Author: Matthew Westphal

Jazz Drummer And Vocalist Grady Tate Dead At 85

During the 1960s and ’70s, he was one of the busiest jazz drummers in America, playing with a range of stars from Quincy Jones to Stan Getz to Ella Fitzgerald to Peggy Lee to Roberta Flack to Doc Severinsen on Johnny Carson’s The Tonight Show to Simon and Garfunkel’s 1981 concert in Central Park to Angelo Badalamenti’s band for the original Twin Peaks. As a singer, he scored his first hit with “Windmills of My Mind”, but his voice is in the heads of an entire generation because of his work on Schoolhouse Rock.

Weeks After Hurricane Harvey, Surveying The Damage To Houston’s Wortham Theater Center

“Long air ducts – large plastic tubes or funnels – run everywhere, even to the upstairs foyers. An indoor lake consumed the carpet at the front of the main theater’s auditorium (now covered in plastic sheets); fortunately the orchestra pit was sealed off. … The waters covered the focal point of any theater – the stage, not yet completely dry. An entirely new stage may be required. The full havoc that descended on the Wortham, however, becomes evident only on a visit to the corridors beneath the orchestra pit.”

Hachette Kills Weinstein Books Imprint Following Harvey Weinstein’s Assault Scandal

“In a statement to staff issued on Thursday, Hachette Book Group said it had ‘terminated’ the imprint. A joint venture between the Weinstein Company and the Hachette-owned publisher Perseus, Weinstein Books released around 10 books a year, with titles ranging from books by media personalities to film tie-ins. It was run by two women: editorial director Amanda Murray and publishing director Georgina Levitt.”

Eli Broad, The Medici Of Los Angeles, Is Retiring From His Philanthropy

“I am retiring. Now. Right now. I am just tired,” said the 84-year-old billionaire, who has done more than any other single person to shape L.A.’s current cultural scene. Even so, report Adam Nagourney and Adam Popescu, “the practical ramifications of Mr. Broad’s decision may be limited; the announcement in many ways marks the end of what has been a slow-motion fade.”

Now That Atlanta’s New Ballet Company Has Gotten Off The Ground, What Next?

Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre, launched this past spring by five dancers who left Atlanta Ballet following the arrival of a new artistic director last year, has its organizational structure and early donors lined up, its first performances this month and next, and home venues secured in downtown Atlanta and the suburbs. Where to now? “As the group coalesces,” reports Candice Thompson, “[de facto leader John] Welker expects it will remain a company of five core dancers, performing in-house choreography. But there are plans for growth.”

Venezuelan Gov’t Cancels Dudamel’s Asian Tour

Only a week before departure, Nicolás Maduro’s regime has called off the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra’s tour to Hong Kong, Guangzhou and Taipei under conductor Gustavo Dudamel. This is the second time an overseas tour by Dudamel and a Venezuelan ensemble has been cancelled since the conductor, one of the country’s biggest international celebrities, began criticizing the Maduro government’s violent crackdowns on protesters earlier this year.

London Venue Cancels Opera Production Accused Of ‘Yellowface’

Music Theatre Wales has been catching fire for its current touring production of Peter Eötvös’s opera The Golden Dragon, which uses an all-white cast in a work set in a Chinese restaurant and featuring Chinese characters. Now the London venue for the tour, the Hackney Empire, has cancelled its scheduled performance (October 31) and disavowed all connection with the production.