“The fund, refinanced three years ago, was originally intended to produce enough income to pay off the building’s debt service as well as help fund its maintenance and operations. However, it failed to perform well in the volatile markets since Sept. 11, 2001 and reached the point at which the controlling banks said they would liquidate it this week.”
Tag: 09.22.08
Paris Opera Ballet’s Tough Cookie
“That [Brigitte] Lefèvre, 63, has lasted 16 years in different capacities, mostly as dance director, is in itself remarkable. Historically dance directors have tended to fall like flies at the Paris Opera.”
Atlanta Ballet Returns to Using Live Music (Temporarily)
The company, which switched to recorded music two years ago to save money, will use a pit orchestra for four productions this season, thanks to a one-time $200,000 grant.
Former Artistic Director Of National Ballet Of Canada David Haber, 81
“Haber joined Canada’s National Ballet in 1951 as its first production stage manager. He was appointed co-artistic director with founder Celia Franca in 1973 before becoming artistic director the following year. He held that position until 1975. Haber also worked with the National Film Board, National Arts Centre and Canada Council for the Arts.”
Spiderman To Broadway?
A musical based on the comic book hero has been in the works for three years. “A move to Broadway would put Marvel in the company of Walt Disney Co., which has been very successful in expanding brands like Mary Poppins, The Little Mermaid and The Lion King into theatrical productions.”
Emmy Broadcast Draws Miniscule Audience
Estimates suggest that “12.24 million people watched Sunday’s show. If that number holds up when more complete national ratings come in, it will be less than the 2007 and 1990 shows, which were both slightly under 13 million.”
Fallen Arts Philanthropist Alberto Vilar Bitter as Fraud Trial Begins
“His life is a far cry from what it was in the mid-1990s, when he rode the market boom, especially in technology stocks. His funds soared in value, and the profits rolled in. Mr. Vilar’s investment firm was managing $9 billion, and his wealth at one point was valued at a near $1 billion.”
… ‘The Machinist’ Says No
“I probably wouldn’t throw down any money – even just a fiver – to read a couple issues of some magazine before moving on to another one… People tend to be loyal to their magazines, often subscribing for years and sometimes keeping the back issues in their library (think of all those National Geographics that you’ve seen at yard sales), and aren’t really all that interested in swapping issues around every month or two.”
Robert Hughes Is Wrong About Many Artists
So writes Germaine Greer. “Everybody loves it when Hughes goes off on a rant about the schlock of the new, but he is too easily seduced into blaming the wrong people. A Hughes label is crafted to stick fast to its victim.”
The Art Of Book Blurbing
“The process of getting blurbs – which the US journalist Rob Walker has termed “blurb-harvesting” – is thought, by some, to be a necessary part of modern book publishing. You send the manuscript of your book to another writer, hoping they’ll like it, hoping they will give you a favourable comment to put on the cover. It’s a weird transaction. No money changes hands. There is only one unspoken convention: if somebody blurbs your book, you should not blurb theirs.”