A ballet commemorating the tenth anniversary of the murder of fashion icon Gianni Versace is set to premiere in Milan. “Thanks Gianni, With Love has been put together by French choreographer Maurice Bejart, for whom Versace designed many stage costumes. About 1,500 guests, including Versace’s favourite models, are due to attend the show at the La Scala opera house.”
Tag: 07.15.07
Is Classical Guitar Finally Ready For Its Closeup?
Guitar is probably the least celebrated of all classical instruments – it needs amplification to be heard over an orchestra, it has a limited repertoire, and it’s devilishly hard to play when you’re not simply strumming chords. “But all that may be changing. A new generation of classical guitarists has emerged over the past decade, raising performance standards and pushing the instrument into new realms. These players have embraced the instrument’s eclectic roots, while writing innovative works and digging up new repertoire.”
Conlon On The Rise
Conductor James Conlon took his time establishing his career in Europe before coming home to America, but now that he’s become one of the US’s most sought after conductors, he’s quickly built a reputation as a podium boss unafraid of taking chances. As he takes the reins at LA Opera, he anticipates building on that reputation.
Plenty of Cash, But Who Should Be Getting It?
Louisville’s 50-year-old Fund for the Arts set a record this year, raising $8 million to be divvied up between the area’s cultural organizations. For a city Louisville’s size, that’s no chump change. But “significant as the fund is, it’s by no means innocuous. Every few years, it seems, controversy arises about whether the fund is pursuing the proper goals and bolstering the proper groups.”