“When almost the entire ensemble of the American Theater Company walked out last year following a dispute with artistic director PJ Paparelli, the actors vowed to reconvene under the original name of their company: American Blues Theater. Wednesday morning, plans for a new season were announced.”
Tag: 10.14.09
Finland Makes Broadband Access A Legal Right
“[E]very person in Finland (a little over 5 million people, according to a 2009 estimate) will have the right of access to a 1Mb broadband connection starting in July. And they may ultimately gain the right to a 100Mb broadband connection.” What exactly constitutes “the right,” however, isn’t completely clear.
A Crucified Gorilla And Jesus In The Electric Chair
A London exhibition features two attention-getting waxwork sculptures by Paul Fryer. The Privilege of Dominion, featuring a life-sized gorilla on a crucifix, is meant (says the artist) to depict the plight of the endangered primate. Meanwhile, Fryer has displaced Jesus himself – now black – to the electric chair.
Nat’l Museum of Natural History Devotes Hall To Human Evolution
The director of the Smithsonian’s Human Origins Program says the exhibit will help visitors to “to put humans in their place.” The 15,000-square-foot, $20.7 million space will open next March 17, the museum’s centennial day. (Unless, we suppose, creationist politicians intervene.)
Oz Theatre Bloggers Battle Over Women And Realism
Combat is raging in the Australian theatre blogosphere over a pair of issues. The first is the under-representation of female directors, occasioned by the season announcements of two of the country’s major companies. The second is a certain critic’s demand for a return to “realism and well-made plays.”
A Book-Burning In 2009 America (Of Bibles, No Less)
A church in western North Carolina has announced plans to celebrate Halloween with a bonfire fueled by the works of such “heretics” as Billy Graham and Mother Teresa – along with all translation of the Bible other than the King James Version. (Barbecued chicken will be served at the event. Seriously.)
Britain’s ITV To Shut Down Its Arts Dept.
“ITV intends to close its Specialist Factual and Arts department by August next year, … The closure plans come soon after ITV’s decision in May to axe long-running series The South Bank Show following more than three decades on air.”
Charleston Symphony’s Longtime Music Director To Step Down
After a 25-year tenure during which he developed the orchestra from a part-time, semi-pro group into a fully professional (if small) orchestra, David Stahl has announced that he will become laureate conductor following a three-year transition.
In Munich, A Long Argument Over New Concert Hall
“Two weeks ago, a presentation was made in the Prinzregenten Theater here about plans for a new concert hall. Fifteen hundred people showed up … The idea of a new concert hall has captured the imagination of Munich’s music-loving public, yet the project stirs controversy at nearly every turn.”
Gnomes Giving Nazi Salute Spark Controversy In Germany
“[N]o one in Germany would usually think twice about seeing a garden gnome, given there are 25 million of them across the country. But a battery of 1,250 of them that appeared on a square in a Bavarian town has caused an outcry, not least because their arms are in a Nazi salute.”