singing.

The Sarasota Cuban Ballet School prepares a live performance.

Richmond Ballet announces its 2021-22 season.

Baton Rouge Theatre announces its 2021-22 season schedule.

A review of the Royal's mixed program by Sarah Crompton in The Guardian.

A piece on American Ballet Theatre's bus tour by Brian Seibert in The New York Times.

A review of the Royal Ballet School's summer performance by Jann Parry for DanceTabs.

A review of the Royal Ballet by Jann Parry for DanceTabs.

Royal Ballet photo gallery.

I suppose foul language and general coarseness of expression does qualify as "conversational style" these days. I found the Elle excerpt difficult to get through and it's not long. I will withhold judgment until I get hold of the book and come to it with an open mind, but I sure hope the whole thing doesn't read like that. This put me off also. I'm not saying they should gush about how much they love it, or not be frank about the challenges involved, but at least show some respect and/or take a minute to explain its quality to the reader. At least NYCB's seasonal cash cow is a masterpiece, not something many other companies can say. Thank you, ECat, for starting the topic! I look forward to hearing people's views, and I imagine they'll be lively reading.

The context of the "bitching on a high level" remark changes its coloration a bit. It's taken from an interview from 1974 and this is what Gorey said in full: