Tag: 05.20.07

Lock Down That Idea!

Mark Halprin argues a case for a kind of infinite copyright. “Congress is free to extend at will the term of copyright. It last did so in 1998, and should do so again, as far as it can throw. Would it not be just and fair for those who try to extract a living from the uncertain arts of writing and composing to be freed from a form of confiscation not visited upon anyone else?”

Amo, Amas, Amat: For Amateurs, It’s All About Love

“A couple of centuries ago, to call a classical musician an amateur was to pay him or her a compliment. In present-day usage, an amateur is a dilettante who dabbles in the arts without the necessary skills or understanding. But the term dilettante has itself been demoted from its original meaning of a person who delights in the arts. How many ‘professional’ musicians truly delight in the music they are paid to produce?”

Misogyny, Or Just The Usual Critical Dust-Up?

Susannah Clapp says that the question of whether the old guard of British theatre critics are a pack of misogynist stick-in-the-muds, as National Theatre director Nicholas Hytner recently alleged, is somewhat beside the point. “This current spat won’t do the theatre, so often derided by non-theatrical columnists, any harm: there it is, discussed in pages usually given over to Lily Allen’s prom frocks. Still, it only touches on the real threats to the independence of critical opinion.”

An Aurora For The Ages?

American Ballet Theater is staging Sleeping Beauty for the third time in as many decades, and Apollinaire Scherr says that the presence of Russian ballerina extraordinaire Diana Vishneva alone could make the production a winner. “If anyone could get a leg to convey sincerity, fervor, charity, joy and valor, it is certainly Vishneva.”

Will LoTR Find New Life In London?

“It’s taken 10 years to produce, and at £12.5m, it’s the costliest musical ever to hit [London,] so The Lord of the Rings had better be good. And, oddly enough, it just might be,” despite universally horrible reviews and public indifference during the show’s aborted Toronto run last summer.

UK Going Book Crazy

“Literary festivals used to be humble gatherings of authors and fans. But now they are undergoing a boom, with new events opening and everyone from politicians to pop stars getting in on the act… While thousands will flock to the 450 music festivals in Britain this summer, contributing an estimated £500m to the economy, it seems there is a similar thirst for dub poets and multimedia memorials to literary greats.”

Is DIY Culture Devaluing Art?

With the internet making it ever easier to showcase yourself to a waiting public, culture and art are undeniably undergoing a transformation. “Years of paying your dues and trusting in the system are so yesterday… Everything seems to be a lot more democratic these days, and that’s good, right?” Well, no, not necessarily. Pricking the “expert” balloon might feel good, but the fact is that audiences aren’t qualified to pick Broadway leads, most self-produced rock songs are crap, and many performing arts just can’t even be attempted without years of training.

Cannes Still Loves Moore; Canada, Not So Much

Michael Moore is once again the toast of Cannes, where the European audiences have always enjoyed his blistering attacks on American government and corporations. Farah Nayeri says that Moore’s latest film, on America’s floundering health care system, has less ranting and more legitimate documentation than some of his past efforts. But Moore was confronted after his Cannes screening by Canadian journalists who say that his glowing portrayal of their country’s national health care system is flatly inaccurate.