“Coke, if I may extend my musings further, is the closest thing that exists to a religion of Americana. Not an American religion, but a religion devoted to the idea of America – which is to say, to those Norman Rockwell scenes of homecoming, fly fishing, and presents under the tree.” Paula Marantz Cohen visits the high temple: The World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta.
Tag: 12.09.13
Indianapolis Symphony (Finally!) Posts Surplus
“A big boost in donations and hefty cutbacks pushed the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra’s annual budget into the black for the first time since 2007.”
The American Arts Economy (It’s Quite Depressing, Really)
“As a reminder, the annual budget of the National Endowment for Arts in 2011 was $154.7 million. In that same year, the Philadelphia “Phillies,” a Major League Baseball team, paid their players alone $173 million.”
Another Tenor Freaks Out Over Boos At La Scala
Back in 2006, Roberto Alagna actually stormed off the stage and out of the theater mid-performance after some of La Scala’s notorious loggionisti let him have it. This year – again in the house’s season-opening production – they did it again.
The Kennedy Honors’ Emotional Night
“This year, the Kennedy Center honored actress Shirley MacLaine, opera singer Martina Arroyo, musician Carlos Santana — who beamed while sitting next to first lady Michelle Obama — and two piano men: Herbie Hancock and Billy Joel. If the honorees had performed together, it would have been a dream collaboration — but as is the 36-year custom, they sat, smiled and watched others pay tribute to lives lived on stages and screens.”
Minnesota Orchestra Musicians Will Play On, Lockout Be Damned
“Musicians of the Minnesota Orchestra sounded a note of resolve Monday to continue performing concerts if they remained locked out in their long and bitter confrontation with the Minnesota Orchestral Association.” And they’re raising money to do it – from community members and musicians in other orchestras.
What’s The Secret To Running An English Regional Theatre?
“Running one of Britain’s regional playhouses, a theatre director once told me, was a combination of ‘comedy on stage, tragedy off’. … So how do you construct a regional programme that will work?”
Johan Kobborg To Run Romania’s New National Ballet
The Danish dancer and choreographer – and the soon-to-be Mr. Alina Cojocaru – will move to his fiancés’s homeland next month ro run the new company, based at the national opera house in Bucharest.
What Happens When Ballet Dancers Date
“In this week’s episode of AOL’s City.Ballet web series, those questions are finally answered, and it’s just as gossipy as you might hope.”
The Roots Of Urban Planning In The Gardens At Versailles
An new exhibition at Louis XIV’s château posits that His Majesty’s landscape architect, André Le Nôtre, first put into practice ideas about layout that would influence urban planners for the next several centuries.