The Bolshoi is in the midst of a three-year £400 million renovation which has closed the theatre. “The Bolshoi maintains two and a half orchestras and a corps de ballet twice the size of the Royal Ballet’s, allowing the company to perform in two places at once.” Thus, the Bolshoi’s constituencies are almost continuously touring…
Tag: 07.23.06
The Latest Insult To Turkey
Bestselling Turkish novelist Elif Shafak is the latest to be charged by the Turkish government for “insulting Turkishness.” “Shafak joins a roster of more than 60 writers and journalists to be charged under Article 301 of the Turkish criminal code since its introduction last year. University professors, journalists and novelists such as Perihan Magden, Orhan Pamuk and now Shafak have been charged under legislation drawn so broadly as to criminalise a wide range of critical opinions. Writers not only face the prospect of a three-year jail term, but the prosecutions also lay them open to a campaign of intimidation and harassment waged by rightwing agitators.”
A Protest To Save Stonehenge
“English Heritage is particularly worried because Unesco, the United Nations education and cultural body, has warned it may remove the monument’s World Heritage status unless Britain tackles the serious problem of traffic passing right beside Stonehenge, which is one of the world’s richest reservoirs of Stone Age circles, henges and alignments.”
Building A Better SF Ballet (Now What?)
San Francisco Ballet is America’s oldest ballet company. “The company is no longer dismissed as ‘regional.’ [Director Helgi] Tomasson’s biggest challenge may be to define what this company, which for so long simply wanted to be better, wants to be now.”
Online Challenge – Hollywood V. The Web
“Some people say that the film industry has more to fear than just being late to the party. If the Net begins spawning films — and not simply helping to market or deliver them, as has happened to date — studios’ grip on the business of putting pictures on screens may be challenged. Their nightmare is a direct feed from moviemaker to audience.”
Lockdown – Extreme Copyright
“Not everyone seems to have noticed, but it’s clear we recently zipped past the ‘information economy’ and straight into the “copyright economy.” It’s no longer about access to information — everyone has access. Now it’s about ownership of the characters, stories, tunes, trademarks, software and other ephemera of our daily lives. Not surprisingly, thanks to this little shift in the economy, a new sport has arisen in the land. It’s called ‘extreme copyright,’ and the people who play this game are the ones who have me worried.”
If You Want Financing For That Movie, Better Ask For $100 Million
Your movie cost $100 million-plus? I can fund that. But that $60 million movie? Not so much. “Filmmakers have been complaining for years that they can’t get studio support for midlevel movies — films with a budget between $25 million and $80 million. Although they have created indie divisions for small-budget films, the studios’ emphasis has turned to high-concept films, an increasing number of which have budgets that quickly top $100 million — and a handful more that double that figure.”
TV Critic: Why I Love My Old TV
What kind of TV does the Boston Globe TV critic have? “My TV is the size of a large throw pillow, and it’s as fat as last year’s Kirstie Alley. It protrudes from both the front and the back of its wooden table, and it refuses to blend in with the pictures on the walls. With a pair of chintzy, trebly stereo speakers popping like dormers from its plastic sides, my TV takes an equal-opportunity approach to the aural experience. That means it makes a Steven Spielberg or Ridley Scott movie sound as magical as, say, Brookline Access Television. For the record, I dug out my elusive tape measure and learned that my TV screen is but a mere 20 inches.”
Thames Views At Risk From Tate Expansion
“Adventurous plans to build a new huge extension – described as a cut-glass ziggurat – at the Tate Modern gallery in London will be unveiled this week to warm applause from large parts of the architectural world and some criticism from design experts. The Twentieth Century Society, which was consulted on the plans, said the stepped pyramid extension – to be shown for the first time on Tuesday – detracts from the architectural importance of the existing gallery and warns that it has ‘serious issues’ with the plan.”
Denver Museum Director Stays, Top Curator To Leave
“The Denver Art Museum’s collections and exhibitions are not the only thing in transition as the institution prepares for one of the monumental events in its history – the Oct. 7 opening of its $90.5 million addition. At least two major staff changes are expected to coincide with the Hamilton Building’s inauguration, none more significant than the recently delayed retirement of director Lewis Sharp, one of Denver’s most prominent arts leaders… Dianne Vanderlip, curator of modern and contemporary art, [also] revealed she is leaving her position in January.”