Variable Geometry

On Timeless Wings

Three doubled stiff tulle ruffles tutu — Mado Flynn for Ballet collection. Courtesy of Mado Flynn.

A Bolt from the Blue

Three satin rimmed double ruffles tutu — handmade Swarovski embroidery. Artwork by Mado Flynn.

Blowing snow

Two women dance in a park on a snowy day in 北京 (Běijīng), China. Photo: 王钊 (Wáng Zhāo)/AFP/Getty Images.

Physics of the Impossible

The Cyberiad

Ballet dancer Anoushka Zoe James dances in the water at the Ipanema beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Photo: Pilar Olivares/Reuters.

Trunks in the Square

The silent protest of show business workers in Milan, Italy Saturday, October 10, 2020: 500 empty trunks lined up in Piazza del Duomo with a red banner: “One sector one future”. Video credit: Press Office/Cover photo by Francesco Prandoni.

Metaphors of Confinement

• Anna Bandettini, L’appello di Alessandra Ferri: “Non fateci allenare attaccati ai lavandini” | The appeal of Alessandra Ferri: “Don’t let our bathroom’s sink be a dancer’s barre”, la Repubblica, May 14, 2020

The appeal of Alessandra Ferri: “Don’t let our bathroom’s sink be a dancer’s barre” The ballet étoile hopes that soon dancers will be allowed again to do their rehearsals in the dance halls, even though in compliance with the distance rules and all safety measures: “In order to study safely and competently, we do need parquet floors, barres and mirrors”. [Read more].

The black curtain at last is lifted, revealing a stage behind the bars. Artwork © pionpi.

Random Arrows

• Lyndsey Winship, “Dance is not a museum”: how ballet is reimagining problematic classics, The Guardian, January 9, 2020

Historical ballets are rife with offensive colonial politics but choreographers and dancers are finding creative ways to change them for today’s audiences. [Read more].

Modernising force... Bayadère — The Ninth Life by Shobana Jeyasingh. Photo: Tristram Kenton/The Guardian.

Going the Distance

There are still two days left to take a look at Rahman Hak-Hagir’s & 朱昱 (Zhū Yù)’s video-performative work, Seizures and Distance — The Affiliation between Mechanized Power and Physical Movement of the Body, on display at the BACA Art Centre | Nook Gallery, 北京 (Běijīng), China till January 8.

Green and Purple

And then, while summer is passing, ballet dancers of 钦州 (Qīnzhōu) School are already rehearsing for next summertime, in 钦州 (Qīnzhōu), 广西壮族自治区 (Guǎngxī Zhuàng Autonomous Region), China. Photo: 張璦麟 (Zhāng Àilín)/新华社 (Xīnhuá News Agency)/Barcroft Media.

From Chaos to Centre

Dancers of the 上海芭蕾舞团 (Shànghǎi Ballet Company) perform on a staircase in the Bode Musee in Berlin, Germany. Photo: Britta Pedersen/AP.

The most important things rarely happen behind closed doors

A woman practices her dance moves in a park outside the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia. Photo: AFP/Mladen Antonov.

Random Rhymes of Leisure Hours

Students do splits as they read textbooks while studying for a test during a break at the Krasnoyarsk Choreographic College in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, on September 12, 2018. Photo: Reuters/Ilya Naymushin.

Once Upon a Sofa

André Kertész, Burlesque (Satiric Dancer), 1926 Kertész took this picture in the Montparnasse studio of sculptor Étienne Beőthy, in which dancer Magda Főrstner (who, like the photographer and sculptor, was also a Hungarian émigré) mimics one of Beőthy’s sculptures. Photo credit: André Kertész c/o Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication/Médiathèque de l’architecture et du patrimoine, Dist Rmn © Donation André Kertész.

Clockwork

北京 (Běijīng), China: Dancers perform during the opening ceremony of the 北京国际电影节 (Běijīng International Film Festival). Photo: VCG via Getty Images.

The Winter’s Tale

Salisbury, England: Ballerina Emily Harper dances during the dress rehearsal of A Winter’s Trail, a new promenade drama at Salisbury Cathedral. Photo: Matt Cardy/Getty Images.

Photo finish

北京 (Běijīng), China: A rehearsal of Chinese Dance: Maestros and Classics, the closing performance of the National Centre for the Performing Arts dance festival. Photo: How Hwee Young/EPA.

On and Off the Stage

Sydney, Australia: Members of the Australian Ballet perform during a media preview for the 2017 season at the Capitol Theatre. Photo: Mick Tsikas/EPA.

週末夜狂熱 (Saturday Night Fever)

人民日报 (People’s Daily) (@PDChina)