Little Theater film series showcasing local cinematographer
Folks, I have some good news for you but your help is needed to make it happen. The good news is that cinematographer Erik Daarstad has consented to showing a series of his films at the Panida’s Little Theater.
He has chosen to show “Sing China!” as the first film on Saturday, May 22 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. This newly-released film features the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus and was produced by Academy Award winner Freida Mock. The trip to China took place in 2008 just one month before the Olympics. The main event was at the Hall of the People in Beijing but filming of the movie was also done in Shanghai, Xi’an, and Hong Kong.
A quotation from the Statement of Intention for China International Arts Celebration for Young People gives an idea of the scope and impact of this documentary film.
“More than 30 years ago, two landmark cultural events took place between China and the U.S. In 1973, the Philadelphia Orchestra under conductor Eugene Ormandy was the first American cultural organization to visit China after Nixon opened diplomatic relations.
“A few years later the violinist Isaac Stern was invited for a one-month tour of China. These two cultural exchanges occurred in the shadow of the Cultural Revolution when western musical instruments were burned and professors accused of teaching western music committed suicide. The visits were electrifying to the Chinese, and fascinating to the West …
“Thirty-five years later, the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus, with students ranging in age from 12 to 17, joining with the Stanford Chamber Chorale and the Stanford Choral Union, will visit China in the tradition of these earlier breakthrough visits by Isaac Stern and the Philadelphia Orchestra. At its core, Sing China! is the story of a group of talented teenagers and young adults who serve as ambassadors of goodwill, and use the force of the arts and music to build cultural understanding between China and the US.”
“What is unique about this story is that it would be the first documentary focusing on teenagers at the forefront of an extraordinary cultural exchange at a time when China has spectacularly emerged from the “dark ages.” Through the eyes of teenage and young adult singers, Western audiences will see a China very different from its cloistered past, as a giant global force poised on the eve of its pride, the Beijing Olympics, but also some of the complexities of China’s position in the world community. The documentary will underscore China’s `love affair’ with western classical music as LACC singers interact with young Chinese performers and audience members. Children are our hope for the future, and the documentary will tell the story of the LACC singers’ own transformation as artists and young citizens from this historic trip.”
The Bonner County Daily Bee and Mountain West Bank sponsor the series and Mountain West Bank recently provided funds for the purchase of a state-of-the-art digital HD video projector.
Now folks, here is where your help comes in. The series is called, “A Visit with Erik” and promises a great film with a time for questions and answers. I think it would be mighty nice if Mr. Daarstad showed up for said film and questions. Now don’t get me wrong, he would not purposely absent himself, he has a condition he cannot control without help. He is of Viking stock and when he hears a train whistle or sees a plane in the sky, he has an over powering urge to rush home, grab his camera, and go to some far off place and shoot people. With your help, we can be sure that he will stay in Sandpoint.
When you see him, or talk to him on the phone, gently say, “Erik, I plan to be at the Panida Little Theater on May 22 to see, ‘Sing China!’ — you had better be there, too.”