Gorgeous! Ruth St. Denis headdress in Denishawn costume show 2
The headdress from Ruth St. Denis’s 1919 Chinese-inspired “Kuan Yin,” with buttons, feathers and artificial pearls. credit David Dashiell for the New York Times. Dance writer Gia Kourlas writes in the New York Times about an exhibit of 30 costumes worn by Denishawn dancers under the aegis of Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn. The ...
Capezio, in 130th anniversary, throws huge dance party in Las Vegas
Jun
19
2018
From our friend Ann Marie deAngelo, the impresario supreme and executive producer/director of The Capezio 130th Anniversary and Capezio Awards in Las Vegas comes a slew of superb photography in what looks to have been a pretty spectacular celebration of dance of all genres. The event, held May 14, 2018 at the Smith Center in ...
Be-thigh-ed themselves in India
What prudes! It’s just a little leg! Okay, it’s a lotta leg…The clipping at bottom is from the Los Angeles Times, Nov 9, 1954.
Wild rhythms of Japan & India to tumble from Ford Amphitheatre stage
Ask the average American theater-goer or music listener to describe Japanese taiko drumming and you’ll probably hear a description something like this: solemn men in loin cloths and sweat bands who beat oversized drums in unison — loudly and interminably. Brian Yamami has spent his last 18 years trying to change that perception. He’s a ...
Be sublime! instructs ‘Bayadere’ coach Susan Jones
Jun
11
2018
It was nice to hear from Susan Jones, the impassioned ballet mistress of American Ballet Theatre who lately admits to a special assignment indeed. “For weeks we have worked on every detail of La Bayadère Act 2 Shades,” she shares on Facebook, referring to the famous sequence that opens the second act of “La Bayadère,” ...
Gifted women of dance revive community connection – courtesy of DVP
Jun
4
2018
Myna Majors (Baba Olatunji Drum and Dancers), Shirley Black Brown Coward (Audelco Award, Black Nativity), Ellen Graff (Martha Graham Dance Company), Naomi Goldberg Haas (Dances for a Variable Population), Audrey Hubbard Madison (Charles Moore Dance Theater), Elizabeth Keen (Paul Taylor, Helen Tamiris/Daniel Nagrin), Marnie Thomas Wood (Martha Graham Dance Company) and Alice Tierstein (Young Dancemakers ...
arts·meme birthday gift from laemmle theatres: $1.00 popcorn!
At arts·meme, we love Laemmle Theatres. That’s where the good movies are! And we are very appreciative of the nice gesture from the respected theater chain’s head honcho, Greg Laemmle, who extends a special offer to arts·meme newsletter subscribers: $1.00 popcorn! Just print out your newsletter, or bring it on a smart phone, slap down ...
Herb & Lani Alpert’s generous mid-career funding of meritorious artists
Robert O’Hara, Courtney Bryan, Michael Rakowitz, Lani Hall Alpert, Herb Alpert, Okwui Okpokwasili, and Arthur Jafa, Photo credit: Francesco Da Vinci The Herb Alpert Foundation and California Institute of the Arts awarded the 24th annual Herb Alpert Award in the Arts to five exceptional mid–career artists at a lunch hosted by the Herb Alpert Foundation ...
Ain’t there anyone here for love? Ladies, let’s do this! 1
Okay, Messrs Weinstein, Schneiderman, R. Kelly, Richard Meier, Charlie Rose and the rest of you sexual predator power-guys! Formidable glamazon Marilyn Monroe, in Jack Cole’s “Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend” from GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES (1953) wants to share her version of gender politics. A big boomerang of woman power heading your way, back at ...
Lula & Erwin Washington honored by Dance/USA
May
10
2018
Editor’s note: In a story written for the upcoming conference of Dance/USA in Los Angeles, artsmeme’s Debra Levine profiled a beloved couple of the local dance community, Lula and Erwin Washington, who will receive the Champion Award on 6 June 2018. An excerpt from Debra’s story here: What hath Lula and Erwin wrought? Consider a ...