Mackie

The cardinal rule of dressing Tina Turner, the designer and costumer Bob Mackie said Wednesday night, was “you couldn’t cover anything up.” Her legs were simply “too beautiful.” Mr. Mackie, 84 and working on costumes for Pink’s upcoming tour, met Ms. Turner in the 1970s when she was a guest on the “Sonny & Cher Show.” He was a college dropout who early in his career worked for the famed costume designer Edith Head. From there, Mr. Mackie went out on his own, designing costumes for stars such as Lucille Ball, Carol Burnett and then Cher. He and Ms. Turner got to know each other toward the end of her marriage to Ike Turner, the man whose abuse she suffered for around 20 years, before she walked away with nothing but a white, bloodstained Yves Saint Laurent pantsuit, two Jaguars and her last name. (Even that, Mr. Turner attempted to take away from her in court.) She had been spending time in Europe (where she later moved) and, because there wasn’t much of a budget, Mr. … [Read more...] about The Designer Who Put Tina Turner in Those Hemlines

DAKAR, Senegal — In Senegal, never mind about same-sex marriage: gay men and lesbians are abused by the police, beaten and sometimes tortured, with impunity. They are threatened by mobs, mocked on the front pages of newspapers and subject to criminal prosecution for being gay. And the persecution is even more severe elsewhere in West Africa. So it was hardly surprising that a day after President Obama, in front of hundreds of reporters, traded barbs with President Macky Sall of Senegal on the topic, people on the street, the press and the radio in Mr. Sall’s country lined up firmly on the same side. During the opening leg of his visit to sub-Saharan Africa, Mr. Obama on Thursday called the Supreme Court’s decision the day before to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act a “victory for American democracy” and urged African nations that treat homosexuality as a crime, like Senegal, to make sure that the government does not discriminate against gays. The comment prompted a retort … [Read more...] about Senegal Cheers Its President for Standing Up to Obama on Same-Sex Marriage

It is hard to think of a boundary Tina Turner didn’t break. She annihilated the dichotomy between R&B and rock ’n’ roll. She showed it was possible not only to tell the story of being a wife who endured spousal abuse, but to transcend victimhood and make it into art. But with that hair (usually wigs, but who cares?), those legs , that growl , and an endless supply of beaded dresses, Ms. Turner, who died on Wednesday at 83 , also was a potent style icon and enduring sex symbol — one whose prime did not even really begin until 1984, when, at 44, she released the album “Private Dancer,” and it sold five million copies. Many of her stage costumes were designed by Bob Mackie, the man who is best known as Cher’s partner in kitsch but with Ms. Turner accomplished something wholly different. Mr. Mackie and Ms. Turner were introduced by Cher. In 1977, shortly before Tina and Ike Turner’s divorce was finalized, the two divas performed together — in identical, flaming gold … [Read more...] about Tina Turner: A Life in Photos

The thrills of the revival of Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ on Broadway (Music Box Theatre, booking to September 17) are many, and pulsatingly beautiful to behold. There is, principally, the mesmerizing dancing of the 16-strong cast (one was absent from the performance this critic attended), and around them all that accentuates their physicality: Robert Brill’s simple design of scaffolds and descending curtains, Reid Bartleme and Harriet Jung’s sexy, playful costuming, David Grill’s lighting (bulbs of all colors flashing, spotlight beams, bright color baths for backgrounds), and Finn Ross’ video design. Wayne Cilento’s direction and staging throbs with razzmatazz, but also mischief and subtlety. Cilento danced in the original production, and is aided in his efforts to hew close to, and respectfully tweak, Fosse ’s choreographic and creative template by Christine Colby Jacques. Dancin’ is mostly spectacular, until it suddenly isn’t—before ramping itself up again for the finale. An … [Read more...] about ‘Bob Fosse’s Dancin’’ on Broadway Is Spectacular, Mostly

NAIROBI, Kenya — WHEN the Kenyan author Binyavanga Wainaina published his acclaimed memoir three years ago, he concealed an important part of his life from the public eye. Last Saturday, he unveiled “a lost chapter” of the book on the Internet titled, “I am a homosexual, mum.” The chapter, about missing the opportunity to tell his mother before she died, is intensely personal. The response has been extremely public, a “ gay bombshell ” in the words of the newspaper The Daily Nation. That is because, as a successful author, publisher, journalist and commentator, Mr. Wainaina, 43, has become one of the most prominent Africans ever to come out publicly. He did so at a moment when the issue is being fiercely debated here in sub-Saharan Africa. Even as gay rights have gained ground in the United States and other Western nations, Africa has in some cases moved backward, with several countries increasing penalties against gays. Nigeria’s president this month signed into law a … [Read more...] about Writer Tells Africa What He Couldn’t Tell ‘Mum’