in the middle, somewhat elevated

this past thursday, i had the pleasure of attending the north carolina dance theatre's first performance of the season, director's choice. the evening featured three pieces, chosen by artistic director and the most adorable frenchman i know, jean-pierre bonnefoux. the evening began with a world premiere ballet choreographed by dance theatre's own beautiful aussie, sasha janes; the second a piece, bolero, choreographed by mark diamond; and the third, in the middle, somewhat elevated, by william forsythe. and while the first two were lovely, in the middle completely and totally stole the show. the 1987 piece was created originally for the paris opera ballet and i couldn't help thinking while watching how angular, unbalanced and aggressive it was, but that for some reason it was still totally appealing and captivating. the wings of the stage are bare and the dancers wear skin-tight lycra. they come and go throughout the 25 minute piece, bursting into abstract, athletic movement before exiting again to the industrial, electronic thom willems score. i could go on and on writing about how wonderful it was, but here's a clip from the renowned houston ballet's performance so that you can see for yourself!

all things grand

 

last weekend i had the pleasure of attending lore emelio's fall runway show, all things grand, in charlotte. if you've been reading for a while now, you'll know this is my fourth show of lore's that i've been fortunate to attend, and lore's collections and following in the charlotte area are definitely growing quickly. i always look forward to her shows for several reasons. one, i often enjoy pretending i'm a cast member on gossip girl. two, there is generally free champagne (this time it was chardonnay, but who am i to complain?). three, they are attended by so many lovely and fashionable people from charlotte's society and art world. i am not one of those people, but it is really fun to see what everyone is wearing. you know how people watching in an airport is way fun? imagine yourself in the coolest and most stylish airport imaginable. and four, because lore's collections are creative and unique and have continued to progress over the past two years. it's fun to see her style developing and this particular show was certainly the most opulent, luxurious and grandiose that i've attended. my photography skills are seriously poor, but here are a few looks from the show...

pre-show festivities featured live art installations as guests entered. the car on the left is lore's grandmother's rolls royce, or so i was told. fancy. 

 

these dresses had the look of a very well-tailored grandpa cardigan, worn backwards. the back featured a deep-v with buttons and pockets. the turbans were also a big part of the show. i think they're kind of awesome.

look how shiny this guy's hair is. he doesn't need a metallic turban like the ladies above. see the guest in the turban behind him? she's jealous.

for some reason, this look reminds me of a more chic, modern version of clueless.

favorite dress of the evening #1. i think the fur did it for me. i also wish i looked this beautiful bald. i haven't been bald since i was a baby, and i don't even think it was cute then.

favorite dress of the evening #2. i really want to wear this to runway for the ballet in february. i also wish i had a cool mini-fro in which i could stick feathers and not look like i was dressing up for a thanksgiving play.

this picture thoroughly terrifies me because for some reason it reminds me of the creepy twins in the shining. i've never seen that movie, and i don't want to.

i'm going to go out on a limb here and say i will never look good in teal velvet, but she pulled it off.

lore is all about the low v-back and i love it.

oh wait, a teal velvet CAPE!? i take back what i said.

this dress reminds me of the rainbow fish after he shared his rainbow scales and was happy.

 

so, all in all, it was a really entertaining show! aren't you entertained? i'm pretty certain that now that i've compared lore's looks to a horror movie, a children's book and clueless, i will likely never be invited to another show, but i had a good run. two years, four shows. i'll take what i can get. that said, here are a few other photos from the evening:

attention women everywhere: just because it's designer doesn't mean it's tasteful, that you won't still look like a stripper when you wear it, or that it is worth more than $700. that is all.

 

one, i need a haircut. two, julia and i both look dazed and confused in this photo and three, i am in serious need of some bronzer. not a great photo, but the only one i have and i wanted to include at least one photo with julia, my fun plus-one for the evening. she was an awesome date and even shared a caramel brownie with me at dandelion after the show. and, she also has a puppy named kevin. this is completely unrelated to the show, i just think it's worth sharing.

and because lacey asked for it, here's what i wore for the evening. i can't say it was my best look, but i had to work with what was already in my closet, and i take this event as an opportunity to be a little more creative with my ensemble than i otherwise would be. you can't really tell in this photo, but i totally went for the blazer-with-nothing-underneath look, which actually looked much less slutty than i've always thought it would, probably because i was not blessed in the cleavage department.

hopefully despite the fact that i am in a strange, sarcastic mood this morning, i'll have the opportunity to attend more of lore's shows in the future as her brand continues to grow. if you're loving her work, head over to her website and check things out. i'm so thankful i have been able to follow lore's collections up until this point, and i can't wait to continue seeing her creative mind at work!

calling all fashionistas!

 do you live in the charlotte area and love fashion and the arts? do you like fashion shows? do you like parties and cocktails and delicious food? then we need you!

this year i am in chairing the north carolina dance theatre's runway for the ballet event, scheduled for february 11th, 2012. if you've been reading my blog for a while, you probably remember my posts about it last february, but it really is an exceptionally great event and i am so excited to be a part of it again this year.

that said, we are currently building our committee to help organize the event this year, and i would love to have as many fashionable, creative, enthusiastic people involved as possible. i'm assuming if you read my blog, you are definitely all of those things. our kick-off committee meeting will be held on september 26th at 6:30 at the patricia mcbride and jean-pierre bonnefoux center for dance in uptown charlotte and if you would like to attend (or know anyone who would like to attend), please let me know! the meeting will be very informative and allow you to better understand the role of the runway for the ballet committee. i know our event this year is going to be spectacular, but it would probably be even more so if you were a part of it! 

many fun fall blog updates and posts coming your way as soon as i get my massive to-do list under control. in the meantime, drink a delicious pumpkin spice latte and open your windows. it's fantastic outside today.

all images by gio alma of the miami city ballet company for ocean drive

from russia with love

oh my goodness. i opened my mailbox an hour or so ago and literally gasped in excitement - the jcrew fall catalog is here! and it wasn't just the prospect of delicious styling and italian car coats that made me giddy with excitement; it was the gorgeous cashmere-clad ballerinas staring back at me on the cover! i 'm so smitten! ballerinas still captivate me in the same way they did when i was a girl. they are the epitome of grace and beauty and i still want to be one when i grow up.

in case you're interested, the catalog was shot at the renowned yakobson and mariinsky companies (home to greats like mikhail baryshnikov, who, if you're not into ballet also played carrie bradshaw's artist boyfriend aleksandr petrovsky in the final episodes of sex and the city) in st. petersburg, russia.

if no one else, jcrew sure knows how to sell me a cashmere sweater. and perhaps a tutu, if those are for sale?

all images via jcrew

brotherly love

this is my brother, aaron (in the bowtie). he's pretty awesome. he is one semester away from being an architect and is on a full scholarship for grad school at rice university. he already has a super job secured when he graduates in december. he is a really great cyclist and rode his bike across the country (literally) a few years ago with an awesome organization called bike and build. he taught himself to play quite a few instruments in high school, including the guitar. he manages to tell funny, but not that funny stories in such a humorous way that i can't stop laughing. he's run two marathons. he delivered two completely memorable and non-cliche speeches at both his high school and undergraduate commencement ceremonies and graduated college with the highest gpa in his architecture school. he's been to all but a handful of states in the us. he has really good taste in clothes, and like me, buys most of them at thrift stores. (it's a family affair.) he has a really awesome girlfriend named gracie who has a great blog. and, finally, he's an artist through and through. the kid can draw/paint/sculpt/design/sing/play/write with the best of them. he also takes incredible photographs, and i thought it would be fun to share a few here. thanks to his extensive travels, he's had the opportunity to capture a lot of great subject matter, but the way he captures it is always memorable. i have two of his photos from chicago and monticello (shown below) framed and hanging on my wall in my bedroom.

 

concord, north carolina

 

frank lloyd wright's ennis house: los angeles, california 

times square: new york, new york (p.s. i was in this taxi, too!)

 

hermosa beach, california

 

the high museum of art: atlanta, georgia 

disney concert hall: los angeles, california 

 

pittman-dowel residence: los angeles, california 

the north carolina dance theatre: charlotte, north carolina

 

santa monica, california 

 

lindon, colorado

neil denari's hl23 building, west chelsea: new york, new york 

 

venice beach, california 

 

seaside, florida 

american indian museum: washington, district of columbia

alta ski area: alta, utah

the new museum: new york, new york

 

lake lure, north carolina 

charlotte, north carolina

and, finally, the two i have on my wall...

chicago, illinois

monticello: charlottesville, virginia

i've notcied after looking through this collection of photos that i chose (believe me, it was tough) that most of them have a lonely quality to them. i'm not an art critic and won't pretend to be, but i think that a lot of the photos he takes (especially the ones that i like) inflict this mood. loneliness is probably one of my greatest fears, so it's interesting that i find these photographs so gripping and beautiful. which one is your favorite?

aaron is available for hire for all types of photography. okay, not really, but he will draw you some pretty incredible renderings if you'd like them. also, i feel it is important to note that all of these were taken with a cannon point-and-shoot camera. someone get this kid an slr, already!

thanks for letting me show off your work, aaron, and thanks for being such a cool brother. sometimes it's hard to live in your shadow of awesome but i love you anyway! besides, i'm prettier than you.

all photographs copyright aaron cote

ballerina project

 

violeta - tribeca 

i recently discovered the ballerina project, when north carolina dance theatre dancer anna gerberich starred in the project's first-ever short film. anna and kate ann behrendt (who was just recently promoted to ncdt first company) have both participated in the project, which features dancers from various companies photographed primarily in new york city and boston. and the photos are some of the most beautiful i've seen. i love the grace and beauty of the dancers against the urban landscapes. you can purchase any of these prints from the ballerina project and i'd encourage you to do so - each purchase further supports the project and artist dane shitagi. if you want to buy me one, i'll take the one above, my very favorite. below, enjoy a few more lovely images in the project. here's to hoping there will be a nice book of the collection in the future. you can see much more on the project's facebook page.

*all photographs copyright dane shitagi for the ballerina project.*

 andie - riverside park

 violeta - riverside park

andrea - central park

 anna - washington square

 kate - east village

 elina - east river

 christie - queens

 kate - east village

 mara - east river

 rachel - boston

 rachel - public garden (boston)

 violeta - central park

violeta - west side highway

"i tried to take pictures of the ballerinas – not of their dancing. i tried to stay focused on the dancers – not on their poses. i tried to portray their souls – not their steps. ballerina project is more about the dancer than the dancing. as photographers we often try to capture momentums of the dancing without really acknowledging the obvious: the camera is not exactly the best instrument to do it. the camera can only take stills of something that is in its essence a flow."  
- dane shitagi

*shitagi quote via my modern met. all images copyright dane shitagi for the ballerina project*