After more than 9,000 performances in 27 years, “the Toronto production of The Mousetrap will close Jan. 15. Producer Peter Peroff says business has been down about 40 per cent this year, which he attributes to the combination of SARS, the war in Iraq and the Alberta mad-cow scare, all of which have made it difficult to attract the busloads of U.S. tourists upon which the long-running Agatha Christie whodunit relies.”
Month: December 2003
Indy Films Take On The Studios
Increasingly, independent films are becoming a major force in the movie industry. Why? “Independent and independent-minded films may earn less at the box office, but it’s easier for them to turn a profit, because they’re vastly cheaper to make. Even a little gem such as “Pieces of April,’ which has grossed about $1.7 million, is a moneymaker – because it cost only $300,000.”
Note To Movie-Makers: Sex Doesn’t End At 35
Why are critics going so ga-ga over 50-something women showing a little skin in recent movies? “Though the American film industry has pretty much had a 35-and-out attitude toward women as sexual beings, the trend, if indeed it is a trend and not merely a confluence of goose-bumped flesh, is more reflective of real life than the way things have been. Women’s bodies don’t become decrepit when the first grey hair appears, and sexual desire doesn’t dissipate when a woman blows out the 36th candle on a birthday cake.”
A Cable Universe Of Equals (Sort Of)
Do broadcast networks have any advantage over cable stations anymore? “Even if it doesn’t bite them today or tomorrow where it hurts (presumably the wallet), the broadcast titans seem to be ceding creative leadership in a way that ultimately dissolves any viewership advantage to which they continue to cling. How long can it be until viewers completely abandon the notion of the networks as the “default” choice to check what’s worth watching each night? What’s the difference when ABC looks like TLC looks like Fox looks like Spike?”
Where’s The Art In Art History?
Roger Kimball doesn’t think much of the teaching of art history these days. “Today, the study of art history is more and more about subordinating art—to “theory,” to politics, to just about anything that allows one to dispense with the burden of experiencing art natively, on its own terms. This is accomplished primarily by enlisting art as an illustration of some extraneous, non-artistic, non-aesthetic narrative. Increasingly, art history is pressed into battle —a battle against racism, say, or the plight of women or on behalf of social justice. Whatever. The result is that art becomes an adjunct to an agenda: an alibi for … you can fill in the blank by consulting this week’s list of trendy causes. In a word, what we are witnessing is the triumph of political correctness in art history.”
Economist View: Gifts Are “Inefficient”
Giving a present might make you feel good. But as an economic transaction, economists consider it inefficient. “So when I give up $50 worth of utility to buy a present for you, the chances are high that you’ll value it at less than $50. If so, there’s been a mutual loss of utility. The transaction has been inefficient and “welfare reducing”, thus making it irrational. As an economist would put it, “unless a gift that costs the giver p dollars exactly matches the way in which the recipient would have spent the p dollars, the gift is suboptimal”.”
The 17th Century Internet
Think the internet is a revolution of sharing ideas? Nope. “The coffee-houses that sprang up across Europe, starting around 1650, functioned as information exchanges for writers, politicians, businessmen and scientists. Like today’s websites, weblogs and discussion boards, coffee-houses were lively and often unreliable sources of information that typically specialised in a particular topic or political viewpoint. They were outlets for a stream of newsletters, pamphlets, advertising free-sheets and broadsides. Depending on the interests of their customers, some coffee-houses displayed commodity prices, share prices and shipping lists, whereas others provided foreign newsletters filled with coffee-house gossip from abroad.”
LA’s Billion-Dollar Redeveopment Plan
Now that Disney Hall is open in Los Angeles, city leaders have their sights set on redeveloping more of the area. That could be a $1.2 billion collection of new buildings. “Planners envision a spectacular mixed-use project that would combine housing, shopping, dining and entertainment opportunities on both sides of Grand Avenue south of 1st Street.” The project has drawn top architects from around the world, say planners…
Czech Workers Demand Employers Stop Playing Christmas Music
Labor unions in the Czech Republic have demanded that employers stop playing Christmas carols in department stores of “pay compensation for causing emotional trauma to sales clerks.” The unions have “written to major chains and demanded that employees be compensated. He said the unions want $19 or two days off as a possible compensation. They’ve received no response.”
The New Ailey – Echoes Of A Classic
Work presented in the Alvin Ailey company’s early years championed a few themes: “the fight of a stalwart, resilient people, fueled by hope—a near-miraculous optimism, given their circumstances—to overcome injustice, oppression, and their corroding, often lethal, results.” And, it promoted the work of black dancers and choreographers, writes Tobi Tobias. If that work, with all its ecstatic exuberance can be called “classic” Ailey, it is remarkable how much the company’s new work echoes those early themes.