arts
shorts
Great Gift Ideas: Singing Bowls, Jewelry, Shawls,
Thangkas & Art, Chimes, Bags, Buddhist Ritual Items, Wall tapestry,
Lanterns, Incense, CDs. Journals, Books, Clothes and much more
265 E. 13th Ave. Eugene, OR 97401 • 541.485.8007 • Key to Tibet@yahoo.com
www.tibetdreams.com
Baby Dancers
With more than 200 local children and young adults, the Oregon Ballet
Academy’s Sleeping Beauty follows last year’s successful Nutcracker for a kid-
friendly-length production of a ballet classic. Organizers expect the four per-
formances to sell out the large LCC Performance Hall (220 kids means a lot of
parents, grandparents and siblings, after all), but it’s just possible that you can
get tix to John Grensback’s
production. The OBA teaches
tons of local classes, and
Grensback, a former New York
City Ballet dancer, always has
lots to teach the adorable
youth of Eugene/Springfield.
That’s why all of the roles,
including the principals, are
danced by children. Take your
own kids to see the classic tale
Oregon Ballet Academy’s Sleeping Beauty
of Prince Florimund and his
fairy-cursed love, Princess Aurora, and get ready to buy some ballet shoes for
the Solstice (or whatever holiday you celebrate). Performances are at 2 pm and 7
pm Saturday, Dec. 15, and 1 pm and 6 pm Sunday, Dec. 16, at LCC’s Performance
Hall. Tix are $12 for children and $15 for adults, available at Safeway, www.tick-
etswest.com and at the door. Call 338-7800 for more info. — Suzi Steffen
Elves at the Market
Come watch and learn from aspiring young writers during this weekend’s
Holiday Market — and maybe get a beautiful stocking stuffer from the wandering
minstrels.
The Young Writers Association (YWA) will be showcasing some talented
amateur authors this Sunday at the Market. Starting at 10:30 am, young writers
(ages 7-18) will share their poetry and short stories with the public. After per-
formances end, young writers will be walking around the market all day delight-
ing shoppers with handwritten scrolls of their work.
The YWA began in 1994 to encourage Eugene children to express themselves
through creative writing that they could share with the community. The nonprof-
it organization conducts literary workshops about reading and writing and offers
the writers the chance to be published. KLCC’s “Mixed Voices” is a radio show on
which a young writer can read a short story or poem. Literature camps are also
held in the summer to help students. — Katie Cornell
High Cs in High-D
I got to meet Peter Gelb,
newish Metropolitan Opera gen-
eral manager, in October. The
journalists at the event had lots
of questions about “the
movies” — that is to say, the live
simulcasts of operas from the
Met, the ones that sold out
movie theaters on Saturdays
last year in towns across
Roméo et Juliette
England, Canada and the U.S. Gelb
admitted some surprise at the overwhelming nature of their success, but he said
he appreciated the stagehands’ willingness to work with the idea (New York
stagehands can be a bit challenging if management doesn’t want to compensate
for new platforms), and he was looking forward to expanding the audience even
further this year.
Now the year’s about to begin with the kickoff HD simulcast of Gounod’s
sensual R o m éo et Ju li e t te , starring Anna Netrebko and Roberto Alagna, at 10 am
Saturday, Dec. 15, at Cinemark 17 in Springfield (it repeats, not live, at 2 pm
Sunday, Dec. 16). And Hansel and Gretel kicks off the new year (read the Met’s
blog about the countdown to the opening of this piece at
blog.metoperafamily.org) in Springfield at 10 am on Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2008 (with
the taped version to follow on Jan. 6). Hey, if you’re awake and willing to fork
over the $22 at that point, more power to ya! I’m particularly looking forward to
Macbeth (Jan. 12 & 13), Peter Grimes (March 15 & 16) and, of course, La Boheme
(April 5 & 6). Get tix early at www.cinemark.com or be prepared to lose out on a
seat! Seriously. These things are popular, people! And having seen the Met in
action this year, I can tell you the scenery, lighting and costumes (and, some-
times, the acting) improve on that of many big-budget flicks. See you there!
— Suzi Steffen
36 DECEMBER 13, 2007