text:
Birmingham Royal Ballet reaches out to Birmingham's LGBT Community
Sarah Lambert (no relation as far as I am aware but one never knows) has drawn my attention to a very generous offer by the Birmingham Royal Ballet to Birmingham's LGBT community. She writes:
"For a while now I've been working informally with BRB on extending participation in ballet and to this end they work with various community groups. The latest initiative is an amazing offer to the LGBTQI community. They are putting on a taster workshop in one of their wonderful studios and led by one of their Principal dancers. Anyone attending will also get a free ticket to a matinee theatre performance of Coppelia on the same day immediately after the workshop. SO far we have twelve people signed up, but we can go up to 20."
Particulars of the offer have been posted on Birmingham LGBT's website by Ros Gammie who is the charity's administrator and sports activator who will allegedly answer correspondence in Latin and Runes as well as English.
The taster and matinee take place on 15 June 2017 and the timetable is as follows:
10 am, arrival at Birmingham Royal Ballet Reception (next to Hippodrome Stage Door), Thorp Street B5 4AU
10.30 am, 90-minute Ballet taster session
12.30 pm, tour of Birmingham Royal Ballet building
1 pm, hour lunch break
2 pm, performance of Coppélia at Birmingham Hippodrome.
Sarah adds that she worked with both Ros Gamey of the Birmingham LGBT Centre and Kasia Krause of Birmingham Royal Ballet to make this happen. She posted the following announcement on a Facebook ballet group:
"We can now take up to 20 people for the workshop and free ticket to Coppelia, so if you haven't signed up, you still have a chance. The class will be led by one of BRB's principal dancers, so how cool is that? The chance to dance in one of Birmingham Royal Ballet's wonderful studios in a class led by one of their principal dancers... And then seeing a performance of Coppelia, all for free. It doesn't get any better than that!
If you're unsure because you're a total beginner and you're nervous, remember this is a totally safe space for all trans and LGBQI people, and how often can you say that of a beginner ballet class? Also I will be there, and believe me, there's no-one more of a novice than I am!"
I think Sarah may be a bit modest there. I have never met her but we are connected on Facebook and she tells me that she attends classes at Elmhurst and the DanceXchange in Birmingham which sounds pretty high powered to me.
Sarah has also offered the following invitation to her friends in the Facebook Group who are members of the LGBT community in Birmingham:
"We could all meet up in Izzi and Jess's board gaming cafe in the LGBT Centre for tea and cake; it's going to be amazing! http://cakesandladderscafe.co.uk/"
I saw Birmingham Royal Ballet's Coppelia when it visited the Lowry in 2015 with Tyrone Singleton and Celine Gittens in the lead roles. Their performance was sensational, hence the title of my review of 6 March 2016. I hope to see the ballet again on Saturday, 17 June 2017.
I congratulate both the Birmingham Royal Ballet and Birmingham LGBT on this initiative. I hope that the visitors to the company will enjoy their visit, perhaps consider adult ballet or other dance classes and support the company with donations and patronage. I hope that the company will continue to reach out to all communities of the third city of this nation.
Labels: Birmingham Royal Ballet, class, Coppelia, LGBT, Sarah Lambert, taster
Principato moves to a Bigger Stage
Standard YouTube Licence
Last year I nominated Cristiano Principato of the Dutch National Ballet as our outstanding young choreographer of the year (see The Terpsichore Titles: Outstanding Young Choreographer 28 Dec 2016). I chose Principato because of his enormous achievement in assembling some of the world's most promising young dancers for a benefit performance for the Italian charity, Casa Alessia, in Trecate, a small industrial town in North West Italy (see From Italy with Love 1 July 2016).
In that show, Principato performed some of his own work including Palladio which he contributed to the Dutch National Ballet's New Moves in 2016 (see Palladio 4 June 2016). I described that ballet as "a very sophisticated work and quite a remarkable piece for one so young." I should add that Principato had only recently celebrated his 21st birthday. Equally impressive, however, was Principato's management of the gala. I exchanged a few words with him after the performance in which he told me that he had been responsible for everything.
I am glad to say that Principato's talents have been recognized by his company for he has been put in charge of New Moves 2017. This is an "annual event where dancers of the company get the opportunity to develop their choreographic talents will be like a gala performance, with a party to follow." This year there will be contributions from Thomas van Damme who was also in Trecate last year as well as Bruno Da Rocha Pereira, Sebastien Galtier, Chanquito van Hoeve, Matthew Pawlicki-Sinclair, Milena Sidorova, Bastiaan Stoop, Clotilde Tran-Phat, Jozef Varga, Remi Wortmeyer and Jared Wright. In previous years the show has taken place in a studio. This year it will be performed on the main stage of the Music Theatre or Stopera.
Last year, as a special treat that happened to coincide with my birthday, I was allowed to walk on the stage of that theatre as part of the New Friends Tour (see Double Dutch Delights 17 Feb 2017). I remarked that
"From the audience's perspective the theatre is massive but from the performer's it has quite an intimate feel."
To be put in charge of such an event at age 22 is a remarkable achievement. Did Kevin O'Hare do anything like that at the same age? I ask myself, or, indeed any of the artistic directors of the world's other great national companies? Could Principato be one of their successors?
Labels: 26 June 2017, choreographer of the year, Cristiano Principato, Dutch National Ballet, Gala, New Moves, Palladio, Trecate
Not Quite "Death in Venice", more "The Big Sleep"
Interior of La Fenice, Venice 2015
Photo Youflavio
Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International Licence
Rome Opera Ballet, The Sleeping Beauty, La Fenice Theatre, Venice, 10-14 May 2017
I have just received an interesting note from Mr Ian Wishart of a performance of The Sleeping Beauty by the Rome Opera Ballet at La Fenice Theatre in Venice which he attended while on holiday in Italy earlier this month. Ian is a chartered patent attorney who now works as a director of an insurance broking company which arranges specialist intellectual property insurance.
Ian remarked that the preeminence of Itay's opera tends to eclipse the brilliance of its ballet despite the enormous contribution to that art which Italy has made and continues to make. He described the show that he attended as "an excellent account of Tchaikowski's famous and emotional score". He noted that "the staging, lighting and costumes reflected centuries of opera experience," The company has also posted a trailer of the production to YouTube and it looks magnificent.
The ballet was staged by the French choreographer Jean-Guillaume Bart. The Rome Opera House has released an interesting interview with Bart on YouTube in French. There are some beautiful clips of the dancers in rehearsal and the other preparations. The assistant choreographer is Patricia Ruanne, formerly of the Royal Ballet. The conductor was David Colman.
Ian saw Rebecca Bianchi dance Princess Aurora and Claudio Cocino Prince Désiré. Ian said they "brought skill and emotion to their parts". He added that "Annalisa Cianci clearly enjoyed her role as the wicked fairy Carabosse" and noted that Maianna Suriano danced the Lilac Fairy. He was also impressed by Bluebird but did not pick up the dancers' names. I have googled Bianchi and found this interesting feature on her in Gramilano (Introducing Rebecca Bianchi, Rome Opera Ballet's new Principal Ballerina 3 May 2016). I also found this clip on Cocino's elevation to principal (see Claudio Cocino nominato Primo Ballerino del Teatro dell'Opera di Roma 11 Feb 2017).
La Fenice is described by Ian as "a tiny gilded jewel box, with stalls and four tiers of boxes." La Fenice means The Phoenix in Italian and it was given that name because it was burned down three times. That happened to a lot of opera houses in the 19th century including Covent Garden.
Labels: Claudio Cochino, Ian Wishart, Jean-Guillaume Bart, La Fenice, Rebecca Bianchi, Rome Opera Ballet, The Sleeping Beauty, Venice
The Royal Ballet's Quadruple Bill - well balanced in Content, Style and Mood
Natalia Osipova in Strapless
Photo Bill Cooper
© 2017 The Royal Ballet: all rights reserved
Reproduced with kind permission of the company
The Royal Ballet The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, Tarantella, Strapless, Royal Opera House, 27 May 12:30
Because of the terrible events of last Monday ballet did not seem all that important to me last week. I missed the launch in Doncaster of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by Daniel de Andrade for Northern Ballet altogether. It appears to have been well received so I will try to catch it at some other venue - probably Leeds between the 5 and 9 Sept. I attended class on Thursday but found it hard to put my heart into it. I very nearly let the Royal Ballet's mixed programme go too until I realized that that was exactly the sort of despondency that terrorists try to induce. We owe it to their victims, if not ourselves, not to let them win by cowing or depressing us.
Thus I woke up early yesterday to catch the 07:51 train from Wakefield to London. That was the last train that would get me there an hour before the curtain was due to rise. The programme consisted of works by William Forsythe, George Balanchine, Christopher Wheeldon and Liam Scarlett. Scarlett's Symphonic Dances was a new commission. I had seen Balanchine's Tarantella before but Forsythe's The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude and Wheeldon's Strapless were also new to me. I am very glad that I made that trip because I saw the Royal Ballet at its best. I get the impression that dancers like mixed programmes because of their variety and also because there offer lots of opportunities for them to shine.
The afternoon began with The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude. A strange name I thought. I am not sure where the vertigo came in but it was certainly thrilling not to say also exuberant and joyful. It must have been very hard work for the dancers, particularly the women as this YouTube video of the San Francisco Ballet's performance of that work shows. The work begins with two men in mauve costumes standing in 5th. Yesterday they were Trystan Dyer and Valentino Zuchetti. They introduce themselves with slightly different solos. They are joined by three women in lime green tutus. Each of their roles is exacting as this video by Dorothée Gilbert demonstrates. Forsythe set his ballet to the final movement of Schubert's Ninth Symphony, as stirring a work as have ever heard. Mauve and green may not be an obvious colour match but it worked for this piece.
The momentum was maintained a few minutes later by the Tarantella Last year I saw Michaela DePrince and Remi Wortmeyer dance it at the Dutch National Ballet's opening night gala in Amsterdam (see "Quite simply the most exciting dancer I have seen for quite a while" 29 Oct 2017 and the YouTube video of Wortmeyer with Maia Mahateli). The Dutch National Ballet's performance had thrilled me then and yesterday's performance by Alexander Campbell and Meaghen Grace Hinkis thrilled me again. The crowd loved the show too and Hinkis was presented at the curtain call with the biggest bouquet of the afternoon.
The work that I had come to see was Christopher Wheeldon's Strapless because I had missed it first time round. It is a narrative ballet based on Deborah Davis's John Singer Sargent and the Fall of Madame X (see The real Madame X: the true story that inspired Christopher Wheeldon's ballet Strapless 18 May 2017). The ballet is about the ostracism of the Parisian socialite, Amelia Gautreau, after a painting of her by John Singer Sargent showing a strap of her dress dislodged from her shoulder was exhibited at an important art show. Not a single portion of her body had been exposed but those who went to art galleries in Paris at that time knew that Madame Gautreau was conducting an illicit affair with a fashionable gynaecologist called Pozzi. They gossipped mercilessly as to how and why that strap had been dislodged.
It is not easy to base a ballet on an episode in history but Wheeldon carried it off well. A sex scene between Pozzi (Federico Bonelli) and Madame Gautreau (Natalia Osipova) was represented by a pas de deux in which the dancers removed their outer garments. It was not in the least bit smutty as the dancers remained well covered but it was still very sexy. The man who destroyed Madame Gautreau's reputation was, of course, Sargent danced by Edward Watson. From one brief conversation with him, I formed the view that Watson was a really good bloke (see Ed Watson: more than just an outstanding dancer - a really good bloke 13 Feb 2015) but in Strapless as in A Winter's Tale, he dances a really beastly character. Madame Gautreau implores him to withdraw the painting from the show but he ignores in the quest to advance his career. Watson portrayed Sargent's arrogance and stubbornness superbly. This ballet has introduced me to the music of Mark-Anthony Turnage of which I shall try to hear more. I also admired Bob Crowley's sets and costumes.
Most of the Royal Ballet's regulars will have seen Strapless before. For them, Symphonic Dances would have been the main draw. Based on three movements of Rachmaninoff's music the ballet is built around the leading lady who was Laura Morera yesterday. Morera, who danced the leads in Viscera and Frankenstein, is another of my very favourite dancers (see Laura Morera 25 Aug 2015). In the programme notes, there is an interview with Scarlett in which he says:
"I've worked consistently with Laura over the years and created so much work on her that I wouldn't be choreographing without her."
The ballet began with the Non Allegro. Morera appeared in a swirl of red material. She was joined by Giacomo Rovero and the ensemble. Morera was in each of the subsequent movements - alone with the ensemble in the second movement and with Matthew Ball in the third. Towards the middle of the second movement, the back of the stage began to glow red. It became a screen which for a time projected images of the dancers much in the way Darshan Singh Bhuller does in Mapping (see Rehearsals: Revealed - Darshan Singh Bhuller Mapping). Different images appear on the screen which seems to become an electrode. The ballet ends with Morera alone on stage with the descending device hovering above her and seemingly zapping her. Two colours predominated in the ballet - black and red - which, as Christopher Bruce showed in Rooster, can be a striking combination.
The quadruple bill was balanced well in mood, style and content. Judging by the snatches of conversation that I caught as I descended the stairs and the messages that have appeared on social media, the audience that spilt onto Bow Street were more than satisfied.
Labels: Christopher Wheeldon, George Balanchine, Strapless. Liam Scarlett, Symphonic Dances, Tarantella, The Royal Ballet, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, William Forsythe
Melbourne City of Dance
Photo © The Australian Ballet Studios
Since arriving in Australia, the last three weeks have flown by and I have settled into life in Melbourne. Melbourne is a really cool city, very clean, easy to navigate and arty. But the biggest thing I have noticed is that there is a massive dance scene here. There are adult classes in everything from ballroom to hip-hop to ballet, and a good range of levels.
Obviously, I've come to Australia for my placement in costume department at the Australian Ballet and Opera Australia, gaining industry experience for when I graduate. But that hasn't stopped me from taking the opportunity to take class out here; because of course it is important to take class to keep good form.
The first dance class I took part in was actually a Salsa class at The Salsa Foundation. I was invited to join in by a guy I met on my flight to Melbourne from Hong Kong. Having touched the basics of Salsa whilst on holiday in Cuba three years ago, I was a little apprehensive as to whether I would be able to keep up with the class. Especially as I took part in a Level 1.5 class – focussing on teaching partner work, lots of turns and cross body leads – so the basic steps are essential!
The class was extremely busy, there was a surprising male turn out, but as to be expected women dominated the class.
They split the group into three lines of men and women. The excess women were spaced in-between couples, so at points you would dance by yourself, as the women would rotate and change partners roughly every 5 minutes or so. I feel this is a good way to learn the steps as you're not always with the same partner. I also think it is great that rather than some women learning the male steps you really had a chance to get the female steps ingrained into your mind. It was a fun evening, I managed to keep up and it was enjoyable to let my body move loosely and freely for a change. Rather relaxing. The class cost $15, which I think is pretty reasonable, as the instructors are really informative and entertaining. The beginner's class is also free.
Following this, I have taken a few weekly ballet classes, repertoire classes and pointe classes. The classes I have attended are at the Australian Ballet Studios and City Dance Centre in Armadale (south Melbourne).
The Australian Ballet Studios is a great option when looking for classes in the city centre of Melbourne, they offer Pilates, Jazz, Contemporary, Ballet and Repertoire. They also have a fantastic set of teachers – incredibly knowledgeable professionals. You really are getting your moneys worth here. When you register to take classes, your first week with them is absolutely free, which is why I took the opportunity to get involved in so many classes after that each class has a set price. A ballet class is $28, but you can buy class passes, which work out cheaper in the long run.
To take part in repertoire class you have to take a Level 2 or Level 3 ballet class beforehand – this is important so that you obviously warm up, but also so that you can keep up with learning the choreography. I've been taking the level 2 classes, which is the equivalent of an intermediate class. Technically challenging but not too overwhelming. Like in any class you start at the barre with plies and tendus, grand battements and frappes too, amongst other steps. After the barre, we then move into the centre and do a lovely port de bras, a variation of turns and jumps. The truly wonderful thing about the classes here is that there is a live piano accompaniment – something I haven't experienced much, so that really has given me the opportunity to work on my musicality.
The teachers I've had for repertoire and ballet have been Jessica Thompson, Justine Miles and Roland Cox. In repertoire with Justine Miles we have been learning Balanchine's Serenade and with Jessica Thompson we have been learning Seguidilla from Don Quixote. Both are very challenging pieces but fun to learn.
On a Saturdays, I have been attending ballet class and pointe class at City Dance Centre. The classes cost $20 for ballet and $10 for pointe (this however is the student price, a full price list is available here). The classes are taught by Sakura Shimizu who has danced with the Hamburg Ballet and Singapore Dance Theatre to name a few. Ballet class again as to be expected starts with barre and works into the centre with a variety of travelling sequences.
Pointe class has been particularly enjoyable for me and I feel I have made a lot of progress. I only started doing pointe in November, doing only 10 minutes at the end of class, so I feel rather pleased that I am able to keep up with a 30-minute class. We start pointe facing the barre with tendus working our intrinsic muscles and getting our feet warm. Then rises and relevsés in first and second position, followed by échappés and rises in fifth. Next we pas de boureé with the foot coming to sur le cou-de-pied (Not necessarily the correct name for the step – but that was the only way I could think of how to describe it!). We then turn side on to the barre and pique to retire travelling forward three times. On the final piqué we come up to arabesque. Following this we move into the centre and do rises in first and échappés again – this I find particularly challenging without the barre but I feel I am making progress and getting stronger. We have then been doing preparation for pique turns and courus across the floor. I really love doing the courus as I feel so elegant and dainty, like a fairy (despite the loud noise my Grishko's make).
There are many other dance schools in Melbourne that offer ballet classes, but as I don't have a lot of money and I like repetition, I have happily settled into taking the classes at the Australian Ballet Studios and City Dance Centre.
With just a week and a half left in Melbourne I will be sad to leave these classes behind. I'm also incredibly sad that my placement with the Australian Ballet is coming to a close at the end of this week. I have loved every minute working with the wonderful wardrobe department, gaining incredible experience, which I will value for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, although I would love to be able to share what costumes I have been working on for the ballet, I am not publicly allowed to do so. I would hope that you as readers would respect and understand this.
Most importantly, I hope that this post will give you a good insight into the dance scene in Melbourne.
Amelia x
Labels: Amelia Sierevogel, Australian Ballet, Australian Ballet Studios, City Dance Centre, Melbourne, Opera Australia, The Salsa Foundation
Photos from Birmingham Royal Ballet's Northern Tour
Robert Parker as Captan Belaye in Birmingham Royal Ballets Pineapple Poll
Photo Roy Smiljanic
© 2017 Birmingham Royal Ballet: all rights reserved
I reviewed the Birmingham Royal Ballet's performance of Solitaire, 5 Tangos and Pineapple Poll at York on 12 May 2017 in Birmingham Royal Ballet's Northern Tour 2017 13 May 2017. I now have some lovely photos of scenes from the triple bill which I am delighted to share with you thanks to Mr Lee Armstrong. the company's design executive. I should stress that the photos were not taken at the performance that I reviewed but they will give you a good idea of the costumes, scenery and choreography.
The artist who danced Captain Belaye in York was Matthias Dingman. The artist in the photograph above is Robert Parker who is the Artistic Director of Elmhurst Ballet School. Parker would be very well cast for the role of a sea captain as he is qualified in real life to be an airline captain. According to his biography, he acquired a commercial pilot's qualification in 2008. Last week Northern Ballet and Phoenix hosted a dancers' career development workshop at Quarry Hill helping dancers explore their career options when they retire from the stage (see Evolve in Leeds 4 May 2017). Even though he has returned to dance as Artistic Director of a leading ballet school, his qualification shows that dancers really can do anything. I would quite happily board a 747 in the knowledge that its captain has reliably supported high flying and fast moving ballerinas through countless fish dives. Incidentally, I last saw Parker at the 25th anniversary of the Birmingham Royal Ballet's move to the Hippodrome and David Bintley's 20th anniversary as the company's Artistic Director (see In Praise of Bintley 21 June 2015).
In my review of Solitaire I mentioned how much I enjoyed "Desmond Heeley's gorgeous costumes - especially the red bodice of Baselga's tutu - and his draping golden sun backcloth design" which you can see in the photo below
Miki Mizutani in Solitaire
r© 2017 Birmingham Royal Ballet: all rights reserved
Readers will recall that Dame Ninette de Valois asked Sir Kenneth MacMillan to create Solitaire at very short notice using sets and costumes that had been designed for The Angels by Cranko.
Finally, two glorious shots from 5 Tangos also taken by Bill Cooper:
Birmingham Royal Ballet 5 Tangos
Labels: 5 Tangos, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Kenneth MacMillan, Northern Tour, Robert Parker, Solitaire, York
The Light Princess - a Special Ballet for a Special Company
Copyright 2017 Ballet Cymru: all rights reserved
BalletCymru The Light Princess, Riverfront Theatre, Newport 20 May 2017, 19:30
In 2015 Ballet Cymru's Cinderella was my ballet of the year and its Tir was the runner-up (see Highlights of 2015 29 Dec 2015. Last year Gwenllian Davies was my young female dancer of the year for her magnificent performance as Juliet on 5 Nov 2016 (see The Terpsichore Titles: Outstanding Young Dancers of 2016 28 Dec 2016 and A Romeo and Juliet for our Times 7 Nov 2016). Quite remarkable, I think you will agree, for a small company in a city with a slightly smaller population than Huddersfield some 140 miles from London.
Yesterday I tried to put my finger on what made Ballet Cymru special and this is what I concluded.
First, the company is lucky to have as artistic directors Darius James and Amy Doughty who are two of the finest choreographers on the British stage. Their ballets with expansive upper body movements and sudden spins, whether chaînés, fouettés or pirouettes, are thrilling to watch. James and Doughty create their work in collaboration their dancers with the result that every movement showcases the artist's personality as well as the vision of the choreographers. Each of those artists is young at peak strength and energy, When James unfurls them, as he does at the end of company class, they are a wonder to behold (see Ballet Cymru at Home 5 Oct 2015).
Secondly, this company is unmistakably Welsh. Its dancers may come from all parts of the world and it visits nearly every part of the United Kingdon on tour but its credentials are entirely cymric. The company's name, after all, is "Ballet Cymru" - never "Ballet Wales", the literal translation. There are Welsh characters even in Romeo a Juliet and Cinderella: Juliet's confidante in Romeo a Juliet is Cerys, Cinderella's half-witted step brother is named Cas and her step sister is called Seren. The backdrops projected onto the screen are created digitally from scenes of Wakes ranging from the subway under the arterial road near the Riverfront Theatre in Romeo a Juliet to Lake Bala in The Light Princess. More importantly, the company commissions scores from outstanding Welsh composers like Jack White who wrote the music for Cinderella and Stuck in the Mud and Catrin Finch who contributed Celtic Concerto as well as The Light Princess to the company's repertoire. I am most grateful to Ballet Cymru for introducing me to those composers. I am now a fan of both.
Thirdly, James and Doughty make clever use of technology. I have already mentioned the projected backdrops which are designed for the theatres around this island which might struggle with conventional scenery. Yesterday, there were gently floating images as the overture concentrated our thoughts on weightlessness. We saw circus hoops courtesy, no doubt, of Citrus Arts who had previously worked with Ballet Cymru on Cinderella. For those who had not read the programme or my preview, the synopsis in two languages flashed onto the gauze with occasional directions to the audience such as "hiss". Did you know that the Welsh for "hiss" is "his"?
Like The Sleeping Beauty, George McDonald's story begins with a christening for a princess to which three of her relations had not been invited. Like Carabosse those relations were witches but, instead of sending the royal household to sleep for 100 years (a fate that Exeunt's Anna Winter might regard as lenient (see Exeunt's Ballet Reviews - Mayerling and Casanova 12 May 2017) they made her weightless with the result that she had to be tethered with ropes. The king and queen consulted Kopy-Keck and Hum-Drum, Chinese experts in spells as to what might be done but they offered conflicting and equally useless advice. At a water carnival on Lake Bala, the princess discovered that she could acquire weight under water. She nearly floated away again when a visiting prince dived into the lake to rescue her for which gallantry he received no thanks at all from the princess. Realizing that their spell did not work in water the witches tried to drain the lake. They were foiled when the prince offered his body to plug the drain. The prince's willingness to sacrifice himself for the love of the princess broke the spell. A cartwheeling king and equally ecstatic queen allow the princess to marry her rescuer. All, no doubt, lived happily ever after.
Anna Pujol, who had delighted the Millennium Centre as Little Red Riding Hood before Christmas (see Ballet Cymru's "Sleeping Beauty Moment" 5 Dec 2016), danced the princess. She showed formidable strength and artistic versatility with her floorwork representing her swimming and her adeptness with hoops. Her prince, Andrea Maria Battagia, partnered her gallantly. I loved Robbie Moorcroft's performance as king (particularly his cartwheels) and was impressed by Beth Meadway, a recent recruit to the company, as queen. I was also impressed by another recruit, Miles Carrott, who complemented Miguel Fernnades and Natalie Debono as the vindictive, serpentine witches. Gwenllian Davies was one of the experts and the magnificent Krystal Lowe (anything but humdrum) was the other. Davies showed that she can dance character roles as convincingly as she can dance Juliet. Daniel Morrison danced the butler and Ann Wall the nurse with their usual flair. Each of those roles offered the dancers a chance to shine and shine they did.
Something that made last night particularly special was the appearance of Catrin Finch in the orchestra pit. This was not the first time that the company had performed with live musicians. The last time I saw them they shared the stage with the entire National Orchestra of Wales, but it was the first time that I had seen them with their own ensemble and the result was magic. Sadly, the musicians cannot follow the company everywhere so the performances at Bury St Edmunds, Llanelli, Milford Haven, Stevenage and Newcastle under Lyme will make do with recorded music.
Those performances will still be worth seeing. This is the best ballet that I have seen from this company ever and it is the best new ballet that I have seen so far this year from any company.
Labels: Amy Doughty, Andrea Battagia, Anna Pujol, Ballet Cymru, Beth Meadway, Catrin Finch, Darius James, Georhe McDonald, Gwenllian Davies, Jack White, Krystal Lowe, Miles Carrott, robbie moorcroft, The Light Princess
By User:Milantex (File:DVD-4.5-scan.png)
[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
Yesterday someone asked a very interesting question about music copyright on BalletcoForum. I shall not address the specific question but I shall say a few words about music copyright generally.
In the United Kingdom, copyright is defined by s.1 (1) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 as
"a property right which subsists in accordance with this Part in the following descriptions of work--
(a) original literary, dramatic, musical or artistic works,
(b) sound recordings, films or broadcasts, and
(c) the typographical arrangement of published editions."
Although this Act applies only to the United Kingdom, the definition will be very similar in most other countries as most of the world has agreed to bring their copyright laws into line with certain international agreements.
What is a Copyright Work?
The above definition says that copyright can subsist in musical works and sound recordings. A musical work is essentially a score. A sound recording is a recording of a performance of a score. Thus there at least two separate copyrights in every DVD or other sound recording. One copyright will subsist in the work of the composer who wrote out the notes. The other will lie in the work of the recording studio which captured the playing of the work and reproduced it on DVDs or other media. If the music is a song then a separate literary copyright will subsist in the words of the song. If there is more than one tune on the DVD there will be a separate copyright for each tune. On a typical DVD, there will be lots of different types of copyright works.
What does Copyrught do?
Copyright confers on the copyright owner the exclusive right to do various acts in respect of a copyright work. These include copying the work and performing and playing the work in public. Unless you are the copyright owner (which is usually the person who created the work or his or her employer) you need the copyright owner's permission to do any of those things. If for instance, you want to play a DVD in public, you will need permission from the owner of the copyright in the score - that is to say the composer or music publisher - and the owner of the copyright in the sound recording.
Where do you get Permission?
Most copyright owners belong to collecting societies which grant permission to play, perform or make available copyright music on behalf of their members and members of collecting societies overseas in return for a fee. For instance, The Performing Rights Society represents songwriters, composers and music publishers and has formed an alliance with the Mechanical Copyright Protection Society. You can find out whether you need a licence and, if so, how much you will have to pay, from the Music Users section of the PRS website.
What if you don't get Permission?
Unless you fall within one of a number of exceptions you will infringe the copyright in the work which will entitle the collecting society to sue you for an injunction (an order by a judge to do or not to do a specified act), damages (compensation for your wrongdoing) or an account and surrender of the profits you made from your wrongdoing and an order that you contribute to the other side's legal fees and other expenses in bringing you to court. Some copyright infringements are also offences which are punishable by long terms of imprisonment and unlimited fines.
Are there any Exceptions?
There is actually one for dance schools and a more limited one for teachers outside dance schools who provide teaching for recognized exams.
Further Advice
Copyright law is complex and if you are in any doubt you should seek specialist professional advice.
Labels: collecting society, copyright, dance schools, Designs and Patents Act 1988, exceptions, infringement, Mechanical Copyright Protection Society, music, Performing Rights Society, teachers
Simon Garner's Dancer
Dancer inspired by the work of Glen Keane
Author Simon Garner
© 2017 Simon Garner: all rights reserved
Reproduced with kind permission of the author
I introduced Simon Garner in Images of Giselle on 20 May 2016. He describes himself as a nurse, Photoshop lover, aspiring writer and an asexual male who takes ballet classes which are amazing fun. It is through those classes that I have made his acquaintance.
Although he does not mention it on his twitter account description he is also an artist. He made this drawing of a dancer for his "favourite ballerinas" on the day of our Show last Saturday. He would have taken part in that show had he not sustained injury a few days ago. We all missed Simon and wish him well. We also appreciate his drawing which is why I sought his permission to publish it in this blog.
In granting permission, Simon asked me to add that his drawing was inspired by the work of Glen Keane. Keane is described by Wikipedia as "an American animator, author and illustrator. He is best known for his character animation at Walt Disney Animation Studios for feature films including The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas, Tarzan and Tangled." It will not have escaped your notice that the first three of those film titles are also the names of ballets by Birmingham Royal Ballet, Northern Ballet and Ballet Theatre UK. For those who want to know more about this artist, his work is explored and celebrated in The Art of Glen Keane and the Keane Art blogs.
If you liked Simon's drawing, you will find more of his work on his flickr account.
Labels: .KNT, animations, ballerina, Glen Keane, Images of Giselle, show, Simon Ganer, Walt Disney
Move it!13 May 2016
Author Gita Mistry
© 2017 Gita Mistry: all rights reserved
We attracted quite a good crowd to The Dancehouse for Move It! yesterday despite competition from the Eurovision Song Contest, Ballet Central's mixed programme in Whitehaven, Birmingham Royal Ballet's triple bill in York and the Royal Baller's Mayerling and Nothern Ballet's Casanova in London. That is not because we are such talented dancers -though several of our number are very good - but because it is fun to be there. It is more like a party than a performance both for the performers and for the audience.
I took part in KNT's pre-intermediate class show. "Sounds intriguing," said Tracy our compere at the dress rehearsal, "what's that?" Our teacher, Karen Sant, shouted that it was for students who were no longer beginners but not quite up to intermediate level. As it is a bit of a mouthful I prefer to call it the Tuesday night class which I have been attending off and on for the last two and a half years. You can see us in the picture that Gita took last night. I'm in the back row second from the left.
Karen had choreographed a piece for us that lay just within my capabilities based on the exercises that we do in class with lots of balancés and glissades and one spectacular lift by two of the gents in our group. We also had to run around the stage in clockwise and anticlockwise circles, a run into the centre and a run back and a reverence in which we bowed rather than curtsied. Unlike the previous years, all classes reappeared at the end for a final curtain call.
Yesterday was not the first time that I had danced in front of a paying audience so I knew what to expect. It did not mean that we were (or at any rate I was) any less nervous as we crept onto the stage in blackout or any less exhilarated once the lights came on but I knew that I would not freeze like a rabbit in a car's headlights and that I was likely to enjoy the experience.
For once in my life, my hair was arranged in a proper ballet bun (merci a Gita who had arranged it in a heart shape just like one of her edible buns). Not even my hairdresser had been able to accomplish that.
Karen has asked us to assemble in the Dancehouse café at 15:45. Gita had guessed as I panicked in the traffic looking for a way to the Chester Street car park that Karen probably meant 16:00 but knew better than to disclose the actual timetable to a band of adult ballet students. Olivier, our chef de quelquechose on whom I occasionally practise my French, confirmed that that was indeed the case.
At or about the appointed time we were led into the auditorium. Tracy emerged from behind the curtain and greeted us cheerily. We gave her a sort of half muffled grunt in reply. "You'll have to better than that, dancers", she told us. "If you expect to receive the love you've got to share it." She read through the running order and called on the first act which was Josh Moss's repertoire class. A recording of harp strings and then Minkus's gorgeous music from La Bayadere as Katie Daly led her shades into their kingdom. Tendus and arms in 5th look simple enough but I had tried to learn that dance from Jane Tucker last year and knew that it was anything but - particularly when it comes to the bourrées with arms in arabesque towards the end.
All the other classes filed on and were warmly applauded by the crowd. I can't quite remember the order in which they came but they included the usual jazz and contemporary classes plus the belly dancers whose rhythmic music to a compelling Arabic air is clapped on by the audience and the lovely Chinese dancers in their flowing sparkly robes. "I can see you sparkling away," said Tracy from the stage, and they really do. The show rounded off with the adult ballet class in which my friend Yoshie Kimura performs. Now those students really are good. This year they recruited a young man who knows his onions when it comes to jumps. His assemblés and entrechats were a joy to behold.
After rehearsal, we were led back to our studios where we practised our steps, ate our sarnies, shared our jokes, caught up with our mates on Whatsapp and Facebook and generally chilled out. I spotted a member of the advanced class performing barre exercises. As we always have a class before a show in Leeds I decided to join her for a few pliés, tendus, glissés and ronds de jambe and am very glad I did because I would have been even more wooden otherwise. This is one thing that Manchester could learn from Leeds.
Before we knew it, it was our turn to come on. There had been some lively street dancers immediately before us and we knew they would be a hard act to follow. We entered the stage and all seemed to go well. The lift was perfect and received some cheers. We finished our routine and bowed to what seemed very generous applause.
There is always a flood of emotions after a show. On the one hand, relief that it went without too many disasters but, on the other, sadness that it is all over. That made me think of the cast of Casanova at Sadler's Wells whose two-month tour of the nation also ended last night. They must be going through the same emotions one hundred fold.
We all repaired for the bar. Hugged and congratulated each other, our friends and relations and theirs and then melted into that good Manchester night. More classes next week. More camaraderie. More pain and stiffness afterwards. More fun.
Labels: bunhead, Karen Sant, La Bayadere, Manchester, Move IT!, show, The Dancehouse
Birmingham Royal Ballet's Northern Tour 2017
Birmingham Royal Ballet, Solitaire, 5 Tangos and Pineapple Poll, York Theatre Royal, 12 May 2017, 19:30
As I mentioned in Doing the Splits 8 May 2017, the Birmingham Royal Ballet splits into two. One group of dancers visits theatres in the North of England and North Midlands which this year includes Durham, York and Nottingham while the other goes to Cheltenham, Poole and Truro. Yesterday, I caught the dancers on the Northern Tour at York Theatre Royal in a splendid triple bill consisting of MacMillan's Solitaire, van Manen's 5 Tangos and Cranko's Pineapple Poll.
Each of those works was created by one of the greatest 20th-century choreographers. John Cranko was only 24 when he staged Pineapple Poll in 1951. Kenneth MacMillan was slightly older in 1956 when Ninette de Valois asked him to create Solitaire at very short notice using sets and costumes that had been designed for The Angels by Cranko. While in retrospect in looks like an early work because his career has lasted so long, Hans van Manen had already been working for over 20 years when he made 5 Tangos for the Dutch National Ballet in 1977.
I had already seen 5 Tangos performed by the Birmingham Royal Ballet in High Wycombe (see Birmingham Royal Ballet in High Wycombe 31 May 2015) and Scottish Ballet in Glasgow (see No Mean City - Accessible Dance and Ballet 26 April 2015). I had also seen two performances of Pineapple Poll, one of which was by the Birmingham Royal Ballet when it was still known as the Royal Ballet Touring Company at a matinee at Sadler's Wells together with Ashton's Les Rendezvous and Facade, and the other by the Chelmsford Ballet (see A Delight Indeed 27 March 2015). Solitaire, however, was new to me and what a treat it turned out to be.
According to the Kenneth MacMillan website, Solitaire was subtitled "A kind of game for one". The site describes it as "a sequence of dances knit together by Malcolm Arnold's Eight English Dances and by the continuity provided by Margaret Hill's appearance in each one." Margaret Hill danced the lead role in the original production. Referred to only as "the girl", she opens and closes the work appearing in one capacity or another in every scene. The other dancers are her playmates though it is hinted that they may not be real. They enter the stage, dance a scene and disappear as suddenly as they came on. Yesterday "the girl" was danced delightfully by Arancha Baselga who was joined on stage by 16 other dancers in various scenes. My enjoyment of the ballet was greatly facilitated by Arnold's music which included much that was familiar including the signature tune to "What the Papers Say" on Radio 4 on Sunday night. I also enjoyed Desmond Heeley's gorgeous costumes - especially the red bodice of Baselga's tutu - and his draping golden sun backcloth design,
Yesterday, the Dutch National Ballet's online magazine ran a feature on van Manen entitled Hans van Manen: een levende legende the meaning of which is obvious. A link appeared on Facebook which has already attracted 426 likes, 29 shares and lots of comments including this one from me:
"Just seen Birmingham Royal Ballet dance van Manen's 5 Tangos in York this evening. It was great. Jenna Roberts, Matthias Dingman and Maureya Lebowitz were in the cast. They did the great man justice."
That just about says it all. I love this work, the designs and Piazzolla's music, the choreography, the vigorous and expressive dancing and all the connotations with Argentina, one of my favourite countries, and the Netherlands where van Manen is a national living treasure and the subject of a great deal of blogging by me.
Pineapple Poll with its synopsis based on W S Gilbert's ballad The Bumboat's Woman's Story, Charles Mackerras's arrangement of a selection of Gilbert and Sullivan's favourite tunes and Osbert Lancaster's intricate designs was a wonderful way to round off a wonderful evening. Yesterday it occurred to me that this work may well have inspired Ashton to create Fille and Balanchine to create Union Jack. There is certainly a link in Osbert Lancaster in that he created the designs for both Poll and Fille and the exuberance of Mackerras's arrangement finds resonance in Hershey Kay, Maybe my imagination but why not. Matthias Dingman was the gallant Captain (later Admiral) Belaye. Easy to see why the girls' hearts were aflutter. Laura Kay (who had earlier delighted the audience as a playmate in Solitaire) danced his sweetheart Blanche. Laura Purkiss was her interfering aunt, Mrs Dimple, who doubles as Britania at the end. Nao Sakuma danced Blanche's rival, Pineapple Poll. Kit Holder was the hero of the piece rising from pot boy to naval officer and Poll's husband without even having time to remove his apron. There were lots of other favourites in the cast including the magnificent Valentin Olovyannikov who delighted me in The Taming of the Shrew last year (see Birmingham Royal Ballet performs my favourite ballet at last 23 June 2016).
Birmingham Royal Ballet are giving two more performances today plus a talk and they are also opening their company class to the public. Next week, they move on to Nottingham. I would have been back today had I not been dancing in my own ballet this evening. If you can get a ticket for the matinee or evening performance in York tonight or Nottingham next week I strongly recommend the show.
Labels: 5 Tangos, Arancha Baselga, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Desmod Heeley, Hans van Manen, John Cranko, Kenneth MacMillan, Matthew Arnold, Northern Tour, Pineapple Poll, Solitaire, York Theatre Royal
Exeunt's Ballet Reviews - Mayerling and Casanova
The Mayerling Hunting Lodge near Vienna
Source Wikioedia
I have recently discovered Exeunt Magazine as a result of a twitter spat that has arisen from its review of a performance of the Royal Ballet's Mayerling (see Anna Winter's Review: Mayerling at the Royal Ballet 3 May 2017). I read the review to see what the fuss was about.
The review starts with the observation
"The Royal Ballet is on mighty form in Kenneth MacMillan's Mayerling, delineating the late choreographer's dark vision of lust, morphine and mental instability with exquisite panache."
Had I not had other commitments tomorrow evening those words might have tempted me down to London. The reviewer then discusses the plot which deals with the death of the heir apparent to the Austro-Hungarian empire in very suspicious circumstances at Mayerling, the imperial hunting lodge just outside Vienna, in 1889. There is quite a good synopsis in Wikipedia (see Mayerling (ballet)) as well as a discussion of the incident (see Mayerling Incident).
This was a scandal that had many repercussions, though perhaps not as many as some would say as the First World War would probably have taken place even without the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and the dual-monarchy would probably have collapsed even without a war. Nevertheless, Anna Winter was shocked by this story and wrote:
"You leave the theatre not only having experienced incredible dancing, Liszt's luscious score and Nicholas Georgiadis's murkily opulent designs, but also with the distinct feeling that the royal family should really be doing something else apart from narrowing their DNA selection and having parties."
She then took a swipe at the person sitting next to her who had "remarked that in several years' time he hoped to see an all-British roster of principal dancers." It was that remark that appears to have got Winter's goat for she linked it with the incident and her critique of monarchy generally:
"Yes, that's right, you tweedy prick – let's narrow the balletic gene pool. Let's have British dancers for British people! Let's ignore the fact that it's such a fucking immense privilege that dancers – stupendously talented foreign dancers – like Marianela Nunez and Sarah Lamb and Vadim Muntagirov choose to make London their home and in doing so help to make the Royal a beacon not just of artistic excellence but relative diversity."
After that peroration, Winter returned to the performance of the principal dancers which included Marianela Núñez. Edward Watson, Natalia Osipova, Sarah Lamb and Franceska Hayward. A very strong cast from whom one would expect an "astounding artistic achievement" which is exactly how the reviewer described the ballet.
On balance, a perfectly reasonable review, one might think, but that is not how it was viewed by everybody. Exeunt's editor, Alice Saville, reported "an unprecedented number of emails and tweets directed at Exeunt in response to Anna Winter's review of Mayerling at the Royal Ballet" in her feature In Defence of Exeunt's Mayerling Review 8 May 2017. The passage that seems to have prompted all those emails is Winter's reaction to the remark about an all-British roster of principal dancers in a few years time. That may have been an expression of post-Brexit chauvinism (in which case my thoughts would have been similar to Winter's), or it may simp,y have been an expression of hope that enough young British dancers would eventually make it to the top so that it would be possible one day to stage a performance of Mayerling from their number. As context is everything I took the view that the reviewer's reaction to the remark was a little over the top and detracted from an otherwise good review.
But that was nowhere near as far over the top as sending "blisteringly unpleasant" emails. Saville complained of
"a forum thread devoted to picking apart both Exeunt's response, and the credentials of our writer. One poster hunted down her educational background, and proposed confronting her at a future performance!"
She also said that
"Several members of ballet.co are calling on the Royal Opera House press office to revoke our press tickets, in a hugely illiberal response to a single review that offended them."
Now that really is going a bit too far. As Saville observes, "a threat of harassment is much more serious than reporting on the speech of an anonymous stranger."
Now that spat troubled me because I have been a subscriber to BalletcoForum for several years. I have enjoyed reading its discussions and have met a number of very interesting people who share my passion for ballet. When I learned that one of them had been blocked on twitter my reaction was to take up the cudgels against the blocking. However, even though I am still against blocking I can see why it was done in this case.
Some pretty horrible things were said about the Exeunt website. I had never heard of it before but I read some of the reviews including Winter's and found that they are actually quite good. Winter has just written a particularly good review of Kenneth Tindall's Casanova (see Review: Casanova at Sadler's Wells 11 May 2017 Exeunt) which is a ballet that I know quite well having attended the opening night in Leeds (see Casanova - "it has been a long time since I enjoyed a show by Northern Ballet as much as I enjoyed Casanova last night" 12 March 2017), last Saturday's performance at The Lowry (see Casanova Second Time Round 7 May 2017) as well as a preview in Leeds (see Casanova Unmasked 16 Feb 2017) and having been given an exclusive interview by Tindall (see "A Many Sided Genius" - Tindall on Casanova 4 March 2017). As I said in my original article on Winter's review (which I have removed at the request of one of the moderators of BalletcoForum) it is thoughtful and well researched and one of the best reviews of the ballet that I have seen so far.
Exeunt was founded in 2010 by Natasha Tripney who is now the Reviews Editor of The Stage and Daniel B. Yates. It claims to believe in "making beautifully written, experimental, fierce and longform writing about theatre available for free" and I think it succeeds. I shall certainly visit it again. The irony is that I might never have learned of its existence had it not been for BalletcoForum.
Labels: Alice Saville, Anna Winter, BalletcoForum, Casanova, Exeunt, Mayerling, Riyal Ballet
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Revolabs products on display at InfoComm 2012 include the HD Wireless Microphone Systems. The Revolabs HD line of wireless microphone systems includes the Single/Dual Channel (HD Presenter); the rack-mounted, dual-channel Venue; and the four- and eight-channel Executive HD.
The HD systems utilise Revolabs'"Designed for Speech technology, which provides wideband frequency to improve the intelligibility and presence of speech. Support for bandwidths of 50-14,000Hz allows these systems to pick up the entire human voice spectrum.
Ideal for broadcasting applications, the Single/Dual Channel supports one or two HD wireless microphones, while the Executive HD supports up to eight microphones for executive boardrooms and large conference rooms. The Venue provides support for up to two wireless microphones, and offers a rack-mounted design for videoconferencing or voice reinforcement applications.
Ideal for conference rooms, executive offices and small office/home office environments, the Revolabs FLX VoIP is the first wireless conference phone designed for VoIP networks. The FLX VoIP integrates directly with most IP telephone switches following the SIP standard. Through this integration, new features only available through digital switch environments, such as voice mail alerts and do not disturb, can now be offered with the FLX VoIP.
The phone's wireless capabilities allow it to be used in small and midsize conference rooms without running any cables. Available with a variety of compatible Revolabs microphones, the FLX VoIP supports a lapel microphone worn by one person, an omnidirectional tabletop microphone that captures the sound of six to 10 participants, and a directional tabletop microphone that enables audio capture from two to three people.
Because the FLX VoIP dialer operates like a telephone for handset calls and enables the set up of conference calls, there is no need for a separate desk and conference phone.


36 years old, two kids, one husband, no pets.
BS International Affairs (studied some Russian).
a computer class here and there too.
clerk at the US Embassy, where I met said husband (who's from Iowa).
with mysteries (love academic ones especially), humor (Jerome K.
p*rn" too (can't cook very well but LOVE to read about it).
Mary in Moline, who makes her own pizza (and bread)  anyway.


text:
La Partition inachevée (, ) est un film dramatique franco-serbo-croate réalisé par Goran Paskaljević, sorti en 2012.

Synopsis

Fiche technique
 Titre : La Partition inachevée
 Titre original :  ()
 Réalisation : Goran Paskaljević
 Scénario : Filip David et Goran Paskaljević
 Montage : Kristina Pozenel
 Musique : Vlatko Stefanovski
 Photographie : Milan Spasic
 Producteur : Ilann Girard, Goran Paskaljević et Damir Teresak
 Coproducteur : José María Morales
 Producteur exécutif : Jelica Rosandic
 Producteur associé : Philip Zepter, Madeleine Zepter, Milan Marković et Dejan Petković
 Production : Nova Films et Maxima Films
 Distribution : Sophie Dulac Distribution
 Pays d'origine : ,  et
 Genre : Drame
 Durée : 90 minutes
 Dates de sortie :
  :
  :
  :

Distribution
 Mustafa Nadarević : Professeur Misa Brankov
 Predrag Ejdus : le rabbin
 Nebojša Glogovac : Malisa
 Meto Jovanovski : Mitar
 Zafir Hadzimanov : Marko Popovic
 Nada Sargin : Marija
 Ana Stefanovic : Hanna
 Olga Odanovic : Izbeglica
 Mira Banjac : Ana Brankov

Liens externes

Film français sorti en 2012
Film serbe sorti en 2012
Film croate sorti en 2012
Film dramatique français
Film dramatique serbe
Film dramatique croate
Film tourné en Serbie
Film réalisé par Goran Paskaljević

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
HELLER: U.Va. must ban gain of function research
The University has a responsibility to lead permanent bans on gain of function research
A preventative ban on any University support will ensure that the University does its part to eliminate this dangerous research from risking our public health.
By Matt Heller
Gain of function research is a technique in which diseases are artificially engineered to have enhanced biological effects — including increases in their deadliness and transmissibility. While proponents of this research argue it serves as an important tool to better understand diseases and combat future pandemics, many academics and experts have questioned its benefits, arguing that these potential benefits are outweighed by the risks. After all, humanity is only as safe from a genetically engineered virus as the lab that created it is secure from leaks.
This fear of a deliberately-altered virus escaping a lab to cause a global pandemic is one that has already played out. In 1978, smallpox escaped a lab in Birmingham, England and killed a woman, with lab mismanagement responsible for the leak. In 2004, a number of researchers who contracted SARS in a lab went on to infect their families — resulting in nearly 1,000 people in quarantine to stop the outbreak.
Notably, the current COVID-19 pandemic may have been a product of an escaped pathogen from a laboratory — the Wuhan Institute of Virology — that performs gain of function research. In fact, a recent report by the U.S. Intelligence Community failed to rule out a lab-leak as the origin for COVID-19, expressing doubt in previous assessments that COVID-19 was a purely natural phenomenon. Unfortunately, scientists don't know enough to ascertain exactly what COVID-19's origin story is. Without more cooperation and transparency from the Chinese government, Chinese President Xi Jinping may very well be the only person in the world to truly know for certain how the pandemic originated.
In the meantime, however, we ought to be doing everything possible to prevent a future pandemic from escaping a lab — and there's a role for academic institutions like the University to play in doing so.
One simple area to action on is to ban University funding for or support of gain of function research. As mentioned earlier, gain of function research involves the engineering of dangerous diseases for the purpose of scientific study, which places our public health in the hands of the safety procedures of the lab conducting it. That leads to a lot of risk — sometimes, despite the best mitigation efforts, accidents happen. Especially after our current struggles with a raging pandemic that's relatively survivable as far as diseases go, one ought to be concerned about what will happen should we have a far-deadlier pandemic in the future.
Of course, it's worth noting that it's not clear if the University is presently engaged in any gain of function research. But a preventative ban on any University support will ensure our institution does its part to eliminate this dangerous research from ever again risking our public health. Moreover, the University taking a stand now to ban gain of function research will hopefully inspire other institutions to ban it, recognizing that our collective health is worth far more than whatever funding an institution can receive for conducting research that is often unnecessary.
Further, bans on gain of function research are hardly unprecedented. The federal government actually had one in place from 2014 to 2017 over concerns about research on severe acute respiratory syndrome, but controversially lifted it partly due to pressure from researchers eager to resurrect their projects. A recent article in The Lancet noted that gain of function research has not tangibly benefited any discoveries that could not have been accomplished by a less-dangerous method. Further, this same piece goes on to state that the risk-review assessments that approve gain of function projects are inherently subjective — and it is worrisome that institutions that may benefit from funding or prestige from gain of function studies are the ones determining whether to pursue it given the prevalence of academic corruption.
After all, one is hardly an unbiased reviewer if they would materially benefit, even indirectly, from allowing a project to go through. While some may respond that improving the risk-review process is better than an outright ban, the question still remains — why take the risk at all when there are no unique benefits from gain of function research?
A potential wave of bans on gain of function research following a potential ban here at the University would be welcome, as the simple truth is that we cannot stop this trend without widespread, global commitment to its eradication. After all, we just learned that one virus spreading through a Chinese city was enough to shut down the entire world for over a year — resulting in the deaths of millions globally in the process.
Regardless of the origin of COVID-19, we cannot ever again let so much devastation be wrought by a genetically-engineered disease that escaped from a lab. Thus, the University has a responsibility to put a permanent ban on gain of function research in place immediately.
Matt Heller is an Opinion Columnist for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at opinion@cavalierdaily.com.
It is time the University showed some semblance of care for those in the community who are not young and able-bodied.
CANO-SANTIAGO: U.Va. needs to become a smoke free campus
By Yssis Cano-Santiago | Yesterday
The University should do its part in curbing this trend by working to reduce first and second hand smoke exposure and establishing a smoke-free Grounds.
TOLLIVER: The one test of progress that U.Va. always seems to fail
By Shaleah Tolliver | 5 days ago
Jefferson helped to found our country and our University, and we do not want to admit that his actions do not align with his values with which we identify.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Initial safety reports said that the MCAS system would allow the tail to move 0.6 degrees at the most, which would allow a 5 degree nose-down movement of the plane.
The loss of Ethiopian plane is not so far included, despite apparent similarities between the two accidents highlighted by the Ethiopian minister of transport over the weekend.
Boeing's aircraft crashed in Ethiopia on March 10, killing all 157 people on board, and another crashed in Indonesia in October, killing all 189 passengers and crew members.
ASSOCIATED PRESS After two deadly plane crashes in the past five months, Boeing is facing scrutiny over a software program that was developed to help its new planes avoid stalling mid-air.
Investigators are reportedly seeking documents and correspondence related to the Boeing 737 MAX's development.
It comes as Ethiopia's transport minister confirmed the black box from the plane is in good condition.
It said procedures already exist to "safely handle the unlikely event of erroneous data coming from an angle of attack (AOA) sensor", the suspected cause of the Lion Air crash.
Questions have honed in on an automated anti-stalling system introduced on the 737 MAX 8, created to automatically point the nose of the plane downward if it is in danger of stalling.
While 376 separate 737 Max orders have been fulfilled, some 4,636 orders were still outstanding as of February, Bloomberg recently reported, and some carriers have reportedly been reconsidering whether they want turn to competitors.
Dennis Tajer, an American Airlines pilot and a spokesman for their union, said Boeing held a discussion with airlines last Thursday but did not invite pilots at American or Southwest, the two US carriers that use the same version of the Max that crashed in Indonesia and Ethiopia.
The Seattle Times reported that the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) "pushed the agency's safety engineers to delegate safety assessments to Boeing itself". Articles appear on euronews.com for a limited time. Although Boeing has pledged to update its software by April, the aviation company did not announce plans to revamp its training.


Follow along for FREE to our full Brush Lettering + Watercolor workshop with instructor Jess Park! See the full-length video lessons and downloadable instruction sheets.
Announcing our 2017 Online Workshops!
Our free Online Workshops will be starting again in March! We have inspiring new topics for our virtual classroom with 3 new all-star artist-instructors!
Read more … Announcing our 2017 Online Workshops!
If you missed our 2015 Online Workshops or if you just can't get enough, we've got great news! Video lessons from all 3 Series are now available on YouTube!
When you hear the word watercolor you automatically think of using watercolor paper. Makes sense. However when I started to teach classes, I wanted something that was transparent so the students can use my letters underneath as a guide. I knew that watercolor paper was not transparent so I tried tracing paper and that did not hold the ink up well. Then I went in to my local art store and found Strathmore's 500 series Marker Pads. From the first brushstroke I made on the paper, I was sold.
Jake Weidmann is 1 of 11 Master Penman in the world. We were fortunate enough to have Jake demoing in our booth at the 2015 Art Materials World Show where he worked on our new line of Strathmore Writing papers.


text:
I boschi di Acacia-Baikiaea del Kalahari sono un'ecoregione dell'ecozona afrotropicale, definita dal WWF (codice ecoregione: AT0709), che si estende attraverso l'Africa australe, dalla Namibia, attraverso il Botswana, fino allo Zimbabwe e al Sudafrica.

Territorio
L'ecoregione è situata nel centro dell'Africa australe. L'area più vasta occupa una larga fascia che dalla Namibia settentrionale corre diagonalmente attraverso il Botswana, terminando nel sud-est presso il confine con il Sudafrica. All'interno del Botswana, un'area più piccola si estende verso nord tra il delta dell'Okavango e le distese salate del Makgadigkadi verso il confine del parco nazionale di Chobe per poi dirigersi ad est, penetrando per un breve tratto nello Zimbabwe. A sud, una piccola area dell'ecoregione si estende fino alla provincia del Nord-Ovest del Sudafrica, in un'area chiamata Tuli Block. Confina a nord con i boschi di Baikiaea dello Zambesi e la savana alberata a mopane dello Zambesi, ad ovest con i boschi di mopane angolani, a sud con la savana xerofila del Kalahari e ad est con la boscaglia aperta dell'altopiano sudafricano e i laghi salati del bacino dello Zambesi. Il clima dell'ecoregione è semiarido, con siccità che si presentano in cicli di sette anni. Le precipitazioni, altamente variabili, cadono soprattutto durante i mesi estivi, da ottobre fino a marzo. La maggior parte delle precipitazioni si presenta sotto forma di forti acquazzoni, nel corso dei quali, in poche ore, possono cadere tra i 15 e i 90 mm di pioggia. Queste tempeste stagionali hanno un notevole effetto rigenerante sulla vegetazione. Durante i mesi invernali - da maggio ad agosto - le piogge sono scarse o assenti e non vi sono acque superficiali che possano sostenere la vegetazione. Le precipitazioni annue vanno dai circa 300 mm nel sud-ovest ai 600 mm nel nord, con valori che variano di anno in anno. Le temperature sono quelle tipiche di un clima continentale, con elevate escursioni diurne e stagionali. In giugno e luglio, le temperature possono scendere anche al di sotto dello zero, ma nei mesi estivi possono superare i 40 °C. I valori medi sono di 27-30 °C per le massime, e di 9-12 °C per le minime.

Flora
La flora varia a seconda della disponibilità d'acqua. La sezione settentrionale, ad ovest del delta dell'Okavango e in Namibia, ha un clima più umido e vi domina la boscaglia di Baikiaea plurijuga con zone di savana arbustiva. Nelle aree di hardveld (regioni caratterizzate da un suolo roccioso tipiche del Botswana) più a sud, il clima si fa più arido e la vegetazione è dominata da specie xerofile di acacia.

Fauna
La fauna comprende rinoceronti bianchi (Ceratotherium simum) e neri (Diceros bicornis). Sono presenti anche licaoni (Lycaon pictus) ed elefanti (Loxodonta africana). Tra i grandi mammiferi che migrano attraverso la regione vi sono lo gnu striato (Connochaetes taurinus), l'eland (Taurotragus oryx), la zebra comune (Equus quagga), il bufalo cafro (Syncerus caffer) e l'alcelafo rosso (Alcelaphus buselaphus caama). La regione è ricca di avifauna, tra i cui rappresentanti spicca l'endemico bucero di Bradfield (Lophoceros bradfieldi).

Conservazione
L'ecoregione è minacciata dalla scarsa ma sempre più numerosa popolazione umana e dall'allevamento del bestiame. Inoltre gli spostamenti annuali dei grandi erbivori sono ora impediti dalle recinzioni installate per evitare epidemie di afta epizootica nel bestiame, con effetti devastanti nei periodi di siccità, dal momento che gli animali selvatici non possono spostarsi su grandi distanze alla ricerca dell'acqua. La caccia grossa è una delle attrattive turistiche della regione, ma la principale minaccia per la fauna selvatica è costituita dal bracconaggio. Tra le aree protette situate entro la regione vi sono la riserva faunistica del Kalahari centrale e il parco nazionale Nxai Pan in Botswana e il parco nazionale di Khaudom in Namibia, ma nell'area meridionale della regione, l'hardveld, le aree protette sono quasi inesistenti. La miniera di diamanti di Orapa sorge proprio al centro dell'ecoregione, ma non presenta una minaccia per la fauna selvatica.

Note

Voci correlate
 Lista delle ecoregioni terrestri

Ecoregioni dell'ecozona afrotropicale


Move means 400 more jobs at Bowling Green site.
General Motors is adding a second shift and more than 400 hourly jobs at its Bowling Green (Kentucky) Assembly plant.
The next generation Corvette hasn't even been unveiled yet, but General Motors is betting the new 'Vette will be a runaway hit by adding 400 jobs to the company's Corvette Assembly plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
GM said it is adding a second shift in Bowling Green to support production of the Next Generation Corvette, which will be revealed on July 18, 2019. The addition of the second shift will increase the plant's workforce to more than 1,300 people, GM said.
A little cash now may eliminate a big expense down the road.
Simple repairs can save a driver a lot of money down the road.
Few things are as annoying as that warning light that suddenly pops up on your dashboard. All too often, drivers put off dealing with those potentially costly repairs until it's too late.
However, in the course of vehicle ownership, there are often maintenance issues that fall into the same category as the "warning light repairs," but those fixes may cost you more than money — they can mean court time due to the ticket you may be issued.


We see chronically ill patients, 21 years of age and older, in Citrus, Marion, Lake, Hernando, Sumter and surrounding counties.
We are not your typical doctor's office. We believe in treating you as we would want to be treated. We are not a big corporation with multiple phone lines and an answering service. But when you get to us, what you will get, is friendly and knowledgeable staff who help you navigate this new/old branch of medicine in modern times.
Your FL Driver's license, or if a seasonal resident, 2 forms of ID, Utility bills and deed, mortgage, or proof of ownership.
Payment of $75 to the Florida Department of Health can be made online or a check can be mailed with a paper application.
Payment for the doctor's fee. We accept cash, checks and credit cards.
What is medical marijuana or cannabis?
It is a plant used for centuries for all kinds of medical conditions. It is a popular alternative for opiates and is non toxic.
Yes, we see patients by appointment only. Please call our office at 352-601-4200 or 352-601-1440, text or email us to schedule an appointment.
Can I get a prescription for medical marijuana/medical cannabis from my personal physician?
You must obtain an ID card – not a prescription – to obtain medical marijuana at a dispensary. Only a Florida state licensed physician certified under the state's Compassionate Use system can qualify an individual for the Florida Medical Marijuana Use Registry.
What qualifies me to get my medical marijuana ID card?
All patients and/or their legal representatives desiring to obtain medical marijuana must have a valid Florida Medical Marijuana Use Registry ID card. This allows the individual named on the card to obtain low-THC marijuana/cannabis, medical marijuana/medical cannabis, and cannabis delivery devices. Patients must be evaluated by Florida state licensed physician, be a Florida resident and submit an application to the Office of Compassionate Use. Once our physician has evaluated your condition, we can provide you with information on how to complete your electronic application.
Once I have my ID card, do I need to come back for additional visits?
We want to see you in 70 days from your approval date to check on your progress and offer assistance in dosing. Once settled you don't need to be seen until your expiration date approaches, which is every 210 days or every 7 months. All follow-up visits with the Doctor are$100.
How often must I be re-certified?
Re-certification is required every year with the State to maintain your ID Card. The fee from the State is $75.
We are not aware of any health insurance companies that cover these visits. We do accept cash, checks and all major credit cards.
We see patients at two convenient locations in Citrus and Sumter counties, centrally located to most individuals who live in Citrus, Marion, Lake, Hernando, Sumter and surrounding counties.
What conditions/diseases may qualify me for a medical marijuana/medical cannabis ID card?
The list of qualifying conditions could expand in the future.


I am arrogant when it comes to maps and directions. There is always a map in my head and I am always cognizant of where I am in the world in relation to every other place I have ever visited. I began collecting maps when I was in 2nd grade - back then they were free at gas stations - and I still have a large gas station map collection. Next to my desk at work is an original map of the United States from 1855 that is over five feet long. I think I can find my way anywhere.
And I believe that people are either "Map People" or they aren't. If you aren't, you can skip this post. I won't be offended.
When my wife was pregnant with our only son, I maintained that he could and should have every one of her superior attributes. If he could have just one thing from me, it would be my sense of direction. Instead, I believe he got my lack of patience. He is generally not that interested in where he is, and has no sense of direction that I can tell. Can this be taught or is it innate? I've spent hours pondering the question.
I got out an older edition Official Commonwealth of Virginia State Map to check it out. It didn't look too far. And I memorized that I needed to take Rt. 655 to 626 to get to U.S. 60, then hop over the James and head north to the State Park. I knew that I couldn't count on my son to help me get there, but how hard can it be? The park seemed real nearby.
See for yourself. This is the relevant section of the Official Commonwealth of Virginia State Map, with both Colleen and the State Park circled.
My first mistake was looking at the map on the picnic table while eating my soft serve. A breeze made sure that the map collected evidence that my order was a chocolate and vanilla swirl. Probably my second mistake was not looking at the map carefully and noting that there was a more direct route (739) if I would drive south a few miles on U.S. 29. But I wanted to see Arrington and avoid as much of U.S. 60 as possible - U.S. 60 between Amherst and the James River is some of the most amazingly ugly countryside I have ever encountered. And my third mistake was not following my own route in my head - I turned off of the route at Arrington, and took a southeastern road that was in great shape and headed in the right direction. Big mistake.
We followed that road for 5 miles before it passed a cemetery and we came to the sign with the dreaded words, "End State Maintenance." We backtracked to Arrington, and looked at the map again before staying on the original route through town. We eventually made it to James River State Park, an hour and 8 minutes after leaving Colleen. And JRSP wasn't even that pretty!
I then compounded the mistake by returning to U.S. 60 and heading east. (I really hate that portion of U.S. 60 to the west!) We could have gone on 60 to Rt. 20 and gone home via Scottsville. But I've driven Rt. 20 a bunch of times and wanted something new, so I headed towards Rt. 56. I am familiar with another part Rt. 56 as it goes along the Tye River up to Crabtree Falls near the Blue Ridge Parkway, so it has to be more scenic than other local roads, and I'd never before been on this part of the road.
Around 40 minutes after leaving JRSP we passed a sign telling us we could turn left and find a state park after 10 miles. Undoubtably this referred to the park we had left 30 miles ago. And we drove through the curiously named "Wingina, Virginia." This is a place that makes me wonder if residents really admit that they are from there. Or maybe they lie.
We finally rolled into the Lovingston McDonalds (just off of the wonderfully four laned U.S. 29) an hour after leaving the State Park boundaries. The kid deserved a happy meal after that drive. And I now believe that Arrington, Mt. Rush and Wingina form the Virginia equivalent of the Bermuda Triangle.


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A stop for climate change
technology report online, October 2016
Highly efficient catalysts from Heraeus reduce nitrous oxide emissions from nitric acid production by 95% - A significant contribution to reach the climate targets!
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Heraeus is installing this reduction technology in existing nitric acid plants around the world. Each retrofitted plant brings us one step closer to sustainable climate and environmental protection and will help us reach the climate targets! The system can be adapted to specific customer requirements and allows existing reactors to be retrofitted at a reasonable cost.
Read more about Catalytic Gauzes from Heraeus
Good news for the climate: Highly efficient catalysts from Heraeus reduce nitrous oxide emissions from nitric acid production by 95%
The Climate Agreement, which will go into effect at the beginning of November, aims to help keep the earth's temperature from rising more than 2°C. The Nitric Acid Climate Action Group will also work hard to meet climate targets. As part of its efforts, the Group will focus on reducing climate-altering nitrous oxide emissions from fertilizer production and in the chemical industry by 2020. When basic chemicals for fertilizers, such as nitric acid, are produced, the process releases nitrous oxide into the atmosphere as a byproduct. This greenhouse gas has roughly 300 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide and is thereby a major factor in global warming.
Climate Action in Nitric Acid Production
Heraeus offers a broad portfolio of products and services for Renewable Energies.


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INEXPENSIVE MOVING IN CROYDON
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croydon graffiti
you are enough by dreph
Ghanaian artist Dreph has produced a series of stunning murals which appear throughout Croydon and across South and East London. The Croydon graffiti project celebrates inspirational black women and also promotes the empowerment of females. The striking murals feature photorealistic portraits of the artist's friends, family and also their associates. The pictures showcase the great work these women do in the community.
The project is called You Are Enough. It presents black women from all walks of life. The defining characteristics of each woman, from style to empathy, are perfectly captured in the beautiful spray-painted portraits.
In this particular image, the subject is Mel. "She is a beautiful soul whose spirit lights up any room," says the artist himself. Mel is a community worker and she is very active in the local cultural scene. Her kindness and compassion are evident in the portrait, which presents Mel as a thoughtful and calm influence.
You can see the work for yourself by visiting Croydon. The portrait appears on St. Georges Walk in Croydon, in postcode district CR0. Find other portraits from the series across South and East London districts. From Brixton to Penge, the You Are Enough project has now spread across several different London communities.
Croydon's diverse community
Croydon is one of London's most multicultural areas. This small section of the capital city represents many different nations and cultures. Local artists such as Dreph aim to capture the spirit of this community and represent it in street art. Everyone can enjoy graffiti: that is its beauty. It is not locked away in a gallery, and there is no charge to see it. The whole community can celebrate the artwork, and also the women represented by it.
Enjoy this and other Croydon graffiti artworks with the Croydon Removals blog. Check out our blog so you can discover the other artworks. We hope you learn something from this guide to Croydon's graffiti.
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We had a great move to the new apartment. Our belongings were collected, moved and delivered safely. Thank you for making this easy and stress free! I would highly recommend them!
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I just wandered that, how careful and smooth enough they're during the whole process. We had nothing to worry about. Worth using Croydon removals.
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I just wanted to quickly say thank you to Pavel and his Croydon team for being so careful with my fish tank. All the best with your removals business. You are really good at it! ARTUR.
- Artur Borowski
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Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis – komputerowa gra platformowa wydana w 2006 roku przez Nintendo na konsoli Nintendo DS. Jest to kontynuacja gry Mario vs. Donkey Kong wydanej na konsolę Game Boy Advance. Gracz wciela się w niej w hydraulika Mario, którego zadaniem jest uratowanie swojej dziewczyny Pauline, porwanej przez Donkey Konga. W tym celu gracz wykorzystuje zabawki Mini Mario.

Gry na platformę Nintendo DS
Gry w uniwersum Mario
Gry wydane przez Nintendo
2006 w grach komputerowych


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Thelma & Louise (20th Anniversary) (Blu-ray)
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 16th, 2011
Released Tuesday, February 8, 2011
"I've always believed that, done properly, armed robbery doesn't have to be a totally unpleasant experience."
You would think that Thelma And Louise would have been a blockbuster film. It's certainly become entrenched in our pop culture. The famous ending has been spoofed to death in other films and television shows, including the latest Star Trek, if you can believe that. You would think, but you'd be completely wrong. This was one of the movies that got a ton of critical attention and even some Academy Award attention. Ridley Scott, Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon all got nominated for statues. The film ended up only taking one for the screenplay. Silence Of The Lambs took the actress and director Oscars that year. The film only pulled in $45 million, hardly a blockbuster but more than enough to cover the $17 million budget. The truth is that 28 films finished with better numbers in 1991, but few of them still have the enduring fame that Thelma And Louise has in 2010.
You know the story by now, don't you? Thelma (Davis) is suffering through a bad marriage to Darryl (McDonald). Louise (Sarandon) is a waitress who's been going out with Jimmy (Madsen) who can't seem to decide if he's willing to make a commitment or not. They decide that the answer to their rut is to take a ladies' weekend and go to a cabin in the mountains and fish. Okay, maybe they're not completely exited about the fishing part. They pack everything but the kitchen sink, including a gun for psycho-killers, bears and snakes. On the way they stop at a honky-tonk bar to let their hair down a bit. They have a few drinks and dance with some guys. One of them gets a bit carried away and tries to rape Thelma. He ends up shot by Louise, and suddenly the girls are on the run from the law. Along the way they pick up hitchhiker JD (Pitt) because Thelma finds him cute. That turns out to be a predictably bad idea in more ways than one. Finally, with no money and nothing to lose they engage in a crime spree on their way to the Mexican border. Of course, Louise has some emotional baggage with Texas so they're going to have to take the long way around. Meanwhile Detective Hal (Keitel) is on their trail. His investigation causes him to become sympathetic with the running ladies, but he can't stop the escalation that sends this woman-hunt literally over the edge.
Unless you've only recently been rescued from Gilligan's Island, you already know how the movie ends. Hell, even then you probably heard about it on your bamboo-and-coconut television set. It's impossible to watch the movie quite the way that Ridley Scott intended for you to watch it. That time has passed. But I'd argue that doesn't really take away from the experience. Like all good road movies, it's the journey not the destination that gives this movie its entertainment value. While the ending might be confused as a downer, it isn't. This movie never really operates in the doldrums. There is more than a little humor going on. The circumstances often border on the outrageous, even throwing in some classic Smokey And The Bandit-style cop car antics. That's not to say that the movie doesn't take itself very seriously at times. There's nothing silly or funny in an attempted rape, and Scott doesn't make light of that fact, either. It's the aftermath that can sometimes be light and entertaining. The movie knows how to play on the emotional beats, taking you on a predetermined ride through the wilds of the Southwest.
Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon share the kind of chemistry that is essential to keep this movie even remotely interesting. As good a director as Scott has proven himself to be, there's nothing he could have done if the relationship wasn't selling. At first these girls are quite ordinary friends. You'd expect that they would meet at the grocery store or local beauty salon to talk gossip and whine about their men. They aren't the kind to go on a crime spree. That relationship has to evolve, and the actresses do a fine job of allowing that evolution to take place. Too quickly and we'll dismiss it. If it takes too long, we're going to lose patience. I'd say they got it just right. And try to remember they accomplished that without the convenience of playing out in chronological order. Brad Pitt has a pretty small but crucial part in the film. I think I like him better here before he became somewhat of a sex symbol and marquee name. He's light on his feet and more playful than I've seen him at any time since. This is the kind of character we wish he'd played in the Ocean films. It's often true that actors like this can be so much better when they are still hungry and the attention isn't always on them. Harvey Keitel is always good. Here he can be the tough-as-nails cop who eventually begins to understand his quarry. It's a good supporting cast, but make no mistake, Davis and Sarandon carry all of the weight. At least they have a rather attractive green Thunderbird convertible to help get that weight around.
Thelma And Louise is presented in its original aspect ratio of 2.35:1. The 1080p image is arrived at with an AVC MPEG-4 codec at an average 30-35 mbps. I'm one of the handful on the planet who has not seen the film before, so I can't compare the image to the original box office experience, but I'd bet a good deal of money that it lives up to it quite well. Colors are natural here, but the picture tends to be a bit soft for the most part. There's a ton of exterior road material here, and in sunny or rainy conditions you'll find a sharp image that reveals details that I'm sure earlier releases could not have revealed. There is a night scene where the girls are driving an isolated New Mexico road, and the contrast and sharpness is stunning. The beautiful mesas and rock formations make for a breathtaking scene. Black levels aren't great, but during moments like this they are good enough.
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 is probably just as faithful to the original experience. There is a wonderful collection of songs here that provide a ton of the score for the film. They come across as good as any CD could create today. The rest of the score is provided by Hans Zimmer, a Ridley Scott favorite. His twang guitar licks remind me of something Mark Knopfler would have come up with. The presence is clean and dynamic. The dialog always comes through with brilliant clarity.
There are two Audio Commentaries. Scott, as is ever the case in his commentary tracks, is a fascinating speaker, and not only gives us lots of insights into the making of the film, but also situates the picture in the broader context of his career. The other commentary is by Sarandon, Davis and writer Callie Khouri, and is a lengthy, scene-specific reminiscence of the shoot. Their reactions are interesting, as the film still seems fresh for them.
Unfortunately, it's all in standard definition.
Thelma And Louise – The Last Journey: (59:32) This feature is ported from the DVD release. Covered is everything from the genesis of the movie to the reactions that greeted its release. The tone maybe a little on the self-congratulatory side, but the feature is still interesting.
Original Theatrical Featurette: (5:23) There's an optional promo narration that sounds like trailer stuff. It's a very quick look at the production with a lot of time spent on the truck explosion.
Deleted And Extended Scenes: (40:19) Mostly extended material.
Extended Ending: (3:42) You get an optional Ridley Scott commentary here. In this version of the ending you see the car go all the way to the bottom. Plus you get Hal's reaction to it all when it's over.
Multi-Angle Storyboard: The final chase is covered in storyboards.
Music Video: (4:28) Glenn Fry singing Part Of You, Part Of Me.
Trailers And Television Spots
This is one of those movies I call bucket films. It's the kind of movie you've got to see at least once. It's so much a part of our pop culture that you're truly missing out by missing out. This Blu-ray version represents a perfect opportunity to add the film to your collection at a reasonable price and in pretty good condition. It's great for a rainy night in with some friends and a huge bucket of microwave popcorn. Put your stocking feet up and turn off the phone after a long working week. Just have fun. Come on, "You know how Fridays are."
I Spit on Your Grave (2010) (Blu-ray)	The Time Traveler's Wife