“Not long ago, people said that globalization and the revolution in communications technology would bring us all together. But the opposite is true. People are taking advantage of freedom and technology to create new groups and cultural zones. Old national identities and behavior patterns are proving surprisingly durable. People are moving into self-segregating communities with people like themselves, and building invisible and sometimes visible barriers to keep strangers out.”
Tag: 08.11.05
Dreamworks Eats Shrek Losses
Dreamworks Animation has posted a lost because of high DVD returns of its hit movie Shrek 2. “Some analysts have blamed the fall in sales reflects a shift in the DVD market. While overall sales have risen, studios are releasing more titles which are now having to compete for shelf space in stores. As a result, instead of reducing the price of films in sales, shops are now quicker to return unsold goods to the studios.”
After A Criticism… A Fight (And A Public One At That)
“Michael John LaChiusa, who has written serious-minded musicals like “Marie Christine” and “The Wild Party,” committed what many in the industry consider an unforgivable breach: he published a scathing attack on many of his colleagues in the August issue of Opera News. The article, titled “The Great, Gray Way” began by declaring, “The American Musical is dead,” and went on to assail a large percentage of the musicals that have played Broadway in the past few seasons, and their creators. That might have been that, had not Marc Shaiman’s wildly popular show, “Hairspray,” come in for particularly stinging criticism…”
Saratoga’s Makeover
The Saratoga Performing Arts Center is reinventing after a tough year. “Many summer venues are reporting challenges this year. Attendance for the Philadelphia Orchestra’s recent run of concerts at the Mann Center was down a whopping 17.5 percent, despite decent weather and more populist programming. That decline is on top of last year’s 9 percent downturn from the previous year. But the speed and seriousness of the unfolding crises in Saratoga has leaders seeking major changes in the way the center operates. They say that everything from ticket prices to the mix of programming is up for reconsideration.”
Artistic Liability – My Latte’s Not Hot Enough!
So Sony lost a lawsuit for falsely luring people to movies. What’s next, asks Steven Winn. Prepare for an onslaught of cases brought by audiences unhappy with their artistic experiences. Say, San Francisco Opera patrons suing because the supertitles have been moved. “And what’s going on with the Irish coffee? Is that real whipped cream in those cans or what?”
Security Measures Discourage Crowds In Italy
Added security at Italian cultural sites is causing higher admission fees and longer waits to get in. “At the Uffizi, the first site where security was tightened after the deadly London bombings on July 7, the new measures are prompting crowds to turn away. The thousands who brave long lines and summer heat to glimpse Botticelli’s Birth of Venus have found the wait is getting longer because of metal detectors and a limit of 780 visitors allowed inside at a time. Ticket sales fell by 11 percent at the Uffizi in July, but rose by 1 percent at all of Florence’s museums combined.”
London Art Sales Beat New York
London has pulled aheaad of New York in art sales. “London racked up a 38.2-per-cent share (or $854 million)of the $2.23-billion of fine art sold by Sotheby’s Holdings Inc., Christie’s International and other houses between Jan. 1 and July 18, Artprice said in an e-mailed report. New York sales in the period totalled $833-million or 37.3 per cent of the total, which rose 10.2 per cent from a year earlier, it said.”
Test Of Freedom: Museum Told To Prove Its Allegiance
In an apparent concession to some Sept. 11 victims’ relatives who said that the World Trade Center Cultural Center could disrespect the dead and America, John Whitehead, director of the redevlopment effort, gave the International Freedom Center until Sept. 23 to work with family members and produce specific plans for its museum. If the plans do not satisfy the LMDC, he said, ‘we will find another use or tenant consistent with our objectives for that space’.”
Hyperion Struggles To Stay Alive
The recording label recently lost a lawsuit that has put the company on the verge of bankruptcy. “Hyperion generates intense affection among classical listeners the world over for its esoteric mix of lesser works by great composers and discoveries by minnows. An American fan offered to buy all of its 1,100 recordings for Hyperion to deposit in countries that lack access to western culture. Perry is negotiating a first delivery to the Baghdad School of Music and Ballet, with help from local fixers and the British Embassy. He will do whatever it takes to put the company on its feet again after a catastrophe that would have driven most family businesses to bankruptcy.”
Adams Goes Atomic
John Adams previews his new opera about the atomic bomb. “Adams’s third opera, which has been in the making for five years, is his first return to the medium 14 years after achieving worldwide notoriety with two provocative and now seminal works, Nixon in China and The Death of Klinghoffer. According to Ms. Rosenberg, it took a bit of persuading to lure Adams, whom she described as ‘the greatest composer alive today,’ back to the world of opera. But ultimately the saga of the bomb’s conflicted inventor J. Robert Oppenheimer, which Rosenberg proposed to Adams, proved too operatic to turn down. Sellars described recently declassified government documents, incorporated into the libretto, which might fundamentally change everyone’s perception of this world-changing event.”