Epoch Arts 10-2-2015

COURTESY OF STANLEY BULBACH

Our Little Acknowledged Classical Heritage

KATI VERESHAKA/EPOCH TIMES

Prince Charles and Transylvania’s Villages The medieval Romanian village of Viscri thrives by celebrating the old ways.

Weaver Stanley Bulbach expands the historic and aesthetic meaning of ‘classical.’

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‘Otello’

Zeljko Lucic as Iago (L) and Aleksandrs Antonenko in the title role of Verdi’s “Otello.”

Opera Review

KEN HOWARD/ METROPOLITAN OPERA

Met Season Opens With Verdi’s Tragic Opera

By Barry Bassis The Metropolitan Opera began its fall season with a new production of “Otello,” directed by Bartlett Sher with Latvian tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko in the title role. The Met generated publicity when it announced that it was dropping its practice of having the Moor of Venice appear in blackface.

In light of our troubled racial history, this is long overdue. In other respects, the production had its ups and downs.

See Otello on C3

Verdi gives the tenor a technical challenge as soon as he appears.

A scene from Verdi’s “Otello.”

KEN HOWARD/ METROPOLITAN OPERA

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October 2–8, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts

Weaver Stanley Bulbach

“September Passages,” 2001, by Stanley Bulbach.

A flying carpet.

Our Little Acknowledged Classical Heritage

By Sharon Kilarski | Epoch Times Staff

The Near East is also the root of our modern technology.

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“November 57th Street,” 2013, by Stanley Bulbach.

A flying carpet.

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with spiritual importance.

“The designs with which these carpets were decorated, related to the most powerful and important human experiences and events, ranging from birthing symbols, to trees of life, to gardens of paradise. When created for prayer in Islam, these carpets had designs pointing to Mecca,” he wrote.

“Could any artist—ancient or contemporary—seek a more expressive and exciting canvas than this woven metaphor of the human condition?” Bulbach asks, on his website.

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Can understanding classical art give us insights into our political relationship with the Middle East? Artist and scholar Stanley Bulbach believes so.

For Bulbach, who weaves flatwoven carpets, the phrase “classical art” expands in both aesthetic and historical meaning. This expanded view of classical art, he suggests, can challenge us to reconsider where Western civilization came from—back past the Greeks to ancient Mesopotamia, now modern-day Iraq, but traditionally called the Near East.

Bulbach defines classic as it is commonly understood. “Classics to many means ideas and works of the past that epitomize cultural ideals that hit the target somehow in expressing who or what we have been. Classics frequently fall out of favor and then are rediscovered based upon their powerful ability to speak to us decades, centuries, or even millennia later on—even for classics of one culture to speak across unbridgeable distances to foreign cultures,” he said in a recent email exchange.

The ancient Near Eastern flatwoven carpet still speaks to us of our common humanity.

“Near Eastern flat woven carpets, often called kilims, had important utilitarian functions— primarily to transform the cold hard ground into something softer and warmer. They were beds on which the stages of life were played out.

People slept and dreamt on them, made love and procreated, gave birth, convalesced, even died. Often those same carpets then became their burial shrouds.

“For nomads, at end of day’s journey, these carpets unrolled to transform foreign ground into more protective familiar turf,” Bulbach said.

It seems odd to dignify a functional carpet with the aesthetic distinction of art.

But consider that although we associate the term “aesthetic” with visual art, the word comes from classical Greek and means “to feel” or “sense,” Bulbach explained.

Think of “anesthesia,” its opposite.

Even if only seen, woven carpets, because of their texture and thickness, provide people a tactile experience.

Even more important than its aesthetic value, the carpet, so fundamental to ancient life, became imbued

carpet beds, and flying carpets. “Each speaks to a different type of human consciousness,” his website explains.

For example, his prayer carpet titled “Fall Too Soon” depicts a large snowflake in its center, which acts as a “focal point of prayer and meditation.”

The Aesthetics of Flat-Weaving Allowing the tactile qualities and significant designs to stand out is in the nature of weaving itself—in its very structure. It “favors designs in some directions, but not other directions,” Bulbach said.

This type of weaving flattens and abstracts a pattern. “This further combines with the mathematical structure of this weaving, which is perfect for replicating designs, introducing abstractions such as pattern and rhythm,” he said.

Enriching this art is yet another element: the dyes.

Hand weaving included the process of hand dying wool with natural colors, necessarily limited in hue yet rich in gradations.

The more perfectly the patterns were replicated, the more valued the variation of wool yarns and dyes became in making each replication slightly different. This imbued “this art form with spirit and liveliness,” he said.

Ancient flatwoven carpets were, of course, meant to be used. Bulbach, however, intends that his own carpets, created in the same traditional way, be enjoyed as art to be viewed on the wall.

His M.A. and Ph.D. in Mesopotamia studies from NYU led him to Morocco, where he became fascinated with Near Eastern carpets.

In the 1970s, he joined the contemporary craft movement and devoted himself to mastering the art.

He bases his work on the three distinct types of ancient Near East carpets: prayer carpets, COURTESY OF STANLEY BULBACH

Dyeing wool with goldenrod in New York.

DAN FRANKLIN SMITH

Stanley Bulbach with washed, carded Lincoln wool in Vermont.

Weaver Stanley Bulbach picks goldenrod in Vermont in 2014, to use as dye for wool.

Acknowledging Our Roots Western culture typically sees our heritage beginning with the ancient Greeks, about the 5th century B.C. “In reality, our history and culture began twice as far back and from farther east,” Bulbach wrote.

It’s only been 200 years since we’ve been able to decipher ancient clay tablets of the Near East.

Yet we owe astronomy, geometry, accounting, science, and even our basic writing systems to the Near East. Thus we lag far behind in understanding these shared roots.

“For modern Western culture, much of ancient textile’s story is new information about a world that is still foreign and puzzling to the West, a world currently in tragic conflict with both itself and the West, a world and history to which we are inextricably related,” he wrote.

He believes that our lack of understanding is a reason the 9/11 attack is unimaginably difficult for us to understand and also why we remain mired in the Iraqi region.

Bulbach believes flat-weaving art continues to be important today—if only we acknowledge the gifts ancient weaving has bequeathed to us.

Its artistic heritage is not hard to see. The art of flat-weaving is the prototype leading to Coptic weaving, medieval European tapestry, and contemporary tapestry arts.

But the Near East is also the root of our modern technology. The vegetal dye industry that can be traced in the West as far back as ancient Mesopotamia eventually led to the development of chemical dyes and then to the photochemical industry, he explained.

Similarly, the early loom developed over time so that by the early 19th century, looms had hole-punched cards that controlled the woven designs. This technology, in turn, was usurped in the 20th century by the computer industry.

“Thus, these carpets are a visual history of our technology up to the modern era,” Bulbach asserted.

More profoundly, the flatwoven carpet tradition exemplifies that both the Near East and the West have approached the mysteries of the unknowable in similar ways.

The early Mesopotamian visual arts can be characterized by pattern and rhythmic design.

“Later in the Near East, Islam raised [these characteristics] to religious status as the only possible and permissible way to approximate the ineffable.” Islam forbids human representation for the purpose of worship because it is considered idolatry.

“This is not dissimilar from what the classical music arts of the West have done for centuries in their close relationship with religious practice,” he stated. Music, of course, is by its very nature abstract, full of patterns, and rhythmic.

Perhaps, then, a step toward peace today with the Near East would entail exploring its ancient art and learning about our shared heritage.

The series “The Classics: Looking Back, Looking Forward” asks those in the arts whether and why the classic forms are worth keeping. ept.ms/LookingAtClassics

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October 2–8, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts ALL PHOTOS BY KEN HOWARD/METROPOLITAN OPERA

As Iago, baritone Zeljko Lucic again evinces his skill at portraying evildoers.

Opera Review

‘Otello’ Met Season Opens With Verdi’s Tragic Opera Otello continued from C1 The director moved the action from the 15th to the 19th century (a change evident only in Catherine Zuber’s costumes) with no resulting loss to the tragic power generated by Verdi’s and his librettist Arrigo Boito’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s play.

The Plot The opera begins with a storm in the harbor of Cyprus, with the crowd waiting for the return of the governor, Otello. The raging seas were conveyed by Luke Halls’s projected images.

Then Otello enters, proclaiming his victory over the Turks. His ensign, Iago, is determined to stir up trouble because Cassio has been promoted over him. Iago manages to get Cassio demoted by getting him drunk and tricking him into a fight with Rodrigo, a Venetian nobleman. At the end of the first act, Otello is reunited with his bride, Desdemona.

At the beginning of Act 2, Iago sets his scheme in motion by urging Cassio to seek help from Desdemona. After a soliloquy in which he expresses belief in a cruel God, Iago sets about to arouse Otello’s jealousy, making him believe that Cassio is carrying on an affair with Desdemona. Her pleas to her husband to reinstate Cassio only fuel Otello’s distrust of her.

This plotting continues in the third act, when Iago induces Cassio into speaking about his mistress, leading Otello to believe it is Desdemona they are discussing. The last act begins with Desdemona preparing for bed with the assistance of her maid, Emilia, who happens to be Iago’s wife.

Desdemona says her nightly prayers, after which Otello arrives, kisses her, and tells his wife to prepare for death. He then smothers her, whereupon Emilia enters and reveals Iago’s deceit. Otello kisses the deceased Desdemona and stabs himself.

The Production The lighting by Donald Holder is mostly dark, which suits the mood of the piece. The moving glass walls by set designer Es Devlin are hardly a feast for the eyes but do allow the audience to see the characters’ spying activities.

Only a heart of stone could fail to be moved

by Sonya Yoncheva’s ‘Willow Song’ and ‘Ave Maria.’

Aleksandrs Antonenko in the title role and Sonya Yoncheva as Desdemona in Verdi’s “Otello.”

One odd directorial touch is having Otello and Iago sitting on a bed, while the villain is spinning his false stories about a love affair between Cassio and Desdemona.

“Otello” is one of those operas where Verdi gives the tenor a technical challenge as soon as he appears. Here, it is the “Esultate!” (Rejoice!) and Antonenko comes through with a stentorian sound. He has a powerful voice, but it is not a particularly beguiling instrument.

Also, Antonenko lumbers about the stage with the same expression, often facing away from Desdemona and toward the audience, even during the love passages. Some of this is Sher’s doing, but Antonenko still could have infused his role with more conviction.

Antonenko may be the best Otello on the scene today, but will not match memories of Jon Vickers (who died last July and is honored in the Playbill) or Plácido Domingo (who is still active, though no longer playing Otello).

As Iago, baritone Zeljko Lucic again evinces his skill at portraying evildoers. His “Credo,”

in which he declares his belief in a cruel God, is one of the highlights of the performance.

The most impressive work is by soprano Sonya Yoncheva as Desdemona. Her singing is sublime; she moved with grace and acted with utter conviction. Only a heart of stone could fail to be moved by her “Willow Song” and “Ave Maria,” just before her jealous husband murders her.

Tenor Dimitri Pittas makes a strong impression as Cassio and Jennifer Johnson Cano a fine Emilia, the wife of Iago and Desdemona’s servant.

The Met chorus and orchestra under Yannick Nézet-Séguin are superb.

“Otello” runs at the Metropolitan Opera through Oct. 17 with additional performances in the spring of 2016; 212-362-6000, MetOpera.org.

Barry Bassis has been a music, theater, and travel writer for over a decade for various publications.

Stone lithographic advertising poster detail, China, Ca. 1920

Aleksandrs Antonenko as Otello (C) and Dimitri Pittas as Cassio (2nd R) in Verdi’s “Otello.”

Look into the East At the gallery of Michael Ayervais

Where Asian art comes to life in a magical setting 40 West 25th St. New York #228-229 | 917-623-2571

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October 2–8, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts STEPHANIE BERGER

Theater Review

‘Antigone’

Antigone (Juliette Binoche) gives her brother burial rites, although forbid to do so by her uncle, King Kreon. What is the price for doing what one believes to be right?

Human Rights Above Rigid Laws

By Diana Barth

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EW YORK—Stark, severe, uncompromising, dark—these are the qualities imbued by director Ivo van Hove into his production of “Antigone,” translated by Anne Carson in a new version of Sophokles’s classic play.

Costumed in modern dress, mostly in black (An d’Huys), with a minimalist set and lighting design (Jan Versweyveld), this version speaks to 21st century audiences. Softly throbbing background music (Daniel Freitag) deepens the effect, while video projections (Tal Yarden) strengthen the modernist concept.

Set in Thebes, Antigone (Juliette Binoche) is a royal person with a dark past, daughter of the self-blinded Oidipous. Now, she is faced with a terrible dilemma in which she has decided to break the law established by her uncle, King Kreon of Thebes (Patrick O’Kane).

This law decrees that Antigone’s brother, Polyneikes, killed in battle, may not be granted the rites of proper burial, for according to Kreon, Polyneikes is a traitor to the state.

Proper burial is a matter of human rights, Binoche has commented in an interview.

And to Kreon, the rule of law, loyalty to the state, comes first and foremost. In the play he says, “If a man puts family or friend

Sophokles’s ideas— universal and timeless—ring true in today’s conflict-torn world.

STEPHANIE BERGER

(L–R) Guard (Obi Abili) finds Antigone (Juliette Binoche) breaking the law her uncle Kreon (Patrick O’Kane) set.

ahead of fatherland, I count him absolutely good for nothing.”

But to Antigone, loyalty to family and family ideals are more important. She thus decides to perform the burial rite for her brother, even knowing that she will be condemned to death by the king, her uncle.

Antigone asks her sister Ismene (Kirsty Bushell) to perform the burial rites with her. But Ismene insists that nothing Antigone does will change anything, and she fears invoking Kreon’s wrath. Antigone, disgusted with Ismene, leaves her.

When the Guard (Obi Abili) enters and informs Kreon that he has seen Antigone perform the outlawed rites of burying Poyneikes, the die is set. In a searing scene, both antagonists, Kreon and Antigone, express their opposing views, and Kreon insists on the death sentence for Antigone. He further emphasizes that he “won’t be bested by a woman.”

Antigone, feeling her stance is right, says, “A husband or a child can be replaced; but you can’t grow a new brother.”

Kreon’s son, Haimon (Samuel EdwardCook), who is engaged to be married to Antigone, opposes Kreon, saying that his stance is inflexible and unfair. Finally, insisting that Antigone should not die, Haimon leaves in anger.

The Chorus (Abili, Bushell, Finbar Lynch, and Kathryn Pogson), who voices its views on the events, at first sides against Antigone. But after the blind seer Teiresias (Finbar Lynch) enters and speaks, the Chorus changes its views.

Teiresias points out to Kreon that he is following a dangerous path, that he must learn to take people’s needs into consideration, and that his present path will only lead to disaster.

Kreon is exercising bad judgment.

Finally persuaded, Kreon vows to change his tactics, but he is too late. All his loved ones are now dead, by their own hand: Antigone, Haimon, and Kreon’s wife, Eurydike (Kathryn Pogson). The Chorus comments: “You’re late to learn what’s right, aren’t you?”

And over all hovers set designer Jan Versweyveld’s enormous circle on the back wall, which sometimes encases stark moonlike white or deep red, as in a sunset (or a raging war), or is empty.

Sophokles’s ideas—universal and timeless—ring true in today’s conflict-torn world.

Thus, the ongoing tenacity and appeal of Greek drama.

Juliette Binoche, a renowned film actress, who is less known for her theater experience, has however played featured roles both in London and on Broadway. Arguably, she does herself a disservice by tending to shout her most emotional passages, thereby lessening rather than maximizing their effectiveness. However, she is a most attractive figure onstage, exuding a highly individualistic kind of magnetism.

Supporting performances are top-notch, with most of the cast boasting long lists of credits, primarily in England. Deserving of special mention are Patrick O’Kane’s powerful Kreon, Kirsty Bushell’s delicate but strong Ismene, Kathryn Pogson’s poignant Eurydike, Finbar Lynch’s insistent Teiresias, Obi Abili’s appealing Guard, and Samuel Edward-Cook’s intense Haimon. Nathaniel Jackson is also in the cast.

Ivo van Hove, general director of the Toneelgroep Amsterdam since 2001, is noted for his many award-winning productions worldwide, including several at BAM. Van Hove commented in the program notes that the right for proper burial was illustrated recently in the tragedy of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, shot down over a Ukrainian war zone. The victims were left rotting in an open field for over a week, seen as an act of barbarism worldwide. Finally the Dutch government arranged for a transfer of the bodies for a proper burial.

Diana Barth publishes New Millennium, an arts publication. She may be contacted at DiaBarth@juno.com

‘Antigone’ BAM Harvey Theater 51 Fulton St., Brooklyn Tickets 718-636-4100 Running Time 1 hour, 40 minutes (no intermission) Closes Oct. 4

Supporting performances are top-notch.

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October 2–8, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts ANDREW LE PERA

Sibylle's Style Diary

Maggie Norris on Mastering Her Timeless and Distinctive Equestrian Style

By Sibylle Eschapasse This week’s style diary guest is Maggie Norris, a fashion designer formerly with Ralph Lauren who is also fortunate to have once dressed the legendary Audrey Hepburn.

Maggie Norris’s very distinctive personal style, as well as her company, Maggie Norris Couture, reflects her love of horses.

In three words: Style is timeless.

Maggie Norris, fashion designer

Sibylle Eschapasse: Describe your style?

Maggie Norris: My style is very eclectic and reflects my equestrian past. Daily, I enjoy jodhpurs, riding jackets, and English riding boots with my Marlene Optique sunglasses.

I am very fortunate to be able to wear my own couture and incorporate it with historical American-Indian antiques, such as my turquoise concho and military jackets.

Ms. Eschapasse: What are three accessories you can’t live without, and what’s one item that makes you instantly more confident?

Ms. Norris: My antique American-Indian concho turquoise belt, Marlene Optique sunglasses, and my engagement ring. My turquoise concho belt holds a special place in my heart, I put it on and instantly feel much more confident.

Ms. Eschapasse: Who have been your greatest fashion influences? Who is your style icon?

Ms. Norris: Truman Capote’s swans including Babe Paley, Slim Keith, Lee Radziwill, C. Z. Guest, Gloria Guinness, and Marella Agnelli. Audrey Hepburn, as well, of course.

One of my many blessings was the honor to have dressed Audrey Hepburn.

Ms. Eschapasse: What does having style mean to you? In other words, please define style.

Ms. Norris: In three words: Style is timeless.

Ms. Eschapasse: If a close friend were to describe your personality in three words, what would they be?

Ms. Norris: I believe they would be caring, passionate, and open.

Ms. Eschapasse: How did your style evolve since you were a teenager?

Ms. Norris: I had my own horses growing up, so I always loved the equestrian style. If anything I have incorporated more antique jewelry and couture jackets, but I still stick to an equestrian look for my day-to-day style.

Fashion designer Maggie Norris at work.

PATRICK MACLEOD/GUEST OF A GUEST

Ms. Eschapasse: What is one purchase you’re most proud of? What would you pay a lot of money for, and what would you never pay much money for?

Ms. Norris: I am most proud of the horses I owned. As for what I would pay a lot of money for, American-Indian jewelry is worth the investment. I would not, however, pay a lot of money for costume jewelry.

Ms. Eschapasse: What is the wildest thing you ever wore?

Ms. Norris: There was a Wyoming western pioneer event I attended with a cowboy hat.

I even had on cowboy boots.

Ms. Eschapasse: When you go on the red carpet, how do you want your outfit to make you feel? Which designers can achieve that?

Ms. Norris: I want what I am wearing to make me feel stylish. Karl Lagerfeld has the ability to make every woman feel this way.

Ms. Eschapasse: How do you dress on workdays versus weekends?

Ms. Norris: About the same, it doesn’t vary much.

Ms. Eschapasse: What do you think of how others dress and what’s your advice to people who would like to develop their personal style?

Maggie Norris.

Ms. Norris: I think personal style is just that, personal. I would suggest to others to have one iconic piece and pair it with something very simple. Everyone needs their own style signature.

Maggie’s Favorites Favorite color: Mauve Favorite perfume: Cristalle by Chanel Favorite restaurant in NY: Omen Favorite drink: Southern lemonade Favorite movie: “Belle de Jour” or “Barry Lyndon” Favorite book: “Wuthering Heights”

by Emily Brontë Favorite quote: “There will always be a longing for things that are Rare and Fine.” –Maggie Norris Sibylle’s Style Diary explores style from the perspective of choices, and what that means for different people, with personal advice from some of the most stylish people in New York.

Sibylle Eschapasse is from Paris and now lives in Manhattan. She is a journalist and a contributing writer to various publications. Sibylle is also the author of a children’s book, “Argy Boy!: A New York Dog Tale.” She may be reached at Sibylle.Eschapasse@gmail.com DAVID PATRICK COLUMBIA

Michele Gerber Klien (L) and Maggie Norris.

Essence of China

WANG SHUANG-K’UAN/EPOCH TIMES

A Tale of Two Generals, a Prophecy, and the Search for the ‘Art of War’

By Leo Timm | Epoch Times Staff Sun Zi’s timeless primer on strategy, “The Art of War,” has informed the thoughts of many a calculating mind, from generals to CEOs—and it also saved Sun’s own descendant in China, Sun Bin, from the jaws of peril and treachery.

But it was the book’s teachings of wisdom, sincerity, benevolence, courage, and strictness that led the younger Sun through his darkest days of betrayal and humiliation at the hands of Pang Juan, his former sworn brother.

the ability to march across the world unopposed. Pang Juan, Guiguzi decided, didn’t have the character to match such knowledge, but it would be safe in Sun’s hands. Within three days, he had learned the text by heart.

When Sun Bin went to join Pang Juan in Wei State, Guiguzi warned him that he would one day achieve greatness, but only in the service of his native land, Qi.

One Master, Two Disciples From a young age, both Sun and Pang learned from the Taoist hermit, Guiguzi, in an eastern Chinese valley. This master specialized not just in strategy but also in reading fortunes, debate, and personal cultivation.

He had a prophecy about his two disciples: Pang, ever ambitious, needed to be loyal to Sun, and if he failed in this he would meet his end by a thousand arrows.

Pang then went to serve the powerful state of Wei, making a name for himself as an unparalleled general. But he forgot Guiguzi’s prophecy.

A Heart of Darkness No sooner had Sun Bin arrived at Wei State did Pang Juan begin to undermine him. Eager to learn the secrets Sun had studied with Guiguzi in his absence, he conspired to have Sun Bin’s knees cut out and his face tattooed, marking him as a traitor and forcing him into Pang Juan’s care.

At first, thinking that Pang had saved him, Sun began writing out the “Art of War” to repay the debt. Owing to a sympathetic servant’s timely intervention, however, Sun discovered the evil designs of his brother. So he feigned madness, burned the text he had produced, and stealthily escaped to Qi State, where he began to fulfill Guiguzi’s prophecy.

Sun Bin Learns From a Hidden Classic While Pang Juan was out earning fame and glory, Sun Bin had remained with their master in that remote valley. It was only then that Guiguzi revealed that he was in possession of the “Art of War,” the 13-part manual to military strategy that had been written over a hundred years ago by Sun’s ancestor Sun Zi. This text had once been lost, but the old hermit had preserved a copy.

Whoever mastered the teachings laid out in the “Art of War,” Guiguzi said, would have

The Return of a Strategist Unaware of Sun’s escape, Pang Juan continued to win victories for his state. The two finally met in battle, and Pang was bested the first time. Not long after, they had a second encounter, in which Guiguzi’s prophecy came to fruition.

Traversing the pass of Maling the night before battle, Pang found that the trees had been felled to slow his advance; he was elated at the thought of his enemy’s terror. Yet one tree remained standing, its bark stripped. Etched

there were eight characters, illegible in the darkness. So Pang lit a torch, and revealed the vow: “Pang Juan shall meet death beneath this tree.”

Just then, 10,000 archers from Sun Bin’s army, hidden in the hills, fired their arrows from all directions. The elusive words, recalling Pang’s broken vow, were now reality.

As Pang lay dying, Sun Bin approached him, only to hear the general curse himself for having not killed Sun earlier. Before Sun could speak, Pang Juan had already drawn his sword and committed suicide.

Humble Victory The “Art of War” presents warfare as a necessary evil that should be handled surgically and as decisively as possible. Sun Zi teaches stoic efficiency, detached from temporary successes and setbacks.

In this way, the best commandSun Bin, descendant of Sun Zi, author of the “Art of War.” ers resolve conflicts effortlessly. two disciples, “Thus it is that in war the victo“Hence his victories bring him neither reputation for wisdom nor credit for courrious strategist only seeks battle after the vicage. He wins his battles by making no mistory has been won, whereas he who is destakes,” Sun Zi wrote. tined to defeat first fights and afterward looks Pang Juan, in addition to betraying his fellow for victory.” student and ignoring his master, was attached Despite all the wrongs Pang had committo the glory and fortune that being a general ted against him, Sun Bin did not bear any offered him. He was presumptive and paragrudges. As for Sun Bin himself, he followed noid, leading him to turn Sun Bin, once his in his ancestor’s footsteps. After entrusting the sworn brother, into a deadly enemy.

“Art of War” to the Qi authorities, Sun returned As the “Art of War” would have described the to the wilderness and resided in seclusion.

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Film Review

‘The Martian’: Matt Damon and Ridley Scott’s Merry Mission-to-Mars Movie

By Mark Jackson | Epoch Times Staff

‘The Martian’

NASA is still trying to put a man on Mars.

Which is quite noble. But, you know, sometimes I think maybe we might all be better served if NASA put its considerable resources toward helping to contain Fukushima. All hands on deck for that, right? It’s not inconceivable that we’ll all die of radiation (or at least irradiated tuna) before NASA figures out how to fly the human race 34 million miles from the blue planet to the red planet. Meanwhile we’ll soon be seeing three-headed turtles.

Well, Hollywood likes to put us on Mars right now (via their fictional NASA) so we can forget about Fukushima for two hours, and stick our collective heads in the Martian sand. Of which (like Eddie Murphy said in “Trading Places”), “There’s plenty, you know?”

Ridley Scott’s “The Martian” is an instantaneous, thrilling American space classic about ingenuity, courage, and all-for-one-and-onefor-all teamwork—definitely the most fun you’ll have screen-wise in October. Scott’s transcended the slump he was in, and there’s really nothing we don’t enjoy watching Matt Damon in.

Director Ridley Scott Starring Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Michael Péna, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sean Bean, Kate Mara, Jeff Daniels, Donald Glover Running Time 2 hours, 21 minutes Release Date Oct. 2 Rated PG-13

‘Spaceman-Genuity’ There’s a space crew on Mars, outside their module sample collecting, when a Martian haboob (Mars looks very Hindu Kush-like; “haboob” is Arabic for storm) blows up: red sand everywhere, blocking out the sun.

Due to an equipment malfunction, Damon’s astronaut Mark Watney gets skewered with a flying antenna. While he’s down for the count, TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX/TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM CORP.

(L–R) Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Sebastian Stan, Kate Mara, and Aksel Hennie portray the crewmembers of the fateful mission to Mars.

lost in the haboob, his crew abort the mission, blast off, and leave him for dead.

But he’s not dead! And he’s a botanist! So he jerry-rigs and MacGuyver’s up a greenhouse!

And ransacks the collection of space-crew freeze-dried poo-packets to make some, ahem, in-a-pinch—fertilizer! It’ll be four years before anyone can conceivably get to him, so he’d better grow some tasty vittles. Such as bushels of pootatoes (not a typo).

Ground Control to Maj. Mark Back on earth, Watney’s given a hero’s farewell, and then the satellite-monitoring NASA scientists discover he’s still alive. What to do? Tell the crew? Nah—they need to concentrate on getting home safe. But is there any hope for a rescue?

First order of business, more low-tech jerryrigging: Watney treks (in the Martian dunebuggy) a long distance to a buried piece of communication equipment from a previous mission, and with much duct-taping, a rudimentary spelling gizmo is hatched. Now Mark Watney, extraterrestrial, can phone home.

Some of this jerry-rigging is reminiscent of Robert Downey Jr.’s lab-tinkering on the “Iron Man” suit, replete with an explosion that blasts him across a room and bounces him off a wall; it’s the same gag and almost as funny. It’s a sure bet Ridley Scott was inspired by “Iron Man”; there’s more than a little Iron Man-like maneuvering involved in Watney’s rescue attempt— hey, great artists steal.

Supporting Cast Jeff Daniels plays the no-fun, budget-andimage-conscious NASA director, while Chiwetel Ejiofor plays the head of NASA’s Mars missions; much more in touch with the astronauts and scientists.

Donald Glover plays the rudimentarylife-skills-challenged super-geek who does the mega-math and masterminds a classified, high-risk meta-rescue involving a Chinese missile.

Kristen Wiig plays NASA’s director of public relations. Audiences immediately laugh, just looking at her, so conditioned are we to seeing Wiig wigging out, doing funny stuff. Which she does here in muted form.

Sean Bean plays a NASA flight director. Look for a nice grouping of “Lord Of The Rings” inside jokes in his presence.

And then there’s Michael Peña. Peña’s in everything lately, and it’s a good thing too, because there is no more imminently watchable actor these days than Peña. It’s a rare actor who can fully own both extremes of the comedy–drama spectrum.

Disco Infernal In American pop-culture, if you let enough time go by, you can shoehorn even our most annoying, ickiest pop songs into a movie, and have the mash-up create a weird kind of wonderful atmosphere.

The barrel-bottom dredging of ‘70s AM-radio musical cheese for movie soundtracks, happening in “The Martian,” undoubtedly has “Guardians of the Galaxy” to thank. It features disco “classics,” ABBA, and the fluffier David Bowie cuts jammed in there under the pretext that they’re ship Capt. Melissa Lewis’s (Jessica Chastain) personal stash of tunes.

Will they drive Watney mad, should he discover them? Will they drive you mad? You may discover that the hearing of songs that normally provoke in you a knee-jerk flailing at whatever source is playing them (“Turn it off!!!”), here … they’ll make you feel strangely happy.

Funny Farm Damon is the man for this role of the astronaut/ farmer-as-standup-comedian, the only flaw being that the situations and set pieces telegraph lower-hanging-fruit jokes with obvious punchlines. Then again, it’s nice to see Ridley Scott, creator of creatures who bite your face off (“Alien’’)—going for some laughs.

All for One and One for All “The Martian” really boils down to the dedication of teams; people who signed on for comewhat-may because it’s their calling—in this case ingenious jerry-rigging creativity and the brain-power to handle the math behind the astrophysics. And to use their talents to save one of their own; they can’t get enough of that.

Neither can we.

It seems apropos to end with a Beatles lyric more fitting for the film than, say, ABBA’s “Waterloo”: “Limitless undying love, which shines around me like a million suns, it calls me on and on across the universe.”

Now somebody call the real NASA and tell them to help fix Fukushima before the world’s oceans turn red, creating two red planets in the universe, thereby rendering future Mars missions redundant.

LISA TOMASETTI/SONY PICTURES CLASSICS

Next on the Big Screen: October 2015

What: The frontline pioneers of the early feminist movement. Protesting inequality and sexual harassment in the workplace, among other things, a group of women were forced underground in order to continue the fight. Things got increasingly dangerous for them, due to government and legal oppressors.

Critics: 8 out of 12 Rotten Tomatoes critics like it.

“It’s a tremendous, awards-worthy performance from Mulligan,” said Cath Clarke of Timeout.

“The supporting cast, including Helena Bonham Carter, Romola Garai, and Anne-Marie Duff, are all top-notch, and a reminder of how few films like this exist anywhere.” Sasha Stone, TheWrap.

By Mark Jackson | Epoch Times Staff The Epoch Times film critic picks five films, next on the big screen in October, that appear to have potential, and collates some critic opinions for each.

Oct. 9

‘Steve Jobs’ Cast: Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen, Sarah Snook, Jeff Daniels What: “Steve Jobs.” Another movie about the life and times of Apple CEO Steve Jobs? We just had “Jobs,” starring Ashton Kutcher. That wasn’t very good; 7 out of 12 critics on the film-review website “Rotten Tomatoes” didn’t like “Jobs.” Some critic comments about the Kutcher version: “All of this information could be found in a simple Internet search,” said Matthew Toomey of ABC Radio Brisbane.

“Fawning Hagiography,” said Fiona Williams of sbs.com.au.

Critics: For the upcoming, better version, “Steve Jobs,” it’s got a great cast, and 9 out of 10 critics from Rotten like it.

“For those who subscribe to the generally held view that the late co-founder of Apple was both an iconic visionary and a monster with a silicon chip where his heart should be, rest assured that writer Aaron Sorkin, director Danny Boyle, and star Michael Fassbender have given their subject the brilliant, maddening, ingeniously designed and monstrously selfaggrandizing movie he deserves.” said Justin Chang of Variety magazine.

Matt Damon portrays an astronaut who draws upon his ingenuity to subsist on a hostile planet.

(L–R) Elisabeth Moss as Lucy Scott, David Lyons as Josh Howard, Topher Grace as Mike Smith, Natalie Saleeba as Mary Murphy, Dennis Quaid as Col. Roger Charles, Adam Saunders as Tom, and Cate Blanchett as Mary Mapes, in Sony Pictures Classics’ “Truth.”

Oct. 16

‘Truth’

‘Bridge of Spies’

Cast: Robert Redford, Cate Blanchet, Bruce Greenwood

Cast: Tom Hanks, Alan Alda, Amy Ryan

What: “Truth” is set in 2004, and tells the story of the last days of CBS news anchor Dan Rather (Robert Redford) and producer Mary Mapes (Cate Blanchett). They’d broadcast a news report that immediately became highly controversial, wherein they’d alleged that President Bush (running for re-election) avoided Vietnam War combat by pulling strings. There was no verifiable evidence of this claim.

Critics: Ten out of 12 critics like it. The New York Post’s Lou Lumenick said: “‘Truth’ dramatically recounts the story behind the ‘60 Minutes’ segment that led Dan Rather (wellplayed by Robert Redford) to resign from CBS, but the brightest star of this great ensemble piece is Cate Blanchett, who may well end up with another Oscar nomination for playing Rather’s producer Mary Mapes.”

What: Like “Lincoln,” this is a true-to-life story about a historical turning point. Set during the Cold War, a spy plane was shot down in the Soviet Union. Its pilot, Francis Gary Powers, was captured.

So the Americans have a Russian spy, the Russians have Francis Powers, and Tom Hanks plays the lawyer hired to negotiate the legalities of the prisoner exchange.

Oct. 30

‘Our Brand Is Crisis’ Cast: Sandra Bullock, Billy Bob Thornton, Anthony Mackie What: This is a comedy-drama about a fictional account of the American political campaign strategies used in the 2002 Bolivian presidential election. George Clooney produces.

David Gordon Green, who directed “Pineapple Express,” directs.

Critics: No critic reviews yet. I speculate that since these are all very funny people, it must be very funny.

WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT INC. AND RATPAC-DUNE ENTERTAINMENT LLC

Critics: No critic reviews yet. I speculate— Steven Spielberg makes a movie with a Coen brothers script and Tom Hanks in the lead? It must be seen.

Oct. 23

‘Suffragette’ Cast: Meryl Streep, Helena Bonham Carter, Carey Mulligan, Brendan Gleason

Billy Bob Thornton as Pat Candy and Sandra Bullock as Jane in Warner Bros. Pictures and Participant Media’s drama “Our Brand Is Crisis.”

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October 2–8, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts

THINGS TO DO COMMUNITY EVENTS NEW IN MANHATTAN Experience Macau, China, in New York City Oct. 1–4 Vanderbilt Hall, Grand Central Terminal Visits can enjoy an authentic Macau experience in the iconic Vanderbilt Hall. You can decorate your own traditional lantern, design Portuguese tiles, enjoy the dance performances, while you browse the spice market and sample traditional Macanese cookies. Free.

VisitMacauChina.com/ GrandCentral Media Movers & Shakers Oct. 3 at 4 p.m.

Green Wood Historic Chapel 25th St. at 5th Ave. Join Untapped Cities founder Michelle Young, journalist and urban planner Julia VitulloMartin, and Brokelyn News Editor David Colon for a lively discussion exploring the frenzied world of NYC news and media, both past and present, on a trolley tour to visit the monuments of the great newspaper men of the 19th century. Talk is free; Trolley tour is $20; $15 for members.

Green-Wood.com/ ToursEvents Autumn Crafts Festival Oct. 3, 4, 10, 11 Saturdays 11 a.m.–8:30 p.m. & Sundays 10 a.m.–6:30 p.m.

Lincoln Center Plaza 64th Street at Columbus Avenue Juried craft displays selected from every region of the United States. Continuous entertainment, craft demonstrations. Free.

CraftsAtLincoln.org Modern Sky Music Festival Oct. 4 Central Park Featured Artists include Gang of Four, Black Lips, Hedgehog, Ariel Pink, Song Dongye, New Pants, and more. $43.20–$150.

ModernSkyFestivalNYC.com

This exhibition presents views of women, myth, and photography intertwined through nine pioneers who embrace new attitudes for women. Since 1896 through to the present, freedom earned through personal decision and efforts includes the early social risks taken in a still-traditional society. Free.

Throckmorton-NYC.com Collecting Paradise: Buddhist Art of Kashmir and Its Legacies Through Oct. 19 Rubin Museum of Art Exhibit traces the continuity of the art of Kashmir in the Western Himalayas for over a millennium. $10–$15.

RubinMuseum.org

ENDING IN MANHATTAN Exploring France: Oil Sketches From the Thaw Collection Through Oct. 4 The Morgan Library & Museum Explores the practice of working outdoors or in the studio on a modest scale to capture the landscape. $12–$18. TheMorgan.org Hungarian Treasure: Silver From the Nicolas M. Salgo Collection Through Oct. 4 The Metropolitan Museum of Art This large collection of silver— most dating from the 15th to the late 18th century— comprises a variety of types with especially refined appearance and high levels of craftsmanship. $12–$25 suggested.

MetMuseum.org Sargent: Portraits of Artists and Friends Through Oct. 4 Metropolitan Museum of Art American painter John Singer Sargent (1856–1925) created portraits of artists, writers, actors, dancers, and musicians, many of whom were his close friends. $12– $25 suggested.

METMuseum.org

Rubin Museum of Art Annual Gala and After Party Oct. 8 at 6:30 p.m.

Guastavino’s 409 East 59th St. Presenting the Heart Connection Award to Donald Rubin. After party includes: Open Bar • Sweet & Savory Bites • Dancing Masks encouraged: Bring your own or wear one of ours! $100–$465. Rubinmuseum. org/Support/Gala

ENDING ELSEWHERE

ONGOING IN MANHATTAN

PERFORMING ARTS

Alice: 150 Years of Wonderland Through Oct. 11 The Morgan Library and Museum This exhibition will bring to light the curious history of Wonderland, presenting an engaging account of the genesis, publication, and enduring appeal of Lewis Carroll's classic tale "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." $12–$18.

TheMorgan.org

VISUAL ARTS NEW IN MANHATTAN Women Pioneers Mexican Photography I Through Nov. 14 Throckmorton Fine Art, 145 E. 57th St., Floor 3

Abbie Zabar: Ten Years of Flowers Through Oct. 4 Wave Hill House, 675 W. 252nd St., Bronx Abbie Zabar exhibits a selection of drawings from her series Flowers in the Great Hall of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. $2–$8.

WaveHill.org

NEW IN MANHATTAN All-Balanchine, NYC Ballet Oct 1 at 7:30 p.m., Oct. 3 at 8 p.m., Oct. 6 at 7:30 p.m., Oct. 11 at 3 p.m.

David H. Koch Theater Romance both refined and impassioned overtakes the stage in this all-Balanchine double bill with Liebeslieder Walzer and Tschaikovsky Suite No. 3. $60–$170.

NYCBallet.com Tannhäuser Oct. 8–31 Metropolitan Opera 30 Lincoln Center Plaza History, myth, and invention come together in Tannhäuser to create a unique and powerful drama. James Levine conducts Wagner’s early masterpiece in its first

COURTESY OF CHRIS LEE/NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC

Carnegie Hall Opening Night Gala

return to the Met stage in more than a decade. From $27. MetOpera.org

ONGOING IN MANHATTAN Fall for Dance Festival Through Oct. 11 New York City Center 131 W. 55th St. Experience the very best the dance world has to offer at New York City Center’s 12th annual Fall for Dance Festival, where you’ll see world-renowned companies performing alongside daring new artists. $15.

NYCityCenter.org

MUSIC NEW IN MANHATTAN The Viennese - A String Quartet, Vanessa Perez on Piano Oct. 2 at 7:30 p.m.

Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall 57th Street & Seventh Avenue The Viennese were founded

by Prof. Günter Seifert, a member of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, and debuted in the summer of 2008 during the orchestra’s Mediterranean cruise.

Violinists Günter Seifert and Clemens Flieder, violist Hans Peter Ochsenhofer, and bassist Josef Pitzek bring the music of Vienna to Carnegie Hall. In this concert, the quartet performs together with special guest Venezuelan-American pianist Vanessa Perez. $60.

CarnegieHall.org Chiara String Quartet Series Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.

Full of great ideas, the energetic musicians of the Chiara String Quartet have established themselves as one of the most powerful and passionate practitioners of the string quartet genre. $50 single concert, $170 for series of four concerts, $1 children.

MetMuseum.org Till Eulenspiegel, St. Luke's Chamber Orchestra Oct. 3, 5–6 p.m.

The Rubin Museum of Art 150 West 17th St. Hear an octet of St. Luke’s virtuoso musicians play music for winds and strings by Strauss as well as Beethoven and Nielsen in a free, onehour concert. Free.

OSLmusic.org/SubwaySeries Anastasiya Roytman Oct. 4 at 7:30 p.m.

Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall 57th St. and Seventh Ave. Soprano Anastasiya Roytman, Julian Milkis on clarinet, and Abdiel Vazquez on piano. $25–$45.

CarnegieHall.org Musicians From Marlboro Oct. 5 at 8 p.m.

Carnegie Hall 57th St. and Seventh Ave. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in the 2015-16 concert season, Musicians from Marlboro, the touring extension of the Marlboro Music Festival in Vermont, presents young professional musicians together with seasoned artists in varied chamber music programs. $35–$40. CarnegieHall.org Bulgarian Concert Evenings Opening Night Gala Oct. 6 at 7:30 p.m.

Carnegie Hall 57th St. and Seventh Ave. Bulgarian Concert Evenings opens its 11th season

Conductor Alan Gilbert with the New York Philharmonic. with a gala concert, featuring beloved chamber music works by Mozart and Schubert and the presentation of a work

by Grammy-nominated Bulgarian composer Dobrinka Tabakova. $20–$75.

CarnegieHall.org Carnegie Hall Opening Night Gala, New York Philharmonic Oct. 7 at 7 p.m.

Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium, Perelman Stage 57th Street & Seventh Avenue In what is indeed a gala event, Evgeny Kissin joins the New York Philharmonic and Music Director Alan Gilbert for Tchaikovsky’s immortal Piano Concerto No. 1 to launch the 2015– 2016 season. $68–$220.

CarnegieHall.org Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra Oct. 10 at 2 p.m. & 8 p.m.

Carnegie Hall Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra presents Eastern and Western musical traditions in a concert like no other. Shen Yun’s original music is inspired by 5,000 years of Chinese civilization and blends the beauty of ancient

Eastern instruments with the power of the Western symphony orchestra.

Highlights also include Shen Yun’s celebrated singers and purely classical masterpieces

by Tchaikovsky and Sarasate. $38–108.

ShenYunPerformingArts.org

ONGOING IN MANHATTAN

Queens Museum. Flushing Meadows Corona Park Hear an octet of St. Luke’s virtuoso musicians play music for winds and strings

by Strauss as well as Beethoven and Nielsen in a free, one-hour concert.

Free. OSLmusic.org/ SubwaySeries

Dear Readers

NEW ELSEWHERE St. Luke's Chamber Orchestra Oct. 4 at 2 p.m.

If you have an event to suggest, please send details to NYC_Arts@ EpochTimes.com in the format you see here.

Stoney Creek Cremation & Burial Society 3024 QUENTIN ROAD BROOKLYN, NY 11234

718.339.0700 STONEYCREEKCREMATION.COM STONEYCREEKCREMATION@GMAIL.COM Primarily an online service, serving families conveniently at their own home — through a computer.

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October 2–8, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts KATI VERESHAKA/EPOCH TIMES

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2 WWW.EXPERIENCETRANSYLVANIA.RO

1. Internal courtyard of White Church in the village of Viscri, Romania. The construction of the fortified church began in 1100, a fact confirmed by the tombstone inscription in a nearby cemetery.

2. The house owned by Prince Charles in Viscri, Romania, on Aug. 18.

3. An interior view of the house owned by Prince Charles in Viscri.

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3 COURTESY OF CRISTIAN RADU

KATI VERESHAKA/EPOCH TIMES

KATI VERESHAKA/EPOCH TIMES

4. Prince Charles and Caroline Fernolend, vice president of the Mihai Eminescu Trust, plant the 1 millionth tree on May 31, 2013. The project called A Forest for Every School was part of a collaboration between the trust and French Hotel Chain Accor.

5. Caroline Fernolend at White Church in the village of Viscri, Romania.

6. Village life in Viscri.

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A Curious Alliance: Prince Charles and Transylvania’s Medieval Villages

By Kati Vereshaka | Epoch Times Staff

V

Saved From Being Bulldozed During the 20-plus years of rule under Nicolae Ceausescu, having a city address on your ID card was a status symbol and country life was looked down upon.

In order to cement this point even further, in 1987 Ceausescu announced that the path to “our golden socialist future” (an expression that I heard daily on the national evening news in my own childhood), was paved with certain sacrifices, for example the destruction of 8,000 villages in Transylvania.

The village of Viscri was on that list.

Following Ceausescu’s announcement, Prince

The prince has said that Romania is the only place where he feels human.

KATI VERESHAKA/EPOCH TIMES

White Church in the village of Viscri, Romania.

Prince Charles and Caroline Fernolend, vice president of the Mihai Eminescu Trust.

COURTESY OF CRISTIAN RADU

ISCRI, Romania—Of all the foreign dignitaries who have visited Romania since the communist regime fell in 1989, none are as passionate about the country as Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales. He owns several properties in the region of Transylvania, and visits every spring surrounded by a media frenzy that never tires of asking the perennial question, Why Romania?

In an interview for the 2013 documentary “Wild Carpathia,” Prince Charles said: “The key thing about Romania, and Transylvania in particular, is that there’s so much we can learn from. It is the last corner of Europe where you see true sustainability and complete resilience, and the maintenance of entire ecosystems to the benefit of mankind and also for nature.”

Prince Charles’s visits and initiatives have changed the lives of the approximately 500 people who live in the small Saxon village of Viscri, and countless others. His unabashed love for Romania is also changing people’s perception of the country, at home and abroad.

Caroline Fernolend, vice president of the Mihai Eminescu Trust, which was chaired by Prince Charles for 13 years, and a resident of Viscri, recounts how the village’s story began to intertwine with the prince’s. It is through her work and passion for her heritage that many of Charles’s projects have been successful.

I met her on a rather rainy August evening in Viscri where Prince Charles has a property.

According to Fernolend, just this summer, the royal’s investment attracted over 17,000 tourists from all over Europe.

They come wanting to see what exactly attracts Prince Charles to a remote village at the end of an unpaved road that is a challenge to any four-wheel drive.

Charles gave a speech urging the communist regime against the destruction of its villages.

At the same time, Operation Villages Romania was started in France, Belgium, and Holland.

Through this initiative, the foundation choose a village that was on the list of those due to be bulldozed, and Viscri was chosen to be saved.

“Who would have known that 11 years later it would end up being [UNESCO] World-Heritage listed?” exclaimed Fernolend with a beaming smile. Fernolend’s ancestors were among the first to arrive in Transylvania in 1142 from Luxembourg, where they were given land and the task of defending the southeastern border.

It all started when another concerned Brit, Jessica Douglas-Home, came to Viscri. Fernolend asked her how she could save her village.

“She said: ‘I will bring His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales.’ Of course I didn’t believe her at the time,” said Fernolend.

She met Prince Charles for the first time in another village. Fernolend and her family dressed up in traditional Saxon garb, and bore gifts. Her gift to Charles was a photo of Viscri.

“I said to His Royal Highness, ‘Please come to my village.’ And he said, ‘I will come for sure.’”

When the Cows Came Home Visiting a living village such as Viscri is both a history lesson and a sensory adventure. I had heard that the cows come home by themselves, each knowing where they live. I asked a local around what time that would happen, and he replied “8:30,” then promptly went about his business.

Indeed, at 8:35 p.m. our interview came to an abrupt end when Fernolend said, “If you want to see the cows you’d better hurry.”

We rushed out to see the herd, and yes, the cows knew where to go. There were sheep, goats, and horses as well, the gravel crunched under their hoofs in a slow, methodical stampede. One four by four was stuck in the middle of the road and had to stop and let the animals pass. Fernolend shook her head in disapproval because tourists are told to vacate the main road during that time so as not to disrupt village life.

This might prove to be a paradox for Viscri and other villages, where the locals have found employment through the revival of arts and crafts, as well as tourism.

Build It and They Will Come But the success of all the trust’s projects is palpable. Almost the entire village is fully employed, with only three families that depend on welfare. There are 100 beds for rent to tour-

There is a visceral sense of closeness with the mountains, the streams, the architecture, and even with the animals.

ists who can stay in traditional Saxon houses and immerse themselves in a bucolic way of life. The 80-member strong women’s association makes felt slippers and other crafts, and the 40 village horses are used to give rides in the fields. The restoration of the traditional clay, Saxon house roofs alone is enough to keep people employed.

Fernolend and her team have projects in 88 villages. She emphasizes that each time they go to a village “it’s about bringing people together and reawakening the villagers pride in their heritage.

“We never do charity—if you just give someone something for free they will not value it and it is denigrating. This is why I say, ‘We need to teach people how to fish, not just give them the fish,’” said Fernolend.

Prince Charles’s 13-yearlong patronage of the Mihai Eminescu Trust ended in 2014. The list of accomplishments is too long, but to name a few, during the time that he was the chairman, over 80 schools and 400 master craftsmen in 29 Transylvanian villages were helped to participate in eco-tourism efforts, according to Fernolend.

Prince Charles also personally funded the first ecological water purification system that is due to be replicated in other villages.

And this year, he has deepened his commitment by announcing in June the launch of The Prince of Wales’s Foundation Romania, an educational charity in support of heritage preservation, agriculture, and sustainable development in Romania. Its headquarters will be in Viscri in Charles’s own house, which will also be open to tourists as a guest house.

A Different Feeling The prince has also said that Romania is the only place where he feels human.

Indeed there is an all-encompassing feeling in Romania that is hard to describe in one word. In Romanian the name for it is the mioritic landscape—a term mentioned in the works of many national writers. It is derived from the word miorita (meeoritza), a magical sheep in popular mythology that warns its shepherd about his impending assassination.

The story implies the idea of nature as caretaker, a place where each individual can find his or her place in the divine order.

There is a visceral sense of closeness with the mountains, the streams, the architecture, and even with the animals, that seems to be winning the hearts of non-Romanians, who can feel it, but can never quite explain it either.