Ever since Australian authorities abandoned architect Jørn Utzon’s original plans mid-construction and went for a quick, cheap completion, the Opera Theatre in the SOH has been notorious for inadequate acoustics and a cramped orchestra pit. But for its upcoming production of Korngold’s Die tote Stadt, Opera Australia is actually resorting to putting the (large) orchestra and chorus in another hall and piping their music into the Opera Theatre, where the soloists will sing unamplified.
Author: Matthew Westphal
Even Strads And Guarneris Are Emigrating To Australia
The Australian String Quartet now has a set of Guadagninis; three Australian Chamber Orchestras principals now play a Stradivari, a Guarneri and a Guadagnini; the Sydney Symphony has begun a mini-shopping spree from older Italian string instruments.
James Corden, Now A Broadway Darling, Used To Be Insufferable
North American theatre fans, who mostly know of Corden because of his comic virtuosity in One Man, Two Guv’nors and his heartfelt Tony acceptance speech, are likely unuaware that, just a few short years ago, Corden was one of the most reviled actors in Britain. William Langley (in a none-too-friendly way) explains.
Edward Albee Shows How To Thoroughly Alienate A Translator
Once Barcelona translator Joan Sellent had completed his translation of A Delicate Balance into Catalan, he received from Albee’s agent “a five-column grid, which was to be filled in with ‘any deviation from the exact English words and the explanation why this couldn’t be directly translated into Spanish [sic], and why the words that were chosen were used’.”
Michael Grandage To Launch Major West End Season With £10 Tickets
“Michael Grandage has announced his first project after leaving the Donmar Warehouse – a 15-month season of work in the West End with casts including Judi Dench, Daniel Radcliffe, Simon Russell Beale and Jude Law and 100,000 tickets priced at only £10.”
Our Fascination With Theatrical Marathons, From Nicholas Nickleby To Gatz
“[The] duration becomes, in many ways, a selling point; something that marks out the show as interesting or out of the ordinary. … The explanation for this, I think, is that there is a natural human fascination with the possibilities of stamina, both as a participant and an observer.”
Could E-Books Revolutionize Primary Education In Africa?
The Humble School in Uganda “is on the front lines of an effort to reinvent developing world literacy programs with technology. The premise is that the new economics of digital publishing might make more and better books available in classrooms … A vision of “one Kindle per child” for developing countries faces considerable challenges, including the cost of e-readers and making sure that kids actually learn better on the devices than with old-fashioned books.”
I Almost Never Pay For Music, And Never Have, Says 21-Year-Old DJ
Emily White, manager of a college radio station and NPR intern: “I’ve never supported physical music as a consumer. As monumental a role as musicians and albums have played in my life, I’ve never invested money in them aside from concert tickets and t-shirts. … I honestly don’t think my peers and I will ever pay for albums. I do think we will pay for convenience.”
Free Culture Movement Has Led You Astray (Reply To Young DJ Who Never Pays For Music)
David Lowery: “I applaud your courage in admitting you do not pay for music, and that you do not want to but you are grappling with the moral implications. … Fairly compensating musicians is not a problem that is up to governments and large corporations to solve. It is not up to them to make it ‘convenient’ so you don’t behave unethically.”
Public Radio Searches For The Next Generation’s Car Talk And Prairie Home Companion
Many of public radio’s best-known shows – especially popular weekend series such as the two above – are more than 30 years old; even This American Life and Wait, Wait … Don’t Tell Me are well into their second decades (and were created by Baby Boomers). NPR, PRI and the Public Radio Exchange are all experimenting with a new generation of programs, many of which started as podcasts, aimed at listeners under 45.