Tweet
The Armenian Weekly On-Line
80 Bigelow Avenue
Watertown MA 02472 USA
(617) 926-3974
[email protected]
http://www.a rmenianweekly.com
The Armenian Weekly; Volume 74, No. 30; August 2, 2008
Community:
1. Hairenik Interns Visit Boston Globe Headquarters
By Narineh Abrimian and Anait Grigoryan
2. 'The Greatest Half-Hour
Egoyan Production of Beckett play opens in NY
By Armand Andreassian
3. Central Ohio Community Holds 'Musical Evening'
By Anait Grigoryan
***
1. Hairenik Interns Visit Boston Globe Headquarters
By Narineh Abrimian and Anait Grigoryan
DORCHESTER, Mass. (A.W.)-On Tues., July 29, the Hairenik and Armenian Weekly
interns went on a trip to the headquarters of the Boston Globe.
One of the Globe's public relations representatives took the interns on a
tour, where they learned how the nation's 14th largest newspaper functions.
News reporting, they quickly realized, is a 24-hour job. Editors meet three
times a day to discuss the lead stories and formulate the paper. Some
reporters stay overnight to complete their stories. To accommodate the
hard-working editors and reporters, the Globe building provides a sleep
center, gym, hair salon, and dry cleaners. Despite the office-like
atmosphere, the Globe is actually a small city strictly focused on news
production with everything created to increase productivity.
The building also houses the entire printing department where a three-story
printing system is constantly in use. "It was interesting to see all the
technology and robots being used to produce the paper," said intern Narek
Yegoyan.
After seeing the paper produced, the tour guide handed the interns a freshly
printed comics section pre-dated for the upcoming weekend. It was a
privilege to see the paper before it is delivered to the rest of New
England. The interns learned that the most up-to-date version of the paper
is marked with one star below the price on the front page. This version is
distributed to the most immediate areas of Boston. The three-star version is
sent to the outer New England area, and the two-star version is sent to the
mid-Massachusetts area.
The interns were pleased with the experience and were grateful to the
Armenian Weekly staff for organizing the trip. Intern Garo Youssoufian said,
"It was great to see how one of the country's largest and most reputable
newspapers operates."
---------------------------------- ------------------------------------
2. 'The Greatest Half-Hour
Egoyan Production of Beckett play opens in NY
By Armand Andreassian
NEW YORK (A.W.)-On July 16, the opening night performance of the Beckett
play "Eh Joe" was held at the Lincoln Center Festival in New York City. The
one-man play, which featured the famed actor Liam Neeson ("Schindler's
List," "Rob Roy," "Husbands and Wives," among other films and Broadway
plays) was directed and staged by Canadian-Armenian Atom Egoyan.
"Eh Joe" was one of three Beckett plays presented during the festival and
had been directed by Egoyan in 2006 in Dublin and London. The play lasts
half an hour and was originally written for television in 1965. Egoyan's
2006 production featured Michael Gabon and was described by the Times of
London as ".the greatest half-hour in theatrical history."
The current performance at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater begins with a man
dressed in a robe, moving about in a drab room with only a bed as his prop.
There is no sound. He rests on the bed and moments later a large image
appears to his left. It is a projected image of his back side rising and
sitting on the bed. His profile is facing the audience but a camera directed
at him shows his full face in an enormous projection. The actor does not
utter a word during the entire play but reacts with unbroken attention to a
woman's voice, which is the pre-recorded voice of actress Penelope Wilton.
"In film parlance, it's called a reaction shot, and this is the longest
reaction shot that an actor can imagine," says Egoyan. The woman's voice is
that of a past lover who recalls for him all of his failed relationships.
Charles Fisherwood of the New York Times writes, "Mr. Neeson's concentrated
intensity, from start to finish, is a breathtaking feat, all the more
impressive for the minimal tools at his disposal-nary a word or movement-and
lack of histrionics. The technical sheen of Mr. Egoyan's production enhances
its effectiveness. The image on the screen has a richness of texture that
lends it an eerie glow under the precise lighting design by James McConnell.
Mr. Neeson's anguished face comes to resemble a drawn, tortured figure in an
El Greco painting made flesh, both terrible and beautiful to behold."
Egoyan seemed pleased at the end of the performance. Hesaid he was happy to
have worked with Neeson and was glad that the technical aspects of the
production were carried out so well.
-------------------------------------------- --------------------
3. Central Ohio Community Holds 'Musical Evening'
By Anait Grigoryan
COLUMBUS, OH. (A.W.)-It is a well-known fact that Armenians are
everywhere-and central Ohio is no exception. As the capital city of Ohio,
Columbus is far from being a booming Armenian community, but it's trying. On
Saturday, July 26, the Armenian Church of Columbus presented a formal event
called "An Armenian Musical Evening" featuring classical and traditional
Armenian music. The purpose was to raise excitement in the community and
garner money for a potential community center to be shared by all.
The parish council of the Armenian Church of Columbus has been planning a
fundraising event since April, when the discussion at meetings seemed to
focus on a lack of monetary resources in the parish and the dwindling of
attendance at church services.
Since the late 1980's, Columbus Armenians have been meeting once a month for
Badarak services officiated by priests and deacons coming from different
parts of the Diocese. Baku Armenians previously made up the majority of the
church community, but are now very few in number, as many have turned their
regular attendance to the Russian church where they are more comfortable
with the Russian language of the service. More recently, the community has
seen an overall decline in attendance and decided to do something about it.
Using their resources, the parish council organized a program that featured
Armenian musicians associated with the community. Aram Tchobanian, tenor and
son of community leaders Margaret and Ohannes Tchobanian, opened the show
with his beautiful rendition of pieces from the "Armenian Divine Liturgy,"
introducing each with a brief explanation. He also performed works by Alan
Hovhaness and Sirvart Karamanuk. Tchobanian has premiered numerous operatic
and chamber works, including the Gregorian/Komitas Divine Liturgy with the
Armenian Festival Orchestra at Boston's Symphony Hall.
Annie Talar Spain, a music education student at Ohio Wesleyan University,
joined Tchobanian for the "Love Duet" from the opera "Anoush" before
performing solo on the piano. Spain performed works by Claude Debussy and
Aram Khachaturian on the piano.
Lastly, Karine Koroukian, pianist and sister-in-law of parish president
Melkon Hajinazarian, performed Arno Babadjanian's "Elegy" and "Vagharshabadi
Bar," Robert Andriasian's "Dzirani Dzar" and Frederic Chopin's "7 Mazurkas."
Koroukian is a first-prize winner of the Liszt and Ravel national piano
competition, as well as the Albeniz, de Fall, and Granados national piano
competition in Lebanon. She has been widely broadcast on the National TV of
Lebanon and the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation. Currently, she teaches
piano, theory, and ear training privately and at the Belle Arti Center for
the Arts in Forest Hills, N.Y.
Following the concert, guests joined the performers at the reception. The
Tchobanians, who have been involved with the community for 20 years, said
they had never seen anything like this event in the community and "were
truly impressed." The treasurer, Haik Aroutiounian, reported that the event
was a fundraising success, with the result "exceeding his expectations." The
goal of the Armenians in Columbus is to have a community center, and vice
president Arpi Roach saw this event as bringing the community closer to that
goal, commenting, "It's about getting people to build a community so that
kids can have Sunday School and enjoy our rich heritage and culture." Roach
said he hoped the event moved people to realize that this community has
potential and a future. She encouraged those who have experience in building
communities to support the effort in any way possible.
Outside of the church, Armenians in Ohio have managed to maintain
relationships with each other and preserve Armenian culture in that way.
Currently, the Armenian community meets at St. James Episcopal Church, which
has offered their facility free of charge to the Armenians. In 2005, the
community dedicated a khatchkar to St. James in memory of the Hajinazarian
and Koroukian families. The 6-foot tall khatchkar was carved from tufa
stone, shipped from Armenia to mark the community's presence in the area.
As a member of the Columbus community for over seven years, I have come to
know Columbus as a transitory city. Armenians frequently come and go, and
because of this, need a permanent establishment to be a resource to both
those who pass through or decide to settle in the area. After 20 years of
trying, the community is now one step closer to that realization.
80 Bigelow Avenue
Watertown MA 02472 USA
(617) 926-3974
[email protected]
http://www.a rmenianweekly.com
The Armenian Weekly; Volume 74, No. 30; August 2, 2008
Community:
1. Hairenik Interns Visit Boston Globe Headquarters
By Narineh Abrimian and Anait Grigoryan
2. 'The Greatest Half-Hour
Egoyan Production of Beckett play opens in NY
By Armand Andreassian
3. Central Ohio Community Holds 'Musical Evening'
By Anait Grigoryan
***
1. Hairenik Interns Visit Boston Globe Headquarters
By Narineh Abrimian and Anait Grigoryan
DORCHESTER, Mass. (A.W.)-On Tues., July 29, the Hairenik and Armenian Weekly
interns went on a trip to the headquarters of the Boston Globe.
One of the Globe's public relations representatives took the interns on a
tour, where they learned how the nation's 14th largest newspaper functions.
News reporting, they quickly realized, is a 24-hour job. Editors meet three
times a day to discuss the lead stories and formulate the paper. Some
reporters stay overnight to complete their stories. To accommodate the
hard-working editors and reporters, the Globe building provides a sleep
center, gym, hair salon, and dry cleaners. Despite the office-like
atmosphere, the Globe is actually a small city strictly focused on news
production with everything created to increase productivity.
The building also houses the entire printing department where a three-story
printing system is constantly in use. "It was interesting to see all the
technology and robots being used to produce the paper," said intern Narek
Yegoyan.
After seeing the paper produced, the tour guide handed the interns a freshly
printed comics section pre-dated for the upcoming weekend. It was a
privilege to see the paper before it is delivered to the rest of New
England. The interns learned that the most up-to-date version of the paper
is marked with one star below the price on the front page. This version is
distributed to the most immediate areas of Boston. The three-star version is
sent to the outer New England area, and the two-star version is sent to the
mid-Massachusetts area.
The interns were pleased with the experience and were grateful to the
Armenian Weekly staff for organizing the trip. Intern Garo Youssoufian said,
"It was great to see how one of the country's largest and most reputable
newspapers operates."
---------------------------------- ------------------------------------
2. 'The Greatest Half-Hour
Egoyan Production of Beckett play opens in NY
By Armand Andreassian
NEW YORK (A.W.)-On July 16, the opening night performance of the Beckett
play "Eh Joe" was held at the Lincoln Center Festival in New York City. The
one-man play, which featured the famed actor Liam Neeson ("Schindler's
List," "Rob Roy," "Husbands and Wives," among other films and Broadway
plays) was directed and staged by Canadian-Armenian Atom Egoyan.
"Eh Joe" was one of three Beckett plays presented during the festival and
had been directed by Egoyan in 2006 in Dublin and London. The play lasts
half an hour and was originally written for television in 1965. Egoyan's
2006 production featured Michael Gabon and was described by the Times of
London as ".the greatest half-hour in theatrical history."
The current performance at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater begins with a man
dressed in a robe, moving about in a drab room with only a bed as his prop.
There is no sound. He rests on the bed and moments later a large image
appears to his left. It is a projected image of his back side rising and
sitting on the bed. His profile is facing the audience but a camera directed
at him shows his full face in an enormous projection. The actor does not
utter a word during the entire play but reacts with unbroken attention to a
woman's voice, which is the pre-recorded voice of actress Penelope Wilton.
"In film parlance, it's called a reaction shot, and this is the longest
reaction shot that an actor can imagine," says Egoyan. The woman's voice is
that of a past lover who recalls for him all of his failed relationships.
Charles Fisherwood of the New York Times writes, "Mr. Neeson's concentrated
intensity, from start to finish, is a breathtaking feat, all the more
impressive for the minimal tools at his disposal-nary a word or movement-and
lack of histrionics. The technical sheen of Mr. Egoyan's production enhances
its effectiveness. The image on the screen has a richness of texture that
lends it an eerie glow under the precise lighting design by James McConnell.
Mr. Neeson's anguished face comes to resemble a drawn, tortured figure in an
El Greco painting made flesh, both terrible and beautiful to behold."
Egoyan seemed pleased at the end of the performance. Hesaid he was happy to
have worked with Neeson and was glad that the technical aspects of the
production were carried out so well.
-------------------------------------------- --------------------
3. Central Ohio Community Holds 'Musical Evening'
By Anait Grigoryan
COLUMBUS, OH. (A.W.)-It is a well-known fact that Armenians are
everywhere-and central Ohio is no exception. As the capital city of Ohio,
Columbus is far from being a booming Armenian community, but it's trying. On
Saturday, July 26, the Armenian Church of Columbus presented a formal event
called "An Armenian Musical Evening" featuring classical and traditional
Armenian music. The purpose was to raise excitement in the community and
garner money for a potential community center to be shared by all.
The parish council of the Armenian Church of Columbus has been planning a
fundraising event since April, when the discussion at meetings seemed to
focus on a lack of monetary resources in the parish and the dwindling of
attendance at church services.
Since the late 1980's, Columbus Armenians have been meeting once a month for
Badarak services officiated by priests and deacons coming from different
parts of the Diocese. Baku Armenians previously made up the majority of the
church community, but are now very few in number, as many have turned their
regular attendance to the Russian church where they are more comfortable
with the Russian language of the service. More recently, the community has
seen an overall decline in attendance and decided to do something about it.
Using their resources, the parish council organized a program that featured
Armenian musicians associated with the community. Aram Tchobanian, tenor and
son of community leaders Margaret and Ohannes Tchobanian, opened the show
with his beautiful rendition of pieces from the "Armenian Divine Liturgy,"
introducing each with a brief explanation. He also performed works by Alan
Hovhaness and Sirvart Karamanuk. Tchobanian has premiered numerous operatic
and chamber works, including the Gregorian/Komitas Divine Liturgy with the
Armenian Festival Orchestra at Boston's Symphony Hall.
Annie Talar Spain, a music education student at Ohio Wesleyan University,
joined Tchobanian for the "Love Duet" from the opera "Anoush" before
performing solo on the piano. Spain performed works by Claude Debussy and
Aram Khachaturian on the piano.
Lastly, Karine Koroukian, pianist and sister-in-law of parish president
Melkon Hajinazarian, performed Arno Babadjanian's "Elegy" and "Vagharshabadi
Bar," Robert Andriasian's "Dzirani Dzar" and Frederic Chopin's "7 Mazurkas."
Koroukian is a first-prize winner of the Liszt and Ravel national piano
competition, as well as the Albeniz, de Fall, and Granados national piano
competition in Lebanon. She has been widely broadcast on the National TV of
Lebanon and the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation. Currently, she teaches
piano, theory, and ear training privately and at the Belle Arti Center for
the Arts in Forest Hills, N.Y.
Following the concert, guests joined the performers at the reception. The
Tchobanians, who have been involved with the community for 20 years, said
they had never seen anything like this event in the community and "were
truly impressed." The treasurer, Haik Aroutiounian, reported that the event
was a fundraising success, with the result "exceeding his expectations." The
goal of the Armenians in Columbus is to have a community center, and vice
president Arpi Roach saw this event as bringing the community closer to that
goal, commenting, "It's about getting people to build a community so that
kids can have Sunday School and enjoy our rich heritage and culture." Roach
said he hoped the event moved people to realize that this community has
potential and a future. She encouraged those who have experience in building
communities to support the effort in any way possible.
Outside of the church, Armenians in Ohio have managed to maintain
relationships with each other and preserve Armenian culture in that way.
Currently, the Armenian community meets at St. James Episcopal Church, which
has offered their facility free of charge to the Armenians. In 2005, the
community dedicated a khatchkar to St. James in memory of the Hajinazarian
and Koroukian families. The 6-foot tall khatchkar was carved from tufa
stone, shipped from Armenia to mark the community's presence in the area.
As a member of the Columbus community for over seven years, I have come to
know Columbus as a transitory city. Armenians frequently come and go, and
because of this, need a permanent establishment to be a resource to both
those who pass through or decide to settle in the area. After 20 years of
trying, the community is now one step closer to that realization.