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THE NEWS page 4
Review
'Gustav, Farewell' means Matthew, hello
by James Rosenfield
A dancemaker at the beginning of his
artistic life hopes fora breakthrough with
his ballet about another creator at the end
of his artistic life.
In a nutshell, that's the excitement
behind the Atlanta Ballet's world premiere
of Matthew J. Wright's Gustav, Farewell,
which will be presented with their second
spring program April 2 through 4 at the
Civic Center.
Wright is a personable, reserved
Englishman of 27 who has danced with AB
two seasons, has danced since 11 and
choreographed since 16. It is most
unusual for a home company to feature
the work of one of its members, but Wright
brings impressive career coups to his task.
His first piece won second prize in a
competition, by. 19 he had presented a
work at the Lamda Theater in London, and
by 23 he had been hired as resident
choreographer for a newly formed
company in Tours, France.
In addition, since his arrival in America
his ballet Visitations, which he set upon
the Atlanta Ballet II, was chosen for the
repertory of the Joffrey II Ballet.
Gustav might be considered an exercise
in artistic philosophy; psychology, or
biography, depending upon one's point of
view. What it is is Wright's attempt to
invade the mind of the dying composer
Gustav Mahler, transposing into
movement and image his terror of death,
the tension of "conducting to live, living
to compose", and the regret of so many
things undone - all these things, plus of
course the personal vision of Wright
himself as he explores them. All this set to
Mahler's own last symphony.-
You could call it identity seeking
through identification. The young artist
confronts, his own truths by dancing down
the footprints of another. By showing us
who Mahler was, Wright's ultimate aid is
for us to understand him, and he himself.
A lead male will dance Gustav, with
other dancers representing faces from his
past, such as his wife, his suicidal brother,
a death figure, and various demons and
muses.
The success of Gustav would represent
an American turning point for Wright, his
first big crack at establishing the
reputation he wants. The work is an
exciting, ambitious idea with exciting,
ambitious expectations riding it.
Also showing on the program will be
George Balanchine's Allegro Brilliante,
the repeat of Lynne Taylor Corbett's
wonderful Appearances and a world
premier by Tandy Beale. Tickets are
available at the Ballet Box Office and
SEATS, at Turtle's Record Stores and at
the performance, or by calling 873-3033.
Choreographer Matthew J. Wright hopes for a breakthrough
with Gustav, Farewell at the Atlanta Ballet April 2-4.
Elisabeth Kubler-Ross Center fosters hope
by Nanci Vineyard
In December of 1982, 1 decided to
change my life. Big time. No more alcohol,
no more drugs, good diet, exercise. Being
a novice at taking care of myself, I found I
needed instruction. I went first to the
public library, next to the shelves of the
health food stores, and then I discovered
the world of metaphysical literature and
tapes. I found out that while I'd been at
the disco sniffing poppers and watching
myself not dance, a whole new world of
holistic medicine and alternative
approaches to health care had begun to
emerge in my absence. Now, in the wake
of AIDS, the seeking public is being
exposed more than ever to new ideas and
approaches to heath and healing.
A lot of very good work is being offered,
notably by Carl and Stephanie Simonton,
co-authors of Getting Well Again, Louise
Hay, whose books, tapes and seminars are
quite remarkable, and my pesonal favorite,
A Course in Miracles. However, to anyone
who has studied health and wholeness to
any extent, one name surely stands out,
that of Elisabeth Kubler-Ross.
Twenty years ago : with the publication
of her first book, On Deat h and Dying, Dr.
Kubler-Ross began to be publicly known
as a woman of great integrity, insight, and
a seemingly limitless capacity for sharing.
She has since published eight more books
dealing with transition, and travels
worldwide giving lectures. The Elisabeth
Kubler-Ross Center, described on its
letterhead as being "a non-profit, non
sectarian organization dedicated to the
enhancement of life and growth through
the practice of unconditional love" was
established in 1977.
As is the case -with most people in
health-related fields, her attention has
been forced more and more recently
toward issues related to AIDS. She made
headlines with her contribution to the
establishment of two hospices for AIDS
babies, one in California and one in
Houston, Texas. She speaks with great
frustration in her most recent newsletter,
describing how "financial profit, research
grants, politics, and red tape keep too
many of these children in hospitals." -
Last week my next-door-rreighlror,
Sandy Yudilevich, attended a five-day
workshop given by Dr. Kubler-Ross in the
beautiful setting of the Appalachian
Mountains, near Head Waters, Virginia.
Sandy's roommate, Robert Hiott, a
twenty-four year-old Atlanta resident, died
of AIDS August 12th of last year. 1 asked
Sandy what benefits she received from
attending, the workshop. What sort of
comfort, or practical knowledge can those
of us who are. friends, loved ones, or
support personnel of persons with AIDS
hope to receive from looking at the
message offered by the Kubler-Ross
Center? .
Sandy explained that she was
astounded by Dr. Kubler-Ross's opening
statement, "AIDS is a blessing." By the
end of the workshop; however, she had
grown to understand Elisabeth's theory
that AIDS is a gift to the world in that it is
going to force us to come to much greater
acceptance of each other, despite our
differences; that it will reduce our fear of
death and disease, and that it will teach us
to practice unconditional love.
Practically speaking, Elisabeth went on
to say. that she thinks that AIDS will
devastate our health care system as we
now know it. Hospitals will not be able to
furnish adequate patient care, insurance,
companies will turn their backs on
persons with AIDS, and health care will
return to the old system of individuals
caring for other individuals at home,
affording us another opportunity to grow
in compassion.
In dealing with her own personal grief,
Sandy said the workshop helped
tremendously. Previously she had only
been able to think of Robert's death at the
age of 24 as "such a .waste". Now she has-
the perspective that every young person
dying is "touching other lives as they go
and offering others this lesson of great
compassion."
Thanks for sharing, Sandy. And thanks.
Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross for the.way you
are touchingso many thousands of lives in
such a positive way. I'd like to close by
sharing the empowering edict which Dr.
Kubler-Ross imparts with such sincere
committment and quiet passion, "Go out
today and hug a person with AIDS."
To become a member of the Elisabeth
Kubler-Ross Center, receive information
regarding workshops, books, or tapes, you
may contact the Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
Center, South Route 616, Head Waters,
Virginia,. 24442, (703) 396-3441.
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