Tag: 07.28.07

The Purists Are Not Going To Like This

Your average 20-something may not be able to tell you who Sergei Prokofiev was, but if Gabriel Prokofiev, the grandson of the composer and the man behind a London label called Nonclassical, has anything to say about it, they’ll know soon enough. Prokofiev “is bucking the downward trend by returning classical music to its populist roots. Which means moody sleeve designs instead of laborious liner notes and live events where you can get pissed and talk over the crap bits, trading ideas – as Mozart once borrowed from folk – with dance music. From anyone else, this… might look contrived, but Prokofiev is a uniquely credible broker.”

Hollywood Tries Some Viral Marketing

So, there’s this movie. You might have seen the trailer – there’s a party, somebody named Rob, and then the Statue of Liberty’s head comes flying down the street while hysterical New Yorkers scream and run for cover. It’s called… actually, it’s not called anything yet, and it doesn’t star anyone you’re likely to have heard of, and they’re all sworn to secrecy about the content of the movie. So why are so many people talking about it?

On A Mission From God (And Hollywood)

Hollywood may be a favorite target of many conservative Christians, but that hasn’t stopped the movie industry from openly soliciting the support of pastors and preachers across the country for certain films. You might expect this type of targeted marketing for, say, The Passion of the Christ, but honestly, what are religious folk doing endorsing Nacho Libre and Spider-Man?

It Pays The Bills, So What’s The Problem?

Orchestras across North America have been mounting concerts featuring music from the Lord of the Rings movies, and others based on the scores composed for various fantasy-genre video games. Purists may hate such crossover dreck, but they don’t have to attend, and Andrew Adler says that there’s nothing inherently wrong with such middlebrow outreach, so long as orchestras aren’t fooling themselves into thinking that the sci-fi nerds and gaming geeks that turn out for such shows will be similarly tempted by a Mahler symphony.

Are Brits The New Canucks On American TV?

Time was when Canadians could look at the fall lineups of American TV networks and smugly note that a shockingly high percentage of the actors and actresses involved were born north of the border. “Every year, there are at least a dozen names on that list – this one no exception, with another 15 additions. But there’s a surprising new element to this year’s tally: a sudden proliferation of British actors with flawlessly faked accents usurping our traditional role as faux-Americans.”

Bringing A Revisionist Epic To The Stage

It took a cast of 13 women and a production team spread across two continents to bring The Penelopiad, Margaret Atwood’s 2005 reimagining of The Odyssey, to life on the stage. One of the actresses has been keeping a blog of the experience, and Atwood herself has been stunned by the cooperative spirit and commitment of those involved.

Oakland Ballet (And Its Founder) Make A Comeback

“Forty-two years after founding the Oakland Ballet, 20 years after raising it to unlikely international repute, nine years after suddenly retiring, and seven years after watching his beloved creation begin a steady slide toward death, Ronn Guidi is bringing the Oakland Ballet back… The new Oakland Ballet Company will give its inaugural performance at the Paramount Theatre on Oct. 20.”

Needed: An Epitaph For The Epilogue

Could we stop with the epilogues already? Michael Schaffer says that far too many authors are tacking on pedestrian glimpses into the future of their characters that diminish the overall value of their manuscript. “The allure of the epilogue is undeniably strong, powered by the fragrant aroma of authorial omniscience and the human desire for closure… [But] nothing is sillier or more gratuitous than a glimpse into the future of people who never existed in the first place.”

The Coopting Of ComicCon

In a few short years, the annual convention known as ComicCon has gone from an obscure (if popular) gathering point for sci-fi nerds to one of Hollywood’s most important annual events. In fact, ComicCon veterans have well noted “an expanding international presence, a growing tendency of movie news to drown out that of the comics industry and an increasing social frenzy.”