“The British Museum said it has raised two-thirds of the 135 million pounds ($220 million) needed to build a new wing, and, planning permission allowing, may start construction at the end of this year. … ‘We are shovel-ready to proceed in the autumn, but prudence also plays a part in this,’ said Chairman Niall FitzGerald, indicating that the project’s start required assurances that the final 45 million pounds would come through.”
Author: Laura Collins Hughes
Not All Is Beautiful, And Little Is Green, At Lincoln Center
The groves of mature London Plane trees that offered shade near the reflecting pool were sacrificed long ago to “the vast construction site that is Lincoln Center…. Now the 30 young trees in what is called the ‘Barclays Capital Grove’ are bordered by a hideous concrete bench that has all the aesthetic appeal of an off-ramp on I-95.” Does a similar fate await Damrosch Park?
Ballet Florida Files For Bankruptcy
“According to the nonprofit group’s bankruptcy petition, it has more than 100 creditors, debt of $1 million to $10 million, and a similar range for assets. For years, the organization has been bleeding money. It lost $1.5 million on total revenue of $3.1 million, according to its 2007 tax returns, the most recent return found.”
Hoping For Easy Sales, Publishers Bring Out Their Dead
“They are the hottest authors in publishing, delivering works of murder, mystery, ribald humour and passionate love, and they all have one thing in common: they are long dead. … Authors whose newly discovered or revised works are now being published in the US include Mark Twain, Vladimir Nabokov, Graham Greene, JRR Tolkien, William Styron, Mary Shelley and Ernest Hemingway.”
In Book Title’s Arabic Translation, ‘Gay’ Becomes ‘Pervert’
“In a jaw-dropper that could be straight out of the movie ‘Bruno,’ the best-selling book ‘Gay Travels in the Muslim World’ has been translated into Arabic — but with the title equating gays to perverts.”
Strike Could Derail Bayreuth Festival Opening
“One of the highlights of the classical music season, the Bayreuth Festival, which celebrates the music of Richard Wagner, may be played out in darkness this year. The scenery may also be shifted by members of the Wagner family because workers are fed up with being paid little more than €4 (£3.40) an hour.”
Tate Modern Installation Left Visitors With Injuries
“Bodyspacemotionthings,” a recently revived 1971 installation by Robert Morris, “has lost none of its potential for danger after clocking up a string of casualties during a special reappearance at Tate Modern this summer. The artwork, in which participants are invited to negotiate see-saws, a tightrope and other obstacles, left 23 people needing first aid in just over week.”
Peter Gelb’s Salary Rose 36% In His Second Year At Met
“Peter Gelb earned $1.5 million in his second year as general manager of New York’s Metropolitan Opera, according to the company’s tax return for the year ending in July 2008. That was up 36 percent from the previous year. … Those numbers reflect a time before the fabled opera company at Lincoln Center started singing sorrowful tunes of loss as the economy tanked last fall.”
Photographer: AP Didn’t Own Rights To Hope Image
“The Associated Press, which sued artist Shepard Fairey for using an AP photograph as inspiration for a Barack Obama campaign poster, wrongfully copyrighted the image it seeks to protect, the photographer told a judge.” The photographer, Mannie Garcia, “is challenging both the AP and Fairey by trying to join the pending lawsuit between them.”
Former LA Phil Violinist, Reported Missing, Is Found Dead
“Robert Korda, a violinist who played with the Los Angeles Philharmonic for nearly 20 years, was found dead Sunday by the Los Angeles Police Department after he was reported missing by his family on Wednesday.”