Spooky Ballet!


Book Description

Agent Amelia returns with three more spooky-but-funny adventures as she secretly saves the world! The three secret agent case files in this book are: The Case of the Spooky Ballet, in which Amelia is tricked into taking a dance class, but the teacher uses her class to take revenge on the local theater. It takes all of Amelia's mind control to foil her! The Case of the Gobbledygook Books, in which a new librarian has reprogrammed all the school’s computers with intent to rule the world. But Amelia overcomes her—with a little help from the real librarian and the works of William Shakespeare! The Case of the Whispering Scarecrow, in which Amelia goes on a picnic with her mother, only to find out a phantom is stealing the food! Amelia soon uncovers the thieves—a flock of crows led by a scarecrow. But who’s the real mastermind? Trust Amelia to find out!




Zombelina


Book Description

A young zombie gives a haunting performance in her first ballet dance recital.




Bayou Ballet


Book Description

Whether you join hands with an armadillo in the pas de deux or pirouette with the panther, you'll find plenty of talented and agile creatures to mimic in this enchanting introduction to ballet for emerging readers. Even the bears are dancing in this picture book from mom, author, and illustrator Alexis Braud. Budding ballerinas will love the humorous illustrations paired with beginner-friendly explanations of dance terms, making the moves both easy to understand and memorable.




The Whistlebrass Horror


Book Description

Maple syrup, madness, and monsters. Welcome to the “go-to destination for every reader who enjoys fast-paced adventure and spooky mystery” (Q.L. Pearce, author of Ghost Hunters). It’s tough being the new kid in town. In fact, in a town like Whistlebrass, it can be a downright killer. Halloween is here, but the creatures roaming the night aren’t hunting for candy. One by one, the denizens of Whistlebrass are disappearing, including the kid sister of teen newcomer, Casey Wilde. Finding her won’t be easy—Casey is up against a suave sociopath, a legion of living shadows, and a reptilian humanoid capable of stealing his life force and crushing him into dust. It’s going to be a Halloween you’ll never forget. Don’t miss the next two books in the series: The Whistlebrass Storm Watcher and The Whistlebrass Clock People!




Mirrors and Scrims


Book Description

Winner of the Selma Jeanne Cohen Memorial Prize (2010) In this stunning new collection of reviews and essays, dance critic Marcia B. Siegel grapples with the floating identity of ballet, as well as particular ballets, and with the expanding environment of spectacle in which ballet competes for an audience. Drawn from a wide variety of published sources, these writings concentrate on canonical works of ballet and how the performances of these works have been changing in significant ways. Siegel writes with a keen awareness of the history and mythology that surround particular works, while remaining attentive to the new ways in which a work is interpreted and re-presented by contemporary choreographers and dancers. Through her readable and provocative writings, Siegel offers critical insight into performances of the past twenty-five years to give us a new understanding of ballet in performance. The volume includes over one hundred pieces on a variety of ballet topics, from specific dances and dancers to companies and choreographers, ranging from Swan Lake and The Nutcracker to Nijinsky, Balanchine, Tharp, and Morris to the Bolshoi, the Joffrey, the Miami City Ballet, the Boston Ballet, to name just a few. Ebook Edition Note: All images have been redacted.




In Balanchine’s Company


Book Description

During her twelve years with Ballet Society and the New York City Ballet, Barbara Milberg worked under the direction of George Balanchine. She rose from corps de ballet to soloist, danced leading roles in Swan Lake and Illuminations, and performed in celebrated world premieres. In this observant and poignant memoir, she shares her recollections of Balanchine, his craft and his values, and lends insight into surprising aspects of his personality. Fisher gives readers a rare glimpse inside Balanchine’s artistry, including vivid accounts of the makings of such important ballets as Schoenberg’s Opus 34, AGON, and the world-famous Nutcracker. Told through the eyes of a young dancer in what seemed a truly magical place and time, In Balanchine’s Company is ideal for ballet fans young and old. Rich in anecdote, insight, and humor, it offers a unique perspective on one of the twentieth century’s cultural giants. Ebook Edition Note: All illustrations have been redacted.




The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Ballet


Book Description

"Nearly four hundred and fifty years in, ballet still resonates-though the stages have become international, and the dancers, athletes far removed from noble amateurs. While vibrations from the form's beginnings clearly resound, much has transformed. Nowadays ballet dancers aspire to work across disciplines with choreographers who value a myriad of abilities. Dance theorists and historians make known possibilities and polemics in lieu of notating dances verbatim, and critics do the daily work of recording performance histories and interviewing artists. Ideas circulate, questions arise, and discussions about how to resist ballet's outmoded traditions take precedence. In the dance community, calls for innovation have defined palpable shifts in ballet's direction and resultantly we have arrived at a new moment in its history that is unquestionably recognized as a genre onto its own: Contemporary Ballet. An aspect of this recent discipline is that its dancemakers, more often than not, seek to reorient the viewer by celebrating what could be deemed vulnerabilities, re-construing ideals of perfection, problematizing the marginalized/mainstream dichotomy, bringing audiences closer in to observe, and letting the art become an experience rather than a distant object preciously guarded out of reach. Hence, the practice of ballet is moving to become a less-mediated and more active process in many circumstances. Performers and audiences alike are challenged, and while convention is still omnipresent, choices are being made. For some, this approach has been drawn on for decades, and for others it signifies a changing of the guard, yet however we arrive there, the conclusion is the same: Contemporary Ballet is not a style. That is to say, it is not a trend, phase, or fashionable term that will fade, rather it is a clear period in ballet's time deserved of investigation. And it is into this moment that we enter"--




Bongi Ballerina


Book Description

“Spiders, snakes, ghosts, skeletons, vampires? She loved them all. The scarier the better, in her opinion. But ballerinas? She couldn’t imagine anything worse.” Meet Bongi. She loves aliens. She loves spiders and she loves all sorts of scary stuff! There are only two things Bongi doesn’t like: pink and ballet. So when her mom signs her up for ballet classes for a term, Bongi can’t think of anything worse! But then she comes up with the perfect plan: She’s going to sabotage the class so much that she gets kicked out! Will Bongi be able to weird her way out of tutus and pink leotards or will she learn to love pirouettes and pliés?




A Dictionary of Music Titles


Book Description

The title of a great musical composition is not always a clear or simple matter. An allusive title, particularly in a foreign language, or a title that does not seem related to the work, can confuse even the most devoted music lover. Here are histories of the creation of 3,500 titles for symphonies, operas, oratorios, ballets, orchestral works, choral works, chamber music, keyboard compositions, and songs, ranging from the popular to the obscure. Each entry (arranged by English, French, German, Italian or Spanish title) includes alternate titles where appropriate, the composer's name, date of composition and first performance, opus number where appropriate, a description of the work, and the origin of the title or any story behind it. A bibliography and an index conclude the work.




The Spooky Ghost School


Book Description

The charming children's book "Sammy the Friendly Ghost and the Spooky Ghost School" takes place in Whispering Pines, where a nice ghost named Sammy lives. Sammy is a nice person who likes to meet new people and spread happiness among the living. One day, he hears older ghosts talking about a strange place called the Spooky Ghost School, which attracts his attention. Sammy's eagerness to learn takes him on an incredible trip to the Spooky Ghost School. When he gets there, he is met by a big, scary mansion made of moonlight that is see-through. Inside, he finds a world where ghosts go to school and meets other ghosts of different sizes and shapes who are also getting better at being ghosts. One of these new friends is Bella, a friendly ghost who greets Sammy and shows him around the school. Sammy says he wants to learn how to scare people, so Bella tells him that the Spooky Ghost School is the best place for him to do that. Sammy starts his training under Bella's watch, and he quickly learns how to float through walls, make things move, and make scary noises. The other ghosts are gentle and supportive, which helps Sammy get better at what he does. Sammy's favorite thing about school is making spirit friends like Casper, Lily, and Timmy, who all have their own skills and traits. One night, Bella thinks it would be fun to have a contest to see who can scare the living the most. Sammy decides that instead of making the living afraid of him, he will surprise and amuse them. Sammy's touching act during the competition, in which he surprised a little girl with a bouquet of ghostly moonlight flowers, steals the show. His performance makes the judges feel good and reinforces their belief that kindness and hope are the most amazing ghostly illusions. Sammy's win is a turning point for the Spooky Ghost School. It shows how important kind acts and spooky unity are. Sammy's friendly personality keeps drawing in the live people of Whispering Pines, making him the friendliest ghost in town. He goes back to the Spooky Ghost School often to share his special skills and bring happiness to both the living and the dead. Sammy's story tells us that even though the world is full of ghosts and scary things, kindness and friendship are the best and most lasting magic of all. His memory lives on in the minds of everyone who knew him and brings love, laughter, and eternal joy to Whispering Pines. Here's how the story starts: Everyone knew that Sammy was a nice and helpful ghost who lived in Whispering Pines, a beautiful town that seemed to be stuck in twilight forever. Sammy wasn't like any other ghost. To say he was unique would be an insult. His ghostly nature gave off a nice feeling, which made him a respected figure among the people who lived in Whispering Pines. Sammy's ethereal life was focused on one positive goal: linking with the living and bringing happiness to them like stardust. Every night when there was a full moon, he would come out of the ethereal world, his translucent body shining with an extraordinary light that made the night's chill seem like nothing. Sammy's eyes sparkled with mischief, and his constant grin was both peaceful and mysterious. On one of these lovely nights, as Sammy slid easily through Whispering Pines, fate told him something interesting. He heard older, more experienced ghosts meeting in secret while he was floating near the shady eaves of an old oak tree. Their voices sounded like they were coming from a long time ago because of how old and worn they sounded. Their ghostly figures moved softly, and the spiritual light that surrounded them danced to the beat of their stories. Their talk, which was full of ghostly secrets, was mostly about a place that made Sammy's spine shiver: the famous Spooky Ghost School. Even just mentioning this mysterious place seemed to bring up an uneasy feeling that hung in the air like a spell. Sammy was mesmerized as the older ghosts told stories and whispered secrets about the cool school. It was said to be a place where ghosts and other magical things got together to work on their skills and figure out how to do their jobs. Sammy's spirit heart was both scared and excited about what was going to happen. How old are the walls of this Spooky Ghost School? What tales do they hold? What secrets and wonders did it hold for those who were brave enough to walk through its ghostly gates? As Sammy listened to every whispered word and story about the Spooky Ghost School, he felt a strong pull toward this land he had never seen. His never-ending spirit of adventure made him want to know more and more. This made his interest shine brighter than the moon, which was the only light on his path. He knew with all of his soul that he had to start on this wonderful journey. Sammy's life as a friendly ghost has always been marked by his never-ending thirst for knowledge and his never-ending need for company. It looked like fate had added a new thread to the fabric of his ghostly life, leading him into the unknown. Sammy's trip to the Spooky Ghost School started under the watchful eyes of the moon and the bright stars. He didn't know that this way would lead him to a world beyond the veil of the living, where scary secrets and ghostly wonders awaited him. Every night, Sammy's transparent body floated closer to the school's huge gates. He could feel the tendrils of fate wrapping around him and tying him to the strange place that held the key to the world's haunting secrets. Sammy asked himself, "The Spooky Ghost School?" His ghostly voice was hard to hear over the rustling of the stars. His ghostly form floated in the stillness of the night, bathed in the pale, silvery light of the moon that ran through the canopy of Whispering Pines' whispering trees. As he thought about the mysterious word, a strange light danced in his ghostly eyes, like two circles of moonlight. His airy hand could only touch the threads of interest that entangled his own existence, but he reached out as if to touch the idea that had formed in the night air. It was a name that was wrapped in mystery, a riddle that called with a strong pull. Sammy had a golden heart and was known for being very curious and always wanting to make friends with living people. He'd spent a lot of starry nights making people in Whispering Pines happy, his happy personality a bright spot in the town's creepy darkness. Still, just the thought of the Spooky Ghost School made him more interested than even his constant ghostly grin. Sammy couldn't help but wonder what secrets were behind the big gates of the Spooky Ghost School as he floated there, listening to the crickets and the wind. In its abstract form, the name made me think of a cold but exciting feeling, like the touch of cold air on a winter night. What was this place, and how come he had never heard of it? Thoughts like ghostly wraiths flew through his phantom mind, and the more he thought about it, the greater the pull toward the unknown became. It was a pull on his spirit existence that made him want to go into parts of the otherworldly he hadn't seen yet. Sammy made a secret promise to himself at that moment, a promise that would lead him on an amazing trip into the heart of the Spooky Ghost School. He had no idea that this choice would lead him on an adventure that would show him not only the secrets of the ghost business, but also how good he was at being a ghost himself. The Spooky Ghost School was waiting for him, shrouded in mystery, and steeped in magic. While the moon continued to watch over Whispering Pines from the sky, Sammy's ghostly form began its trip into the unknown, led by whispers of the mysterious school's name. The Spooky Ghost School was a place with a lot of history and mystery. It was hidden somewhere in the ethereal areas, beyond the living world. Few ghosts knew it existed, and even the most experienced ghosts shivered when they heard its name whispered. The school's history had been lost to time, and its beauty was covered by layers of phantom magic. The school was a large, impressive mansion made of moonlight and starlight. It was in a spectral dimension that linked to the mortal realm. Its design was a strange mix of Gothic towers and Victorian elegance, and the walls sparkled like mist. The huge gates were made of airy iron, and the beautiful writing on them seemed to move and change with every ghostly breeze.