The flood water compromised museum archives, caused structural damage and knocked out electricity and the Internet. How extensive was the damage? We talked with representatives and gathered information from some of major Houston’s arts centers to find out.
Author: Douglas McLennan
Producing Fringe Theatre Is Expensive. Is There A Better Way?
There’s been a lot of talk about money lately – the gender pay gap, surcharges, escalating ticket prices and funding issues. The fringe theatre pricing model is just another topic that rears its head once a year. Some fringe boards have tried to address the problem, with free performances (Brighton and Edinburgh), incorporating venue hire costs into the participation fee (Reading Fringe) and including performer support resources in the submission fee (Brighton).
Ken Burns’ Big Tent Theory Of History
“To the satisfaction of many viewers, and the dismay of some historians, Burns seemed to have shaped American history into the form of a modern popular memoir: a tale of wounding and healing, shame and redemption.”
The Art Of Social Practice (Or Is It The Social Practice Of Art?)
“Social practice art is seen as the antithesis of the art market because it cannot be owned, preserved, or exhibited easily. Located somewhere between activism and performance, the tangible and the ephemeral, social practice is linked to relational aesthetics and other community-based work since it’s often action oriented and site specific, requiring some sort of audience engagement.”
Island In The Seine: A New Performance Space That Aims To Mix Things Up
It was the architect Jean Nouvel of France who conceived of a plan for the island in the suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt that would allow a natural flow between indoor and outdoor space. Then Shigeru Ban, the Pritzker-Prize winning Japanese architect, teamed up with the architect Jean de Gastines of France to create the project that cost 170 million euros (about $203 million).
Out Of Nowhere? London’s Royal Opera Gets A New Director
The appointment of Oliver Mears, who previously ran the Northern Ireland Opera, founded in 2010, “was a surprise, and I don’t mean that negatively,” said John Allison, editor of Opera Magazine. “He has a reputation as being a nice guy and a talented director, but he has no real international profile.”
Berklee College To Take Over Historic NY Recording Studio
“Berklee College of Music will try to revive one of New York City’s most storied recording studios, where artists from Bruce Springsteen to Lady Gaga and the cast of the Broadway show “Hamilton” have produced hit albums.”
Why Doesn’t More Arts Philanthropy Go To Rural Areas?
“Many large grant entities, both foundations and government agencies, seem to prefer to fund urban areas for clear reasons. Many urban areas have significant needs and funding in urban areas can have a positive impact on more people. Funders, quite understandably, want the most bang for their buck, and more people live in urban areas. It all makes for a reasonable piece of conventional wisdom, but is it accurate? Does an urban-centric strategy truly generate the most bang for the buck?”
Berlin’s Staatsoper Reopens After Renovation
“When the city committed itself in 2008 to renovating the Staatsoper, which needed to be reinforced from groundwater leaks, the conductor Daniel Barenboim insisted that the acoustics also be improved. While he and Stefan Rosinski, the former Berlin Opera Foundation general director, advocated a full modernization of the interior, the mayor at the time, Klaus Wowereit, favored a historic preservation in keeping with German laws about cultural heritage.”
Thomas Campbell Opens Up About His Time Leading The Met Museum
“Audiences are changing, behavior is changing, scholarship is changing, and I think I’ve helped move the museum in the direction that it needs to be moved in to be successful in the future. It required making some fundamental decisions, and now I’ve played the part I can play there, and I’m looking forward to moving on and thinking about the cultural sector in a broader way.”