Author Archives: JJD
End of an Era: Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s Legacy Tour
Merce Cunningham — a dancer and choreographer — was a major figure in the modern dance world from the 1950s until his death in 2009. Following his death, his dance company began the process of winding down. The company’s two-year legacy tour concludes this month, at which point the company will disband and all rights to the Cunningham choreography will […]
Much Ado About Nothing
I had a hard time focusing at work yesterday. It was Friday of the first week back after a fantastic vacation, and I had tickets to see the Shakespeare Theatre’s production of Much Ado About Nothing. All I wanted to do was to go sit in a French cafe and read until it was time to […]
Self Diagnosis
Remember how I tripped during my run the other day and landed on my face in the street? At the time, my bloodied hands got all the attention and I laughed at the novelty of scraping up my chest. Well, since then my hands have mostly healed, but my chest remains a problem. It hurts when […]
Equivocation
Transatlantic flights have never deterred me from going to a performance I wanted to see: Last year I saw Cosi Fan Tutti after getting off the plane in Vienna. In 2009, I saw a Greek folk-singer perform at the Acropolis in Athens. Today, I saw Equivocation at the Arena Stage after a 10-hour flight from Paris. […]
Homeward Bound
Well, I’m back. Overall, the return trip to the United States went smoothly. There were only a few minor hiccups that would have been nice to avoid: When we got to the RER station early this morning to catch the train to the airport we discovered that none of the automatic teller machines was working […]
Strasbourg – Street food!
I may have been disappointed with the shops in the marchés de noel, but I was more than happy with the street food options that we found. The day was cold — much colder that we’d had in Paris all week — and we were nervous about staying warm through the day. Turns out there […]
Strasbourg – Marchés de Noël
When I was in Strasbourg at Christmastime in 2000, I fell in love with its marché de noel. Clustered in little chalet-style huts at the foot of the cathedral, you could get all sorts of wonderful crafts and decorations. I particularly liked the Russian Santa Clauses and the German smoking Santa Clauses (at least one of which is […]
Strasbourg – Promenade en ville
Strasbourg is a beautiful city. As you can see from the architecture, it’s much more Germanic in flavor. After getting off the train, Amanda and I explored the city and soaked up the atmosphere. It had been eleven years since the last time I was in Strasbourg, and it was wonderful to see it and recognize it […]
Strasbourg – Christmas in Strasbourg
Strasbourg claims to be the capital of Christmas — and boy, does it go all out! The city center is decked out in lights, decorations and general Christmas cheer. It’s delightful but, on the first day of the season (which is when we visited), it’s also absolutely packed with people. I haven’t seen so many […]
Strasbourg – Cathedral
The Strasbourg cathedral may not be the biggest or the most famous cathedral, but it’s the only one that consistently takes my breath away every time I see it. It’s tower is visible from a distance as you approach the city, but, because the buildings of the medieval city cluster closely around it, you don’t see it again […]
A More Gentlemanlike Manner 