“I prefer to paint; I don’t have to translate anything. I don’t have to know if it is good or bad while I am working. I don’t want to think when I am working. Even if I am making a movie, I get to a point where I throw the script away. I know what I want people to do and ultimately it is a spontaneous kind of activity.”
Tag: 07.06.11
It’s-Not-Dead-Yet Dept.: Ham Radio Hangs On
Ham radio “should be long since dead. It should have been replaced by the rise of the Internet or Facebook. … But in towns across the country, hundreds of groups … have soldiered on … And far from being made obsolete by the Web, hams have used it to create thousands of online message boards and specialty sites.”
Cuba’s Star Blogger, A Modern-Day Refusenik
Yoani Sanchez’s “sketches of daily life in Cuba – a dreary, enervating routine of food shortages, transportation troubles and narrowed opportunity” – have earned her an admiring following abroad and the enmity of the Castro government. She is barred from leaving the island; her blog posts are smuggled out on flash drives.
Building Better Funerals
“Trained celebrants – often with backgrounds in psychology, social work, acting and other professions that emphasize writing or public speaking – are helping families create personalized ceremonies to honor loved ones who’ve passed on.”
Those Artist Scandals – Turns Out They’re Good For The Box Office
So what is the take home message here? Racism, inappropriate outbursts, and sexual misconduct lead to a more successful career? Hopefully not, but the data clearly displays that the publicity surrounding these events helped to increase ticket values.
Dancing With Cartoonist Jules Feiffer
“Anyone who has ever wondered if modern dance would be better off with supertitles will giggle over a dancer who backs up her every random and extravagant move with a whole paragraph of exposition. And anyone else–who knows how little dance and talk have in common–will appreciate the goofy aplomb with which the Dancer exposes the art form’s naïve hopes and pretensions.”
Demand Pricing For Tickets Catches On In California
“Taking its cue from the airline industry, more arts groups are adopting dynamic pricing, in which the cost of a theater or concert ticket escalates for hot-selling shows, while slack demand brings bargains. The concept … has arrived in a big way on the L.A. scene with its adoption by Center Theatre Group.”
New York City Opera Finally Sets 2011-21 Plans
“Mozart’s Così Fan Tutte at John Jay College. Verdi’s Traviata at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. A Telemann opera at the Museo del Barrio. … [Plus] staged performances of two works in February: a piece of 19th-century standard repertory and a 21st-century opera, presumably the previously announced Prima Donna by the singer and songwriter Rufus Wainwright.”
ABT To Help Dedicate Oman’s New Opera House
“American Ballet Theatre will travel to Oman this fall to perform in the inaugural season of the Royal Opera House Muscat, the company will announce Wednesday. ABT’s performances will be the first by an American arts organization at the new venue, the first of its kind in the Islamic nation.”
Royal Danish Ballet Dancers Provide Rehab For Denmark’s Afghanistan Veterans
“At first glance, ballerinas and soldiers may not seem to have much in common. But an experimental program bringing together dancers and injured veterans of the war in Afghanistan is showing that, when it comes to determination and physical endurance, there are distinct similarities.”