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Monthly Archives: April 2011

A Man, a Woman and a Rhinoceros

An unconventional love story Those fooled into thinking that tThose fooled into thinking that this story involves some sort of bestiality or Disney-like anthropomorphism will be disappointed. But otherwise, Rhinoceros in Love can be quite an entertaining story. It tells beautiful but tragic romance between

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War! What is it Good For?

Apparently, the classics are in vogue again. Just note the blockbuster cinematic success of John Woo’s recent take on the historic Red Cliff, as well as the ode to Peking Opera, Forever Enthralled. The National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) is taking advantage of

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And the Spring Begins

“A real masterpiece, a classic, always resonates with audiences, whatever the times,” says director Lin Zhaohua, as he discusses his latest production, Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard. Lin is one of the most influential drama directors in China today, renowned for his bold adaptations of

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Ageless Aida

From an eclectic pairing of electric African dance with elegant European ballet, performed in dazzling costumes against a mysterious set to a jazz filled soundtrack, a musical was born. Elton John and Tim Rice’s adaptation of the timeless love story Aida, which has been moving

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Dissidence and “Bliss”: A Q&A with Turkish Author Omer Zülfü Livaneli

对话土耳国宝级作家李凡纳利 作者:黄潇 日期:2010年6月17日 星期四 作为土耳其文化政治先锋,李凡纳利是作家,作曲家也是政治家。他进过军事监狱,流亡过国外,做过国会议员,当过联合国科教文组织的亲善大使。他曾在出狱的15年后,在监狱附近的广场开了一场近50万人参加的音乐会。他的一生大起大落,具有传奇性。更为重要的是他豁达的人生态度,尖锐而又犀利的文笔影响了很多土耳其年轻人。《伊斯坦布尔的幸福》是李凡纳利众多小说中反映土耳其现实最出名的一部。这部小说描写了三个核心人物,一个被族长强暴后,又被家人强迫自决的少女玛丽,年轻而又困惑的突击队退役队员玛尔和事业有成但精神空虚的中年教授伊凡。 Artinfo: 写作,作曲,拍电影,你更喜欢哪一种工作? 李凡纳利:音乐是最好的表达情感的方式。如果要刻画一些人物,讲述故事,写作是最好的方式。拍电影需要很长的时间,而且需要团队的合作。如果有一个人做不好,就会影响整部作品的质量。写作的话我一个人就能完成。 Artinfo: 玛丽是否一定程度上代表了土耳其年轻女性? 李凡纳利:事实上在我开始创作时,这位教授才是我的核心人物。后来,我想加一个来自土耳其南部的一位少女的故事。一旦这个女孩进入了我的这部小说,关于她的故事情节就变得越来越多。这个并不是我最初的计划,可以说“她”创造了她自己。她代表了很大一部分土耳其女性的现状。总的来说,我觉得女人比男人更坚强。她们要工作,还要生孩子,照顾家庭,承担很多的责任。很多人觉得女人比男人更感性化,但我觉得女人不但感性化而且理性化。 Artinfo: 流亡国外的八年中你都经历了什么? 李凡纳利:我在欧洲其它的国家结识了很多音乐家,艺术家。我很庆幸自己“国际化”的身份,我可以学习和理解其它国家的文化。那段时间的生活是很困苦的,因为我没有钱。但谢天谢地我的音乐也很受欢迎,所以我不需要像其它人那样去餐厅涮盘子。 Artinfo: 从政治逃犯到国会议员,你有什么感受? 李凡纳利:我的护照说明了我人生的经历。我的第一个护照是为了逃到国外而做的假护照。我的第二个护照是联合国的难民护照。第三个护照是普通的土耳其公民护照。第四个护照是联合国科教文组织亲善大使的护照。第五个护照是我是为国会议员后所持的高级别的政府官员护照。想象一下吧,我拥有不同的护照,不同的身份,但我还是我,同一个人。当我用我的第一个护照时,我是政治逃犯,但我换用红色的第五个护照的时候,我是政府官员,太荒谬了。这个社会太官僚化了! Omer Zülfü Livaneli — author, composer, folk singer, and filmmaker — is a towering figure in the cultural and political life of his native Turkey, where he once

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Love’s Colors

In the rehearsal room of the Beijing Contemporary Dance Theater (BCDT), Wang Yuanyuan, the artistic director, and her dancers are in the process of preparing their new piece, Colors of Love, which is set to be performed in Beijing’s Poly Theater on December 16-17 as

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Ballet Preljocaj Portrays a Lustful Snow White

This latest rendition is certainly not the Walt Disney version of Snow White. The collaboration between choreographer Angelin Preljocaj and haute couture fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier presents audiences with a dark, ambiguous and complicated contemporary ballet based on the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale. In

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Journey to the Center of Yourself

Khan and Binoche take us Inside I From the moment Juliette Binoche first broke into our consciousness as the beautiful, fragile photographer in the Unbearable Lightness of Being, her work has been about taking risks. Yet her decision two years ago to become a dancer

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Once Upon a Time in Beijing

A firsthand account of life in the Forbidden City For 30 years, Gobulo Runqi had led a simple but purposeful life as a respected Chinese doctor in Beijing, living in an ordinary apartment with his family until his death late last year. The only thing

The Heartbeats of New Generation

Latvian Pianist Returns to Shanghai “It is highly recommended [as a performer] to ask yourself this question every day – why should people listen to me instead of any other musician?”  This year seems to be a “China Year” for Latvian pianist Vestard Shimkus. After