As Andrew Litton prepares to depart the Dallas Symphony (see more on this in ArtsJournal’s People section,) speculation is rampant concerning whom the orchestra will turn to as its next music director. On the shortlist: Andrew Davis, Stephane Deneve, and Philippe Jordan, among others.
Tag: 05.07.06
Litton’s Legacy
This month, Andrew Litton will conduct his final concerts as music director of the Dallas Symphony. His 12-year tenure with the orchestra has been rocky at times, and in recent years he has clashed openly with local critics and the DSO’s president, but he is also credited with keeping the orchestra in the recording business at a time when most other American ensembles couldn’t buy a record deal. The DSO has also had a lot of turnover in the last decade, and “Litton has hired a third of the DSO’s current roster of musicians. That may be his greatest achievement.”
Curtain Falls On The Guthrie
This weekend marks the final performances at Minneapolis’s famous Guthrie Theater, as the company prepares to move to a gigantic new complex on the city’s riverfront. The old theater, which was built in 1962 and quickly became the centerpiece of the Twin Cities’ cultural scene, will be demolished as soon as this summer, making Sunday’s final performance as much a wake as a celebration.
Did Chicago Theatre Miss The Boat On Ruhl?
“When people make lists of prominent, Chicago-spawned writers, the name Sarah Ruhl doesn’t typically appear. Even though it should… At the age of just 32, Ruhl already has become a leading American playwright — nationally known and widely admired for her ability to mix a warm, empathetic kind of realism with flights of post-modern fancy. She has rabid fans — especially among women — who happen to have some of the most powerful jobs in the American theater.” But success doesn’t come easy in Chicago, and Ruhl didn’t have much luck getting work in her hometown, to the extent that she eventually moved away. And became a star.
NJ Symphony Short On Money, Still Can’t Find A Boss
“The New Jersey Symphony Orchestra is not yet halfway toward its 18-month goal of raising $1 million from new donors by June 30 to meet a dollar-for-dollar challenge grant from the Prudential Foundation. As of this week, the orchestra had collected $423,751 from 587 new individual and corporate donors.” No one knows whether Prudential would be willing to extend the deadline. “In more gloomy news, the orchestra, which has been searching for [former executive director Simon] Woods’ replacement for almost a year, has not interviewed a single candidate for CEO since December.”
The Talented (And Superficial?) Mr. Litton
“No American conductor of his generation is more formidably gifted [than Andrew Litton.] He’s a quick study with a score, and he has a keen ear. He’s a skilled and attentive accompanist. And no conductor anywhere speaks more naturally, more engagingly, with audiences. But facility may also be Mr. Litton’s weakness. One musician has likened him to a certain kind of pianist who can sight-read any score, note perfectly, but rarely goes much beneath the surface. The DSO’s most eloquent and finely detailed performances have tended to come from other conductors. Criticisms of superficiality have dogged Mr. Litton’s career, and not only in Dallas.”
An Opera Rises From The Rubble
New Orleans Opera is back on the stage, and amazingly, much of the audience seems to be back, too. But the challenges aren’t over for the company, as it deals with its too-small new home, the loss of many members of its pit orchestra to other ensembles around the country, and countless other logistical and musical issues that serve as a constant reminder of the devastation wrought by Katrina. “Many opera-goers and corporate sponsors who left the city haven’t returned yet either. With the city’s more pressing needs, the opera has had to make a strong case to get philanthropic dollars.”
A Festival Comes Of Age, Then Falters
Over the past decade, the Miami International Piano Festival has built itself up into quite the event. Founded by teacher Giselle Brodsky, the fest has recently begun sponsoring well-attended concerts in South Florida throughout the year. “Yet if outwardly the Miami International Piano Festival appears in hale health, for many observers, Brodsky’s organization has suffered from severe growing pains, manifested by a crucial loss of its bearings and wavering sense of mission.”