“HarperCollins has announced the acquisition of Tolkien’s never-before-published poem The Fall of Arthur, which will be released for the first time next May. Running to more than 200 pages, … the poem sees Tolkien tackling the old king’s battle to save his country from Mordred the usurper, opening as Arthur and Gawain go to war.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Perth Loses One Of Its Two Professional Theatre Companies
“Deckchair Theatre will close after its board ruled falling box office numbers, sponsorship and government support had rendered the 30-year-old company unviable. … Deckchair’s departure leaves Black Swan as Western Australia’s only state theatre company.”
Monet Water Lily Painting Comes Up For Auction
“In another sign that the smart money set is selling art this auction season, investment banker Herb Allen said his family is planning to auction off a Claude Monet painting of a water lily pond for between $30 million and $50 million next month in New York.”
Cedar Lake, Swimming Against America’s Ballet Tide
“In the US, the dance mainstream has long been dominated by the pure-movement aesthetic of choreographers such as George Balanchine, Merce Cunningham and Mark Morris. Under the artistic directorship of Benoit-Swan Pouffer, however, Cedar Lake began presenting work that was almost entirely from Europe, and from a far more theatrically experimental tradition.”
Free Online Arts Platform The Space Gets Semi-Permanent Funding
“When The Space launched, somewhat gingerly, in May this year, it was intended as a six-month pilot. Over the summer, Arts Council England’s free digital platform, run with the BBC, has carried film and other content tied to [Cultural Olympiad] events around the UK.” Now the Council “is setting aside £8m from a digital fund to support the platform over the next two to three years.”
At Long Last, Movie Houses Come To The Rio Favelas
“Less than two years ago, Complexo de Alemão was a fiefdom, a district of 60,000 people ruled by drug gangs notorious for their brutality. … In its first full year, CineCarioca sold 74,000 tickets, an estimated 91% of those coming through the doors having never been to the cinema before.”
German Customs Officials Seize Second Old Master Violin
“On Sept. 28, German violinist Yuki Manuela Janke, concertmaster at the Staatskapelle Dresden, was carrying a 1736 Stradivarius when she flew in to Frankfurt Airport, and customs officers seized it,” demanding €1.18 million in duty. The instrument was ultimately released, reportedly on the direct order of Germany’s finance minister.
Who’s Ladbroke’s Favorite To Win Nobel Literature Prize?
Haruki Murakami, at 2/1 odds. (But last year’s favorite was Adonis, and we saw how that worked out.)
Watching Robert Lepage’s Rehearsal Process
“[A] scene is repeated several times before both actor and director are satisfied; meanwhile, a young stage manager, a sprawling plan of the complicated show spread out in front of her, delivers instructions via a PA system. ‘What we’re working out here is which of the 30 characters we should concentrate on,’ Lepage explains. ‘Some we might get rid of. Some take a more relevant place in the show, and gradually, the big shwobble of ideas gets clearer the more we work on it.'”
Herb Ritts And Gustav Klimt Were Record-Setters For Getty Museum
“They don’t have a lot in common other than nudity, but two Getty Center exhibitions this summer, ‘Herb Ritts: L.A. Style’ and ‘Gustav Klimt: The Magic of Line,’ drew some of the biggest crowds the museum has ever seen.”