“How these dancers are cast is not always based on merit. It’s about who you are loyal to and who you butter up, and who patronises you. That’s the legacy of a communist past. … I asked [Bolshoi Theater chief Vladimir Urin] once if he believed in democracy and he just laughed at me, which is a sort of communist disposition. People of his generation are quite, shall we say ambivalent about democratic principles.”
Tag: 12.21.15
Tufts Univ. To Take Over Museum Of Fine Arts Boston’s Art School
“The agreement, which has been initially approved by both institutions’ boards, would become effective June 30, paving the way for the art school’s more than 700 students and roughly 145 faculty members to come under the Tufts banner.”
This Theater Thought It Had Two Years Of Surpluses; It Actually Had A $1 Million Deficit
“On Monday, [Carolina Theatre’s] leaders announced they had run up an additional $800,000 in debt since July 2013, when they and the rest of the board thought the city-owned theater was making a profit. The city [of Durham] pays Carolina Theatre of Durham Inc. $654,000 a year to run the complex on Morgan Street.”
Okay, So We’re All Doomed – Now What? Making Meaning, That’s What
“Humanity’s keenest evolutionary advantage has been its drive to create collective meaning. That drive is as ingenious as it is relentless, and it can find a way to make sense of despair, depression, catastrophe, genocide, war, disaster, plagues and even the humiliations of science.
From a 12,000-Year-Old Turkish City to a Finnish Airport, Europe’s 14 Most At-Risk Heritage Sites
“Some, like the Venetian Lagoon in Italy, are widely familiar, while others – ever heard of Estonia’s Patarei Sea Fortress? – are not. Each was nominated by members of Europa Nostra’s network and voted on by a panel of experts in disciplines including history, archaeology, architecture, and conservation.”
Chicago’s Redmoon Theater Shuts Down
“Redmoon, an unusual performance company specializing in public theatrical spectacles and a part of Chicago’s cultural fabric for 25 years, is going out of business, effective immediately.” The trouble began in earnest with a festival commemorating the Great Fire.
Fort Worth Symphony Cancels Tour Of Spain Because Venues Can’t Afford Them
The six-city trip, which was to have been the orchestra’s first overseas tour in 27 years, “was canceled last week after several concert halls dropped out of the tour, partly due to the lack of government funding and the falling value of the euro.”
Ruckus Over Color-Blind “Harry Potter” Casting Shows Where Theatre Is
“Having Hermione be played by a black actress onstage is both an acknowledgement that the Harry Potter universe has long been lacking in this regard, and an affirmation of theater’s historically progressive attitude toward actors of color.”
The Cruel Power Inside The Bolshoi
“The world of the theatre is cruel,” the ballet master Boris Akimov says at one point, with a fatalistic shrug. Akimov has spent his entire career at the Bolshoi since joining the corps de ballet, in 1965; for a couple of years in the early two-thousands, he even directed the company. He has seen it all: the dashed ambitions and bitterness, as well as the fleeting triumphs.
The City Of Rome No Longer Works. Fixing It Is A Big Problem
“Until a few years ago, the ancient city wasn’t well integrated with the modern city. Above all, it was as if one city existed below and another above; these cities didn’t create dialogue with one another.”