Ghetto Ballet - a touching story that still shows the brutal side of the dance world

GHETTO BALLET
Directed by: Jeremy Simmons
HBO Documentary

The movie takes place in a small township outside of Capetown, South Africa. Labeled as one of the poorest townships in the area - the movie focuses on a handful of youth, trying to break out of township.

A program called DANCE FOR ALL - was started in Cape Town (a bus ride away) and these teens saw it as their ticket out. Dance for All was created in 1991 by white ballet dancer and teacher, Philip Boyd. Boyd wanted to bring change to the segregated ballet culture and to this day teaches 1000 youth from the townships that would not otherwise be able to have the opportunity to take a dance class.
Now you can imagine this program would be overrun with kids if it was just open classes. Once a year they have auditions, to find youth that have rare and raw talent that they can work with. After one year of training, they will have exams and have a chance to be invited to the Youth Company connected to the school and is the stepping stone to a professional company.



This story spotlights on Simbalke, Vuyelwa, Tusili, and Fiona. The film touchingly follows their daily life, where ballet, dancing and a dream of being a ballerina, is the farthest from reality, but that somehow this dream helps them get through their days. We watch their training process and their diet control, which was an interesting part of the story-line. Many of the families don't have a healthy diet because of money - watching the kids try to become healthy eaters with the little they have, it difficult but inspiring.

Without ruining the story - I can tell you the anticipation of the exams and results is almost maddening! A few kids almost become sick - just lamenting, explaining that if they doesn't happen for them, they don't know what they will do. Then I realized that the "cut throat" ballet world was still existent in this movie, and it made me sad. The odds for the average youth in dance to "make it big" is slim to none. The odds for these kids are even less.

At this point the movie started to make me feel a bit sick. I just didn't think it was fair giving the kids a false hope that had little to no benefit for their future.

Then there was the exam scene. I watched Vuyelwa dance and heard her explain how she felt when she danced and realized - anything is possible. Surprisingly during the movie, one of the youth gets pulled out and offered a job with the Cape Town ballet, then BAM, professional career. On the other hand, another one of the youths parents don't like how much time she is spending dancing, they need her help at home, so she quits. One is accepted into the youth ballet, and one is rejected. The rejection was so hard to watch.

The dancing scenes and interviews were done beautifully. Overall the story is touching and inspiring. A great movie for anyone in the dance world or with appreciation for it.

Rating: ****

The Sailfish Bar and Grill - Good when its open...

Sailfish Grill
104 N Lewis St
Monroe, WA 98272

(360) 794-4056

This small, exclusive, upscale eatery has been a fixture in Monroe for atleast the 9 years we have been here. Its a bit pricey but the quality of the food is worth it.

Its a hit or miss finding them open. They have hours posted, but I swear we have been there a few times at a "normal" restaurant hour, and they have been shut up for the night.

We arrived late and there were a few people in the bar. The kitchen is lovely and open so you can see the chef's creating. The staff was sitting at a booth relaxing when we came in. A sweet boy in no noticeable uniform sat us with a smile. For a restaurant that has the kind of food and prices they have, I was surprised to see him in street clothes. I mean literally like pants and a flannel. I guess we ARE in Monroe still, ha.


The menu is small but there are choices - because their specialty is seafood - we opted for the Crab Cakes. They were light and very savory - lots of herbs and the sauce was a great complement.

We both chose pasta dishes for our main dishes. Now for someone who is VERY picky about pasta - their pasta was on the chewy side. It was almost like they tried alittle too hard to make it Aldente.

Flavor-wise both dishes were great. One was penne pasta with salmon in a light parmesean sauce, with grilled vegetables, all topped with freshly grated Parmesean. The other was Linguini with grilled shrimp in a creamy pesto sauce, with grilled vegetables on the side. Both were full of flavor and generous portions.



I have to say - dessert was almost better than dinner. I decided to have their version of Flan and my husband had chocolate chip bread pudding. Both were divine - made with rich creams and served warm.

Most definately in the top 5 best restaurants in Monroe - Sailfish is a must try when you are in the area and feeling like a nicer upscale place for dinner.

RATING" ****

All Balanchine = All Beautiful

All Balanchine
Pacific Northwest Ballet
April 15-25

"Balanchine was a choreographer of true practicality and spontaneity." said PNB Artistic Director Peter Boal - in the Director's notes for this Season's All Balanchine.

I can only imagine the difficulty Peter Boal experienced in picking 3 pieces from all of Balanchine's work. The 3 he chose - while I had my favorites, were all nothing short of gorgeous, well danced and breathtaking.


Serenade was a beautiful display of the Core ballet and was very pleasing to the eye. Gorgeous white tool dresses, clean classic buns, and long limbs, all very Balanchine. It was then I realized that Mr. Boal had a classic Balanchine company on his hands, and besides Balanchine's original company (NYC Ballet) PNB was marvelously representing the art and the history of such a ground breaking Choreographer.

Serenade reminded me of the joys of spring - with lovely lines - shimmering drops of humor fell like spring rain, a flexed foot here - an off center line there. Just enough to make you cock your head and smile at the lovely risk he (Balanchine) took. The principal dancers that night showed their love for the choreography, rather effortlessly. Its as if I almost saw them SIGH as they danced, happy to be doing a style they loved and literally breathing in and out their talent.

In Serenade 2 artist stuck out the most for me - Laura Gilbreath was astounding. Her extension, her lines and her weighlessness was mesmorizing. I felt like her dancing was light and fast and simply lovely. The other was Ariana Lallone. Going on 25 years with this company - Ariana showed the depth of her understanding and experience of Balanchine. She embodied what I believe he wanted to audience to see and she truly was gorgeous to watch. All of her steps exuded depth, maturity and experience. Both dancers were such a pleasure to watch specifically - and the entire company really did wonderfully as well.


Square Dance - the second piece, was my favorite of the 3. I love the speed and preciseness that Balanchine brought to this work. Rachel Foster and Bejamin Griffiths were the principals in this piece. Not only were they perfectly paired, but I felt they were made for the parts. Benjamin showed such an amazing joy and energy, it was radiated to all around him and to the entire McCaw audience. Rachel Foster was flawless. I have seen her perform several times and have had mixed feelings, but truly this was the best performance I have ever seen her in. She was light, precise, technically superior and amazingly swift in her most difficult role. Her gorgeous smile was testiment to her performance, she knew she ruled the night and she truly earned "Diva" status.

The Four Temperaments was the last piece and honestly I found it a bit slow in parts. Looking back the reason I think is because it followed such a high action and face paced ballet. I would have felt differently, had they been switched in the line up. Still there were beautiful parts. The 3 dancers that stood out for me were Jonathan Poretta, Olivier Wevers and Lindsi Dec. Jonathan shows such amazing power and lines, he often makes me gasp as I watch, just shocking thing things his body is able to do. His intensity during this show was a pleasure to see. Olivier is such a different type of dancer - so soft, wonderful fluidity and an amazing eye for his fellow dancers. He uses his talent to weave (no pun intended) a wonderful painting with the Core that surrounds him. I find myself smiling continuously while watching him dance.

Finally - Lindsi Dec is a true star this season. She has blossomed as an upcoming soloist and has dominated all of her lead roles this year. This piece was no different. Her determination to show perfect lines and effortless choreography is principal dancer material. She is quickly joining the ranks of her fellow dancers, Korbes and Nakamura in becoming a spotlight female in the company.

I have been so impressed with the selection of pieces Peter Boal has chosen for this season - and this truly was a lovely, enchanting and breathtaking way to begin the Spring and almost end the dance season. I am literally giddy with anticipation of the final show in the season - often called The Happiest Ballet in the world - Peter Boal adds Coppelia (June 3-13th) into his wonderfully broad and colorful repertoire. With whispers of Italian designed sets and costumes and choregraphy by Balanchine once again - I have a feeling the NW is in for a ballet they will never forget and flock to see for years to come....

Rating: ***** Excellent and Lovely - go see it this weekend - the last weekend!

Navajo Torta - si gracias!

CACTUS!

Alki, Kirkland, Madison

http://www.cactusrestuarants.com/

We had an awesome dinner at Cactus! in Kirkland this past week - but all I had with me was my cell phone, so please excuse the dark photos.

We have a family friend who used to live on a reservation in Alaska and made what they called "Indian Tacos". They were so amazing. Fresh fried bread, topped with taco/burrito toppings.

Cactus is the ONLY place I have found that has anything close to that dish. How close? Deliciously close.

The fry bread is obviously fresh, and the only difference in toppings is they add a few fancy extras - their own pico de gallo (dont get it in your eyyyye-o), whole beans instead of refried and even their own home made yummy chorizo as one of your meat choices.

From the warm chips, and homemade salsa and guac, to our witty and funny waiter Cooper - the entire experience was great. The waiter was also very SMART. How do you sell desserts to a group of people who are full and waivering about dessert? Earlier in the meal, he asked one of our youth if they were happy with their meal. She had been honest and said it was alittle spicier than she expected, but that it was fine and she would deal with it.


My favorite drink at Cactus - "Prickly Pear"



Navajo Torta



So at the end of dinner, as we waivered about dessert - he brought the youth that had the spicy dinner - her own big beautiful warm brownie with ice cream on top. The amazing cocoa smell wafted past each of our noses and within 3 minutes, had ordered 2 other desserts.

Ibarra Cowgirl brownie - may be the best brownie I have ever had. A rich thick topped brown served on a large plate, topped with a huge scoop of vanilla bean ice cream and drilled around the sides of the plate a thick and yummy peanut butter cajeta.



And a close second is the triple cream FLAN.



In closing - this restaurant is a gem for the Northwest - and with three great locations, there is really no reason to not give it a try if you havent already. If you go to the Kirkland location, ask for Cooper and tell him your dinner was too spicy ;) you may get a brownie and he may sell a few other desserts to the rest of your party...

Rating: ***** Outstanding food, atmosphere and service

"A Serious Man" - A dark comedy that lingers for days....

A SERIOUS MAN
Directed and Written by : Joel and Ethan Coen
Starring: Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fred Melamed

The Coen brothers bring the darkness to light again with this darker than normal (even for them) comedy about life and its struggles. Now you say - what can be interesting about that - we all have tests right?

Joel and Ethan have a brilliant way of making you see the horrible tragedy in Larry Gopnicks life (brilliantly played by Michael Stuhlbarg). Even though his obstacles are basic issues that you and I may face daily - the writers have a way of making them seem sudden, tragic and heart breaking. More than that - your feelings of sorrow for Gopnick for his horrible "luck" grows with every minute. You find yourself thinking "Poor guy! He doesn't deserve this!".



That is where the Coen brothers get you. Deserving? Maybe not. But that's not what this movie is about. As Larry's life slowly starts to unravel, his Faith is what he turns to. But does he leave it to Faith or does he question his Faith and what is happening to him? Larry at times seems to be looking for not only solace in his Faith but also a reason for what is happening.

The movie is overflowing with the tenants of his Jewish faith. The movie even opens with a flash back of an old Yiddish speaking couple - very culturally old world orthodox Jewish. Throughout the film - Yiddish terms are intermingled in the script - and the audience has to figure out what they mean. From Larrys own meetings with various Rabbis, to his son's journey to his Bar Mitzvah and his first meeting with the eldest Rabbi. Its a very similar journey for them all, no matter what state of turmoil their life is in.



The cast of family, friends and Religious leaders are wonderful support for this movie. The most memorable performances were Sari Lennick as Judith Gopnick - Larrys unhappy wife. She is hilarious as the cold, staunch and unemotional Jewish wife who has his mind made up. Also Fred Melamed and Richard Kind play wonderfully hilarious side characters who practically steal the show at times. Overall an incredibly strong cast of characters - all the way down to the son Danny (played by Aaron Wolff, who was great for his age and the subject matter.



Does Larry find religious meaning and solace from his tests? Do things get better for him? Well if it did - it wouldn't be a Coen Bros film, now would it? I can tell you that this movie wasn't excellent for me right away. This movie takes some time to absorb. You need to take it and apply it to see where they are going with the main idea. The ending is so sudden, so final and so depressing (to some) that you will have to marinate on it. There IS a deeper meaning - you just need to find it.

And if you cant find it - then you truly cant appreciate the depth and darkness that Joel and Ethan Coen have reached in order to bring their vision to the public.

Rating: **** Four stars - VERY good - a must see!