Body size, the final frontier, subject of ‘The Whale’
Oct
17
2022
From Darren Aronofsky comes The Whale, the story of a reclusive English teacher living with severe obesity who attempts to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter for one last chance at redemption. Starring Brendan Fraser and based on the acclaimed play by Samuel D. Hunter, the film opens December 9. I am hoping for compassion ...
The dignity of ballerina Natalia Makarova 9
I was struck by a passage in Natalia Makarova‘s biography, “A Dance Autobiography,” (Knopf, 1979) edited by Robert Gottlieb (“What did ballet ever do to deserve this?”) when he was editor-in-chief at the New York publishing house. The text recalls an indignity Makarova suffered at the Kirov Ballet soon before she defected to the West ...
Bird watching
New York dance critic Elizabeth Zimmer contributes this review to arts•meme: BLACK SWAN aced its opening weekend, albeit one of the slowest box-office weekends of the year; The New York Times on December 6 reported that in the art-house category, playing at only 18 theaters, it grossed $1.4 million, a record for Fox Searchlight, which released it. The ...
Buy one now! BLACK SWAN teeshirts!
Just a joke, folks! For not a joke, read my “Black Swan” review here. More on “Black Swan”: Meet body double Kimberly Prosa. Kimberly gears up for action here.
BLACK SWAN opens: body double Kimberly Prosa prepared
Here’s body double/dancer Kimberly Prosa, all geared up for today’s sure-to-be clamorous opening of Darren Aronofsky’s “Black Swan.” The ethereal Odette, the white swan, heavenly in her tutu and feathery head piece … … also tricked out in knee pads and grunge boots. Hey, where’s the pointe shoes? A 21st century combat-ready Odette! Kimberly explains ...
Aronofsky’s BLACK SWAN: Raw deal for Odile 6
Seconds into Darren Aronofsky’s psychological thriller BLACK SWAN, the hyperkinetic camera zooms in on a pink pointe shoe. A woman is dancing, but we don’t see her. We see only the impeccable chop-chop of her shoes. It’s a smart directorial move. Cinephiles and foot fetishists are primed for a good time, but dance lovers’ hearts ...
Meet Natalie Portman’s evil twin, body double Kimberly Prosa 2
I enjoyed my chat with dancer Kimberly Prosa, one of two body doubles for actress Natalie Portman in Darren Aronofsky’s BLACK SWAN. The film, a psychological thriller with dazzling special effects, opens nationwide December 3. Reports Prosa on her amazing and unexpected first-ever movie experience: “I went to audition at an open call looking for extras to ...
Ballet is dead. Long live ballet. 1
In the October 13, 2010 issue of The New Republic, dance critic Jennifer Homans queries, “Is Ballet Over?” In her essay, Homans notes: “Ballet has always and above all contained the idea of human transformation, the conviction that human beings could remake themselves in another, more perfect or divine image. It is this mixture of ...