To a ‘Babalu’ish 2023!
Dec
27
2022
There’s always the guy who did it first — and did it great. Then there’s the guy who ‘covers’ the song, as did Desi Arnaz on October 19, 1946, recording this marvelous, if somewhat tamped down, version of Babalú years after the seductive anthem was associated with the original “Mr. Babalú,” Miguelito Valdés. What on ...
Kicking off 2018: Kyle Abraham
We like the always-evolving look of dancer/choreographer Kyle Abraham, who torques into a back layout dressed half-James Bond/half-garage mechanic in his camel-colored jumpsuit. A photo-portrait of Abraham by Los Angeles photographer Tatiana Wills got souped-up treatment on Facebook by J.G. Bocella. Fancy! Work the jumpsuit, Kyle. Jump!
Boom boom boom boom! New Year’s 2017 with Fred & Barrie 2
I like the way you walk … I like the way you talk … .. and I LOVE the way you dance. Hollywood dancer Barrie Chase (who was also a stunning clothes horse) wears an impeccable pink mini-dress as she traipses the stage of The Hollywood Palace with His Majesty, Fred Astaire. The date of ...
A bubbly New Year’s Day ‘Salute to Vienna’ concert
Vienna, we salute you! The timeless tunes of Johann Strauss, Franz Lehar and Emmerich Kálmán will bubble like champagne around the mellifluous chamber of Walt Disney Concert Hall in a traditional Viennese New Year’s Day afternoon concert. A mix of operetta, ballroom dance, and the delicate beauty of ballet with acclaimed European singers and dancers ...
Happy New Year 2013 from arts·meme! 1
[click directly on photos for detail] Incandescent dance photography from a Hollywood film. Why are we not surprised that Jack Cole stands behind it? The Harlequinade costumes are a dead giveaway; one of the enduring interests of this choreographer (he died in 1974 in Los Angeles) was commedia dell’arte. High-voltage performance (Gower Champion laudable in ...
Ringing in 2011 at the Neujahrskonzert
They’re gonna have to tie me into my seat when the Strauss waltzes kick in at this weekend’s Neujahrskonzert at Walt Disney Concert Hall. New Year’s concerts — famous, festive, and now franchised — are an old Austrian tradition. You know, like sacher tortes and California governors. [How did the Austrians come up with something ...