Two quirky Toronto theatre companies are turning 40 this year, and in those four decades, they’ve seen the city’s theatre scene become something far different than what it was when they first opened their doors. Over those four decades, though, the missions of Théâtre français de Toronto and Theatre Passe Muraille haven’t changed much, even if their audiences have.
Tag: 10.25.07
The Movies Are Good, So Where’s The Audience?
It hasn’t been a good fall for independent film. Despite multiple releases that garnered approval from critics, audiences have been thin for indie releases. “And a crew of classy star vehicles from studios — essentially art films with bigger budgets — has been flailing at the box office.”
Is Game Design The Hot New Art Form?
USC’s film school has long been one of the top places in the US for aspiring filmmakers to get their start. But these days, it’s the school’s interactive media division that has become a magnet for creative types. What does one create with an interactive media major, you ask? Video games.
Goya Thief Charged
“A truck driver who authorities say stole an art masterpiece from an unattended transport truck and then claimed he found it in his basement has been charged with theft. Steven Lee Olson, 49, was charged with stealing ‘Children with a Cart,’ a 1778 painting by famed Spanish artist Francisco de Goya, federal prosecutors said. The painting was insured at a value of about $1-million.”
Slow-Developing Play Scores Big For Disney
Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas was a modest hit when it was released in theaters in 1993. But no one could have predicted that, 14 years later, the stop-motion film and its associated merchandise would have become some of the most sought-after objects for collectors around the world. “Seizing on fans’ appetites, and the movie’s maturing and eager-to-spend audience, the Disney Store has released a new Nightmare line this season.” A 3D theatrical release is also in the works.
Saving A Folk Art Paradise (Or Not)
The legacy of legendary folk artist Howard Finster resides mainly on a decaying, overgrown lot in Georgia. “Even as the house is being rebuilt with new walls, floors, fresh paint and a new deck, the World’s Folk Art Church, a chapel with a 16-sided cupola that is the gardens’ signature structure, slumps precariously, and one of its balconies has collapsed.” Now a public fight has broken out between those charged with preserving Finster’s legacy, and those who feel the job is being botched.
Is CSO Forgetting Lessons Of The Barenboim Era?
Lost in the flurry of critical insistence that Riccardo Muti be named the next music director of the Chicago Symphony seems to be the fact that Muti, while a brilliant conductor, would embody many of the same flaws that eventually led to the departure of Daniel Barenboim. If he became the CSO’s top man, Muti would be “unlikely to live here or be around much, probably won’t want to get chummy with the community or handle administrative duties.”
PBT Posts Big Ticket Increase, Balances Budget
“Appearing to regain its financial footing, the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre said Wednesday it ended the year with its first surplus in six years and with a 26 percent jump in ticket sales, reversing an 11-year slide.” PBT dancers agreed to a wage freeze earlier this year, and company officials credited them with helping to bring the fiscal picture into balance.
A Return To Balance In Pittsburgh
After two seasons in the red, the Pittsburgh Symphony announced this week that it balanced its budget for the 2006-07 season. Balance was achieved partly because of a $29.5m gift from the PSO’s board chair. The orchestra is in the quiet phase of an $80m capital campaign.
How The ROH Saved Its Ring
It was a nightmare scenario last weekend for the Royal Opera House, when star soprano Lisa Gasteen fell ill on the eve of the first performance of a new, high-profile production of Wagner’s Ring. What followed was 24 hours of the type of frantic action that always makes for great storytelling after the fact.