“There is a quality of melancholy to sitting alone at a little table with your ego and a year’s work piled in front of you and no one paying a lot of attention. Some authors have no trouble selling themselves, but I’m not a born book hustler. I sit there like an abandoned dog, waiting for someone to buy the book, at which time I sign it.”
Blog
Jorma Goes A-List
Jorma Elo is “a dancemaker who has rocketed onto ballet’s A-list by virtue of choreography that is a thrilling blend of classical technique and contemporary dance. Jorma Elo has an affinity for the startling: Ballerinas with their legs stretched out to tomorrow, choreographic effects enhanced by mysterious lights and shadows, and undulating set pieces that intertwine or interrupt the ballerinas’ patterns of movement.”
What Would Improve The Movie Theatre Experience?
“A Pew Research Center survey released this week found that 75 percent of adults prefer watching movies at home to going to the cinema. So what can theaters do to entice people to leave their cozy couches and high-definition TVs for a night out at the movies?”
A “Da Vinci” Boom
A whole mini-publishing industry has sprung up around the Da Vinci Code. “Many of at least 20 Da Vinci Code titles have found success by glomming onto the mania surrounding Brown’s successful and controversial thriller. More are being squeezed out, thanks to big buzz for the movie adaptation starring Tom Hanks and due in theaters today.”
Da Vinci Code Producers Sue Sony For CD
The producers of the new Da Vinci Code movie are suing Sony for putting out a CD of music “inspired” by Leonardo Da Vinci. “Universal has alleged that Sony is using imagery connected to the book and film to deceive buyers. Sony insists it has simply seized a marketing opportunity. It said Universal’s rights were limited to the film’s official soundtrack and do not extend to associated promotional material or general religious themes and imagery explored in the book.”
Republican Senator Attacks Decency With Bill
US Senator Sam Brownback is trying to fasttrack “indecency” legislation through the Senate. “Brownback’s Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act would increase fines for indecent broadcasts from $32,500 per incident to $325,000 per violation.”
Greek Or Roman? Buyers Learning To Distrust The Experts
“In the world of art and antiquities, millions of dollars are at stake for museums and private buyers, depending on the date or ownership of an object. Disputes are increasingly common, and sometimes escalate.”
Glassblower Countersues Chihuly
Glass artist Dale Chihuly is suing a former member of his team, alleging the glassblower has been making Chihuly’s designs in violation of Chihuly’s copyright. Now the glasblower has countersued. “The countersuit alleges Chihuly is trying to claim ‘a monopoly on any and all glass art that is curved, nested or uses certain kinds of colors. [Chihuly] cannot use copyright registrations to protect an idea or process that is so elementary that it would preclude any other glass artist from working or creating any glass art at all’.”
Look Back, Then Turn Away
It’s been 50 years since John Osborne’s much-lauded play, Look Back In Anger was published, and many in the theatre world are falling all over themselves to celebrate the classic. But is Osborne’s work really worth celebrating? “Even taking into account Osborne’s physical and emotional suffering at the hands of women, his misogyny was extreme… A defective, even disgusting, personality doesn’t rule out the creation of great art; many artists can leave theirs in the unsatisfying world of real life while they get on with creating a better one. This is not the case, however, with Look Back in Anger, which is weakened not so much by misogyny as by immaturity.”
This Year’s Brit ‘It’ Girl
The Tony nominations are always received with great excitement in London, where an impressive array of nominations can indicate that a British theatre star has truly arrived on the American scene. This year, the Brits have plenty to celebrate, particularly the ascent of producer Susan Friel, whose revival of “Faith Healer” garnered four noms.