“Everybody on Broadway’s been complaining about how boring and predictable this year’s Tony Awards are going to be. And yet, if you look closely at your Shubert Alley tea leaves, you can discern the makings of an upset or two.”
Tag: 06.11.08
Smoking For The Arts
Nearly a million dollars from Cleveland’s new cigarette tax for the arts will be distributed to 54 area cultural groups this year, officials say. “Cigarette buyers in Cuyahoga County will help pay for a summer arts program for 1,000 young people in neighborhood parks as well as outdoor concerts in University Circle.”
Quantity Over Quality When The List Is On The Line
When a bestselling author becomes a bestselling brand, does the quality of his/her work inevitably suffer as a result? “Publishers are asking ever more of their writers to get on to the bestseller lists, [and] as genre readers, we’re unfortunately complicit in this.”
Is Beijing’s Boom Creating An Identity Problem?
Beijing is growing at a dizzying pace, and while progress is presumably to be celebrated as a concept, some are asking whether architectural identity is being sacrificed in the name of speedy modernization. “Are we in danger of replacing one form of cultural imperialism with another?”
Arguing With The Critics
Last week, a London art critic panned a high-profile Klimt show at Tate Liverpool, and the museum’s director isn’t taking the shot lying down. “It is disappointing when a show’s gift shop receives more coverage than the show itself… What counts is the ambition and quality of the exhibition.”
UK Artist Albert Herbert Dies
“Albert Herbert, who has died aged 82, was probably the greatest of contemporary religious artists. [He] was a maverick, liked but seldom taken seriously by art establishments… His subject matter was looked upon with suspicion by those holding the public art purse-strings, and there is no Albert Herbert in the Tate.”
Drunk Driver Who Killed OR Musicians Found Guilty
“A Salem woman who drove her car with a blood alcohol level three times the legal limit was convicted Tuesday on two counts of first-degree manslaughter, assault and drunken driving for a collision that killed two Eugene Symphony musicians and injured a third in February 2007.”
From Worse To Just Bad In Durham
“Arts supporters [in North Carolina’s Triangle region) won major victories Monday night when the Durham City Council restored funding that had been cut in its preliminary 2008-09 budget… Nonetheless, several venerable arts and culture organizations that the city has long funded [will] still suffer cuts. Most organizations will see a 30 percent drop in funding.”
TSO Gets $3.5m To Endow Top Chair
The Toronto Symphony has received a CAN$3.5m gift to endow its concertmaster chair, shortly to be filled by a new violinist. It is hoped that the endowment, which will allow the concertmaster to be paid a higher salary than is currently offered, will help attract more top candidates for the job.
Classic Kids’ Characters Get Facelifts
“An unusually large number of classic characters for children are being freshened up and reintroduced — on store shelves, on the Internet and on television screens — as their corporate owners try to cater to parents’ nostalgia and children’s YouTube-era sensibilities.”