“The Sudanese author, who had long been pushed as a candidate for the Nobel prize by Sudanese literary groups, was known for his depictions of east-west culture collisions. His 1966 masterpiece The Season of Migration to the North [was] voted one of the 100 best works of fiction in 2002… [and] was declared to be the most important Arabic novel of the 20th Century by the Damascus-based Arab Literary Academy in 2001.”
Tag: 02.19.09
The World’s Oldest Performing Tenor
Vilho Kekkonen isn’t the world’s oldest living tenor (Hugues Cuénod is still with us at age 106), But, at age 100, the former church musician, opera chorister and character still sings in public at Christmas and Midsummer. And he remembers how singing Tchaikovsky saved his life during the 1939 war between Finland and the Soviet Union.
Public TV Finding Fundraising Tougher
“Stations across the country are finding fewer dollars in their tote bags as governments trim costs, corporations and foundations pull back on sponsoring programs or give one-time gifts, and individuals examine which expenses they’ll shed.”
Simon & Shuster Reports Sales Decline For 2008
Simon & Schuster reported a sales decline for 2008, with publishing revenues down 3%, to $857.7 million, from $886.1 million in 2007. Digital sales jumped by more than 400%, but still accounted for less than 1% of total revenue last year.
UK Actors Union Tries For Higher Minimum Pay Outside West End
“Equity has entered negotiations with theatre managers and producers in a bid to secure an improved minimum weekly wage of £400 for all performers and stage managers working outside the West End.”
A Bladder Challenge At L.A. Opera’s Das Rheingold
L.A. Opera’s “Das Rheingold” will run two hours and 45 minutes, no intermission. “And much of the action takes place in and around the Rhine River — well, that’s a lot of water imagery, given the circumstances. Do we need to spell it out? Applause isn’t the only thing you’ll have to hold until the end.”
$500M In Tax Credits Aim To Make Calif. Film-Friendly
“After years of watching [film] production lured away by government incentives, California’s gotten into the game by approving a five-year $500 million tax credit program. … California’s program, which goes into effect July 1 with a cap of $100 million annually, will likely strike at the heart of the New York production industry.”
In WiFi-Free Oscars Press Room, Internet Service Is $500
“There is wireless internet service available in most any upper Egyptian coffeehouse for a handful of piasters. In Turkey, I paid the equivalent of a buck for an hour of Internet service in a dusty Anatolian town near a bunch of Greek ruins. … But in the middle of the busiest part of the most industrialized city in this state, it still costs $500 for the use of a high-speed phone line for four hours to cover that lumbering old two-toed sloth, the Academy Awards.”
Newsflash!: Stephen Sondheim Shows Understanding Toward Critics
“If I were a journalist and had to go see every show and write about it, I’d quit in two seconds. I can go to a show, and then go home and not have to talk about it or think about it. You guys have to write about it. And if you disliked it or felt baffled, that’s torture. Your only resort is to be sarcastic and have fun at the show’s expense.”
Wagner’s Ring Cycle: Opera’s Ultimate (Fundraising) Challenge
“Los Angeles Opera’s production of The Ring represents another kind of monetary epic – a fight to come up with as much as $32 million in the midst of a recession that has severely affected donations, the lifeblood of high culture.” The company is still $8 million short of its fundraising goal for the cycle.