Tag: 09.22.04

RSC’s Plans For Stratford Unveiled

The Royal Shakespeare Company has gone public with its revised plans for the historic Stratford theater it calls home, months after agreeing to renovate the structure rather than knock it down, as the RSC was originally hoping to do. The new design will incorporate a “thrust stage” which places the audience in the middle of the on-stage action, while maintaining crucial art deco elements of the room. The renovations will cost £100 million, and the RSC is planning to apply for significant governmental aid to assist with the project.

Boston’s Underperforming FilmFest

The Boston Film Festival wrapped up this past Sunday, and unless you live in New England, you probably missed it. So what makes festivals in Toronto and New York such a big deal, while other cities struggle for recognition? “What the BFF lacks is a distinct programming sensibility, which is a quality that’s impossible to define yet unmistakable when you’ve got it. A well-curated film festival creates excitement and the feeling you’re getting early access to the movies that matter… Without such a sensibility, you have a group of movies with no collective momentum, and that, year in and year out, is what the Boston Film Festival offers.”

Imagine If They’d Shown Both Breasts

CBS has been fined a record $550,000 by the Federal Communications Commission for its 2-second airing of pop singer Janet Jackson’s right breast during the Super Bowl halftime show last January. The incident touched off months of shrill debate over broadcasting decency standards, and led directly to an FCC crackdown and an increase in the maximum allowable fines for such offenses.

Post vs. McGruder, Round 2

The Washington Post has pulled a week’s worth of installments of Aaron McGruder’s controversial comic strip, The Boondocks, and forbidden one of its editors from linking to the strips in an online forum. The strips in question depict rap mogul Russell Simmons introducing a new reality TV show entitled “Can A N***a Get A Job?” It’s not the first time the Post has pulled McGruder’s strip from its pages – a previous plotline which seemed to question the sexuality of National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice was scrapped in 2003.

Speaking Up For The Truly Underpaid Orchestras

The orchestra world is obsessed with wondering whether musicians in some of the top U.S. orchestras will be forced to accept wage reductions this fall. But times are tough throughout the industry, and Drew McManus wonders why no one seems to care about the musicians who really can’t afford the cuts. “It’s those [smaller] ensembles that employ the majority of professional orchestra musicians and bring classical music to that largest segment of the population. If those musicians begin to slip below the waterline of financial sustenance, they’ll need to find a life preserver of non-performance income just to keep from drowning. And if we see that come to pass then it’s a sure sign that the industry is devouring itself from the inside out.”

Assessing The Booker Shortlist

This year’s shortlist for the Man Booker prize is long on star power and short on women. David Mitchell, a veteran of the shortlist, is considered the favorite, but he’s up against two other heavyweights in Alan Hollinghurst and Colm Toibin. The panel of judges was reportedly well split between the finalists, and if history is any indication, there will be plenty of speculation in the weeks to come. The Booker will be awarded on October 19.

Edmonton Posts Another Surplus

Only two years removed from a CAN$1 million deficit and a monthlong musicians’ strike, the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra has posted its second straight surplus. The ESO also reported a 9% uptick in subscription sales, and announced a new three-year agreement with its musicians, which includes an 8% salary increase over the life of the deal.