Tag Archives: essays

The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘On the Contrary’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 26, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. Oh, Mencken. Along with Alexander Hamilton, I have been known to refer to him as “my dead boyfriend”. I have not read all of his stuff (that … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘Dancing and the Dark’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 25, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. I am not a dancer but I recognize Bob Fosse’s choregraphy when I see it. It is instantly identifiable. He has a personal stamp, more so than … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘The Flame’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 24, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. Acocella’s 2002 essay ‘The Flame’, about modern dance pioneer Martha Graham, is both a profile of the artist (who was dead at the time of the writing), … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘The Soloist’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 22, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. One of Acocella’s most famous essays (it has been anthologized elsewhere), is her giant profile of Mikhail Baryshnikov, done for The New Yorker in 1998. It may … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘Second Act’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 21, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. Her essay, ‘Second Act’, on American ballerina Suzanne Farrell, is one of the giant in-depth profiles that The New Yorker sometimes features. Suzanne Farrell’s heyday at New … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘Heroes and Hero Worship’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 18, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. The next essay is called ‘Heroes and Hero Worship’, and it is about the legendary collaboration between Lincoln Kirstein and George Balanchine, the duo who created the … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘After the Ball Was Over’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 17, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. The next essay is called ‘After the Ball Was Over’, about legendary Russian dancer Vaslav Nijinsky. Vaslav Nijinsky was born in the late 19th century and was … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘European Dreams’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 15, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. The next essay is called ‘European Dreams’, about Austrian-Jewish novelist and journalist Joseph Roth. One of Acocella’s abiding interests is writers and artists caught in the middle … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘A Hard Case’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 14, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. The next essay I want to excerpt is called ‘A Hard Case’, a review of a new biography on Primo Levi, by Carol Angier. Acocella, like many … Continue reading →

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The Books: Twenty-Eight Artists and Two Saints, ‘Becoming the Emperor’, by Joan Acocella

Posted on October 13, 2012 by sheila

On the essays shelf: Twenty-eight Artists and Two Saints: Essays by Joan Acocella. The next essay I want to excerpt is called ‘Becoming the Emperor’, originally published in The New Yorker in 2005. It is about the French author Marguerite … Continue reading →

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