The Classical test Source For All The Performing, Visual And Literary Arts & Entertainment News
Dance

Ballerina Misty Copeland Talks About How to Survive in the Dance World and Darren Aronofsky's 'Black Swan'

Misty Copeland recently spoke to "Business Insider" about what it takes to survive in the dance world, how she keeps herself disciplined and how her life is not really like Darren Aronofsky's 2010 psychological thriller "Black Swan."“With the ballet world, you have to have a certain type of personality to succeed,” Copeland said. “You have to push yourself beyond what a normal person in there everyday life would not want to do — physically, mentally and emotionally.”Copeland has become more then a ballerina. She is now a public figure. Still reeling from her widely successful Under Armour campaign, Copeland defied the odds by becoming the second black woman to become a soloist with the American Ballet Theatre. Getting to this point, however, was not easy. Copeland, who only began taking ballet lessons at 13, was heavily criticized for her not-so-average ballet body. With a full bust and curvy waistline, Copeland is the perfect spokeswoman for achieving your dreams even when they seem impossible.When asked about "Black Swan," she said her life is nothing like the film. Like any other professional athlete, she has a rigorous training schedule in addition to her daily performances in "The Nutcracker."
By Jaime Prisco

  • Boost in Broadway Ticket Sales This Holiday Season: 'The Lion King' Remains No. 1 While 'The Elephant Man' and 'The River' Recoup

    The holidays mean big money for Broadway producers. This season, 19 of the current 26 shows broke the $1 million mark for the week with almost 30,000 more people attending shows than last Christmas.The Broadway League says the shows pulled in $40,993,950 for the week ending Sunday, Dec. 28, better than the same week last year when 30 shows attracted $38,783,854. Also, attendance is on the rise from 290,386 in 2013 to 318,721 this year.The mild New York winter weather and Christmas falling on a Thursday may all be helpful factors in the increase in attendance. With a boost in celebrity casting in Broadway shows being another reason for people attending the theater, performances sans celebrities are holding their own.Despite having Hugh Jackman in "The River," Bradley Cooper in "The Elephant Man" and Sting in "The Last Ship" all onstage toward the end of the year, and "The Book of Mormon" hardly slowing down at all this year, an old favorite was once again king of Broadway in 2014.Disney's "The Lion King" set a weekly record at the Minskoff Theatre with a nine-performance haul of $2,885,321. The Disney favorite remains Broadway's highest-grossing show of the year for the second time in a row, despite six other shows having higher average ticket prices.
    By Jaime Prisco

  • J-Pop Visual Kei Band The Kiddie to Disband

    Eight years after its formation, J-Pop’s Visual Kei band The Kiddie have decided to disband.The group will move forward with one last tour in March titled "yume wo hakobu ne" which can be translated as "Let's work on our dreams, OK?" The group's final live performance will be held March 31 at Zepp Tokyo.The Kiddie consist of five members: Yusa on vocals, Yuusei on lead guitar, Jun on rhythm guitar, Sorao on bass and Yuudai on drums. The band is known for their visual kei style, a movement among Japanese musicians that is characterized by the use of varying levels of makeup, elaborate hair styles and flamboyant costumes often, but not always, coupled with androgynous aesthetics.Though many believe visual kei refers to a music genre with sounds relating to glam rock, punk rock and heavy metal, it is possible for visual key to be used in various genres. But The Kiddie’s style is casual and straight-to-the-point, which distinguishes them from other young visual kei bands.
    By Jaime Prisco