“Without subsidies or quotas, what’s the incentive for theatres to show an unknown Canadian film instead of a Hollywood movie with more obvious box office potential? They’ll say ‘We can play a blockbuster with no advertising, no work, do nothing and everyone will come, or we can take your stupid Canadian movie and no one’s going to come.’ “
Tag: 02.08.08
Hairspray Cleans Up with Olivier Nominations
West End hit Hairspray has received a record 11 nominations at the Laurence Olivier Awards.
Is The Art Market Immune From The Recession?
The financial markets ae in turmoil. But “most areas of the market seem to be immune from the anxieties that have been taking hold of the outside world.”
All The World’s Music For $5 – Is It Legal?
“Mobile companies would bundle the cost into the price of a phone or coverage plan, and users would then gain free streaming access to the labels’ entire catalogue. This new revenue, multiplied across most of the world’s mobile phones, would more than make up for sinking record sales.” But the US Justice Department is looking into whether it’s legal…
That Man Onstage Is Naked! (Giggle)
The tabloids have loads of fun writing about onstage nudity. “At first glance, it seems remarkable that any newspaper so rammed full of pictures of assorted near-naked models, pop stars and Z-list ‘celebs’ can still manage to generate any interest in an undressed actor. In fact, quite the reverse is true: this sort of coverage seeks to bring down to the level of smut something which is not remotely smutty….”
British Publisher Peddles Feminism, Softly
“Once dismissed for their bourgeois domesticity, the 20th-century female writers championed by Persephone (Books) are now enjoying stealth success. … Many of the books that Persephone has rediscovered are gentle domestic tales written by largely middle- and upper-class white women; it has also reprinted long-lost cookery books and sells its own branded aprons.”
Two Picassos Stolen In Switzerland
“Two Picasso paintings worth millions of pounds have been stolen from an art gallery in Switzerland, police have revealed. The oil paintings were stolen on Wednesday evening after an exhibition of the artist’s work in the town of Pfaeffikon, near Zurich, had closed. Tête de Cheval (Head of Horse) and Verre et Pichet (Glass and Pitcher), were on loan from the Sprengel museum in Germany to the Seedamm-Kulturzentrum.”
Mom, Can We Go To The Movies To See The Hockey Game?
“The movie theatre business isn’t so much about movies any more. Sure, what’s up on the screen is still key to getting your bum in the seat. But how much you spent on that snack in your hand is now crucially important, as are the advertisements you watch before the show, and the loyalty card that you used to pay for tickets. And it may not even be a movie you’re watching.”
To Be Understood By History, Write Neatly
The ferocious disagreements over transcriptions of Robert Frost’s diaries have made headlines lately, but the problem is larger than any single writer. “For dead writers, diary pages are the best evidence scholars have of the ways their minds worked–their first thoughts on a poem or story, their innermost ambitions and fears as human beings. No one wants to get that wrong.”
In Chicago, February Isn’t The Only Time For Black Plays
On theatre schedules across the country, February — a.k.a. Black History Month — is often the automatic, and only, slot for black plays. Not so in Chicago. “The biggest recent change seems to be that traditional theater companies are reaching out to African-American audiences, not only by producing black-themed plays and stories, but also by casting blacks in prominent roles, in the hopes that if you cast them, they will come.”