“The producers canceled a Sunday matinee so that the cast and crew could attend and perform at a march for gay rights in Washington on Oct. 11. That unusual — and expensive — decision to skip a popular weekend performance at the beginning of the theater season originated with the show’s star, Gavin Creel.”
Author: Laura Collins Hughes
At Hotel Bel-Air, The Baby Grand Goes Silent, Too
“The lounges of top-tier hotels are a distinct musical niche, a rarefied, murmurous, dimly lit world in which [Antonio] Castillo de la Gala is a highly polished fixture, even a minor legend.” Now, after 12 years, he “ends his run at the Bel-Air, which is closing for a renovation expected to last two years.”
Explaining The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain’s Appeal
“[T]he happy surprise of encountering something completely different from the Tiny Tim-style hamming or banjo-plucking embarrassment of your imagination doesn’t wholly explain the deep love the orchestra inspires, not just in Britain, but also in Europe and as far away as New Zealand and Japan.”
Chicago Symphony Orchestra Cellist Philip Blum Dies At 77
“Philip Blum played cello with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for 54 years, the last 12 of them while battling cancer. … ‘He used to say if he wasn’t in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra he’d be pumping gas,’ his wife said.”
Cirque Du Soleil Founder Blasts Off For Space Station
“Dubbed the ‘Poetic Social Mission,’ [Guy] Laliberte’s time in space will include a two-hour act on Oct. 9 centering on a story written by 2002 Booker Prize winner Yann Martel,” to be broadcast around the globe.
Irish Arts Minister Defends Artists’ Tax Exemption
Ireland’s arts minister “has said he will not scrap the artists’ exemption as proposed by the Commission on Taxation.” He “described as ‘nonsense’ the suggestion that the exemption costs the exchequer between €36 million and €38 million every year.”
The (Ir)relevance Of David Mamet
“It would be foolish to argue against Mamet’s genius.” But do his plays still measure up?
To Protest Cuts, B.C. Artists May Decline Olympic Funding
“In Vancouver’s arts community, there are a lot of mixed feelings these days about the Olympics. There has been talk of boycotting the Cultural Olympiad since the recent announcement of deep cuts in B.C.’s funding for the arts – primarily through the cancellation of gaming grants.”
Physically, Olympics Wouldn’t Much Alter Chicago
“In general, … Chicago is not floating plans for major infrastructure improvements, like those that transformed Barcelona for the 1992 Games. Nor is it proposing grand architectural statements, like the Bird’s Nest from the 2008 Games in Beijing.”
Why Writers Aren’t So Great At Speaking
“[S]peaking takes place in real time and depends in part on the person or persons we’re speaking to. Wonderful writers might therefore turn out to be only so-so conversationalists, and people capable of telling great stories waddle like ducks out of water when they attempt to write.”