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Tuesday, July 5




Ideas

Video As Architecture's Building Block Moving images are everywhere these days, and increasingly on the surfaces of our buildings. "It is not hard to envision a day when we will live in chameleon cities, when the radiant skin of all new buildings will be programmed to produce an ever-changing array of colors, messages and shows. The movie in the church courtyard involved the transformation of a plain white wall; architects these days are integrating the evanescent image directly into their designs, using video the way their predecessors used cast iron and stone." Newsday 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 8:14 am

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Visual Arts

Airport Art - Ten Years Later It's been ten years since Denver's new airport opened and along with it some very ambitious public art. A decade later it's instructive to see what art has succeeded and why. "Some remain popular favorites. Some that were delayed have turned out to be hits. Some do not work, or show damage from construction mishaps more than a decade ago, or are difficult to see." Rocky Mountain News 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 7:48 am

Suing To Get Stolen Art Returned (It's Problematic) Armed with a new US Supreme Court precedent, Americans are taking on foreign governments to "force the return of artwork. But the plaintiffs face big obstacles, ranging from resistant museums and murky ownership records to less-than-sympathetic European law. And then there's the matter of enforcement: if you win a lawsuit against Austria or the city of Amsterdam - both defendants in current cases - how do you collect?" Christian Science Monitor 07/05/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 6:49 am

What's Wrong With The MFA's Art Rental Program For a second time, Boston's Museum of Fine Art has "rented" some of its artwork to a casino gallery in Las Vegas. Why should anyone care? "The MFA's rental deals are wrong for lots of ethical and moral reasons," writes Tyler Green... Boston Globe 07/04/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 6:41 am

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Music

A Little-O Opera Revival In Montana A long-forgotten American opera based on Blackfeet Indian legend has an unlikely revival in a struggling agricultural town in northern Montana. "We have to overcome this stereotype that people have developed over what we're calling this show. It's an opera, but I don't ever say the O-word. I refer to it as the legend of Scarface told through acting and singing and lighting." The New York Times 07/02/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 8:47 am

In Miami - Not Your Parents' Opera Florida Grand Opera has had its best couple of seasons ever at the box office. A great deal of the credit has to go to the company's new marketing campaign. "So much of the advertising over the years had become . . . focused on the people who are going to be in the audience anyway. So we really launched a campaign . . . of having real-life opera singers who are young and sexy and look like people you'd like to approach at a party." Miami Herald 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 8:02 am

The Man Who Bought An Orchestra When the founder of the Queensland Pops Orchestra in Australia died last year, the orchestra was put up for sale. Barrie Gott bought it. "What Mr Gott gets for his money includes a substantial library of scores, about 650 titles, access to the core of professional musicians who come together for each Pops concert, and the mailing list of avid listeners known as Friends of the Pops." The Courier-Mail (Australia) 07/04/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 6:46 am

The 90-Minute Magic Flute Mozart's "Magic Flute" cut down and performed in English at the Met? "Is the cut-down, 90-minute version a first step at commercializing the Met? Some opera purists may think so. But the plan has merit. That even the brightest children have limited attention spans is a given. A family version of "The Magic Flute" at the Met would have to be done right, though. Will the run be presented at family times (matinees and early evenings), and, more important, at family prices? In principle, this is a good idea." The New York Times 07/04/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 6:26 am

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Arts Issues

Fortress America: Foreign Travel To The US Is Way Down "Planned federal passport and visa rules and other measures intended to safeguard the nation are creating the perception of a Fortress America overseas, tarnishing this country's reputation for hospitality and personal freedom. As a consequence, visa applications from foreign travelers have dropped by one-third from pre-Sept. 11 levels, and fewer foreign students are applying to U.S. schools. Moreover, travel agents report booking foreign travelers away from the United States, and airlines that serve overseas hot spots say business is down on their routes to the United States." San Francisco Chronicle 07/03/05
Posted: 07/03/2005 11:04 am

Aussie Artists Protest Plan To Kill Compulsory University Union Fees A move by the Australian government to to do away with compulsory student union fees at universities has artists concerned. "Every year, students pay a compulsory union fee, which varies between $100 and $500, depending on the campus. Student-run bodies use the money to pay for services such as food and bar subsidies, sporting grounds, advocacy services, galleries and campus sport and arts clubs. A proportion is also used to fund political pursuits, including campaigns against higher university fees. The Government says students who never use these services or don't join campus clubs shouldn't be forced to pay for them, and has drafted a bill to make the fee voluntary." Artists say the cut in fee collections will kill programs. Sydney Morning Herald 07/03/05
Posted: 07/03/2005 10:54 am

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People

Lockhart - Ten Years At Pops It's been ten years since Keith Lockhart took over the Boston Pops Orchestra. "Now, at 45, having led more than 800 Pops performances, Lockhart feels the weight of his increasingly demanding schedule and the economic pressures facing the orchestra." Boston Globe 07/03/05
Posted: 07/03/2005 11:10 am

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Theatre

Why Is The West End So Celeb-Happy? "Take, for example, the Postman Always Rings Twice. On stage we had the dense lacklustre performance of Kilmer, in the audience there was Tracey Emin trying to start a standing ovation and Terry Wogan looking on. Is this what theatre has become? Celebrity Luvve Island? Ewan McGregor in Guys and Dolls, Ross Geller in Some Girl(s) - oops, sorry it's David Schwimmer isn't it, and Kevin Spacey at the Old Vic. Then there's the audience which is equally star-studded. It's as if success can only be measured by your sleb count and the length of your ovation depends on the number of stars studding the cast not the quality of the performance." The Guardian (UK) 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 8:08 am

Major Sponsor Pulls Support For Edinburgh Fringe Play A major sponsor at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival has withdrawn its support for a play and ordered its logo removed from all publicity surrounding it. "Smirnoff, which sponsors The Underbelly venue, has a reputation for cutting-edge advertising, but the content of Dirty Works, by New York-based British playwright Jamie Linley, has proved too much for the vodka firm." Scotland on Sunday 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 7:57 am

All White In The Heart Of America Robert Trussell has a problem with a Kansas City shakespeare festival's casting. "Once again, the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival has assembled an all-white cast for its annual production, which this year is “Much Ado About Nothing.” The festival hasn’t indulged in monochrome casting every year, of course, but minority representation has been a troubling issue since the organization was founded in 1993. I have no doubt that I will hear from a few readers who see this as, well, much ado about nothing. I’ve heard all the arguments before. They usually go something like this: The actors at the Globe Theatre were white, so what’s the problem? There were no Asian, African or Hispanic actors in Shakespeare’s day, so why are you shoving diversity down our throats?" Kansas City Star 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 7:54 am

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Publishing

Hyping Harry - We're In Full Swing Hype for the launch of the much anticipated next installment of Harry Potter is cranking up. "Bookshops have been equipped with 16-day "count-down clocks", modelled on the Weasleys' clock in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, in the lead-up to the worldwide launch on 16 July. The main event will be a reading by JK Rowling at Edinburgh Castle, to be broadcast on ITV1. It is understood there are plans to project an image of Rowling on to the castle rock." The Scotsman 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 7:15 am

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Media

Da Vinci Code Movie Puts Vatican On Edge The Da Vinci Code has sold more than 25 million copies. Perhaps that's one reason the Vatican has lashed out at the book. And now that production has started on the Tom Hanks movie, the Vatican's mood is even darker... New York Daily News 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 7:37 am

  • A "Non-Offensive" Da Vinci Code How to make a blockbuster movie hit out of Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code" and not offend Catholics? "Controlling that controversy will be the key for Columbia in protecting its investment. That's why its team of PR experts are sending the message that it will be an enjoyable "popcorn" fiction. The filmmakers are distancing themselves from Dan Brown's much-vaunted "research" into a private sect that has supposedly kept a 2,000-year-old secret that would undermine traditional Christianity." New York Daily News 07/03/05
    Posted: 07/05/2005 7:36 am

Death Throes For The Videocassette Media retailer HMV has announced it's ending sales of VHS tapes in its stores. "VHS videos, which accounted for 6 per cent of the retailer’s turnover a year ago, now make up only 2 per cent of its sales as consumers throw away their old video recorders in favour of the newer technology." The Times (UK) 07/04/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 7:07 am

Rewrite! Mr. DeNiro Doesn't Like His Line! You're a big star and you don't like the line you've been asked to say in a movie. What do you do? Call in your own "personal writer". More and more stars are working with their own writers on the set. "While these kind of personal writers may be well-known inside Hollywood, they often toil in public obscurity. Don't shed any tears, though. Even without screen credit, top rewrite artists can bank more than $250,000 a week for script revisions and frequently can stay on a movie for months at a time." Los Angeles Times 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 6:57 am

How The Internet Is Democratizing Art "Entertainment conglomerates and arts-grant bureaucrats still hold the strings to attractively fat purses. But their power is being tempered by the reach of the Internet and the resourcefulness of creative minds paired with cheap, versatile tools." San Diego Union-Tribune 07/03/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 6:55 am

Hollywood Dreams Of China Hollywood is drawn to China as a new production center. "Drawn by China's fast-growing economy, inexpensive film production sites and its increasingly popular martial arts and feature films - most notably "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" in 2000 - Western studios are stepping up their presence here and looking to eventually turn China into a major film production base." The New York Times 07/04/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 6:34 am

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Dance

A Culture Of Social Change What happens when you take social dance and put it onstage as choreographed movement? Clearly the nature of the dance will change, but what about the culture? Danceview Times 07/05
Posted: 07/05/2005 8:22 am

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