Principal Dancer Arantxa Ochoa and former Soloist Meredith Rainey in "Agon," choreography by George Balanchine (c) The George Balanchine Trust. Photo: Paul Kolnik. "Building on Balanchine" is at the Merriam Theater April 14-17.
Ballet is not just for the white-haired set.
Philadelphia's Pennsylvania Ballet has just formed a Young Friends organization for professionals ages 21-39.
“The next generation of ballet supporters will ensure this vibrant art form thrives for years to come,” said the company's artistic director Roy Kaiser in a press release. “Pennsylvania Ballet Young Friends will be an invaluable asset to the company.”
Members of Pennsylvania Ballet Young Friends will be offered distinctive opportunities to expand their understanding and enjoyment of the Pennsylvania Ballet's productions through special events with exclusive, behind-the-scenes perks, like parties with Pennsylvania Ballet dancers and invitations to studio rehearsals. Membership begins with an annual donation of $100. For a full list of benefits or to join Pennsylvania Ballet Young Friends, visit www.paballet.org/young-friends.html.
The Corrigan Brothers, an Irish band that has a song called “There’s No one as Irish as Barack Obama” (!), has released a witty ditty called "Saint Patrick's Day (Everybody's Irish)."
Here's some of the lyrics:
ME GREAT GREAT GREAT GRANDMOTHER
SHE CAME FROM SKIBEREEN
AND I CAN SING GALWAY BAY
AND 40 SHADES OF GREEN
AND I KNOW THERE’S A LITTLE BIT
OF IRISH INSIDE ME
SURE TWICE I’VE BEEN TO RIVERDANCE
AND I BOUGHT THE DVD
IN AUSTIN AND IN BOSTON
5TH AVENUE NEW YORK
IN BEIJING AND HELSINKI
FROM BELFAST DOWN TO CORK
THE EMERALD ISLE IS OUT IN STYLE
AND IT’S FAIR ENOUGH TO SAY
OH EVERYBODY'S IRISH
ON SAINT PATRICK'S DAY
THERE'S MURPHYS OUT IN MOSCOW AND IN OHIO
O'NEILLS OUT IN OSAKA AND IN TOKYO
THERE'S KELLYS OUT IN KENWAY
AND CLANCYS IN NORWAY
THE 40 SHADES OF GREEN ARE EVERYWHERE ON PATRICK'S DAY
PARADES OUT IN AUSTRALIA, IN CHINA AND IN SPAIN
AND TEAMS OF IRISH DANCERS STEP IT OUT AGAIN
AND OUT IN HOT SPRINGS, ARKANSAS THEY ALWAYS HAVE A BALL
WHEN THEY HOST THE WORLD'S SHORTEST PATRICK'S DAY PARADE OF ALL
This photo, taken in The Reporter newsroom by Amanda Piccirilli, shows how suspicious I probably looked March 3.
I can laugh about it now, but I ran into an instance of TSA-like profiling at, of all places, North Penn High School. The school district had invited the media to cover the high school's Family & Consumer Sciences fashion show March 3. I put in a courtesy RSVP phone call to Carol Fink at the ESC well in advance to let her know that I was going to cover it. As far as I'm concerned, the school district knows that I'm going to be there at that date and time. Photographer Geoff Patton and I arrived at about the same time to sign in at the security desk, per procedure. We each asked if we needed an official visitor sticker to proceed to the auditorium, but for whatever reason, we were told to skip that procedure and go about our business. I thought that was a nice gesture because it shows that they know who we are, that we're there on professional business and to give positive media coverage for the school, and they wanted to make our jobs easier. That all Reporter staff writers carry Flip video cameras should be news to no one. We've been shooting and posting video online for more than a year now. And the fashion show is an event that's just begging for video coverage to compliment the coverage in print. It was more than 40 minutes into the fashion show, when a teacher asks why I don't have a visitor sticker -- never mind that I've been in the building for a good while and given authorization to be there -- and she insisted on escorting me back to the security desk, interrupting the performance of my job. As far as I could tell, I was not being disruptive, breaking any rule or doing anything inappropriate. There were people taking pictures (and probably video too) all over the auditorium. The teacher didn't interrupt Geoff, who also did not have a sticker. Why was I singled out? It finally dawned on me when I returned to the newsroom afterward, and staff writer Dan Sokil quipped that I looked suspicious wearing a trenchcoat carrying a Flip camera. The 1999 tragedy at Columbine still has people that freaked out about trenchcoats? Seriously? Honestly, does it make me look like a terrorist or a pedophile? What's the hangup here? I don't get it. For the record, in the 11 years that I've been at The Reporter, my relationship with North Penn High School had been perfect ... until I was made to feel like a criminal for doing my job. Anybody want my coat for free? Apparently I need something that makes me look less like a derelict in the eyes of the fashion police. By the way, here's the video. I like the way it turned out.
Girls Rock Philly, the only rock camp for girls (and taught by women) that I know of, has launched online registration for the 2011 camp at www.girlsrockphilly.org. Now in its fifth year of teaching aspiring female rockers ages 9-17 the art of guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, DJing and rock singing, the week-long summer day camp is held Aug. 8–12 on the campus of Girard College, Girard and Corinthian avenues, Philadelphia. Camp week culminates in an end-of-camp showcase, open to the public, on Saturday Aug. 13 (location TBD), followed by a professional recording studio experience to create a compilation CD. Last year’s camp served 75 girls from the Greater Philadelphia region. No prior musical experience is necessary and all equipment and instruments are provided. Campers form bands and write their own copyrighted songs, while working in a team setting. The camp also features special guest performers and workshops, including the history of women in music, non-traditional instruments, sound and recording, and band art, where participants have the opportunity to create original band t-shirts and buttons. For more information and to submit an application, click on the website link above or call (215) 789-4879. Financial aid and scholarships are available.
Carol Tweed at Molly Maguire's in Lansdale was pulling my leg. Gathering information on a story I wrote in "Go" two weeks ago, she made it sound like the weekend night crowd wasn't what the Molly's team was hoping it would be. Are you kidding me? Check out this video I shot from Friday Feb. 4 with the duo FunZaLuv. So you think my story might have had something to do with this healthy crowd?
Note the creative lyric change in "Melt with You," and the singer standing on top of the bar during "Save the Last Dance for Me." These guys have played at the Molly's in Phoenixville before, and the one dude mentioned that he's from the Lansdale area. Although they are playing along with prerecorded karaoke backing tracks, the people are undeniably picking up what FunZaLuv is throwing down. To find out who's entertaining at Molly's on Friday and Saturday nights, check www.mollymaguirespubs.com.
The Choristers are welcoming new singers to join them in rehearsal for a concert presentation of Antonin Dvorak's "Stabat Mater." Find out what they're about 7:30 to 10 p.m. Fridays at Upper Dublin Lutheran Church, Susquehanna Avenue and Butler Pike, Upper Dublin. The Dvorak work was inspired by a 13th century poem meditating on the suffering of St. Mary during Jesus' crucifixion and everlasting life. The concert date is 7:30 p.m. Saturday April 16, the Saturday before Palm Sunday. Artistic director David Spitko requests a heads-up if you want to audition by calling (215) 542-7871 or e-mailing dspitko@thechoristers.org. Visit www.thechoristers.org.
Looky what I got for Christmas! *Reporter account executive Scott Miller, who's also part of The Reporter's blogger community, has taken to making a mix CD for everybody at the paper every December. After the eclectic first 2 mixes, I was initially disappointed with the 2010 version because -- ready for this? -- there were too many songs I recognized. After being challenged to embrace erudite Miller picks from the likes of Marc Broussard, Duffy, MIA, Shelby Lynne, etc., somehow it seemed like a letdown to be getting "Joy to the World," "Imagine," "Windy" and "Bridge Over Troubled Water," which have been driven into the ground by radio for decades. Now there was a twist to it. "White Rabbit" was a remake by Grace Potter & The Nocturnals ("Grace covering Grace," as Miller put it). The Fifth Dimension's "One Less Bell to Answer" was covered nicely by Sheryl Crow. The Gipsy Kings sped up "Hotel California" and sang it in Spanish. "Let It Be" is the version from the "Across the Universe" soundtrack (what a WEIRD flick that was - but that's another entry). And I did, after all, get a huge kick out of hearing Tom Jones' "It's Not Unusual" and Golden Earring's "Radar Love." Miller later explained to me that the compilation was an ode to favorite 45s he grew up listening to as a kid, a most appropriate theme for a Christmas gift mix.
*My musician uncle had been smitten by supergroup Them Crooked Vultures, with Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters), John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin), and Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age, Eagles of Death Metal), and put their self-titled album under my tree. There's an irony here with Led Zep's bass player teaming up with the Nirvana drummer. The latter band had poked fun at so-called "cock rock" with a song called "Aero Zeppelin."
Holy cow, is this album LOUD! I'm still digesting this edgy brainchild, and for some reason, it sounds better on my computer than it does in my car. I like the shades of '60s psychedelia that pop up every once in a while. Jamming to the electronic dance groove on the song "Gunman" right now.
*The Beatles' successful '70s retrospective double albums "1962-1966" and "1967-1970" were recently remastered and gifted to me. Gotta give that a strong thumbs-up as a gift. Since I already own all those songs on CD, I never would have thought about investing in remastered incarnations of "The Red Album" and "The Blue Album," which now have fresh liner notes (although there's some repetition on both albums) with cool photos, and nice artwork.
Principal Dancer Arantxa Ochoa and former Soloist Meredith Rainey in "Agon," choreography by George Balanchine (c) The George Balanchine Trust. Photo: Paul Kolnik. "Building on Balanchine" is at the Merriam Theater April 14-17. 
