News & Events Russian Ballet Symposium at Amherst Center for Russian Culture at Amherst College Nov. 10 and 11

October 30, 2006
Director of Media Relations
413/542-8417

AMHERST, Mass.—The Amherst Center for Russian Culture will sponsor a symposium on “The Russian Ballet: Choreographers and Critics” on Saturday, Nov. 11, in the Center for Russian Culture in Webster Hall at Amherst College. Lynn Garafola, a professor of dance at Barnard College, will speak about the 19th-century Russian dancer and choreographer Marius Petipa at 9 a.m. Stanley Rabinowitz, the Henry Steele Commager Professor and Professor of Russian at Amherst College, will speak on the ballet writings of Akim Volynsky at 10 a.m. Irina Klyagin, the archivist for the Harvard Theater Collection at the Harvard College Library, will conclude the morning presentation with a talk on dance historian Liubov Blok at 10 a.m. In the afternoon, at 2 p.m., Tim Scholl, an associate professor of Russian at Oberlin College, and Maria Ratanova, doctoral student at Harvard University, will consider aspects of George Balanchine’s choreography. All events are free and open to the public.

In connection with the symposium, Dayna Goldfine’s and Dan Geller’s recent documentary film, Ballets Russes (2005), will be screened at 8 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 10, in the Pruyne Lecture Hall (Fayerweather 115) at Amherst College. Lynn Garafola will speak briefly about the background of the film and the group about which it was made. The Mead Art Museum will sponsor another related event, an exhibit on “Russian Theatrical Design,” on view from Oct. 27 through Dec. 10, Tuesday through Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

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