Andreas Homoki, the director of Berlin’s Komische Oper opera house, will leave his post in 2012 to become director of Zurich’s Opernhaus.
Month: June 2008
Monet Sells For Record 40 Million Pounds
Monet’s 6-foot, 7-inch-wide canvas, “Le Bassin aux Nympheas,” dating from 1919, had been expected to sell for between 18 million pounds and 24 million pounds, said Christie’s. The auction house said the seller had been guaranteed an unspecified minimum price.
Philadelphia Museum Names Interim Director
The Philadelphia Museum of Art appointed chief operating officer Gail Harrity to serve as interim chief executive officer until a permanent successor is found for director Anne d’Harnoncourt, who died on June 1.
Movie Weinsteins Jump Big Time Into Broadway
The Weinstein Co. — a minority co-producer on the season’s Tony-winning play and play revival, “August: Osage County” and “Boeing-Boeing,” respectively — has developed an ambitious slate of stage projects, likely to kick off with the upcoming tuner version of “Finding Neverland” in 2010, followed by a stage incarnation of Pink Floyd album “The Wall.”
Pianos Everywhere – The World’s Biggest Piano Factory
The Pearl River Piano Company last year made 100,000 pianos. It “says it’s now the world’s largest: 3000 staff work on eight production lines, and it feels more like a car factory than a place making things as delicate and tactile as pianos.”
Is Indie Film Dying?
“All winter and spring, people in the independent-film business have been murmuring politely behind their hands and pretending not to see the 800-pound walrus in the corner of the room: The indie industry is undergoing a sudden and largely unexpected meltdown. It hasn’t turned out to be a sensible investment. Mark Gill calculates the odds of losing all your money on an independent film at 99.95 percent.” On the other hand…
Recording Industry Pressing Broadcasters To Pay Musicians Royalties
“On Monday, the recording industry sent the National Association of Broadcasters — the trade group representing the $16 billion a year AM-FM broadcasting business — a can of herring to underscore that it believes its arguments against paying royalties are a red herring. The NAB says its members should not pay royalties because AM-FM radio “promotes” the music industry.”
Two Big NY Galleries Open In China
“PaceWildenstein will unveil its 22,000 sq. ft gallery in Beijing in August, while James Cohan Gallery opens a 3,000 sq. ft space in Shanghai in July. Both galleries are counting on the rise of the Asian art market and the proliferation of regional collectors.”
Now Starring On Trafalgar’s Plinth: You
“Prepare for chaos. The latest work of art to adorn Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth will be a giant soapbox, which will give anyone who fancies it the chance to do whatever they want for an hour at a time.”
Jazz Great Ernestine Anderson In Danger Of Losing Her Home
“The house will go into foreclosure and be auctioned July 11 unless $45,000 is paid by June 30. An 11th-hour campaign has been mounted by community leaders Carver and Carmen Gayton to save the Anderson home. The house has been in the family since 1946.”