A year ago an Ontario judge stripped the Ontario Film Review Board of its censorship powers, ruling that “sections of the Theatres Act, which require all films and videos to be submitted to the board for approval, violate guarantees of freedom of expression under the Charter and are an unjustified form of prior restraint.” Now the Ontario government is seeking an extension of the deadline to make the censorship rule changes…
Month: April 2005
California’s Venice Fights Over Nude Sculpture
In usually free-wheeling Venice California, a controversy has sprung up over plans to erect a headless nude sculpture. “In keeping with the community’s contrarian reputation, unexpected alliances have formed on both sides: Conservative church leaders have joined with staunch feminists in opposition; some old-guard activists have connected with ambitious developers to defend the torso.”
Ashkenazy Named Liverpool Laureate
Pianist and condusctor Vladimir Ashkenazy has been named the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’s first “artist laureate” in Liverpool’s capital of culture year, 2008.
A New California Arts Tax?
A member of the California state assmbly proposes a dedicated tax to support the arts. “The bill calls for imposing a 1% surcharge on arts and entertainment admissions — a dime for a $10 movie ticket, about 53 cents for admission to Disneyland or a buck for a $100 seat at the opera or a top arena-rock band. That would raise at least $23 million in annual guaranteed funding for the California Arts Council, the state’s main arm for fostering nonprofit arts organizations through annual grants. From a peak of more than $30 million four years ago, the Arts Council has seen its annual funding cut to just more than $3 million.”
Couple To Give Birth In Berlin Gallery
A Berlin couple plan to deliver their baby in a local art gallery. The manager of the DNA-Galerie in central Berlin said the artistic couple wanted to challenge conventional norms. ‘It’s a bit of test to see if society can cope’.”
Did Scholar Plagiarize In cummings Bio?
A critic charges in the new issue of Harper’s magazine that a major new biography of e.e. cummings has plagiarized extensively from a 25-year-old biography.
Launch Of Three New Gay Networks
Three new US TV networks hoping to attract gay and lesbian viewers are launching. “There’s definitely an audience out there that is hungry to see their stories being told. We’ve seen this with the tremendous success of ‘Queer as Folk’ and ‘The L Word.'”
Atlantic Magazine Moving To DC
The owner of the Atlantic magazine has decided to move it from its lohg-established home in Boston to Washington DC. “It’s a Boston institution. It’s a huge disappointment . . . and I’m really sad about it. I’ve actually written an apology which I’m sending to all of the Boston staff tonight.”
Beleaguered Muti In New York
Riccardo Muti goes to New York to conduct the New York Philharmonic. At the end of rehearsal he spoke to musicians: “He made no specific mention of Milan, but the fabulous, brilliant and sometimes imperious Muti dropped whatever guard he had, and told the musicians how good they had been to work with, and how much he looked forward to their working together in the future.”
An English Critic Goes To Broadway
“As The Independent’s reviewer, I have seen theatre across the globe, from Bucharest to Phnom Penh. But nothing feels more foreign than Broadway. This is because, in some respects, it has the appearance of being so like home, while actually being very different.”