Arts!

A selection of our new and noteworthy materials on the Performing Arts as well as other Fine Arts

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Theater Geek: The Real Life Drama of a Summer at Stagedoor Manor, the Famous Performing Arts Camp

"Stagedoor Manor is famous in the performing arts community for transforming young unknowns into the likes of Natalie Portman and Robert Downey, Jr., two previous participants. Rapkin, a senior editor at GQ, follows three campers as they rehearse for major roles in Sondheim shows and recounts the camp's storied history, complete with anecdotes of overly-dramatic directors and lax adult oversight fueled by sex and drugs (far more entertaining that any of the present-day shenanigans). Although Rapkin has obviously spoken frequently with each of his chosen subjects, he neither delves into their stories, nor questions the outlandish things they say. Indeed, one girl's rivalry with another veteran camper is presented with such gravity that it almost seems... important. Then the reader recalls that this was on a one-day production put on by teens in a Pennsylvania forest. Theatre is a powerful force, but Rapkin rarely explores beyond the proscenium. Instead, he embraces the relationship between Stagedoor and the industry with little question, leading one to wonder what the campers who didn't land the lead, or the agent, might have to say about all this." Publisher's Weekly
Request Theater Geek from the catalog.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Sheila Hicks: 50 Years

Sheila Hicks (born 1934) is a pioneering artist noted for objects and public commissions whose structures are built of color and fiber. This volume accompanies the first major retrospective of Hicks’s work; it documents the remarkable versatility and dramatically divergent scale of her textiles as well as her distinctive use, and surprising range, of materials. Hicks deliberately and provocatively engages what are often considered mutually exclusive domains, rethinking and pushing the limits of generally accepted contexts, conditions, and frameworks. These include distinct objects and temporal, performative actions; studio works and commissions for public buildings; and textiles made in artisanal workshops as well as for industrial production in places as different as Chile, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Sweden, and the United States. 
 Exhibition dates : Addison Galley of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover MA - Nov. 5, 2010 - Feb.27, 2011.
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A Pete Seeger Discography: Seventy Years of Recordings

Provides a comprehensive listing of the 45s, 78s, LPs and CDs recorded by folk performer Pete Seeger as a solo artist and with the Almanac Singers, the Weavers and with other musicians and contributors.
Request A Pete Seeger Discography from the catalog. 

Seven Mozart Librettos: A Verse Translation

"Celebrated poet McClatchy has done an invaluable service for lovers of Mozart's operas. He has undertaken the gargantuan task of rendering into idiomatic, accurate, and lively poetic English the complete librettos of Mozart's seven mature operas: The Magic Flute, Idomeneo, The Abduction from the Seraglio, The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, Così Fan Tutte, and La Clemenza di Tito. There is a chapter dedicated to each opera, complete with an introductory essay and a detailed synopsis of the plot. The librettos are presented on facing pages to facilitate easy comparison, with the original language on the left and the new translation on the right. In a lengthy introduction, McClatchy explains the pleasures and pitfalls of creating translations that accurately convey the meaning while capturing the beauty and liveliness of the original language. He has succeeded admirably."Library Journal Reviews by Larry Lipkis.
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Natural Magic: The Art of Patrick Dougherty

Natural Magic: the art of Patrick Dougherty documents from beginning to end the exhibitions, the collaborative process of creating major installations, and the eventual, natural demise of Dougherty's unique sculptures.
Natural Magic: the art of Patrick Dougherty from the catalog.