Tag: 08.25.19

Eighty Years Ago, The Idea Of The Good Witch Entered Popular Culture

The Wizard of Oz‘s Glinda the Good Witch of the North was the first sorceress figure not to wear black, cackle, have a cartoonishly ugly face, or do evil — and so became the grandmother of Samantha Stevens (Bewitched), Sabrina, and Hermione Granger. Writer Pam Grossman makes the case that Glinda was much more than a “silly pain in the neck” (as Salman Rushdie had it) — and locates Glinda’s likely origin in L. Frank Baum’s mother-in-law. – The Atlantic

Composers Putting Listeners In Headphones: Innovation? Or Control-Freakiness? (Or Both?)

Headphones can enable an intimate listening experience even in a busy venue such as a train station. They can make up for the acoustic inadequacies of a room (or the outdoors), so that there’s no bad seat in the house. And “live processing sound allows composers and sound designers control over everything from volume and blend to reverberation and saturation.” – San Francisco Classical Voice

London Is Getting More Theatres, But Why?

Well, here’s why – it’s a numbers thing. “The authoritative Theatres Trust reckons there are currently 263 theatres in London. It’s about the same number as Tokyo, whereas Paris has around 350. New York tops the list with well over 400. Producers believe more tickets could be sold in London. But first they need more places to originate shows in and to transfer existing shows to.” – BBC

Growing Up Bauhaus

What did it mean to be the daughter of two people who profoundly shaped the look of the 20th century – and today? “My father stepped into my beige-carpeted room and said, ‘These old places sure do have a lot of molding.’ I commented, ‘It’s kind of sweet, isn’t it?’ He turned pale. ‘If you like molding, you are a fool and a failure.‘ The profound disappointment in his voice made the charge sting even more.” – Los Angeles Times

The Comic Play About Vaccinations (And Anti-Vaccine Parents)

Wait, what? “In the first act, the principal presides over a ‘Community Activated Conversation’ with parents (also known as a Facebook Live chat) to talk about an outbreak of mumps. The conversation does not go well. ‘We’re all threatened by your ANTI-SCIENCE DEATH CULT,’ one parent offers. ‘Do what you want,”’comes the reply, ‘just keep your POISON off my kids.'” – The New York Times

Skewering The Ultra-Rich While Getting The Details Of Their Mansions Right Is Next-Level Scouting

Not to mention the demands on the set dresser. No, really, this is how Succession works: “They decided it would be impractical to haul equipment and a crew to shoot in a hunting lodge near [Lake Placid], reversed course, and settled on shooting in the Otto Kahn mansion, nicknamed Oheka Castle, in Long Island. Carter drove out to take a look at Oheka in the dead of winter, and inspiration struck: ‘We’re like, This feels like Hungary, why don’t we pitch that it’s in Hungary?‘” – Vulture

The Irish Novelist Edna O’Brien Wants To Tell The Truth – And ‘Go Out’ Fighting

O’Brien’s new novel Girl is her 19th, and it’s different from the rest. The veteran writer is now 88, and she says it may be her last. Her first three novels, in the 1960s, “articulated what, until then, had remained relatively unspoken in staunchly Catholic Ireland: female sexual desire, active and acted upon.” – The Observer (UK)