In the wake of soprano Ana María Martínez’s notorious fall into the orchestra pit during Rusalka at Glyndebourne last weekend, Charlotte Higgins observes that “life on the operatic stage is increasingly perilous. No longer required simply to stand in the centre of the stage and exercise their lungs, opera singers are now expected to be multitalented actors, dancers, even acrobats; and to negotiate more and more elaborate sets for the entertainment of the audience.”
Tag: 08.24.09
A Publisher Explains Why The Kindle Isn’t A Threat
“E-books are about 10 years old. Their growth has been rapid, but they’re still evolving. It’s not yet totally clear, for example, what the Kindle wants to be when it grows up. … The Kindle will get better. When it does, perhaps it will make sense for our titles to be available in the Kindle library for use on it. Whether that happens or not, I see no reason to be frightened of the device.”
Artistic And Executive Directors Are Teammates, Not Rivals
Michael Kaiser: “I always compare the relationship between these two staff heads to that between a naughty child (artistic director) and an angry parent (executive director). The naughty child is always asking for ‘More, more, more!’ and the angry parent says ‘No! No! No! We can’t afford it.’ The lack of trust that develops between the two people who are meant to act as a team is ineffective at best and crippling at worst.”
B’way Bye Bye Birdie Drops ‘Gang Rape-y’ Dance Sequence
“According to Gina Gershon, who stars as Rose in the upcoming revival, the production has said bye bye to a frisky dance sequence that has been in the show since its debut in 1960. … So why is it too hot to handle in 2009? Gershon told The News’ theater critic Joe Dziemianowicz, ‘It seemed a little too gang rape-y.'”
‘Computers Can Crunch Numbers, But Can They Crunch Feelings?’
“The rise of blogs and social networks has fueled a bull market in personal opinion: reviews, ratings, recommendations and other forms of online expression. … An emerging field known as sentiment analysis is taking shape around one of the computer world’s unexplored frontiers: translating the vagaries of human emotion into hard data.”
Pittsburgh Opera Offers $10 Tickets
“The Pittsburgh Opera on Monday said it has reduced its lowest ticket price 37.5 percent to $10 for the 2009-2010 season and is keeping other tickets at last season’s prices.”
Parsing The President’s Vacation Reading List
“The Obama selection is not overtly controversial. In 2006, Bush’s list included The Great Influenza, about the 1918 flu. If Obama were reading that today while his White House was issuing a new report about the H1N1 virus, he’d start a national panic. But his list is also clearly not poll-tested. … [A]ll of Obama’s authors are white men. The subject of the longest book, John Adams, is a dead white male.”
If Only There’d Been Amazon Reviewers In Sophocles’ Time
“This is what makes citizen reviewers such a welcome addition to the body politic: Their courageous sniping from behind the bushes, emulating Ethan Allen and the Swamp Fox back in 1776, reaffirms that democracy functions best when you fire your musket and then run away. … I cannot help wondering what a typical Amazon.com review might have looked like had the Internet existed centuries ago….”
Movie Chains Yank Paid Listings From Newspapers
“The top two U.S. chains, Regal Entertainment Group and AMC Entertainment Inc., have begun in recent months to reduce or eliminate the small-type listings showing the start times for movies at individual theaters. Theaters typically must pay newspapers to print that information. … [T]he theater chains are instead directing consumers to their Internet sites or third-party sites, like Fandango, Moviefone or Flixster….”
Judge Tosses Jewelry Lawsuit Vs. Gehry
“A lawsuit against Frank O. Gehry over an alleged agreement related to the proceeds from sales of jewelry designed by the famed architect was dismissed Monday by a Los Angeles judge. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Jane L. Johnson granted a motion by Gehry’s lawyers to throw out the case on grounds that Fred Nicholas, who helped bring the suit, never demonstrated that such an agreement was in place. … Gehry and Nicholas, both 80, had been friends for about half their lives.”