i was pretty excited about the arts feste until i found out that many of those performances i'd wanted to go to have been cancelled because of sars. all that's left that i still really want to see are the national theatre of northern greece's swan lake city ("set in a trailer park outside a lake where 17 characters live...indiosyncratic lives by the water") and a belgian dance company that promises "an ice princess, a black slave girl, a rock&roll prince and three chinese-speaking wise men go to the fishmonger. the result is a collision of song, dance and theatre based loosely on puccini's turandot." turandot always interests me. (this is on weds and thurs next, 8pm at the ucc theatre, and if someone will go with me call me soon) and the singapore dance theatre, of course. i think i'm most sorry that the ballet national de marseille had cancelled their engagement - i think that was what i would have most enjoyed. the rest of the performances may be very ingenious, but sometimes i prefer less concept and more dance. and i'm disappointed that most of what i want to see will not be on at the esplanade; i did really want to go, and i don't think i'll get a chance till june 14th at the earliest. that's the day of the ruan lingyu movie. hmm.