The Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration, the largest business school in Europe, has selected Hadid to design a 430,000-square-foot Library and Learning Center. “The [building’s] two volumes [will] appear freestanding, but actually form a canted, six-story polygonal structure.”
Tag: 01.20.09
UK’s Channel 4 Offers To Spend £5 Billion On British Productions
The network is even promising to spend one-fourth of that budget (£1.25B) on programming made outside of greater London. “However the broadcaster says the money will only be spent if it can secure fresh investment to support its public service activities. The announcement [is] regarded as a last ditch attempt to lobby the government for public funds.”
The King Who Remade Persian Civilization
“During his long reign [1587-1629] Shah Abbas presided over a flowering of Iranian arts in a style as characteristic as that of the France of Louis XIV. This was carried from huge projects to the most delicate and refined of decorative work… He was one of the great rulers of his age – the equal of the Ottoman Sultan, the Mogul Emperor or the King of Spain.”
Lawsuit Filed Over 9 To 5
“The trust representing the late writer-director Colin Higgins has sued attorney Barry Hirsch for failing to properly represent his interests in the 9 to 5 stage musical.”
With Zipper’s Closure, Latino Company’s Season In Peril
“Manhattan’s Latino theatre company, INTAR, which was set to premiere Eduardo Machado’s In Paradise and Nick Norman’s She Plundered Him, may have to postpone its season after the sudden closure of the Zipper Factory.”
With New President, Daily Show Needs New Narrative
“With George Bush back in Crawford, Texas, and Barack Obama in the White House trying to deal with the nation’s woes, will ‘The Daily Show With Jon Stewart’ still have enough satirical fodder for its four-nights-per week/161-episodes-per-year broadcast?” After all, the new guy in the White House has been a guest on the show four times — and, complicating matters, is smart.
Beyond Williams: In An Arts President, Only Daring Will Do
“We have reason to believe we have an arts president. … Frankly, the Williams quartet [at the inauguration] was a bit hokey. For Obama to be an arts president he will have to think higher and even further out of the box. If he really wants change, he will have to have the courage to listen to artists who can’t be controlled, whose vision is greater than his and his handlers.” So here’s a list of some.
Yes, They Can: Obama Musical Will Premiere In London
“A new musical entitled Obama On My Mind — featuring book, music and lyrics by American crime writer and filmmaker Teddy Hayes, who has been resident in the UK for the last 13 years — will make its world premiere in March.” The show was workshopped last year.
Broadway Box Office Goes … Down. Again.
“Broadway continued its January decline last week, with total cume down $2 million to $13.9 million for 21 shows on the boards. Still, a few shows saw upticks, notably ‘Speed-the-Plow’ ($421,987), which rose $87,000 in the first week of perfs with new star William H. Macy, who stepped into the lead role originally occupied by the departed Jeremy Piven (and played over the holidays by Norbert Leo Butz).” This is Broadway’s traditional slow time, slower this year with the recent spate of show closings.
Jean Nouvel Covers A Building In Blue Velvet
Okay, it’s not velvet – it’s a translucent fabric sheath stretched over the external frame of Nouvel’s new Copenhagen Concert Hall. During the day you can see silhouettes of the people inside; at night, it’s lit a bright cobalt blue with a montage of projected video images. Nicolai Ouroussoff calls the result “one of the most gorgeous buildings I have recently seen.”