“Craftsmen in India, China and elsewhere have been carving or writing on grains of rice and sand for years. But now a handful of artists are going smaller still, often applying the tools of nanotechnology to control matter at a molecular level.”
Tag: 09.30.09
Hair Takes A Day Off To March For Gay Rights
“The producers canceled a Sunday matinee so that the cast and crew could attend and perform at a march for gay rights in Washington on Oct. 11. That unusual — and expensive — decision to skip a popular weekend performance at the beginning of the theater season originated with the show’s star, Gavin Creel.”
Explaining The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain’s Appeal
“[T]he happy surprise of encountering something completely different from the Tiny Tim-style hamming or banjo-plucking embarrassment of your imagination doesn’t wholly explain the deep love the orchestra inspires, not just in Britain, but also in Europe and as far away as New Zealand and Japan.”
Cirque Du Soleil Founder Blasts Off For Space Station
“Dubbed the ‘Poetic Social Mission,’ [Guy] Laliberte’s time in space will include a two-hour act on Oct. 9 centering on a story written by 2002 Booker Prize winner Yann Martel,” to be broadcast around the globe.
Staff-Wide Buyout Offer At Smithsonian
“The Smithsonian Institution is offering all of its [6,000] employees a voluntary buyout plan to reduce its workforce, meet its tightened budget goals and restructure the organization to match the principles of its new strategic plan.”
James Levine To Have Emergency Back Surgery
“The influence of James Levine on the classical music scene” – he is the music director of the Metropolitan Opera and the Boston Symphony – “became clear on Tuesday when his representatives said he would undergo an operation to repair a herniated disk in the next few days and would miss at least three weeks of performances.”
Chinese Artist Ai Weiwei Says Police Beat Him
“The avant-garde Beijing-based artist is in Germany ahead of his October exhibit there. He said he’d suffered dizziness ever since being punched in the head and detained in a hotel in Sichuan province in August. Twenty uniformed and plainclothes police converged on the hotel where he was staying and threatened to kill him, he said.”