The Week in Review: April 8
LORNA CROZIER WINS LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR’S LITERARY PRIZE
BC poet and Governor General award-winner, Lorna Crozier, was awarded the Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence at the BC Book Prizes Soiree this week. Speaking of Crozier’s achievements, juror Alma Lee said she is “a writer who has made a major contribution” to literature in the province.
Members of the LMPR team are long-time admirers of the poet’s work, and feel privileged to be promoting an exciting upcoming work featuring Crozier alongside talented Vancouver musicians: The Sex Lives of Vegetables… And Other Delicious Distractions by Astrolabe Musik Theatre on April 20.
TERRY FOX STORY MADE INTO FILM
Canadian-born Kerry Slattery launched a fundraising campaign this Friday to raise $250,000 for a feature film about Terry Fox. The filmmaker hopes that a Hollywood biopic will not only make Fox a household name south of the 49th parallel, but raise funds for cancer research.
“The world is remiss in not knowing who Terry Fox is, for sure. And we should share the story,” Slattery said to The Globe and Mail. “This is Canada’s biggest hero.”
VANCOUVER ARTS GROUPS RECEIVE $7.45 MILLION
The City of Vancouver has reserved $7.45 million in operating and project grants for the arts-and-culture industry for 2013. Funding amounts for 165 organizations in dance, music, theatre, and literary arts, will be discussed and approved by city council in the coming weeks. Recipients for some of the largest grants include the Vancouver Art Gallery, Museum of Vancouver, Arts Club Theatre and The Cultch.
Further details about funding amounts and the approval process can be found on The City of Vancouver’s website.
BOLSHOI DANCER SUES BALLET COMPANY
The scandals and sagas of one of the world’s most famous ballet companies, Russia’s Bolshoi Theatre, continue. Following the shocking acid attack on artistic director Sergei Filin, ballet dancer Nikolai Tsiskaridze has asked a Moscow court to annul reprimands he received from the Bolshoi. He claims the theatre used the acid attack to begin a ‘witch hunt’ against him, accusing the company of trying to drive him out. The lawsuit comes close on the heels of accusations from a former prima ballerina that dancers in the company were made to act as escorts for wealthy patrons.
BALLET RETURNS TO HARLEM
In brighter ballet news, Dance Theatre of Harlem resurgence began in earnest this week with a series of performances at New York’s Lincoln Centre. Known for their pioneering work in dance and race relations since 1969, the controversial company closed its doors in 2004 when it announced debt of $2.3 million.
This year, former star ballerina and artistic director, Virginia Johnson, is rebirthing the company. Dance Theatre of Harlem broke barriers and made headlines with their vision to launch and train black classical ballet dancers. A compelling video by the New York Times documents this astonishing company’s history and potential future.
LMPR client John Alleyne was among the choreographers whose work was performed in the opening night program.
Categories: MPMG