A brief link round-up, after the finale of SYTYCD. I missed Wed's show due to travel, but enjoyed the finale with dancer friends who indulged my summer TV obsession. Josh won--Yay! Katee got a nice consolation prize (last minute award of $50,000) probably in recognition that she's really been the best dancer. Twitch got lots of love and Courtney won the respect of the fans for her terrific growth over the season. Really, we all would have been happy if they hadn't tried to dance these poor four finalists to death, but there were some fun extra bits: the pop-off between Phillip Chbeeb and Robert Muraine: Muraine was deemed most entertaining by the judges, but other fans agreed with me that we loved Chbeeb's great movement. Debbie Allen did a spot-on impression of Li'l C. Can we have them both back next season along with Adam and Mandy? thanks.
A little bit after the fact, but here are links to iVans vlog, with footage of SYTYCD dancers, past and present. Thanks very much to Editor-in-Chief David Benaym for sending them on!
iVAN episode 6 - FINALE RE-UNION
Nate Levy posted several fun posts leading up to his open thread for the finale and his great recaps. Thanks for giving us a space to hang out during the show!
Tonya Plank's detailed commentary on the dancing in the finale commentary is up at HuffPo.
Dance critic Rachel Howard's review of the final week's dancing is posted at Voice of Dance.
Matt from Ranting Details posts his favorite routine from the finale, No Air danced by Josh and Katee. I have loved his hilarious recaps, and I love the rest of his writing as well.
Scott Patrick Wagner shares my love for Sonya's routine for Mark and Courtney in his final recap up at Multiple Personality. Like me, he thought Wade's "Homage to the Rabbits" was excellent stuff. Can we have more Wade next season? Since I recently watched the director's cut of Donnie Darko, that's where it went for me.
While we are waiting for Leee! to post (I hope) his final musings on the final week, we can review his awesome LOLs and wicked wit from the Top 6.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
Dance idols: Nureyev and Nijinsky
Nureyev was a great ballet dancer and a pop icon. I never saw him perform live, but when I was young, I saw him in films and on television (including a hilarious bit on the Carol Burnett Show in "Le spectre de la rose" that I cannot find).
He was a dance star before he left the Soviet Union in 1961 at the age of 23,, but when he defected, he became a world celebrity. You can catch of glimpse of why in this trailer for a BBC documentary Nureyev, The Russian Years:
His biography by Julie Kavanaugh presented much new information about his life before his defection, including the man who was his lover and filmed him before he left (and whose family suffered as a result).
This is a lovely Nureyev tribute video (with music by Jeff Buckley). You can see that his technique is not always polished, but his power and charisma are undeniable.
Nureyev danced roles choreographed or debuted by an earlier "god of dance," Nijinsky, such as "L'apres-midi d'un faune." If there still exists any actual film footage of Nijinsky, then it is as yet undiscovered. Rumor is that Cocteau had shot some footage, but Diaghilev wanted to preserve the mystique. Nureyev was to have played him in a film, but the project never came to fruition. Instead, a film with Alan Bates as Sergei Diaghilev )impresario and Nijinsky's lover) a very young Jeremy Irons as Mikhail Fokine, and ABT star George de la Peña was made by director Herb Ross.
He was a dance star before he left the Soviet Union in 1961 at the age of 23,, but when he defected, he became a world celebrity. You can catch of glimpse of why in this trailer for a BBC documentary Nureyev, The Russian Years:
His biography by Julie Kavanaugh presented much new information about his life before his defection, including the man who was his lover and filmed him before he left (and whose family suffered as a result).
This is a lovely Nureyev tribute video (with music by Jeff Buckley). You can see that his technique is not always polished, but his power and charisma are undeniable.
Nureyev danced roles choreographed or debuted by an earlier "god of dance," Nijinsky, such as "L'apres-midi d'un faune." If there still exists any actual film footage of Nijinsky, then it is as yet undiscovered. Rumor is that Cocteau had shot some footage, but Diaghilev wanted to preserve the mystique. Nureyev was to have played him in a film, but the project never came to fruition. Instead, a film with Alan Bates as Sergei Diaghilev )impresario and Nijinsky's lover) a very young Jeremy Irons as Mikhail Fokine, and ABT star George de la Peña was made by director Herb Ross.
SYTYCD spoilers now up at TWoP
If you want spoilers from Monday's taping, go to the Spoilers thread at TWoP here and go to page 418. AprilMarie and and ABTJess218 stayed up until 3AM to leave great descriptions of the routines, costumes, and the entire show. I hope they get a good night's sleep after their hard work!
Mandy Moore is the guest judge, so we'll get to see her dance in her seat again.
Nigel and Mary Murphy dance, for real. But not with each other.
Thanks so much, gerritv, for sending word!
Poll up over to the right: who will you vote for to win? (Not who do you think will win, but who do you WANT to win?)
Mandy Moore is the guest judge, so we'll get to see her dance in her seat again.
Nigel and Mary Murphy dance, for real. But not with each other.
Thanks so much, gerritv, for sending word!
Poll up over to the right: who will you vote for to win? (Not who do you think will win, but who do you WANT to win?)
Monday, August 04, 2008
No spoilers yet
It's after midnight and TWoP is dark. Either the board is having problems or our usual spoiler reporters are still eating dinner after standing since noon to attend the show.
Fan tribute to Katee and Josh, set to a Clay Aiken song.
Twitch shows why he's in the top four (hey, we dance to this in high school!)
And this is where Courtney started to climb the charts. I miss Gev.
Fan tribute to Katee and Josh, set to a Clay Aiken song.
Twitch shows why he's in the top four (hey, we dance to this in high school!)
And this is where Courtney started to climb the charts. I miss Gev.
Waiting for the SYTYCD spoilers...
Usually at this time, the spoilers start to pop up. But the big news today has been that Twitch and Josh both were hospitalized on Saturday for dehydration, and later released.
Fox announced that 2 of the top 4 dancers had been hospitalized for dehydration on Saturday, but didn't say who (as it is against the law to release medical information without permission). Then an unaffiliated source later spilled the beans that it was the two guys, Twitch and Josh:
Cue rant: These poor dancers have been driven into the ground by the demands of this show: a group dance, two new routines, solos every week for the last few weeks, and more! lifts! for the guys. I hope that all of the final four got a rest and ate a lot this weekend. I hope the show has a massage therapist on staff. I wonder if they have a meal table the way football players do?
Apparently dancers from seasons past will be performing during the last show, along with the Jonas Brothers (gag me). I hope the judges showcase other dancers in the top 20 or at least the top 10 for their "favorite dances" and give the top 4 a break.
Time for a LOL break.
There is a great So You Think You Can LOL thread over at Idol forums.
Thank you to Mademoiselle Lyss for creating SO UR DOIN IT WRONG, a blog where you can see more SYTYCD Lols.
Leee! over at Television! You Black Emperor is the undisputed master of LOLCat Deelys, so I'm expecting something with Cat wearing Twitch's grill any day now. No pressure or anything.
UPDATE:
Yay! Leee once again shows us how it's done.
Fox announced that 2 of the top 4 dancers had been hospitalized for dehydration on Saturday, but didn't say who (as it is against the law to release medical information without permission). Then an unaffiliated source later spilled the beans that it was the two guys, Twitch and Josh:
"Boss and Allen were treated for dehydration and released, the source adds. Fox had no comment."Although I have seen no direct source for this, a reliable commenter at TWoP says they were rehearsing a Russian character dance, so they were probably being tortured with those Russian deep knee bend traveling steps that burn up your quads.
Cue rant: These poor dancers have been driven into the ground by the demands of this show: a group dance, two new routines, solos every week for the last few weeks, and more! lifts! for the guys. I hope that all of the final four got a rest and ate a lot this weekend. I hope the show has a massage therapist on staff. I wonder if they have a meal table the way football players do?
Apparently dancers from seasons past will be performing during the last show, along with the Jonas Brothers (gag me). I hope the judges showcase other dancers in the top 20 or at least the top 10 for their "favorite dances" and give the top 4 a break.
Time for a LOL break.
There is a great So You Think You Can LOL thread over at Idol forums.
Thank you to Mademoiselle Lyss for creating SO UR DOIN IT WRONG, a blog where you can see more SYTYCD Lols.
Leee! over at Television! You Black Emperor is the undisputed master of LOLCat Deelys, so I'm expecting something with Cat wearing Twitch's grill any day now. No pressure or anything.
UPDATE:
Yay! Leee once again shows us how it's done.
Sunday, August 03, 2008
Fan girl dance critic
In the comments to Rachel Howard's recap of the SYTYCD Top 6 Eliminations show, I posted a rather banal comment about my opinion of the elimination of Mark (wah! sad!). But then I received some interesting email that were replies to my comment at Voice of Dance (which should really get rid of their lousy comment structure, because the resulting dialogue is completely out of order and thus hardly intelligible). Professor of Dance and writer Mindy Aloff, whose name I recognized from having read her reviews in The Nation and other publications, asked what readers of Rachel's article, viewers of the show, thought of the choreography. I think it's worth reposting her question, because she brings up a number of issues that folks have been discussing, in a variety of venues in the dance world, and in the fan boards.
My reply, and her response as well as the responses of others are a little hard to follow because the site has a lame comment feature, but I want to know what people think of her question and all the questions that come with it.
Are we just suckers for a pretty face, a scripted showmance, a pop ballad? are we manipulated by the judges' vague and tendentious commentary that does little to educate us about what to look for in the performance or the choreography? Does it all boil down to "I may not know much about dance, but I know what I like"? What is the difference between saying "I lurve Mark" and "Mark is the best dancer on the show" (or Will, or Katee, etc). America's best dancer vs. America's favorite? Did "Ameriker get it right/wrong?" How do the "experts" talk to the "fans"? (and of course these are not at all mutually exclusive categories!) Does the fact that Nigel is plugging American Idol by having the Viennese Waltz danced to a David Cook song instead of Strauss mean that serious lovers of dance feel cheated? Does the NappyTabs "lyrical hip hop" live up to the desire of some fans of hip hop to have something closer to their experience visible on the show? What are we missing when we don't have judges or experts educating viewers about what it is they see when they look at dance?
I really want to read Aloff's book Dance Anecdotes now, because she has collected STORIES about dance. I'm fascinated by how we respond to dance, how we talk about it, the role of the professional critic, the expert, the judge and also the response of the amateur, the dance lover, or the viewers rendered temporarily insane by their intense crushes on the performers.
One thing that bothers me is the sneering remarks about "fifteen year-old girls who just have crushes on the dancers" that I've read in more than one forum. I was one of those fifteen year-old girls whose love of dance first manifested itself in a violent crush on a dancer I saw perform with the American Ballet Theater back in 1970(?) or so, Ivan Nagy. He wasn't yet a principal, I believe, but he was no longer in the corps de ballet. All I saw was a performance that captivated me, and a photo in the program, but I was madly in love.
I was my mother's ballet buddy. She would get season tickets to performances at the San Francisco Opera House for whatever dance performances were going on--The San Francisco Ballet Company, American Ballet Theater, the Joffrey Ballet--and I got to come along. I wasn't a dancer myself (I kept injuring my ankles and knees) but I was madly in love with dance. And with the dancers. I would develop an intense obsession with some dancer during the performance and crush on the photo in the program at home. I was completely enamored of Ivan Nagy of the ABT before he went on to dance principal roles, and later transferred my affections to Fernando Bujones after I saw him dance in Don Quixote with Natalia Makarova. My Nureyev crush set in when I saw the 1972 documentary film I Am A Dancer , and it was as much about the revelation of artistry as it was about his charisma. It was a fixation on the beauty, the eroticism, the passion of dance and what I fantasized to be the life of the artist. Sure, the fantasy was probably fueled by hormones, but it was also a manifestation of my yearning for beauty, for passionate expression far beyond what I had (yet) experienced in my daily life. I went on to cultivate my passion for dance by viewing, reading, participating, study. But it was the fangirl crush that got me started, just the way Will Wingfield saw Dirty Dancing and said "I want to do that!"
I have many different relationships to dance and dance talk now, beyond the girly crush, but I still find myself smitten with the "coup de foudre", the lightning bolt crush.
So, still in the throes, I leave you with this:
What Cat said.
"Would be interested to find even one reader's assessment of the choreography--especially since the show, itself, which I like, takes a lot of care to emphasize the subject. Does anyone (apart from Rachel) care? Would it make a difference to anyone if these were gymnasts rather than dancers? What, in your view, makes the dancing, well, dancing? And what do you all think about the fact that, say, in the rehearsal segment for the Viennese waltz, we actually heard a Viennese waltz (by Johann Strauss, Jr) but in performance the Viennese waltz choreography had to be performed to pop music. Why do you think the producers made that change? Aren't you all dancers and dance fans? Don't you have views on stuff like this?"
My reply, and her response as well as the responses of others are a little hard to follow because the site has a lame comment feature, but I want to know what people think of her question and all the questions that come with it.
Are we just suckers for a pretty face, a scripted showmance, a pop ballad? are we manipulated by the judges' vague and tendentious commentary that does little to educate us about what to look for in the performance or the choreography? Does it all boil down to "I may not know much about dance, but I know what I like"? What is the difference between saying "I lurve Mark" and "Mark is the best dancer on the show" (or Will, or Katee, etc). America's best dancer vs. America's favorite? Did "Ameriker get it right/wrong?" How do the "experts" talk to the "fans"? (and of course these are not at all mutually exclusive categories!) Does the fact that Nigel is plugging American Idol by having the Viennese Waltz danced to a David Cook song instead of Strauss mean that serious lovers of dance feel cheated? Does the NappyTabs "lyrical hip hop" live up to the desire of some fans of hip hop to have something closer to their experience visible on the show? What are we missing when we don't have judges or experts educating viewers about what it is they see when they look at dance?
I really want to read Aloff's book Dance Anecdotes now, because she has collected STORIES about dance. I'm fascinated by how we respond to dance, how we talk about it, the role of the professional critic, the expert, the judge and also the response of the amateur, the dance lover, or the viewers rendered temporarily insane by their intense crushes on the performers.
One thing that bothers me is the sneering remarks about "fifteen year-old girls who just have crushes on the dancers" that I've read in more than one forum. I was one of those fifteen year-old girls whose love of dance first manifested itself in a violent crush on a dancer I saw perform with the American Ballet Theater back in 1970(?) or so, Ivan Nagy. He wasn't yet a principal, I believe, but he was no longer in the corps de ballet. All I saw was a performance that captivated me, and a photo in the program, but I was madly in love.
I was my mother's ballet buddy. She would get season tickets to performances at the San Francisco Opera House for whatever dance performances were going on--The San Francisco Ballet Company, American Ballet Theater, the Joffrey Ballet--and I got to come along. I wasn't a dancer myself (I kept injuring my ankles and knees) but I was madly in love with dance. And with the dancers. I would develop an intense obsession with some dancer during the performance and crush on the photo in the program at home. I was completely enamored of Ivan Nagy of the ABT before he went on to dance principal roles, and later transferred my affections to Fernando Bujones after I saw him dance in Don Quixote with Natalia Makarova. My Nureyev crush set in when I saw the 1972 documentary film I Am A Dancer , and it was as much about the revelation of artistry as it was about his charisma. It was a fixation on the beauty, the eroticism, the passion of dance and what I fantasized to be the life of the artist. Sure, the fantasy was probably fueled by hormones, but it was also a manifestation of my yearning for beauty, for passionate expression far beyond what I had (yet) experienced in my daily life. I went on to cultivate my passion for dance by viewing, reading, participating, study. But it was the fangirl crush that got me started, just the way Will Wingfield saw Dirty Dancing and said "I want to do that!"
I have many different relationships to dance and dance talk now, beyond the girly crush, but I still find myself smitten with the "coup de foudre", the lightning bolt crush.
So, still in the throes, I leave you with this:
What Cat said.
A story we must all hear, a story too many already know
Sunday's must read: "Held Suspect" by TerranceDC at Pam's House Blend. He eloquently recounts his own experience, as well as that of family and friends, as a black man in the U.S. who must always be aware of the very real possibility of police violence if he is stopped for driving while black, walking while black, being black in America. I have several friends and acquaintances who have lived through some version of this experience as darker-skinned Latinos or Latin Americans living in the U.S. as well. One of the definitions of white privilege is that those of us who are white have the luxury of being ignorant of these realities, without risk. All black parents must confront that moment when they have to teach their children to survive in a racist society.
Friday, August 01, 2008
SYTYCD update
No, I'm not going to be able to do the job that Ted did, but here are some links to recaps and posts I've found through the BSYTYCD site. If it's a little Mark-centric, hey! No secret he is my fave.Great news! Natalie's Top 6 Music Recap has found a home at Television! You Black Emperor. I wonder if Leee! will have a chance to weigh in or if Comic-Con flattened him? Doesn't this picture NEED to be a LOLCat?
My home town paper the SF Chronicle's dance critic Rachel Howard recaps the performance show at Voice of Dance: So You Think You Can Dance: Difficult Decisions and the Eliminations episode. I always appreciate her separate scores for choreography and performance,
and her expert reviews.Tonya Plank (aka Swan Lake Samba Girl) recaps at HuffPo on the Final Six eliminations show. I appreciate Tonyas ballroom/classical dance background, and her positive approach to reviewing dance performances.
A super, fierce heart-felt tribute to Mark Kanemura at the blog The Fat Lady Sings, by former theater performer, acting and dance coach who sees Mark as a force of nature.
Dancer/writer/photographer Matt at Ranting Details has some wicked and telling thoughts about the performance episode, but won't be able to blog next week. Wah!
BeckyLooo over at If a TV Falls in the Woods is too busy being wildly successful at having her TV script filmed, and having been invited to play a major organizing role in the Obama campaign to blog Sytycd; congratulations to her!
VH1 Best Week Ever recaps the results show and they are not fans of Lady Gaga.
Ducky Does TV asks fans if they have been blowing hot and cold on the show this season as he has. His witty extended recap of the results show is on After Elton.
And at Give Me My Remote, there were some tears.
Smug Doug is not wild about the top four.
Pond Culture's take is always slantwise, but often quite astute.
LA Times Show Tracker attends each show and talks about what happened off camera.
BuddyTV does the usual phone interviews with Mark and Chelsie
Probably going to be a Mark Kanemura fansite, a collaboration between The Fat Lady Sings and The Markers (IDF fans), because people want to know where he's going next. May I say how much I adore the*WUB*, the gifs, sigs, montages, avis, and sweetness on the Mark Kanemura fanthread? (I wish I had some bouncing emoticons to put here.)
I won't be doing this every day, but the season's almost over, and I'll keep you posted when the next iVan blog goes up, or if you want to pass on any tidbits you come across, feel free to send them along.
Update on BSYTYCD from Movmnt Magazine
This summer, the show time open thread over at Blogging So You Think You Can Dance (or BSYTYCD) was a place where I felt comfortable joking, expressing my feelings, sharing my pleasure (or displeasure) about the show and my crazy fixation on it, since many of my friends and family just aren't that into it. The blog's host, whom I knew only as Ted, and his co-hosts Sue B. and Natalie, did a wonderful job, and folks who participated in the comments often warmly thanked them at the end of the show's broadcast for providing links, updates, recaps, song lists, and a civil space in which to watch together.
When Ted announced abruptly this week that he was putting the blog on hiatus, I hoped it was only because he was busy with work, (or had a life, unlike me!) and not because of some personal distress or problems. Blogging can become time-consuming. As all the comment sections had been closed, I wasn't quite sure how to get in touch, but enough of us found each other by clicking around on the blogroll, that by Thursday's show we had a group chatting again at the blog Levy on TV, thanks to Nate.
I just received this comment in my earlier post about the hiatus. As several of BSYTYCD's commenters had wondered what was up, I thought would I bump this message from movmnt magazine's Editor-in-chief, David Benaym up to a post. Here's the whole message, which is also on the site. Thanks, David, for sharing this news.
I don't have any more information on this, but I am sad that Ted seems to have experienced incivility and hassle monitoring the comments. There's more than enough of that going on at other sites, as we all know. It's also a reminder to me to remember, when I hit that send button, that careless words can hurt. My rule of thumb for this blog, and for my comments, is that if I were not happy seeing my words on the front page of the local newspaper with my name attached to them, then they don't belong online. (I actually went back through my Disqus comments to see if I had been guilty of having used inappropriate language. I confess I did say "Nigel STFU' in one comment, but I don't think that is quite the level of incivility this message suggests. ) All I can say is that Ted did a great job of shielding us from this, as I never saw any of it on the site. What a shame, and a good reminder about how we are all renegotiating human interactions through this technological interface in ways we do not yet always understand very well.
If Nate continues to be gracious enough to host an open thread next week for the last two shows, I hope we will all feel free to express our opinions AND live up to the standards BSYTYC set during its run. Once again, many thanks to Ted, Sue B. and Natalie!
When Ted announced abruptly this week that he was putting the blog on hiatus, I hoped it was only because he was busy with work, (or had a life, unlike me!) and not because of some personal distress or problems. Blogging can become time-consuming. As all the comment sections had been closed, I wasn't quite sure how to get in touch, but enough of us found each other by clicking around on the blogroll, that by Thursday's show we had a group chatting again at the blog Levy on TV, thanks to Nate.
I just received this comment in my earlier post about the hiatus. As several of BSYTYCD's commenters had wondered what was up, I thought would I bump this message from movmnt magazine's Editor-in-chief, David Benaym up to a post. Here's the whole message, which is also on the site. Thanks, David, for sharing this news.
For two years, a blog has made a difference covering Fox’s TV hit show, So You Think You Can Dance. Created by Ted Austin, bsytycd.com brought together accuracy, newsworthy links and stories, always with the right amount of criticism or humor without indecency or any kind of voyeurism towards the contestants, their private lives or rumors. The only focus has always been on their performances and talent. The site gathered information and opinions without censorship, followed by a respectful blog audience inspired by Ted’s spirit to respect one another.
That is until a certain part of this’ season’s audience of SYTYCD and by extension, BSYTCD.COM, showed some disrespect towards some of the contestants and used inappropriate language to express whatever anger they might have felt.
Everyone at movmnt would like to thank Ted for leading the blog community to a respectful and accurate coverage of the show. Just two weeks before the season’s finale BSYTCD is going on hiatus. Ted expressed in a last post that he “tried to make it to the end of the season, but just have too much going on.”
Movmnt will do his best to perpetuate your legacy, Ted; hoping that all the good that happened for the past two years via your blog initiative will be remembered and carried-on by your faithful reader base.
The loss of Blogging So You Think You Can Dance definitely marks the end of an era.
Step into the light,
David Benaym - Editor in Chief, Movmnt Magazine
Originally posted on www.movmnt.com/bsytycd_00933.html
I don't have any more information on this, but I am sad that Ted seems to have experienced incivility and hassle monitoring the comments. There's more than enough of that going on at other sites, as we all know. It's also a reminder to me to remember, when I hit that send button, that careless words can hurt. My rule of thumb for this blog, and for my comments, is that if I were not happy seeing my words on the front page of the local newspaper with my name attached to them, then they don't belong online. (I actually went back through my Disqus comments to see if I had been guilty of having used inappropriate language. I confess I did say "Nigel STFU' in one comment, but I don't think that is quite the level of incivility this message suggests. ) All I can say is that Ted did a great job of shielding us from this, as I never saw any of it on the site. What a shame, and a good reminder about how we are all renegotiating human interactions through this technological interface in ways we do not yet always understand very well.
If Nate continues to be gracious enough to host an open thread next week for the last two shows, I hope we will all feel free to express our opinions AND live up to the standards BSYTYC set during its run. Once again, many thanks to Ted, Sue B. and Natalie!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
The latest from Michael Wesch and Digital Ethnography
Brilliant "Anthropology of YouTube" explains a lot about how the whole "Web 2.0" thing works. Fun, fascinating, and instructive, it's worth the time it takes to watch (about 40 minutes).
Michael Wesch at Kansas State U. has created several wonderful videos with his students and collaborators, and his Digital Enthnography blog gives background and details about them.
Michael Wesch at Kansas State U. has created several wonderful videos with his students and collaborators, and his Digital Enthnography blog gives background and details about them.
Thanks for all the fish! and head over to Levy On TV for SYTYCD open thread
So long, BSYTYCD! You will be missed!
No idea if any of my readers will care, but since Ted at BSYTYCD has put the blog on hiatus, Nate Levy, the fastest recapper in the blogosphere has kindly opened a thread at Levy on TV on his blog for tonight's results show.
Thanks to Ted, Natalie, and Sue B for hosting their wonderful blog for most of this season. I wish you well, and will miss checking your blog compulsively every day for the updates, recaps, song lists, and great commentary fun.
No idea if any of my readers will care, but since Ted at BSYTYCD has put the blog on hiatus, Nate Levy, the fastest recapper in the blogosphere has kindly opened a thread at Levy on TV on his blog for tonight's results show.
Thanks to Ted, Natalie, and Sue B for hosting their wonderful blog for most of this season. I wish you well, and will miss checking your blog compulsively every day for the updates, recaps, song lists, and great commentary fun.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Loren's fabulous chocolate cake recipe
For my mom, since making this cake is a birthday tradition, and today is her birthday!!Colorado Cache cookbook's Chocolate Fudge Cake
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
3 squared of unsweetened chocolate
2 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/2 cup butter
2 1/4 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1 cup sour cream
1 cup boiling water
Melt the chocolate and let it cool. Sift flour, baking soda, salt together. Beat butter until soft. Add brown sugar and eggs, and beat until fluffy. Beat in vanilla and add cooled chocolate. Stir in the dry ingredients, alternating with sour cream, and beat with a wooden spoon. Stir in boiling water.
Pour into greased and floured 9" pans.
Bake 25 minutes or until it tests done with a toothpick, and cool on a rack 10 minutes.
Frost with the most decadent chocolate frosting you can find.
'The world as it is and the world as it should be'
Listen to this man. Think about the world as it could be.
After eight awful years, isn't it exciting to contemplate a leader who can complete a grammatical sentence, speak in full paragraphs, follow a train of thought that is his own, respond with reason and even humor to questions, explain his own ideas, frame problems-solving in terms of cooperation and collaboration?
Here are his remarks in France.
In London, in Berlin before a crowd of over 200,000 people.
Michelle Obama spoke to the DNC's Gay and Lesbian Leadership Council
ETA: a reminder of why McCain must be defeated!
After eight awful years, isn't it exciting to contemplate a leader who can complete a grammatical sentence, speak in full paragraphs, follow a train of thought that is his own, respond with reason and even humor to questions, explain his own ideas, frame problems-solving in terms of cooperation and collaboration?
Here are his remarks in France.
In London, in Berlin before a crowd of over 200,000 people.
Michelle Obama spoke to the DNC's Gay and Lesbian Leadership Council
ETA: a reminder of why McCain must be defeated!
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Fun, yes, but funky?
Will Wingfield fans are so bummed that he will not be in the final six on SYTYCD. I loved the fact that he auditioned to a spoken word piece, and his dancing was marvelous on many occasions, especially in the pas de deux with Katee. I think he will continue to have great success in the dance world. But for me, he was not "the best dancer on the show ever" or my favorite. He seems like a lovely person, he dances incredibly well, but his performances as a partner were not as strong as some others. He's fast, but doesn't dig into the floor, especially in his jive (where I liked Gev better) and the samba (where I thought Josh had more of the samba motion). I just didn't get the funky vibe from him that I get from Twitch, whose partner dancing I find lacking, but whose Hollywood Swinging solo was all kinds of awesome.
With Will I appreciated more of the upward and outward vibe of a cerebral dancer.
That's why the Jame Brown solo was a big headscratcher for me.
Leee! Really? the arms!
Do they remind you of this?
or this?
With Will I appreciated more of the upward and outward vibe of a cerebral dancer.
That's why the Jame Brown solo was a big headscratcher for me.
Leee! Really? the arms!
Do they remind you of this?
or this?
Chronic Illness/ Wellness
The insurance company turned down my application for long-term care insurance because of pre-existing medical conditions, even though I disclosed them when I applied. I'm not sure if that is legal, but that's a subject for further research.
This is my meditation for today:
The UC Berkeley Wellness site says this:
What is "Wellness"?
Wellness is much more than simply the absence of sickness. It is optimal physical, mental, and emotional well-being, a preventive way of living that reduces—sometimes even eliminates—the need for remedies. Wellness emphasizes personal responsibility for making the life-style choices and self-care decisions that will improve the quality of your life. One crucial tenet is that preventing illness is even more important than treating it, especially since many chronic diseases are incurable.
Wellness is a positive, day-to-day approach to a long, healthful, active life. It includes both highly scientific and practical medicine—from the latest research and most advanced tests to reliable home remedies and common sense.
For me, wellness cannot be understood as the absence of sickness, because I have lived with the symptoms of two chronic illnesses -fibromyalgia and chronic depression--for most of my adult life. Cheri Register's book The Chronic Illness Experience: Embracing the Imperfect Life is the best book I know about the challenges of coming to recognize that these conditions will never go away, and that I must find ways to live well. I am fortunate that I am able to work (although not at the capacity I would like) and be physically active (although not always, and not always the way I'd wish), and that I am not now disabled.
For years, before I was correctly diagnosed (in my mid thirties) I was told there was nothing wrong with me (the implication being that it was all in my head) but I kept trying to "get better" because I was suffering. I believed, because I had been told by so many doctors, that all I needed to do was eat right, exercise, and have the right attitude, and I would be able to somehow achieve wellness, understood as the absence of disease. I also believed that if I was not successful at "getting better", it was because I was doing it wrong, or had character defects of some kind: I was a Type-A personality, a perfectionist, "too angry", the adult child of an alcoholic, hysterical, another one of those women. It turns out that research has shown that these are myths.
Correct diagnosis and a holistic treatment plan have made it possible for me to manage my symptoms better. The idea of wellness as a daily practice helps me think about my "chronic illness experience" as part of me, rather than something that has happened to me. I'm not through mourning the loss of the person I thought I was going to be, but I embrace my imperfect life.
Monday, July 28, 2008
"En una noche oscura"
Inspired by fresca's inclusion of the English translation of this very famous poem by San Juan de la Cruz, I went looking for the original and found this musical setting of the poem "En una noche oscura":
It took me a while to track down who is singing the arrangement of the poem in Spanish in this video. It turns out to be Amancio Prada, who has set many poems to music from Rosalia de Castro (in Galician), Lorca and San Juan. He first recorded San Juan's poetry in 1977. Here is the text of the poem in the original Spanish. One thing to notice is the that poetic voice (the "I") is feminine (el alma, the soul) and not masculine (San Juan).
Carlos Saura directed a film called La noche oscura in 1989, which is centered on one event in his life: as part of the Reform movement of the Carmelites, following the lead of Santa Teresa of Avila, San Juan was imprisoned by the Inquisition in Toledo and subjected to torture. It was during his confinement that he composed this poem. Saura says that the film is about the act of creation. Apparently, it was appreciated by a few, but not a success. I'll have to see if I can find it in Netflix.
It took me a while to track down who is singing the arrangement of the poem in Spanish in this video. It turns out to be Amancio Prada, who has set many poems to music from Rosalia de Castro (in Galician), Lorca and San Juan. He first recorded San Juan's poetry in 1977. Here is the text of the poem in the original Spanish. One thing to notice is the that poetic voice (the "I") is feminine (el alma, the soul) and not masculine (San Juan).
Carlos Saura directed a film called La noche oscura in 1989, which is centered on one event in his life: as part of the Reform movement of the Carmelites, following the lead of Santa Teresa of Avila, San Juan was imprisoned by the Inquisition in Toledo and subjected to torture. It was during his confinement that he composed this poem. Saura says that the film is about the act of creation. Apparently, it was appreciated by a few, but not a success. I'll have to see if I can find it in Netflix.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Argentine Tango on SYTYCD + the real thing
Argentine Tango on SYTYCD has proven to be popular, (although most people don't know the difference between the AT and Ballroom Tango). This season, ballroom competitor Chelsie Hightower was paired with Mark Kanemura as the dancers were cut from 20 to 10. For many people, their Argentine Tango was a highlight. I loved the performance: Chelsie is an accomplished partner dancer who has never danced AT, while Mark is a talented dancer with a gift for projecting a character. Even though there are some moments where she breaks out of his hold, he is completely focused on her and their partnership throughout, so the illusion fits the character of the dance.
Once the show began to mix up the couples, Chelsie was paired with Josh for another Argentine Tango. Josh has his moments of feline movement, and the choreographers love to exploit his strength for lifts, but he doesn't have enough of a sense of the character of the dance to unify the pieces of his performance. Chelsie is better in this one because she is less ballroomy, but because Josh doesn't know how to lead, she isn't able to create the illusion of attentive following that is so key to this dance.
Here's my very favorite movie scene of a tango exhibition style, from Carlos Saura's film Tango. Here, the old pro is supposedly inviting a young woman to dance,lead and follow, although in fact this dance was choreographed for the film. Gorgeous.
But THIS is the the real thing: tango tal como se baila en Buenos Aires, in which the man is leading, and the woman is following, WITHOUT choreography, only through the connection and their incredible skill and musicality.
Once the show began to mix up the couples, Chelsie was paired with Josh for another Argentine Tango. Josh has his moments of feline movement, and the choreographers love to exploit his strength for lifts, but he doesn't have enough of a sense of the character of the dance to unify the pieces of his performance. Chelsie is better in this one because she is less ballroomy, but because Josh doesn't know how to lead, she isn't able to create the illusion of attentive following that is so key to this dance.
Here's my very favorite movie scene of a tango exhibition style, from Carlos Saura's film Tango. Here, the old pro is supposedly inviting a young woman to dance,lead and follow, although in fact this dance was choreographed for the film. Gorgeous.
But THIS is the the real thing: tango tal como se baila en Buenos Aires, in which the man is leading, and the woman is following, WITHOUT choreography, only through the connection and their incredible skill and musicality.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Shatner remix
Hi Fresca!
Shatner on Conan, aka "Shatner does Woo Woo!"
Now check out this "Shatner Woo remix"
Shatner on Conan, aka "Shatner does Woo Woo!"
Now check out this "Shatner Woo remix"
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Gilbert Price, Langston Hughes and more Nina Simone
Gilbert Price's voice was a revelation to those who heard him sing for the first time, from his earliest roles. An article in the Harvard Crimson of 1965 has so much more information about his life than the scanty Wikepedia entry: a young man who had a gift that opened doors for him, and an acclaimed performer who died much to young at the age of 48. Here's how a reviewer described him in one of his earliest theatrical performances:
Gilbert Price sang in the acclaimed Langston Hughes musical production, co-directed with Alvin Ailey, called Jerico-Jim Crow. I haven't yet found a recording of Price singing "Oh Freedom" from the cast album, but it was a hit. When they say "Price became Langston Hughes protogé" it's unclear if that is code for lover, or not. There is still a fair amount of mystery shrounding the lives of writers who had to hide their sexuality, sometime even from themselves. Ampersand's biography of Hughes describes the relationship as a loving friendship between the older man and the talented boy. Certainly, there was a loving relationship between the two.
Price got his Broadway break in "The Roar of the Greasepaint..." where he stole the show with the song, "Feeling Good." He would go on to be nominated for four Tony awards for his roles in musicals. But it seems that in his later years, he disappeared from public view. Here is a rare clip from fan, of Price on TV singing "I've Gotta be Me"
More fabulous Nina:
Listen to her piano playing and the great arrangement of this swinging "Love me or Leave Me." What a great musician she was!
The animation for this video set to "My Baby Just Cares for Me" is sweet! One of my few ballroom routines was a West Coast Swing/Foxtrot to the first part of this song.
The young male lead was listed in the program as Gilbert Price. When he appeared on stage, I saw a fellow of fairly small frame, strikingly handsome, with dark brown eyes, a winning smile and shining white teeth. But the moment he started to sing, I was hardly conscious of anything else except The Voice. From that modest physique issued a radiant stream of ravishing beauty and expresivity, which, when the occasion demanded, expanded to so enormous a size as to seem almost a physiological impossibility.
Gilbert Price sang in the acclaimed Langston Hughes musical production, co-directed with Alvin Ailey, called Jerico-Jim Crow. I haven't yet found a recording of Price singing "Oh Freedom" from the cast album, but it was a hit. When they say "Price became Langston Hughes protogé" it's unclear if that is code for lover, or not. There is still a fair amount of mystery shrounding the lives of writers who had to hide their sexuality, sometime even from themselves. Ampersand's biography of Hughes describes the relationship as a loving friendship between the older man and the talented boy. Certainly, there was a loving relationship between the two.
Price got his Broadway break in "The Roar of the Greasepaint..." where he stole the show with the song, "Feeling Good." He would go on to be nominated for four Tony awards for his roles in musicals. But it seems that in his later years, he disappeared from public view. Here is a rare clip from fan, of Price on TV singing "I've Gotta be Me"
More fabulous Nina:
Listen to her piano playing and the great arrangement of this swinging "Love me or Leave Me." What a great musician she was!
The animation for this video set to "My Baby Just Cares for Me" is sweet! One of my few ballroom routines was a West Coast Swing/Foxtrot to the first part of this song.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
"Feeling Good"
On the SyTYCD Top 10 results show, Mia Michaels choreographed a number for the five women to a version of "Ave Maria" by Celine Dion, while Gev did his solo to a cover of the great standard "Feeling Good". He used the version by Michael Bublé, and lots of folks were wowed by how he meshed the b-boy moves with this song.
It's a song from a Broadway musical, originally sung by Gilbert Price in an arrangement that was like a spiritual. What an amazing voice he had! But when Nina Simone sang it, she gave it a jazzy swagger which has marked almost all versions since.
Oddly enough, I had just heard Simone's cover, which I have listened to endless times, a few days ago when I watched a clip of my favorite champion ice-skater Johnny Weir, debuting his new routine in Seoul, Korea. This video also has his performance of his crowd-pleasing "Ave Maria" showcase number. Cosmic convergence!I wonder if Gev, who comes from a family of professional figure-skating performers, was inspired in his song choice by Weir? It's not impossible since he's also a skater.
Here Nina Simone sings "Feelin' Good" with a wonderful visual someone created for a class!
I don't mind Michale Bublé'sversion, and I quite like what Muse has done to the song. Apparently, Nescafé used their version without permission in a TV ad; they sued and won, and donated the money to Oxfam. And Celine Dion tried to name her Vegas show Muse, but they said No, they didn't want people to think of them as her back-up band.
It's a song from a Broadway musical, originally sung by Gilbert Price in an arrangement that was like a spiritual. What an amazing voice he had! But when Nina Simone sang it, she gave it a jazzy swagger which has marked almost all versions since.
Oddly enough, I had just heard Simone's cover, which I have listened to endless times, a few days ago when I watched a clip of my favorite champion ice-skater Johnny Weir, debuting his new routine in Seoul, Korea. This video also has his performance of his crowd-pleasing "Ave Maria" showcase number. Cosmic convergence!I wonder if Gev, who comes from a family of professional figure-skating performers, was inspired in his song choice by Weir? It's not impossible since he's also a skater.
Here Nina Simone sings "Feelin' Good" with a wonderful visual someone created for a class!
I don't mind Michale Bublé'sversion, and I quite like what Muse has done to the song. Apparently, Nescafé used their version without permission in a TV ad; they sued and won, and donated the money to Oxfam. And Celine Dion tried to name her Vegas show Muse, but they said No, they didn't want people to think of them as her back-up band.
The SYTYCD heartbreak begins.
Now that it's up to the vote of the viewing public and not the judges to cut the contestants, the results are much more unpredictable. In the bottom two for the men were Mark and Gev, two of my favorite dancers of the season. Gev might not have been best dancer all around in terms of technique, and I knew he wouldn't get to the top four, but he was the most entertaining for me, and the one who brought the "most improved" arc to the show. And I don't think any of the other dancers could do many of the moves he does. He danced his heart out every time. I'm going to miss seeing him on my TV! I hope he will be able to continue to grow as a dancer and a performer after the tour.
Someone who has made some incredible remixes of routines is buffmetube.Check out the remixes and montages for an example of fabulous editing. This remix of Gev and Courtney's rumba substituted a Portishead song for the R and B ballad "Wishing on a Star" used for the performance. The effect is amazing.
Here's Gev's farewell solo:
This is my second favorite solo by Gev, from the Top 14 show:
He missed a move in the beginning of this solo, but watch what he does with his shirt!:
Someone who has made some incredible remixes of routines is buffmetube.Check out the remixes and montages for an example of fabulous editing. This remix of Gev and Courtney's rumba substituted a Portishead song for the R and B ballad "Wishing on a Star" used for the performance. The effect is amazing.
Here's Gev's farewell solo:
This is my second favorite solo by Gev, from the Top 14 show:
He missed a move in the beginning of this solo, but watch what he does with his shirt!:
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Are we funny yet?
So, David Remnick, editor of the New Yorker magazine, mistakes himself for the T. Herman Zweibel, the "editor" of The Onion, and all hell breaks loose. "Can't people take a joke?" ask some. "What was he thinking?" ask others. "It's supposed to be satire!" cries the New Yorker.
But satire only works when it is a successful collaboration between the satirist and the audience, and if it is poorly done, it fails. What is the object of satire in the now infamous Obama cover? It isn't clear: is it Obama himself? the right wing that makes up lies about him and his wife? the media that perpetuates those racist, anti-Muslim, hateful stereotypes about him and his wife? or the "ignorant-bumpkins-who-don't-read-the-New-Yorker-and-actually-believe-that-stuff"? This image, appearing as it does at this time, really upset a lot of people, for very good reasons. It is a good example of an attempt at satire that failed, like a firecracker that fizzles (or, to use J.L. Austin's terminology about illocutionary speech acts, it is neither true nor false, it is "infelicitous.") Whether humor works depends on the audience, not the intentions or even the performance of the humorist.
(Want a more technical explanation of how that works? Go here.)
I think the folks over at Culture Kitchen get it absolutely right when they call the New Yorker's Obama cover an example of "Hipster bigotry."
The current master of political satire in the U.S., Jon Stewart, weighs in: "Come ON folks, repeating unsubstantiated claims and perpetuating stereotypes is the job of TELEVISION NEWS, not something for smartypants magazines!"
Now here's a satirical piece that really works for me!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
How to advertise online without making people watch your commercials
It's all about content. Find out what people want to watch or read, give it to them, and they will come.
There are only three of them, but they are the most brilliant cartoons about living with a cat that I've seen. They've also generated millions of views on YouTube, and when they are picked up by megatraffic sites like Cute Overload, we are thrilled to find them. Simon's Cat has his own YouTube channel where you can see the other two cat cartoons. There's not much on the channel: "Official home of the 'Simon's Cat' films from Tandem director Simon Tofield." As far as I can tell, Simon's cat is a great mode of advertising for the Tandem website, although I wonder how many cat cartoon viewers actually click over on the site link in the profile to see what Tandem is all about, watch the ads they make, read about the company. Maybe industry people, who are probably the principal target market? He's left bait in the form of a fourth video just called Tandem logo. When you click on it, that is all you see: the logo.
Maybe Chris Matyszczyk, over at Pond Culture, could explain it to us; he seems to have created the blog Pond Culture as an experiment: make a blog with the plainest of templates, no archives, no links to other posts, blog about some of the most highly trafficked stories of the day and provide only wordpress tags to generate traffic. Monitor the site to see who comes there and why. If they bother to click on the profile, they can find the URL of his other website, but it is not hotlinked. So part of the experiment seems to be seeing who actually goes to the trouble to venture over to his other sites which is embedded in complete connectivity. Oh, and he writes witty and dryly entertaining posts about being a European living in the SF Bay Area and what the view is like for us pond dwellers as we look up at the antics of the mass media, the advertisers, the politicians, and the sports franchises as they market, sell, and promote. I found his site through a link on BSYTYCD, but found it funny enough to read my way back through the blog even though he provides absolutely no archive or category shortcuts (that would compromise the purity of the experiment, as would external links).
But I digress: here's the latest from my cat's alter ego on the internet, Simon's Cat 'TV Dinner'. It is not an exact reproduction of Leo's behavior: Leo's voice is much louder and more annoying; Leo claws at the bed just out of reach rather than the sofa to get me to get up to feed him; Leo jumps up on the TV tray table in order to knock my electronic devices out of reach; we don't have a remote, but I'm sure he could work it if we did. He does steal your spot as soon as you get up, get all in your face while you are using a laptop, yowl relentlessly for food (or toy activity) while you are trying to watch TV, and do that thing with his claws when he does get on my lap.
There are only three of them, but they are the most brilliant cartoons about living with a cat that I've seen. They've also generated millions of views on YouTube, and when they are picked up by megatraffic sites like Cute Overload, we are thrilled to find them. Simon's Cat has his own YouTube channel where you can see the other two cat cartoons. There's not much on the channel: "Official home of the 'Simon's Cat' films from Tandem director Simon Tofield." As far as I can tell, Simon's cat is a great mode of advertising for the Tandem website, although I wonder how many cat cartoon viewers actually click over on the site link in the profile to see what Tandem is all about, watch the ads they make, read about the company. Maybe industry people, who are probably the principal target market? He's left bait in the form of a fourth video just called Tandem logo. When you click on it, that is all you see: the logo.
Maybe Chris Matyszczyk, over at Pond Culture, could explain it to us; he seems to have created the blog Pond Culture as an experiment: make a blog with the plainest of templates, no archives, no links to other posts, blog about some of the most highly trafficked stories of the day and provide only wordpress tags to generate traffic. Monitor the site to see who comes there and why. If they bother to click on the profile, they can find the URL of his other website, but it is not hotlinked. So part of the experiment seems to be seeing who actually goes to the trouble to venture over to his other sites which is embedded in complete connectivity. Oh, and he writes witty and dryly entertaining posts about being a European living in the SF Bay Area and what the view is like for us pond dwellers as we look up at the antics of the mass media, the advertisers, the politicians, and the sports franchises as they market, sell, and promote. I found his site through a link on BSYTYCD, but found it funny enough to read my way back through the blog even though he provides absolutely no archive or category shortcuts (that would compromise the purity of the experiment, as would external links).
But I digress: here's the latest from my cat's alter ego on the internet, Simon's Cat 'TV Dinner'. It is not an exact reproduction of Leo's behavior: Leo's voice is much louder and more annoying; Leo claws at the bed just out of reach rather than the sofa to get me to get up to feed him; Leo jumps up on the TV tray table in order to knock my electronic devices out of reach; we don't have a remote, but I'm sure he could work it if we did. He does steal your spot as soon as you get up, get all in your face while you are using a laptop, yowl relentlessly for food (or toy activity) while you are trying to watch TV, and do that thing with his claws when he does get on my lap.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Doo-wop lullabies
Zaragoza is seven hours ahead of us here in the Midwest, so when we iChat, my daughter is usually about to go to bed.
I used to sing her to sleep every night, with songs I remembered my mother singing to me, and any song I could remember: old Joan Baez, tenor arias my old boyfriend used to sing in the shower, Raffi. For a while, at least, she thought I was the greatest singer ever!
Today in Cute Overload, Meg posted this hilarious video of a man singing his puppies to sleep. What makes it especially sweet to me is the song; in high school I dated a guy who was the lead singer in a Sha Na Na cover band (yes, a cover band of a nostalgia doo-wop cover band, but they were fun!)
Here is the puppy lullaby:
The original version was by The Spaniels! They were a doo-wop band in the fifties that got ripped off like so many other black musicians. One of the singers from Sha Na Na has been working to make sure that the old groups don't continue to get ripped off by groups passing themselves off as the originals.
I used to sing her to sleep every night, with songs I remembered my mother singing to me, and any song I could remember: old Joan Baez, tenor arias my old boyfriend used to sing in the shower, Raffi. For a while, at least, she thought I was the greatest singer ever!
Today in Cute Overload, Meg posted this hilarious video of a man singing his puppies to sleep. What makes it especially sweet to me is the song; in high school I dated a guy who was the lead singer in a Sha Na Na cover band (yes, a cover band of a nostalgia doo-wop cover band, but they were fun!)
Here is the puppy lullaby:
The original version was by The Spaniels! They were a doo-wop band in the fifties that got ripped off like so many other black musicians. One of the singers from Sha Na Na has been working to make sure that the old groups don't continue to get ripped off by groups passing themselves off as the originals.
Get This Party Started X 3
I went to see a friend who performs at the Townhouse Bar in a drag revue called Pumps and Pearls. The MC, Lily White, did a number to the song "Get The Party Started," written by singer, musician,songwriter and producer extraordinaire, Linda Perry, and made a huge hit by Pink on her second album in 2001, but this version was sung by Dame Shirley Bassey! (You know, "Goooolllldfingaaaahhhh!"). She has just come out with a new CD, at age 71, and her cover of this song is fabulous!
Here's a live version by Pink who performs l some incredibly daring aerial moves on Chinese silks with her dancers:
Here is the Welsh Diva, Dame Shirley Bassey, consummate vocal artiste, giving it her own spin:
and here is local favorite Esme Rodriguez doing Shirley doing Pink at the Bryant Lake Bowl:
Here's a live version by Pink who performs l some incredibly daring aerial moves on Chinese silks with her dancers:
Here is the Welsh Diva, Dame Shirley Bassey, consummate vocal artiste, giving it her own spin:
and here is local favorite Esme Rodriguez doing Shirley doing Pink at the Bryant Lake Bowl:
Friday, July 11, 2008
Dance inspiration from the summer dance shows
My summer addiction is now So You Think You Can Dance AND America's Best Dance Crew. Since I dont' get MTV I'm really glad the ABDC show provides complete episodes on its website. I'm getting a hip hop education, and a kind commenter provided me with a link to an incredible hip hop dance documentary called The Freshest Kids, that puts hip hop dance into historical perspective.
Quick SYTYCD round-up: We now have the top ten dancers out of the twenty contestants. They are Mark and Chelsie, Joshua and Katee, Twitch and Kherrington, Will and Jessica. I'm very happy with this group, although there were some talented and entertaining dacers among those who were cut. The top ten are the dancers who will go on tour after the winner is announced. Since this show is a reality show, and really is "America's favorite dancer" and not necessarily "the best dancer of the bunch," the show relies on a combination of truly entertaining and sometimes even brilliant dancing, and the manufactured narratives that pit the audience against the Judges: are the critiques really about the judges expertise, or are they (also) trying to influence fans with more crass, commercial motives? Half the fun for some viewers seems to be arguing about conspiracy theories, while the other half involves the pleasures of the dance itself, the attractive contestants and the possibility of sharing the love with other fans.
Here's Gev's solo:
Here's Will's solo
Josh and Katee's contemporary:
After dancing with the same partner for the last several weeks, now the dancers will be paired with different partners, and have a chance to show us what they can do with new partnerships in the various styles. The voting will now be viewers only ("Americker") and not the judges, so there is a different dynamic, more about the individuals and less about the couples.
For some of the best recaps--creative, funny, smart, snarky-- I've been following Leee! over at Television! You Black Emperor, Matt at Ranting Details (he's a dancer and a whiz with Photoshop), BeckyLooo at If a TV Falls in the Woods (also a dancer), the threads at TWoP, and, of course, the great crew of Ted, Natalie and SueB over at BloggingSYTYCD, who kindly provide a roundup of news, videos, and live open threads during performances. It's fun to get different perspectives on the performances, especially from those with dance background. I really appreciate their recaps and song lists as well.
Now that my shoulders have healed enough so that I can get back to dancing myself, I have rejoined the Y, started taking stretch classes and will work my way up to going back dancing. I don't want to jump right in, because I am so out of shape that if I overdo it right away, it will through me into a fibromyalgia flare-up, so I figure I'll see how I do after a couple of weeks with dance stretch and water aerobic cardio. Then I'm going to make the rounds: cajun/zydeco at the Half Time Rec on Sundays, salsa at Babalu, late night Swing over at Tapestry on Thursday where I am sure to find the lindy hoppers, and some ballroom studio parties where I can get back in the swing of my favorite dances.
Quick SYTYCD round-up: We now have the top ten dancers out of the twenty contestants. They are Mark and Chelsie, Joshua and Katee, Twitch and Kherrington, Will and Jessica. I'm very happy with this group, although there were some talented and entertaining dacers among those who were cut. The top ten are the dancers who will go on tour after the winner is announced. Since this show is a reality show, and really is "America's favorite dancer" and not necessarily "the best dancer of the bunch," the show relies on a combination of truly entertaining and sometimes even brilliant dancing, and the manufactured narratives that pit the audience against the Judges: are the critiques really about the judges expertise, or are they (also) trying to influence fans with more crass, commercial motives? Half the fun for some viewers seems to be arguing about conspiracy theories, while the other half involves the pleasures of the dance itself, the attractive contestants and the possibility of sharing the love with other fans.
Here's Gev's solo:
Here's Will's solo
Josh and Katee's contemporary:
After dancing with the same partner for the last several weeks, now the dancers will be paired with different partners, and have a chance to show us what they can do with new partnerships in the various styles. The voting will now be viewers only ("Americker") and not the judges, so there is a different dynamic, more about the individuals and less about the couples.
For some of the best recaps--creative, funny, smart, snarky-- I've been following Leee! over at Television! You Black Emperor, Matt at Ranting Details (he's a dancer and a whiz with Photoshop), BeckyLooo at If a TV Falls in the Woods (also a dancer), the threads at TWoP, and, of course, the great crew of Ted, Natalie and SueB over at BloggingSYTYCD, who kindly provide a roundup of news, videos, and live open threads during performances. It's fun to get different perspectives on the performances, especially from those with dance background. I really appreciate their recaps and song lists as well.
Now that my shoulders have healed enough so that I can get back to dancing myself, I have rejoined the Y, started taking stretch classes and will work my way up to going back dancing. I don't want to jump right in, because I am so out of shape that if I overdo it right away, it will through me into a fibromyalgia flare-up, so I figure I'll see how I do after a couple of weeks with dance stretch and water aerobic cardio. Then I'm going to make the rounds: cajun/zydeco at the Half Time Rec on Sundays, salsa at Babalu, late night Swing over at Tapestry on Thursday where I am sure to find the lindy hoppers, and some ballroom studio parties where I can get back in the swing of my favorite dances.
Monday, July 07, 2008
"Best" Quixote translation?
My mother is reading Don Quixote in English with one of her reading groups, and asked me what I knew about different translations. I had to reply that I knew nothing, as I had read it in Spanish, and had never had the occasion to think about "the best translation" before. I started poking around (hey, the Wikipedia entry is good!)and after looking at some scholarly and not-so-scholarly discussions of the history and quality of the very many English translations, I decided that the one her group is reading (the Edith Grossman translation with Alan Bloom's introduction) is probably, in fact, the best for their purposes; it is not a scholarly edition with footnotes explaining every proverb and reference and arguing with past translators' versions, but it is a accurate, and most importantly, a lively and FAITHFUL translation that captures the tone and spirit of the work. Here is what Edith Grossman herself says about translating literary texts (she has translated many Latin America authors, including Gabriel García Márquez):Fidelity is surely our highest aim, but a translation is not made with tracing paper. It is an act of critical interpretation. Let me insist on the obvious: Languages trail immense, individual histories behind them, and no two languages, with all their accretions of tradition and culture, ever dovetail perfectly. They can be linked by translation, as a photograph can link movement and stasis, but it is disingenuous to assume that either translation or photography, or acting for that matter, are representational in any narrow sense of the term. Fidelity is our noble purpose, but it does not have much, if anything, to do with what is called literal meaning. A translation can be faithful to tone and intention, to meaning. It can rarely be faithful to words or syntax, for these are peculiar to specific languages and are not transferable.
Why a new translation, when several were made right after its publication? Well, because English has changed a lot in 400 years, and Cervantes is, above all, a modern writer, and reading the original is an experience of great pleasure.
Without having looked at any of the texts myself it seems to me as if Grossman has done two important things: rendered the text in English that is colloquial and accessible, and captured the tone and multiples voices of Cervantes' text. Many people also had great praise for the audiobook read by Guidall.Wikimedia has a lot of images of Don Quixote including the wonderful series of illustratioins by Gustave Doré.
Here's an interview with Edith Grossman
on translating Cervantes.
Sunday, July 06, 2008
welsh welsh James Bond welsh welsh
Three Welshmen on the loose in "Los Angelees"
Like Richard Burton, who grew up in a Welsh-speaking household, actors Ioan Gruffuth and Matthew Rhys are bi-lingual Welsh/English speakers.
Like Richard Burton, who grew up in a Welsh-speaking household, actors Ioan Gruffuth and Matthew Rhys are bi-lingual Welsh/English speakers.
Wordle makes your text into a word cloud!
Jonathan Fineburg has created a lovely thing called Wordle. It allows you to make word-clouds out of any text and play around with fonts and colors. You can then post your creation to a gallery. The site's gallery makes these images available to anyone. As you can see if you browse the gallery, one need not choose a poem as a text; you can paste in any text, or write one of your own. Repeated words are bigger. Certain very common words (the, etc) are blocked.
I made one of the poem "Wild Things" by Emily Dickenson. You can paste in the code to embed it in your blogpost, like this. Click on this small image, and it will take you to the Wordle Gallery:
Check it out!
Or, I can "print" it by saving it as a PDF, then use Grab to select the image in the pf and make a screen capture. This saves it as a TIFF file, but I can resave it as a JPEG then upload it as a picture, as you see below. Fineburg says that these images can be used for anything, fun, printing on T-shirts, making money, whatever.
OK, now I've realized that when I have created my little Worlde image, that I can click "print", then select PDF from the printer menu, and then choose to save the PDF to iPhoto and it will make a picture. No need to go through the screen grab method. (NB: the FAQ gives alternate instructions for PCs)
Wordle handles multiple languages as well. Here's another Worlde I made with César Vallejo's poem "Masa." This time, instead of generating the format by hitting the "randomize button" a bunch of times, I selected "edit,", then chose the font, colors and a few other features. Because I didn't save it to the gallery, it's not there. Why don't you try making one?
I made one of the poem "Wild Things" by Emily Dickenson. You can paste in the code to embed it in your blogpost, like this. Click on this small image, and it will take you to the Wordle Gallery:
Check it out!Or, I can "print" it by saving it as a PDF, then use Grab to select the image in the pf and make a screen capture. This saves it as a TIFF file, but I can resave it as a JPEG then upload it as a picture, as you see below. Fineburg says that these images can be used for anything, fun, printing on T-shirts, making money, whatever.
OK, now I've realized that when I have created my little Worlde image, that I can click "print", then select PDF from the printer menu, and then choose to save the PDF to iPhoto and it will make a picture. No need to go through the screen grab method. (NB: the FAQ gives alternate instructions for PCs)
Wordle handles multiple languages as well. Here's another Worlde I made with César Vallejo's poem "Masa." This time, instead of generating the format by hitting the "randomize button" a bunch of times, I selected "edit,", then chose the font, colors and a few other features. Because I didn't save it to the gallery, it's not there. Why don't you try making one?
Saturday, July 05, 2008
Domo arigato, Mr. Bento
K and I went to see Wall-E today and ate at Obento-Ya on Como after. Their backyard garden seating is lovely, and we enjoyed our bento dinners.I have long been considering buying a bento box for lunches, but there are so many choices! K told me she bought a Mr. Bento lunch carrier at an Asian grocery store on Snelling. It's four containers are microwavable and also insulated to keep things hot or cold. I need to get me one!
Friday, July 04, 2008
Listening to Bach's Goldberg Variations over the years
I took piano lessons when I was younger, but was lazy about practicing. As we moved a lot, I had a number of different teachers. The last one was sour and mean and would hit me on the head with a pencil when I made a mistake. Needless to say, I quit!--It would take me a few decades to learn how to have a different reaction to such behaviors, but that's another story. I picked up playing again briefly in college when I was singing in the University Chorus. The worst grade I ever got was the C+ in the "Theory for non-majors" class I took from Professor Swackhammer during the summer; I may not have done very well in my little compositions working out figured base lines, but I loved the concepts. Because everything I composed probably sounded like the Scarlatti pieces I had learned, the professor didn't give me a good grade, but I learned what it was like to be considered "adequate but not excellent" in a subject.I didn't play the piano again until last year, when I took some lessons with my wonderful teacher, Max. For the first time a piano teacher treated me with respect and taught me the rudiments of theory. It was marvelous, but when I started having the pain that announced my rotator cuff problems I had to stop. Now that I'm on the other side of that year and a half of physcial therapy, I'm going to start practicing again.
So, in anticipation, I downloaded this recording by Simone Dinnerstein of the Goldberg Variations by Bach. This wonderful review by Evan Eisenberg in Salon, puts her recording in context: the long shadow of Glen Gould, the evolving relationship of public to live performances and recording, the mythical origin story of the variations (that they were written to be played for a nobleman who had insomnia).
This video has an interview with her
Of course, there will be arguments about playing harpsichord music on a piano, about which interpretation is truer to the spirit of Bach, but I'm not a purist; I'm that enthusiastic C+ student who is enchanted by music.
I'm sure that if there was a recording of the Goldberg variations in our house when I was growing up, it was Gould's 1955 record, so my ear was formed by his first recorded performance. This video presents Gould's 1955 recording and his 1981 re-recording of the first aria that begins the variations, so that one can compare how the same artist changed his interpretation. There is an fantastic interview at the end of the clip in which Gould talks about the experience of re-recording the piece, how he went from the "speed demon" virtuosity of his younger self to the deliberateness of the later version.
Here, for comparison, is Dinnerstein playing the same aria. This video is part of a film project on Bach by Michael Lawrence. I love how he has filmed her hands while she is playing.
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Llama time!
Loren, this one's for you! A classic Sesame Street clip about a girl with a llama. Via Eda Cherry at Your Dress Would Look Better On Me
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Page 123 meme
Here's how this meme works:
1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the 5th sentence.
4. Post the next 5 sentences.
5. Tag 5 people, and acknowledge who tagged you.
I was tagged by Gugeo. The book sitting on the top of the pile is Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, which I have never read and must read.
Anybody want to play?
1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the 5th sentence.
4. Post the next 5 sentences.
5. Tag 5 people, and acknowledge who tagged you.
I was tagged by Gugeo. The book sitting on the top of the pile is Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, which I have never read and must read.
"He struggled violently. "Let me go,' he cried;'monster! ugly wretch! You wish to eat me, and tear me to pieces. You are an ogre--Let me go, or I will tell my papa.'
"Boy, you will never see your father again, you must come with me."
Anybody want to play?
Remedies for earworms
A while back I poked around on the topic of "the phonological loop" and earworms, those songs you get stuck in your head.
The good folks at RadioLab polled their listeners about their earworm, and their remedies for earworms, and came up with this fun post, with a podcast of both the songs and the remedies their readers suggested. One of the remedies is to listen to the song all the way through to the end. Another is to deliberately think of a "cleansing song." One that was suggested was The Girl from Ipanema. Another was James Brown's Sex Machine. Go figure.
Lately the songs that have been trotting around in my head are the ones used for the SYTYCD routines, because I've been watching the videos. As usual, I only remember the first line or so, and it gets stuck on repeat. Today's earworm is "Stop and Stare" by One Republic. It was the audition song for one dancer and the solo for another (who got cut). I guess I'll have to listen to it all the way through so I can stop walking around singing "stop and stare" over and over again.
The good folks at RadioLab polled their listeners about their earworm, and their remedies for earworms, and came up with this fun post, with a podcast of both the songs and the remedies their readers suggested. One of the remedies is to listen to the song all the way through to the end. Another is to deliberately think of a "cleansing song." One that was suggested was The Girl from Ipanema. Another was James Brown's Sex Machine. Go figure.
Lately the songs that have been trotting around in my head are the ones used for the SYTYCD routines, because I've been watching the videos. As usual, I only remember the first line or so, and it gets stuck on repeat. Today's earworm is "Stop and Stare" by One Republic. It was the audition song for one dancer and the solo for another (who got cut). I guess I'll have to listen to it all the way through so I can stop walking around singing "stop and stare" over and over again.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Campeones!
Fernando Torres scores the only goal of the game to win over the fearsome German team, for the first Spanish Eurocup win in 44 years, overcoming the syndrome of "underachieving." They played beautifully, standing up to the bigger Germans, demonstrating greater control of the ball and incredible heart. The Germans tried to foul their way back, but to no avail. A fun game, after an exciting tournament. I'm not a huge soccer fan, but I enjoy a well-played game, and this one was great.
And can I say how great it was to be able to watch this match on ABC since I don't get cable?
And can I say how great it was to be able to watch this match on ABC since I don't get cable?
My (virtual) summer in Spain.
Miss R and Blas left for Spain yesterday, but I am staying behind this time. Too much work, not enough money, and a big construction project in our building. They will spend a week in Cadiz. I am so jealous! It will be hotter than blazes, but they will be staying with dear friend Pili Mata, who will surely make them comfortable.
Once home in Zaragoza, they will be able to visit the Expo 2008.
So what is going on in Spain these days? Well today the entire continent of Europe will be watching the final match of the soccer tournament, the EuroCup, only played every four years. The Spanish national team has a field of brilliant young players: David Villa, Cesc Fabregas, and goalkeeper Iker Casillas ("San Casillas") who may prove the key to defeating the Germans. Two very different styles of play and real suspense. Each team will be missing it's star player due to injuries. ABC is broadcasting the game today at 1:30, so I will be sure to watch.
For those of you (and I know there are a few readers out there, even though I don't hear from you enough in the comments!) here is a great fifteen-minute video tour of Zaragoza, narrated by Simon Calder, travel writer for The Independent. The first part includes a guided tour of some of the most important historical and architectural sites. He also eats migas, has churros con chocolate, multiple tapas, and has coffee in one of my favorte cafes!
Part One:
Part Two:
This video combines images of Zaragoza's past/present/future architecture with songs by local group Amaral:
For folks who want to know something more about living in Spain, I recommend this fascinating blog, Notes From Spain, in which a Brit, Ben Curtis, married to a woman from Madrid, Marina Diez, writes about living and working in Spain. Their podcast conversations blend an expat's perspective with a native view, so they are lots of fun.
Once home in Zaragoza, they will be able to visit the Expo 2008.
So what is going on in Spain these days? Well today the entire continent of Europe will be watching the final match of the soccer tournament, the EuroCup, only played every four years. The Spanish national team has a field of brilliant young players: David Villa, Cesc Fabregas, and goalkeeper Iker Casillas ("San Casillas") who may prove the key to defeating the Germans. Two very different styles of play and real suspense. Each team will be missing it's star player due to injuries. ABC is broadcasting the game today at 1:30, so I will be sure to watch.
For those of you (and I know there are a few readers out there, even though I don't hear from you enough in the comments!) here is a great fifteen-minute video tour of Zaragoza, narrated by Simon Calder, travel writer for The Independent. The first part includes a guided tour of some of the most important historical and architectural sites. He also eats migas, has churros con chocolate, multiple tapas, and has coffee in one of my favorte cafes!
Part One:
Part Two:
This video combines images of Zaragoza's past/present/future architecture with songs by local group Amaral:
For folks who want to know something more about living in Spain, I recommend this fascinating blog, Notes From Spain, in which a Brit, Ben Curtis, married to a woman from Madrid, Marina Diez, writes about living and working in Spain. Their podcast conversations blend an expat's perspective with a native view, so they are lots of fun.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Leo loves his pop-up cube: it has become his den, and he loves it when we dangle toys around it.
Our cat usually stays indoors, for a variety of reasons, our ridiculous climate being one, and his lack of street smarts being another. Years ago when I lived in Berkeley, where cats can live outdoors all year long, I spent too many Friday evenings taking a feisty male cat to the pet emergency clinic to want to have to deal with those head wounds they get when they try to defend their territory. But from time to time I am reminded that Leo is a mighty hunter.
When I take him out on the front lawn to hang out with him he chews grass and looks shifty-eyed at the squirrels. As soon as we get out there, the birds start yelling at him and sometimes a squirrel will scold. I got a reminder that all that play with his toys inside is really just a substitute for the real thing when we were getting ready to leave on our trip last week; we had his little Port-a-pet ready but he was out on the lawn. As I was walking toward him to put him in the carrier, I saw a sparrow dive-bomb him, and realized that he had a bird in his mouth. I could see it was still alive but holding still, and I reached to grab the back of his neck. He growled at me, but I pulled his head back and he let go of the bird. In an instant he had it pinned under his front paws. I pulled him back again and the bird was able to fly away, somewhat slowly, but surely. I hope it didn't have any puncture wounds and could recover, but I will never forget the sight of that mouthful of bird. He is so fast.
He stayed for a week at the farm, but did not attack the guinea pigs or the pigeon! He loves the barn, and if it had any rodents, it doesn't now.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
My top 4 couples SYTYCD, week 3
I can't decide which individual dancer is my favorite yet, but these are the couples I like the most so far.
Kourtni and Matt
Chelsie and Mark
Joshua and Katee
Courtney and Gev
Kourtni and Matt
Chelsie and Mark
Joshua and Katee
Courtney and Gev
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