Cultural Voice

On the occasion of the Tercentenary of the École Française de Danse, the Opéra National de Paris and the Bibliothèque Nationale de France are retracing the history of the Ballet de l’Opéra, from Louis XIV to the present day. Concerned with bringing a noble style to the performing arts and laying the foundations for the dancers to turn professional, the king created the Académie Royale de Danse in 1661. In 1669, the king also granted the poet Pierre Perrin the privilege of founding an Académie d’Opéra, which was acquired by Lully in 1672. Thus the Opéra de Paris and its Ballet were created. At the end of his reign in 1713, Louis XIV decided to found a dance school within the Opéra: it was responsible for ensuring the quality of the performers. Initially reserved for adults, the school then opened to children in 1784 and remained faithful thereafter to its vocation of making the repertoire accessible and being open to creativity. The history being recounted here is both that of the ...

  Concept NV is pleased to announce the visit to Jamaica of renowned New York based portrait painter Kehinde Wiley, April 22 to May 05, 2013.   This exploratory visit will facilitate preparation for ‘The World Stage: Jamaica’ , a portrait exhibition to be presented at the Stephen Friedman Gallery in London, October 2013.   Mr. Wiley’s portraits are typically based on photographs, and include heroic portraits which address the image and social recontextualization of primarily, black and brown young men in contemporary culture. Over the years his extensive ‘World Stage’ series has expanded to include models from countries such as China, India, Israel, Brazil and Senegal.   These portraits incorporate aspects of the history and culture of each country and are often a source of national pride. Jamaica will now be added to this venerable line-up. During his visit, Wiley will conduct photo sessions with people of interest whose portraits will be displayed ...