Pictures and a Question
Last Wednesday’s reading at KGB was so much fun! Here are some photos of the event:
Me and Cassandra Clare (below):
My friends Tiffany and Jen, with Tiff showing great taste in jacket linings (below)
Cassie, her partner Josh, and Ellen Kushner sharing some yummy matzo cookies:
If you’d like to see more photos, click here. Thanks to Ellen Datlow for taking all of these photos, and to both her and Matt for organizing this event!
So let me get to my question, which requires a preface. Probably you’ve all heard by now about the stunning performance of Susan Boyle on Britain’s Got Talent (for those of you who haven’t, here’s a New York Times article describing the event. It includes a link to the video of Ms. Boyle singing. I’d post the video here, but YouTube mysteriously won’t allow me to embed it). Like just about everybody else under the sun, I thought her performance of “I Dreamed a Dream” was very moving. Her voice is ”écorché vif,” a French expression that literally describes something living that has been cut into and exposed. Basically, it is used to indicate that someone is full of great feeling. Edith Piaf’s voice has been called “écorché vif” (speaking of which, I’d love to hear Susan Boyle perform one of her songs).
My question is: what exactly is happening when the audience and judges stand up and applaud? Of course, they’re saying, “That’s awesome!” But what else is happening? Are they apologizing for prejudging Ms. Boyle based on appearances? I recently heard the British director Jonathan Miller on NPR saying that he didn’t like standing ovations in America, because we do them too often, and he thinks that it’s just a way for the audience members to signal their own sensitivity and choice of ticket. When the audience/judges of Britain’s Got Talent give a standing ovation, are they also saying, “Here’s to my own sensitivity in recognizing how moving this is?” What do you think?
As a side note, I’m disappointed in the Times for writing about this cultural phenomenon after People.com, where I initially read the story (yes, I love People.com. I go there every day to look at photos of stars’ babies, and of clothes, and who broke up with whom. Can’t help it).
I think the whole thing is insulting. WAIT A MINUTE—you mean to tell me people’s voices have nothing to do with how they…look? & WHAT THE HECK a fat person could sing like OPERA or something? Also, news reporters, could you find MORE adjectives to call her “ugly” with?
This whole thing is a storm in a teacup—a teacup of shame!
I did feel like there was something…I don’t know, not right in terms of the audience/judges reactions. S. Boyle has a stunning voice, so it should be the case that she was applauded, but something about the reaction on Britain’s Got Talent unsettled me. Maybe it was because I couldn’t bear that middle judge, the blond woman. It was painful to watch her—at every moment.
Check out this NYT article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/21/arts/television/21simon.html?ref=television
It suggests that Simon Cowell may have had that beatific look on his face because he knew he had hit some kind of jackpot…maybe that’s true as well for the other judges.
hi sorry that this has nothing to really do with the article but i could not find another way to contact you. I got the advanced readers copy at the book expo i dont remember how long ago but anyway i have the advanced readers copy and i gave it to my children to read. They absolutley loved it, then one of the caught something you title it the petra kronos chronicles book 1 so does that mean another book is coming out, if so when and will it be present at the next BA or even possibly the one going on in new york right now?
Best Regards,
David
McGraw-Hill Publishing NY
Hi David,
It’s so nice to hear from you, and I’m glad your children liked my book! There is indeed a sequel, but there were no ARCs of it at BEA this year because it’s coming out in March 2010, not this fall. It’s called The Celestial Globe.
Did you enjoy BEA? I did! I’m going to get a good night’s rest, and tomorrow will post about my BEA experience.