“Atwood, 67, has written 11 novels. The Blind Assassin won her the Booker in 2005, her fourth nomination. She has published some 40 books as a poet, children’s writer and essayist. Many of her novels have become plays, from her first, The Edible Woman (1969), to her most famous, the postapocalyptic The Handmaid’s Tale, which Harold Pinter also adapted for a 1990 film and which even became an opera by the Danish composer Poul Ruders. Now Atwood’s first play will be seen from July 27, when her adaptation of her own The Penelopiad begins in Stratford. Can she succeed where Dickens and Eliot did not?”
Tag: 07.16.07
Ballerina Nina Vyroubova, 86
“Nina Vyroubova, a leading ballerina in postwar France who brought an unconventional blend of romantic temperament and elongated classical silhouette to the Paris Opera Ballet, to Roland Petit’s first company and other troupes, died on June 25 in Paris.”
The Resurgence Of Broadway Cast Albums
The increasingly important role of cast albums as marketing tools–both for musicals that are currently on the boards and those hoping for post-Broadway runs–spurred Kurt Deutsch to devise a new approach to financing Original Cast Recordings, which often cost between $350,000 and $400,000 to produce.
Vinyl Rules!
“In a rare case of cheerful news for the record labels, the latest phenomenon in a notoriously fickle industry is one nobody dared predict: a vinyl revival. Latest figures show a big jump in vinyl sales in the first half of this year, confirming the anecdotal evidence from specialist shops throughout the UK.”
Why Have America’s Novelists Failed To Dissent?
“When it comes to the arena in which novelists can have the most impact – their art – this generation (with the notable exception of Gary Shteyngart and his Absurdistan) has been rather silent about the Bush years. What a difference 100 years makes. In one century, it’s a novelist calling a president to account; in the next, Americans have to turn to a former sportscaster to get a spoonful of hard wisdom. Granted, the US will never have the respect France has for its intellectuals. But it’s not as if American novelists have steered clear of the op-ed pages.”
Giant Dancing, In Extreme Slo-Mo
“There is something essentially postmodern, in the best sense, about ‘Slow Dancing.’ It is all about the transfiguration of the commonplace, to reapply a phrase made famous by the art critic Arthur Danto. Though there is nothing exactly common about a prima ballerina airborne in the midst of a jeté, nevertheless, an unmistakable transfiguration occurs when that same dancer is reduced to silence, slowed to an almost mortuary stillness, and blown up to the size of a colossus.”
Pilobolus, Inc.
Pilobolus has always been a different kind of dance company. But the group is making a new business model that’s finding commercial success. “The company has done commercial work for some time, but in the last year, that work has attracted considerably more attention. AdWeek named a commercial Pilobolus appeared in for the Hyundai Sante Fe the ‘best spot’ of the month in its October 2006 issue. The company also appeared at the Academy Awards, making shadows behind a screen that evoked various hit movies of the year.”
This Fall – Cable Is King
“The rise of cable is hardly a new story. The network audience share has been less than 50 percent for some time now, and much of that has to do with big improvement on the cable side. But superb content in the upper regions of your dial has not corresponded, exactly, with a decrease in quality network fare. That’s too simple. Until, possibly, this fall. Though a handful of upcoming freshman shows on the broadcast networks hold promise, there are intriguing options all over the cable landscape. The disparity hasn’t been this wide in years.”
Tenor Jerry Hadley Taken Off Life Support
“The 55-year-old singer shot himself with an air rifle last Tuesday at his Clinton Corners home, several miles outside Poughkeepsie, according to state police. State troopers found him unconscious on his bedroom floor and he was taken to St. Francis Hospital in Poughkeepsie.”
Harry Takes In $333 Million Worldwide
“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix conjured up $333 million at global box offices in its initial release, marking the best worldwide debut ever for the British boy wizard, according to final studio figures on Monday.”