Month: August 2019

Is Martial Arts Equal Self-Defence

Arts blogger

The answer is no. No doubt what you learn from combative arts classes could be used for self-defence but they are just not self-defence. In reality, what you have learnt from the martial arts classes have nothing to do with the realities of protecting your personal safety. But again, we constantly attempt to find out what is the best combative arts for someone to learn about self-defence.

Realise this, if self-defence is what you are looking for, most of the martial arts school will not be able to offer you that, especially on staying safe in a modern urban environment. You may ask why do you say so?

1. Self-defence has something to do with “defusing violence”.

Violence can originate from an argument, physical contact, a date rape, a drunk friend, a fight, etc. They are all violence. Do you know that these pose different problems and there are different solutions?. How many martial arts school’s syllabus actually teach the students about how to response to such a situation? Do you think by breaking board will help you in “defusing violence”? Different violent situations will require different levels of response. You will learn such level of response in self-defense lessons but not combative arts.

2. Martial arts emphasis on fighting style.

As you know each violence situation differs, self-defense is the answer in dealing with it. Remember this, what works for one situation may not work for another. Martial arts emphasis on fighting style. Form is more important than substance. But for self-defence, your personal safety is the priority. You learn how to defuse violence or getting out of that situation. It encompasses common sense, habits, lifestyle, alertness etc.

3. Martial arts are training but not education on how to deal with violence.

Martial arts are training and sports. People constantly mistaken it for education. Self-defence by its very nature addresses specific conditions and problems. Do you think the SWAT officer’s high risk entry training is of good help in controlling a drunk in a bar? Of course not. The training that works for such an officer doesn’t work for you as well. Self defence requires education and training. In combative arts, you will learn very specific things, however, that surely doesn’t mean that you are prepared to handle all violence situations. You need to be educated about what martial art techniques can be used for self-defence in each and every different circumstances.

You must know that most martial arts have become sports regardless their combative history or self-defence use they claim. There’ is a huge difference between sport fighting and defensive movement. If you still think that any martial art could be used for self-defence then you are exposing yourself to the danger.

Making That Perfect Arts And Crafts Dream Catcher

Arts blogger

Being bothered by nightmares? Native Americans believe that bad dreams can become caught in the web of a dream catcher and destroyed in the morning light. Dream catchers are so beautiful and artistic that they have become one of the most popular mass marketed arts and crafts available. However, these lovely pieces can be made at home. In this article, we’ll demonstrate how to make a dream catcher yourself.

Dream catchers were originally made out of willow, sage and deer sinew. Modern dream catchers are made with wood or metal wrapped in leather strips and artificial sinew. The decoration of the web along with the shape, size and colors used is left to the artistic tastes of the individual.

Feathers attached to the dream catcher are meant to assist the flight of good dreams. Although selecting the materials is usually a matter of preference, typically to make a dream catcher you will need about 7 feet of thin suede, glue, a 6 inch metal or wooden ring, waxed nylon string, 12-16 pony beads, 12-16 feathers, scissors and a clothes pin. The colors of the beads and feathers can be any you choose.

The most difficult thing about the arts and crafts project of making dream catchers is making the web. Once you have covered the hoop with leather or suede and the glue has dried completely, tie a long strand of sinew or another piece of suede onto the hoop with a secure knot.

Carefully work your way around the hoop making a slip stitch at about every inch, or inch and a half. Ideally, the spaces should be uniform but don’t worry if they are not perfect. Once you get back to the top, slip stitch into the first loop that you made and repeat the process until you have just a small hole in the center. If you want to make your dream catcher more decorative, you can slip beads onto the web as you go. Tie a knot at the end and cut off any excess material.

To make the loop to hang your Dream Catcher, use a 12″ piece of suede lacing. Fold it in half and tie a knot in the open end. At the top of the ring, attach the lacing and slip the loop end through the ring and then around the ring and over the knot. Pull the lacing tight to secure it in place.

To make the hanging sections, cut three 8″ pieces of suede. Tie two 8″ pieces of suede lacing about one third of the way up each side of the ring using a double knot. Slip 3 colored pony beads onto each piece of lacing and secure with a knot. Tie the last 8″ piece of lacing to the top middle of the ring. Slip three pony beads onto each piece of lacing. Finally, push two feathers up inside the beads on each piece of lacing.

Arts and crafts make wonderful presents and a homemade dream catcher is an especially thoughtful present. It make take some practice to get the weaving right, but the effort is worth it.

As you get more experience with the craft of making dream catchers, you can experiment with different colors of suede and leather, beads, feathers and ring sizes. As with all of the artistic craft projects you may undertake, no two pieces need to look the same.

Eddie Izzard Force Majeure World Tour Comes To Dpac, Durham Performing Arts Center May 21,

Arts blogger

Durham, NC, January 30, 2014 – Eddie Izzard will bring his massive Force Majeure world tour to the U.S., visiting 32 cities through the spring with more dates to be announced later this year. The tour stops at DPAC, Durham Performing Arts Center, on May 21, 2014.

Tickets go on sale Tuesday, February 4 at 10 a.m.:

Online at DPACnc.com

DPAC Ticket Center: 919.680.2787, 123 Vivian Street, Durham, NC

Ticketmaster.com / Ticketmaster Charge by phone at 800.745.3000

Presented by WestBeth Entertainment, a full list of U.S. tour dates with links to tickets is available at http://www.EddieIzzard.com.

Force Majeure is the most extensive comedy tour ever; launched in March of 2013, the tour will take Izzard to 25 countries on five continents. From Cardiff to Kathmandu and Moscow to Mumbai, Force Majeure will play throughout Europe, Africa, Russia, the U.K., Canada, the U.S., India, Nepal, The Far East and Australia. Izzard recently completed runs in France performing entirely in French and in Berlin performing entirely in German.

One of the most acclaimed comedians of his generation, Izzard’s unique, tangential, absurd, and surreal comic narratives are lauded for their creativity and wit, earning him a New York Drama Desk Award and two Emmys for Dress to Kill, two British Comedy Awards for Top Stand-Up Comedian, and an Olivier Award nomination for Outstanding Achievement.

In the U.S., Izzard is the first solo stand-up comedian to perform at the Hollywood Bowl, has sold-out three consecutive nights at Radio City Music Hall and toured arenas throughout the U.S. including a sold-out show at Madison Square Garden.

On TV, Izzard most recently guest starred in the series, Hannibal, on NBC. He starred in and served as a producer on the critically acclaimed FX Network Show, The Riches, opposite Minnie Driver, guest starred in the final season of Showtime’s United States of Tara, and his 2010 documentary, Believe: The Eddie Izzard Story, received an Emmy nomination.

His long list of film and stage credits includes Valkyrie opposite Tom Cruise, Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s Thirteen and Ocean’s Twelve opposite George Clooney and Brad Pitt, David Mamet’s Race and The Cryptogram, the title role in Marlowe’s Edward II, and A Day in the Death of Joe Egg in London and on Broadway which won him a handful of awards, including a Tony nomination for Best Actor.

WESTBETH ENTERTAINMENT is a producing organization that has successfully and consistently produced critically acclaimed, financially successful, groundbreaking entertainment for 30 years. WestBeth has produced, presented, and managed diverse productions and tours that have played such venues as Madison Square Garden, Broadway, Radio City Music Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, Toronto’s Massey Hall, the San Francisco’s the Curran Theatre, Chicago’s United Center Arena and the Chicago Theatre, and many music and performing arts centers around North America.

WestBeth is currently producing La Soire in New York City and an upcoming Australian tour of Puppet Up! – Uncensored.

Recent productions include the Canadian tour of Eddie Izzard’s Force Majeure, and Dylan Moran’s Yeah, Yeah in cities across the US and Canada. WestBeth also produced the 6 week off-Broadway run of South African comedian Trevor Noah’s Born a Crime; Eric Idle’s What About Dick at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles; and the national tour, Off-Broadway, and 2013 Edinburgh Fringe Festival runs of Puppet Up! – Uncensored (aka Stuffed & Unstrung) with The Jim Henson Company.

Other notable productions include John Leguizamo’s Ghetto Klown on Broadway, the West End, and Colombia, South America; British comedian Simon Amstell’s one man show NUMB in New York and other cities around the county; Billy Connolly’s tour The Man Live in New York and San Francisco; Eddie Izzard’s Dress To Kill, Circle, Sexie, Stripped-a 35 city US tour and tour of Canada, Stripped Too: US Arena tour, Stripped to the Bowl, Stripped to the Shore; Billy Connolly’s Too Old To Die Young tour in America and Canada; Lewis Black’s Nothing Sacred show at New York’s Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall, as well as Lewis’ Dual Citizenship Tour in Canada and ‘In God We Rust’ at City Center in New York.

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About DPAC Since its opening in 2008, DPAC, Durham Performing Arts Center, has become the center for live entertainment in the Triangle. Recognized for its contemporary design, DPAC features 2,700 seats, intimate sightlines and state-of-the art sound and video. Listed four times in the top 10 in Pollstar magazine’s annual worldwide theater attendance rankings, DPAC is currently the #4 ranked theater in the U.S.

What is up next at DPAC? Alternative rock’s hottest ticket PIXIES (January 31), an evening of mind-blowing music with GOV’T MULE (February 8), and back by popular demand “The Edible Inevitable Tour” with ALTON BROWN (February 27).

For more information, please go to http://www.DPACnc.com.

Press Contact:
Rachel Gragg
DPAC, Durham Performing Arts Center
Durham, NC
+1 (919) 281-0476
http://www.dpacnc.com

Difference Between Mma And Karate

Arts blogger

Although there are certain techniques and moves that may seem similar, there is a difference between MMA and Karate. Because of The Ultimate Fighter reality TV show on Spike TV people are starting to understand the real difference between the two sports.

Karate is a very old form of martial arts that originated in Japan. It was primarily for self-defense, a way to defend one’s self from an attacker even without a weapon in hand. The moves employed are for blocking an attack and counterattacking through strikes, punches, and kicks. Through the years, it has become a competitive sport and one of the most popular forms of martial arts in the world.

Mixed martial arts or MMA, from the name itself, is a combination of several forms of martial arts. Its roots can be traced back to the ancient Greeks where they participated in no holds barred and extremely brutal fighting matches. Unlike karate that evolved out of a practical need for self-defense, mixed martial arts already started out being a competitive sport. It combines different techniques to subdue an opponent inside the ring.

Practitioners believe that by selecting the most effective moves from different martial arts and incorporating them into one form, they are creating a better and more efficient form of fighting style. There are many forms of martial arts employed in MMA fighting but the dominant styles used Jiu-Jitsu, grappling, and wrestling. Fights are relatively short, usually five minutes per round.

The rules in MMA also differ from others. One is allowed to strike an opponent when he or she is standing or lying on the ground. Other contact sports such as boxing do not allow strikes when one competitor goes down. Although it is allowed in MMA, strict officiating is enforced. A match is stopped when one fighter knocks out or renders unconscious his or her opponent. Another is when one submits to the dominant fighter and if the referee sees that a fighter cannot defend himself anymore from his opponent.

Are Mixed Martial Arts Dangerous

Arts blogger

There has been a lot of bad press surrounding MMA fights and the UFC. Many critics say that mixed martial arts are barbaric and gruesome and are nothing more than amateur street brawls. The beginning of the MMA movement in America and the inception of the UFC did not help matters at firs as they promoted the sport as the most violent combat sport available and only helped to further the negative stereotype. Originally, MMA fights were banned in many states but after stricter rules were put in place and new UFC owners worked to change the barbaric stereotype, the MMA movement has gained huge popularity.

But are mixed martial arts dangerous, at least any more dangerous that other combat or contact sports? Sure, in the beginning the sport itself claimed to be extremely violent but things have changed since then. To really answer the question of the danger in MMA fights, one would have to understand the rules of the UFC and compare it to other sports.

Mixed martial arts is just that, a mixture of many different fighting styles from boxing to wrestling, to jui jitsu, most of which have ancient roots and were at some time a part of the Olympic Games. Critics against the UFC and MMA fights say that it teaches kids that fighting is ok or honorable. Some of these same critics agree that all combat sports are bad and other single out MMA. The truth is, when compared to boxing MMA is not as bad. The object ion boxing is to beat your opponent until they are unconscious or so badly injured that they can no longer get up. In MMA a victory option is knockout, but fighters can also win by submission or referee stoppage, two options not available in boxing. Instead of going at it until irreparable damage is done, many MMA fights end when a fighter submits or the referee stops the fight before serious injuries occur. This seems like a much safer option.

Critics that say that MMA is barbaric and dangerous must not realized that there have been no deaths in sanctioned MMA fights ever. No MMA fighter has ever died during a fight; the same cannot be said about boxing a sport that has lost hundreds of fighters. Injuries are also infrequent, as well as brain damage because submission and referee stoppage is a victory option. The same is not true in boxing, many fighters end up with long term problems, brain damage, or have their careers halted abruptly because of injuries. Even non combat sports like football and hockey see more serious injuries than MMA fights such as broken and fractured bones, spinal damage, and concussions. While MMA fighters do receive injuries, they are not usually severe.

Critics that initially called the game barbaric and dangerous spoke of the lack of rules and regulations. MMA fights have over gone rule changes and additions, and although still allow for a great variety of fighting techniques, the fighters well being is considered. No matter how many people think that MMA fights are dangerous, the sport will continue to grow and attract fans.