“I have never encountered anybody who claims that will, education, and culture cannot change many, if not all, of our genetically inherited traits. My genetic tendency to myopia is canceled by the eyeglasses I wear (but I do have to want to wear them); and many of those who would otherwise suffer from one genetic disease or another can have the symptoms postponed indefinitely by being educated about the importance of a particular diet, or by the culture-borne gift of one prescription medicine or another.” However, “If we have been raised and educated in a particular cultural environment, then the traits imposed on us by that environment are ineluctable. We may at best channel them, but we cannot change them either by will, further education, or by adopting a different culture.”
Tag: 01.26.03
Arts Are More Than “Targets,” “Benchmarks” and “Outcomes”
Where is Scotland’s vision for the arts that is creative? As far as the government goes, “the dead hand of Treasury control has fallen on the arts, subjecting it to the same criteria that it applies to every other branch of public spending. A presumption has grown up that culture can answer to ‘targets’ and ‘benchmarks’ in the same way as hospitals and schools, that unless creativity can be measured against ‘outcomes’ and ‘deliveries’ then it does not deserve to be funded.”
Reinventing The National Theatre
Nicholas Hytner appears to be reinventing London’s National Theatre. And doing it quickly. Along with cutting ticket prices, he’s trying to expand the National’s tastes. His “particular hope is that by exploring ‘the gaps between what we now call ‘dance’, ‘plays’ and ‘operas’,’ the National can redefine musical drama. ‘Somewhere along the line, “musical” became a dirty word – I want to clean it up’.”
Moscow Theatre Reopens After Last Year’s Siege
The Moscow theatre that was captured by Chechen rebels last year has reopened for business. “Moscow’s city government provided $2.5 million to renovate the theatre, which now has a new security system and orchestra pit, and will be ready for the first show on 8 February.”
The New Reality – Remaking The TV Landscape
“The recent flood of reality programs such as ‘American Idol,’ `Joe Millionaire’ and `The Bachelorette’ and the number of viewers they are drawing is unprecedented. They are pulling in young people who had drifted to cable or their home computers, revitalizing the ratings fortunes of both ABC and Fox and – in some cases – putting a serious dent in the viewership for well-established comedies and dramas. The shows have become such a cultural phenomenon in this country.”
America’s Oldest Ballet Company Turns 70
“San Francisco Ballet this year marks its 70th anniversary, which makes it this country’s oldest professional ballet company. The great tradition of American ballet today boasts not only the American Ballet Theatre and New York City Ballet, but also vital and unique major companies from Boston to Miami, from Houston to Seattle. San Francisco Ballet paved the way, and, 70 years on, it is still a major force in American culture.”
The Daily Grind
San Francisco Ballet gets ready to open its season. “There’s a deceptively languid look to this daily class, a ritual that summons the dancers from bed five or six mornings a week. But in these easy, almost meditative early moves rests the essence of a company. Chaos and order, dissolution and harmony. It will come, this Balanchine marvel, but not without the invigorating grind of more rehearsal.”
La Scala-on-the-Schuylkill
Philadelphia’s venerable Academy of Music is reopening after the Philadelphia Orchestra moved out and a major renovation was completed. The hall looks great. And some theatre producers are enthusiastic about getting into the building. But with the touring show business down, is there enough business to justify the Academy’s operation?
All Movement As Dance – Cunningham Company At 50
“It has been 50 years since Cunningham founded his company, 61 years since he presented that first concert of his own solo dances. ‘I’ve remained just as fascinated with movement as when I began. I see something moving, somebody do something, and I wonder, ‘How could one do that (in a dance)?'”
Juilliard At 100
Juilliard is the top arts school in America. A new documentary looks at the school as it turns 100. “What is perhaps most interesting about the documentary is the unflinching way it confronts the darker side of this famous place. Not that it isn’t ultimately celebratory, and rightly so. One comes away almost awed by the devotion and intensity with which the teachers, and the self-motivated students themselves, go about the business of making the best better, a process that goes on every day in the fortress-like building on the corner of Broadway and 65th Street. One has to wonder if an atmosphere like this, despite all the superb teachers and students and alumni, doesn’t breed a kind of hard-edged competitiveness that fails to serve all music or dance or theater equally well.”