Movie companies are considering shortening the window between theatrical release and home video release of movies. But that’s a mistake, says the chairman of Fox. Sending movies to home video markets much quicker than the average four-month exclusive that studios grant theaters could crimp growth. “When people say ‘Re-invent your business model because of the ubiquitous availability of pirated product.’ There’s a huge flaw with that. You can never compete with free.”
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Purple Pose: Cautious And Pricey
“Earnest and eager to please, the $10 million Color Purple is the latest in a long series of cautious, pricey Broadway adaptations that paint by pallid numbers rather than in arresting new tones. It’s a thankless task, though, making the argument against this musical, which opened last night at the Broadway Theatre.”
New York’s Arts Ed Battle
Arts education in New York City schools is still a spotty thing. The system suffers from “a lack of such facilities as art or dance studios, an inadequate supply of basic material and equipment such as musical instruments, and a shortage of arts teachers. Some 150 public schools –- more than one in ten — still have no full-time arts teachers of any kind.”
Nothing About Artists Is Sexy (Don’t Believe The Study)
A study says artists have more sex? “Don’t expect honesty from artists at any time. Massive delicate egos and a myopic view of reality don’t make for any kind of study. The truth is that artists aren’t that special. People just like to think so – especially artists. They don’t deny it because the industry thrives on this very premise (and it makes them feel loved and important). It is the same argument all the time. They expect you to lead a rock’n’roll lifestyle, but the truth in my case could not be more different: a boring day in the studio, then home to wife and kids and the occasional clean-up-after-puppy-poo-athon.”
A Pakistani Festival Of Change
In Pakistan, dancing was banned for many years, and some clerics would like to do the same to music. A new festival is changing things. “For Lahore, the 10-day festival was a huge, at times startling cultural event. The music ranged from pop to classical but the finest show was the pure Sufi night. Festival president Faizaan Peerzada runs an event that aims to transform Pakistani life. By promoting Sufi music he hopes to ‘counter the extremism of the mullahs who use the mosques to spread ill-will against the west’.”
Art Of The Town
A string of provincial pearls – including Paducah, Ky.; Rising Sun, Ind.; Fergus Falls, Minn.; and Cumberland, Md. – are banking on the arts for economic revival. “The eruption of these rural culture capitals also means more Americans can find original art to view or buy on a weekend or day trip. In recent years, surveys by the Travel Industry of America have called arts- and culture-based travel a strong and growing segment.”
Explaining Calatrava
“The flashy contours, flamboyant engineering effects, and mechanical gimmickry of the Santiago Calatrava style are futuristic in a way that went out of fashion circa 1965, when the last New York World’s Fair closed. The seemingly advanced (though in fact retrograde) aspects of his architecture disguise its underlying sentimentality, and make it palatable to patrons of a certain sophistication who would reject more pronounced expressions of kitsch. That he has found a constituency in the art world is perplexing, but his appeal to a popular audience makes perfect sense.”
At The Met: Tragedy In The Making
Tobias Picker’s “An American Tragedy” opens this week at the Metropolitan Opera. The story “struck Mr. Picker as the natural choice for his Met debut: an opera by an American composer, based on a great American novel. More to the point, it was a compelling operatic story of love and murder, with a social undercurrent about the dark side of the pursuit of happiness and wealth – the American dream – that continues to resonate.”
Dario Fo For Mayor
“Dario Fo – at 79 still the most subversive man in Italy – wants to be mayor of Milan. The idea of an elderly anarcho-Marxist trying to take over the running of the country’s business capital might provide him with a splendid plot for a play. But this is for real.”
Corcoran Taps A Scholar
The Washington, D.C.-based Corcoran Gallery of Art has selected British art historian Paul Greenhaulgh as its next president. “The appointment is part of a wrenching overhaul at the 136-year-old Corcoran after five years of bold plans and occasional turmoil.” Greenhaulgh currently runs an art school in Nova Scotia, experience which should serve him well at the Corcoran, where he will also be in charge of the gallery’s College of Art & Design. “He succeeds David C. Levy, the Corcoran’s director for 14 years. Levy resigned suddenly in May as the board of trustees suspended efforts to build a wing designed by acclaimed architect Frank Gehry. Fundraising for the project had stalled, and the Corcoran had accumulated deficits in 17 of the past 21 years.”