The first non-Italian to run La Scala, Lissner took over the Milan company in 2005 following what was, even by La Scala’s standards, an extremely tumultuous period. He will return to his hometown and the Opéra National de Paris in 2015, replacing Nicolas Joël, who says he’s stepping down two seasons hence to protest budget cuts.
Tag: 10.08.12
Who’s Ladbroke’s Favorite To Win Nobel Literature Prize?
Haruki Murakami, at 2/1 odds. (But last year’s favorite was Adonis, and we saw how that worked out.)
Watching Robert Lepage’s Rehearsal Process
“[A] scene is repeated several times before both actor and director are satisfied; meanwhile, a young stage manager, a sprawling plan of the complicated show spread out in front of her, delivers instructions via a PA system. ‘What we’re working out here is which of the 30 characters we should concentrate on,’ Lepage explains. ‘Some we might get rid of. Some take a more relevant place in the show, and gradually, the big shwobble of ideas gets clearer the more we work on it.'”
Why Dorian Gray Is The Right Poster Boy For The Age Of Abercrombie & Fitch
Director Neil Bartlett: “I know exactly what [a hunky model on an A&F billboard] is peddling. It’s the idea that sexual shamelessness – by which I mean not Saturday-night recklessness, but a genuine freedom from shame – is something that you can buy. … [The] diabolical, corrupting contract between beauty and shame is exactly what Wilde is anatomising in Dorian Gray.”
Restorers Of Fresco Have To Remove Obscene 17th Century Graffiti
“A 17th-century workman, for example, had added his own graffiti touches to the frescoes before covering them over, including one that is familiar to school toilets across the western world: a depiction of a full set of male genitalia scratched into an angel’s wing.”
ISPs To Begin Monitoring For Illegal File-Sharing
After four offenses, the historic plan calls for these residential internet providers to initiate so-called “mitigation measures” that might include reducing internet speeds and redirecting a subscriber’s service to an “educational” landing page about infringement.
Research: Breathing Exercises May Help Performance Anxiety
“Slow breathing may have clinically relevant effects for performing musicians who suffer from anxiety.”
Orange Prize For Female Writers Saved By Private Donors
“High-profile private donors have stepped in to save the UK’s only prize for female writers after a scramble for a sponsor failed to come up with a long-term backer to replace Orange for 2013.”
Nguyen Chi Thien, 73, ‘The Solzhenitsyn Of Vietnam’
He acquired the moniker “for the sheaves of poems he wrote opposing the Communist government there – and for the prolonged imprisonment, including torture and solitary confinement, that his efforts earned him.”
Hofesh Schechter, Angry Choreographer
“I admit anger can be the driving force behind my work. The anger erupts like a volcano during the creative process. I try to share the anger with the audience. Through anger, they find a connection to my work.”