Von Wong - Smokin' Ballet

Benjamin Von Wong is a very talented photo artist. His shoots are often
very large in ambition and execution. One of his primary subjects is the dance. 

Benjamin Von Wong's webpage is   http://vonwong.smugmug.com/ 

Viktoria Modesta

Here we have a beautiful young woman, who has become a pop star. Moreover, she did it with an obvious physical handicap that would have stopped most people.

Ms. Modesta lost part of her left leg when she was quite young. She has turned
that into creative inspiration. The result is very compelling.

Here is a link to Viktoria Modeta's very creative music video...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jA8inmHhx8c

Sparks- A Bit of Cinema Magic

I have been a fan for Cirq du Soleil almost since it's beginning. We went to one of the tent shows in Los Angeles.  It was unique and beautifully realized. Terrific performers in stunning costumes that defy description. The music is also very appealing.  

Cirq du Soliel is now an international brand, with dozens of different live circus shows touring the world. They even have several permanent shows in Las Vegas.

I just came across a video titled Sparks.  It's a Cirq du Soliel video freely available on the internet.  It uses cutting edge technology to deliver some wonderful moments of entertainment.  

Sparks is fun. If you appreciate performance art,  Sparks is worth a look.

Here is the link to Sparks...  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C8OJsHfmpI

Here is a link to  a video about how they did it... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YqUocVcyrE

The Ultimate Swan Lake - Amazing!

One of the big guns of classical ballet, Swan Lake has been performed on stages all over the world for more than a hundred years. When Tchaikovsky created this music, he could never have imagined a performance like that in this video of the Great Chinese State Circus.  It combines acrobatics with the classic grace of ballet in a way that must be seen to be believed.

Check out this link of an absolutely remarkable rendition of Swan Lake...  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sMc-p19FIk

Dancing Like Nobody's Watching

Here's a guy that is seriously lit up. He's having a blast; the dancing man, getting loose in a crowd,  infecting everyone with his zany antics.   In my whole life, I think I've been out on that kind of wowwwzer limb maybe once or twice. I hope I have  reason to get crazy like that again...soon, very soon.


Here's the link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_xIoJzZtKg

Mao's Last Dancer

A few years ago, a theatrical feature titled Mao's Last Dancer was released. It's the best feature film about classic dance that I've ever seen. It didn't last long in theaters, but that has nothing to do with the quality of the film..

Mao's Last Dancer is based on a true story.  It was directed by Bruce Beresford, who may be best known for his film, Driving Miss Daisy.

 Here is a link to the trailer for Mao's Last Dancer... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkgqA_fxas8

Dancers Among Us

Clumsiness comes easy to me. It also helps me to appreciate the grace and beauty of people who dance for a living. It's takes discipline, talent, and perseverance to be a dancer.  I just ran across a photographer - Jordan Matter - who has created a unique platform to capture dancer's being who they are in one interesting place after another.  It started as a book titled, Dancers Among Us.   This book has morphed into a media franchise.  There are now multiple Dancers Among Us books, calendars,  and videos featuring dancers doing what they do in many places around the world.

Here is a link to Jordan Matter's very appealing website... http://www.dancersamongus.com/index

Here is a link to a video that showcases Dancer's Among Us... http://vimeo.com/76484966

Being a Dancer

I marvel at the effortless grace that epitomizes a truly skilled dancer.  I particularly appreciate the commitment and discipline of ballet dancers.  The best of them are artists of the first order.

Here is a link to a web presentation on Buzzfeed that reflects on what it is to be a top order ballet dancer....http://www.buzzfeed.com/donnad/you-should-know-ballerinas-are-more-hardcore-than-you

Choros - Dance with Echoes

This melding of the dance with something called chronophotography has evolved since it first appeared late in the19th century.  This latest iteration featuring a single dancer with a trail of 32 visual 'echoes' is a sophisticated and visually stunning example of this unusual photo/video technique.

Here is a link to the 13 minute video titled Choros...   http://langanfilms.com/stream_choros.html

My Favorite Dance Image

Digital photography is a creative outlet I thoroughly enjoy. The other day, I was fortunate to do a session in my home studio with a young woman named Tiarra Lynn. She is a dancer and a bodybuilder.  I haven't had a chance to photograph many dancers, so working with Tiarra was a treat.

Here is my favorite image from that session.

The Red Mistress

Here we have a dance video, an exquisitely rendered dance video, directed by visual artist Benjamin Von Wong.  If you're a fan of the dance, you will love this work by Wong and his creative collaborators.

The video is less than four minutes long. If you're like me, you'll find yourself compelled to watch it more than once.

Here is a link to Benjamin Von Wong's dance video,  The Red Mistress.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ydkblES5QoY

I am a big fan of Von Wong's photography. You can see more of it at the following link...http://www.flickr.com/photos/iintrigue/

Tchaikovsky

This guy's music is awesome. He only lived 53 years (1840-1893), but the mark he left on the world can never be erased..  Among his great works, Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky composed magnificent pieces for the ballet, including Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty,  and The Nutcracker. He wrote amazing symphonies, operas, concertos, sonatas, songs, and overtures. 

Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky

I don't claim to be an expert or to have a well trained critical ear. I just know what I like.  There are so many brilliant pieces of music writen by Tchaikovsky.  They don't seem to share or reflect a particular 'Tchaikovsky style'.   Each great work stands alone; sublime and scintillating in its own way.

Swan Lake

Here is a brief video of a selection from Swan Lake...
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S76CGGPqI3s


Another piece my wife and I both love is Tchaikovsky's First Piano Concerto.  Here is a link to a video of that piece played by brilliantly by Van Cliburn and the Moscow Symphony in 1962...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-M7M4UoqBpA

Another awesome piece by Tchaikovsky is Marche Slave.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5poSw7tFLB4


Finally, a wonderful segment from Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto, made famous in the sound track for the movie, The Right Stuff.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAyviZx7Ifw

Feet of Flames

About fifteen years ago, a great theatrical phenomenon emerged. It was a live stage show called, Lord of the Dance.  Created by and starring Michael Flatley,  it was a celebration of Irish Dance and music. The original music created for the show by Ronan Hardiman is full of joyful energy.  I never had the pleasure of seeing a live performace of  Lord of The Dance,  but I rarely missed it when it turned up on PBS. 

One of the principle segments of Lord of the Dance was called, Feet of Flames.

Here is a video link to part of that production...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxJS7Hh06_o

The Nutcracker

When I was young, just after I arrived in Los Angeles, I had the opportunity to attend a live performance of The Nutcracker Ballet.  Staged by the American Ballet Theater,  it starred the amazing Russian dancer, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gelsey Kirkland, one of the prima American ballerinas of her time.  

Kirkland and Barishnikov

My affection for the dance blossomed fully with that experience.  The committment, courage, and determined preparation that every professional dancer brings to a performance has to be appreciated. Dancers endure an endless regimen of instruction, rehearsal, and performance.  To deliver the effortless grace one sees in a performance, dancers must be totally dedicated to their craft. I admire their work ethic. I relish the joy that comes from witnessing greatness first hand.  That is what I  saw with the Nutcracker at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles that evening.  It was simply breathtaking. No other word is adequate.

Earlier, a performance with Baryshnikov, Kirkland, and the same exceptional cast of dancers was recorded and is still available on DVD.  Here is a link to a trailer for that wonderful taped performance.

http://www.videodetective.com/movies/the-nutcracker/949642

Dancing with Matt

Matt Harding has taken a simple but fun idea and turned it into a global phenomenon. Since 2003, he's been traveling the world, doing his infectious little dance in all kinds of places, in all kinds of circumstances, with any kinds of people. Joy is the common denominator.

Here is a link to one of Matt's very engaging videos.  Fun!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWUrj22pRD0