Concept Stagings Of Shakespeare Don’t Go Far Enough, Says David Cote

“I also wince at conceptual Shakespeare, but for another reason: most directorial concepts are far too timid. Shakespeare was a moderate, nonsectarian humanist? Nonsense. Why not assume that if the Bard were alive, he’d be a bug-eyed anarchist or an eco-terrorist (he did love nature imagery, after all). … [He] certainly wouldn’t be churning out well-behaved divertissements for conservative critics.”

Avatar‘s Planet Pandora: A Biologist’s Dream

“When watching a Hollywood movie that has robed itself in the themes and paraphernalia of science, a scientist expects to feel anything from annoyance to infuriation at facts misconstrued or processes misrepresented. What a scientist does not expect is to enter into a state of ecstatic wonderment, to have the urge to leap up and shout: ‘Yes! That’s exactly what it’s like!'”

Hub Of L.A. ’60s Art Scene To Be Reborn (Temporarily)

“Los Angeles’ Ferus Gallery helped to nurture the talents of such artists as Ed Ruscha, Billy Al Bengston, Robert Irwin, Ed Moses, Wallace Berman and Ed Kienholz. From 1957 to 1966, the gallery, which was located on La Cienega Boulevard, served as a hub for the city’s nascent postwar art scene. … Starting Feb. 9, the Samuel Freeman gallery in Santa Monica will create a replica of the Ferus within its own walls.”

Jeffrey Deitch Brings A Spectacle-Filled Résumé To MOCA

“More than a little art-world lore surrounds the 57-year-old mega-dealer with a business degree from Harvard and voracious appetite for the new, the hip, and, of course, the headlines. Over the last three decades, Deitch has pioneered, chased and cashed in on just about every art-world trend,” including “a failed attempt at reality TV and a brush with bankruptcy.”