A new DVD – one that will destroy itself in 48 hours, is being tested. This DVD, known as EZ-D to its makers, can be “played for 48 hours after being removed from its cover. It will then self-destruct—not in flames, its inventors hasten to add, but because contact with the air eventually renders its surface opaque, making it impossible for the laser in a disc player to read the data beneath. The idea is to revamp the video-rental market. At the moment, if you want to hire a movie for a couple of days you have to pay $5 or so for a videotape or DVD that may well be a bit scratched by previous use, and then go to all the hassle of returning it to the shop when you have finished with it. And you have to watch it soon after you have hired it, or risk paying a fine. None of this, except the 48-hour viewing period, applies to an EZ-D. It will stay in pristine condition in its case for a year, and once it has been watched—as many times as you like within the two-day window—it can be thrown away.”
Tag: 07.11.03
Remaking London’s National Theatre
Fresh into the job as director of London’s National Theatre, Nicholas Hytner has changed the way critics think about the institution. “The season has been risky, adventurous, yet critically acclaimed and popular. Hytner has the near-superstitious look of one who can’t quite believe it is happening. ‘All the shows that have opened so far are full at the box office. We can’t do any better. It is all that I could have hoped for. We can only go downhill from here’.”
Zeffirelli – An Energetic 80
“Reports of director Franco Zeffirelli’s decline – physical, artistic and mental – have been exaggerated. He may be 80, and suffering balance problems – the result of an inner-ear ailment, contracted after a botched hip operation – but in the past six months alone, he has completed a film about Maria Callas, staged opera productions in Italy and the US, and had a huge success with Luigi Pirandello’s Absolutely! (perhaps) in London. He is now back at Covent Garden, for the first time in nearly 40 years, to direct Pagliacci.”
Broad Gift Of $60 Million To LA Museum
Philanthropist and art collector Eli Broad has given the Los Angeles County Museum of Art $60 million to build a new wing for art since 1945. “The cash gift, the largest in the museum’s history, will cover ‘every penny’ of a $50-million wing that will be named after Mr Broad and designed by an architect of his choosing, subject to board approval. Details are yet to be ironed out, but the rough outlines call for a 70,000-square-foot structure facing Wilshire Boulevard and bridging the gap between LACMA’s main campus and its under-developed annexe known as LACMA West.”
Three Gorges Dam Floods Important Archaeological Sites
“Nearly 1200 sites of historical and archaeological importance along the Yangtze River are now underwater as the first stage of China’s massively ambitious Three Gorges Dam hydro-electric project reached completion on schedule. On 1 June the waters began rising in the huge 375 miles long reservoir created by the 185 metre high and two kilometre wide dam. The archaeological findings have established that the Three Gorges region was one of the main meeting places between East and West in ancient China…”
The Squeeze On KQED
San Francisco public broadcaster KQED has 200,000 members and counts itself one of America’s more popular public stations. But corporate contributions have been down and the station has to reduce its budget by 10 percent – likely forcing some layoffs. “In 2003, corporate donations are expected to fall by as much as 30 percent. The station is expecting to receive about $6.5 million to $7 million, compared with about $9 million donated in 2002. At the same time, dues to PBS and NPR, which supply much of KQED’s programming, have increased and the station is still working to comply with federal regulation that forced a conversion to digital broadcasting.”
Working To Build California’s First Full-Time Children’s Theatre
A group of community leaders in Beverly Hills are trying to raise $30 million to build the state’s first full-time professional children’s theatre. “The move comes at a critical time for arts education as budgets shrink for public-school programs and computers and television claim a substantial share of kids’ leisure time. At the same time, children’s theater, traditionally the stepchild of the professional stage, is maturing to new levels of excellence as evidenced by last month’s Tony nod to the wunderkind of the genre, the Minneapolis-based Children’s Theatre Company, the first such troupe to win the award.”
Toronto Museum Cuts Staff, Programs While Working On Gehry Expansion
Even as Toronto’s Art Gallery of Ontario works on an ambitious expansion with architect Frank Gehry, the museum is cutting staff and programming. The museum’s workers are protesting. “Last week, the AGO announced the impending layoff of 29 workers, along with cuts to several programs including the cancellation of guided tours for school groups. The moves were a result of a 25% reduction in admission revenue projections for the current fiscal year due to larger economic woes, the AGO said. In particular, a SARS-related tourism decline has hurt the gallery.”
The Royal Winnipeg’s Rocky Path
It’s been a difficult few years for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. The company has gone through four managers in the past decade, and its financial fortunes have been shaky. There have also been questions about the RWB’s artistic future as it made difficult transitions from longtime artistic director Arnold Spohr..
US Recovers Stolen Iraqi Art
U.S. forces in Iraq say they have seized 5,000-year-old artifacts from a suspected smuggler and recovered 12 pieces stolen from a Baghdad museum.