“I’ve seen just about every narrative movie in the current 3-D crop, and every single one has caused me some degree of discomfort–ranging from minor eye soreness (Coraline) to intense nausea (My Bloody Valentine). The egregious side effects of stereo viewing may well have been diminished over the past few decades,” but they haven’t been banished — because the technology hasn’t fundamentally changed.
Author: Laura Collins Hughes
Fox Series Choreographer Arrested In Sexual Assaults
“Salsa dance instructor Alex Da Silva lured at least four women into the bedrooms of his home, where he allegedly raped them…, police said Monday. Da Silva, a salsa dance instructor and choreographer for Fox’s ‘So You Think You Can Dance,’ was arrested over the weekend on suspicion of sexually assaulting the women over the last six years.”
What If Science Can Help Us Erase Our Memories?
“Suppose scientists could erase certain memories by tinkering with a single substance in the brain. Could make you forget a chronic fear, a traumatic loss, even a bad habit. Researchers in Brooklyn have recently accomplished comparable feats, with a single dose of an experimental drug delivered to areas of the brain critical for holding specific types of memory, like emotional associations, spatial knowledge or motor skills.”
Wis. Chamber Orchestra’s Strike Is Not Always A Strike
“The players of the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra have given assurance that they will play the fifth Masterworks concert of the season. Todd Jelen, a bassoonist on the negotiating team, said the musicians agreed to play to show good faith — and because ‘the long-term health of the organization might be at risk.’ The players have been on strike since Oct. 1.”
Oregon Ballet Theatre Budget Gets 28 Percent Tighter
“Oregon Ballet Theatre is cutting its budget 28 percent. The ballet will go on. Just don’t expect a live orchestra at any OBT performances or quite as many dancers on stage next season. Approved by OBT’s board of directors last week, the almost $2 million budget cuts kick in with the new fiscal year in July, reducing the annual budget from $6.7 million to slightly more than $4.8 million.”
Strike Looming For New York City Opera?
“Will the New York City Opera greet the first season under new general manager George Steel with a strike? The company wants to reopen contracts for both singers and production staff, good till May 2010, as a result of ‘extraordinary circumstances.’ … But the union isn’t budging.”
UBS Bows Out Of ‘Art Banking’
“UBS AG, the Swiss bank hit hard by the financial crisis, said Wednesday it has closed its ‘art banking’ department, which helps rich clients buy and build collections. The department was created in 1998 and provided customers with research on prices and artists, and consulted them on estimates, transport, storage, restoration and inheritance of art works.”
Funding Expires, So A Calder Sculpture Garden Disappears
“For more than four years, sculptures by the inventor of the mobile adorned the grassy, tree-dotted Calder Garden…. Yesterday morning, the last piece was carted away, and the Calder Garden was no more. The plot will now be just a park maintained by the city. The sculpture garden’s funding by the Pew Charitable Trusts, announced as $5 million in 2001, simply expired, officials explained.”
In Singapore, Children Barred From Seeing All-Male Earnest
“Presenting Oscar Wilde’s ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ with an all-male cast dressed as men has raised a few eyebrows in conservative Singapore, leading the media regulator to request the company to prominently display an age advisory of ’16 years and above’ on all its publicity material, with the notice, ‘Re-interpretation, all-male cast.'” The production “has particular resonance in Singapore, where homosexuality is still a criminal activity.”
Gates Foundation Finds Pop-Culture Megaphone In Viacom
The Gates Foundation “is well known for its myriad projects around the world to promote health and education. It is less well known as a behind-the-scenes influencer of public attitudes toward these issues by helping to shape story lines and insert messages into popular entertainment like the television shows ‘ER,’ ‘Law & Order: SVU’ and ‘Private Practice.’ Now the Gates Foundation is set to expand its involvement and spend more money on influencing popular culture through a deal with Viacom….”