Those who happened to wander into the Ethnography
Museum on Easter Sunday witnessed a rare treat: young children dancing to the
health of the world. Rima Faber's dance group of seven- to 12-year-olds, "The Primary Movers," from Washington, DC, performed four magical pieces to an enthralled audience.
Although founded in 1980, "The Primary Movers" (pictured at right) is no amateur outfit, with a number of the group's earlier members having made careers in modern dance.
The group's centerpiece performance, "Turning," is partly a tribute to a former member of the troupe who died in a car accident 13 years ago at the age of 14 and partly a bid for greater unity in the world. The feelings contained within this piece are appropriately raw and deep.
"Turning" draws to a close with the dancers making a desperate plea for themselves and the fate of their future children in an increasingly violent world.
Following the "Movers" was a demonstration of Russian folk dancing by the Nevsky Ensemble. Though professionally executed, the two just didn't compare.
In an effort to convince visitors and Russian beautiful people alike that there is life outside the central boundaries of the Fontanka, the city's club scene is skipping out into the suburbs.
Winner in the far-flung stakes is the veteran of Prospect Veteranov, the Rotterdam club, but several young whippersnappers are hot in pursuit.
Beyond the hip limit of Novocherkasskaya lies the Candyman club, a techno oasis in the wilds of Ladozhskaya whilst somewhere off to the North (Vyborgskaya Metro) is the "Front" disco club, already open some time according to its (very) unofficial spokesperson.
The overall victor, though, is the coastal "Venice" club, which despite its dangerously cliched comparison of Petersburg with the Italian city, has undergone a radical refit and opened last week to a veritable bevy of trendy clubbers.
The interior gives the impression of dancing in a school canteen, all white tiles and minimal concessions to colored decor, but the music is a revelation, ramming the floor with a seamless mix of hard tunes. The crowd, lured all the way to the Gulf of Finland by promises of such things was bandit-free, spookily so, several commented.
Continuing on the upward spiral as well this week was the British Council's English Language teaching Resource center which celebrated the advent of its 2000th member a mere two years after opening.
This newest subscription means the center can now boast of supporting English language teaching in every secondary school in the city.
The lucky milestone member was involved at tertiary level, being a teacher at the University of Cconomics and Finance.
The assembled celebrators were also teachers at the city's many universities and institutes, and all listened rapt to a series of progress reports and a lecture on new teaching methods.
Despite Dostoevsky's notorious efforts to prejudice the Russians against the Polish, relations appear to be back on an even keel.
The Aurora cinema has decide to stage a retrospective of Poland's foremost director Kieslowski, who died last month of heart problems. From April 15th through 21st, the moviehouse will show a wide selection of films, ranging from the "Colors" trilogy to "La Double Vie de Veronique."
Kieslowski retired last year from the movie industry, saying he was "tired," but his films remain a body of unfaded, if understated masterpieces, and should certainly be sampled by those tired of hectoring Soviet fare.