“One of the great challenges faced by the present curators is the way Graham’s work changed over the decades. Schooled in the show-biz exotica that was Denishawn, she launched her own career with stark abstractions, moved through patriotic flourish and nostalgic romance, ensconced herself in Greek tragedy, and slid into histrionic decadence during her last years. The technique developed, grew harsh, grew soft; costumes and sets were remade; music was recorded, amplified, scaled down. What we see as Graham repertory today is a composite vision drawn from co-artistic directors Terese Capucilli and Christine Dakin, the exemplars who survive from earlier generations, and a contemporary sensibility suited to today’s dancers and audiences.”
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Why Does Turning Off TV Make You Smart?
What’s so smart about turning off your TV? “What does that solve? “Here I am, cutting myself off from the world in the name of …” What? “Spending more quality time with my family?” “Reading a book?” “Getting outside for some exercise and fresh air?” “Contributing to my community in some meaningful way?” … instead of sitting like a lump on the couch, brain in neutral, pallid features bathed in flickering cathode radiation … TV does not prevent you from doing these things. You prevent you from doing these things. It’s called a sense of proportion.”
Theatre’s Great. But The Theatre Experience Sucks
Going out to the theatre is a pain in the neck. Not the plays, mind you. But the experience. “The most recent Global Home Entertainment Survey finds that increasing numbers of people are turning their backs on going out for entertainment. Depending on the country, anything from 68% to 90% of respondents prefer to watch a DVD at home. The main reasons cited in favour of living room entertainment are eminently reasonable. It’s more comfortable, less expensive, you can fast-forward and wind back. And if there is an idiot sitting next to you it’s likely you’ll know them well enough to be able to tell them to shut up.”
Fans Mob To Get Free “Scoundrel” Cast Albums
Thousands of fans lined up outside the Broadway home of “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” to get free copies of the cast recording. “Fans appeared at the Imperial Theatre as early as 6 AM to be assured of a free album. The discs were distributed 11:30 AM-1 PM. The show’s cast, including stars John Lithgow, Norbert Leo Butz, Sherie Rene Scott and Joanna Gleason, and composer David Yazbek, were on hand to sign discs before their Wednesday matinee performance. By noon, the line was blocks-long, stretching across the theatre district.”
Ratings Show TV Viewers Turn Off Election Coverage
British TV viewers are tuning out of election coverage on television. “For the three weeks before the election was called BBC One’s Six O’Clock News had an average of 4.7 million viewers, which has since slipped to 4.5 million. Broadcast editor Conor Dignam said this showed viewers see the election campaign as “a bore”.”
A Tipping Point In A Culture Crisis?
The announcement that the New York Public Library is selling off art to finance an endowment is a disgrace. “These are bad times for high culture at the cash register. Seats aren’t being filled, turnstiles aren’t whirling. Cultural institutions are having to scramble. That this is happening at a moment when there’s more wealth around than at any time, in any one single place, in history suggests that a tipping point has been reached, that the dumbing-down epitomized by the Styles section of The Times, or the failure of our great universities to educate, or what works and what doesn’t on Broadway or at your local multiplex, has finally achieved implosive velocity. It suggests that there’s more to what’s happening than a simple post-9/11 fall-off in tourism, that some kind of sea change is in the works.”
Oz Wins Goethe
Israeli writer Amos Oz has been awarded Germany’s top cultural prize, the Goethe Prize for culture. “Oz, a peace activist, was honoured for his literary work and impressive moral responsibility, according to Petra Roth, mayor of Frankfurt and president of the jury awarding the prize.”
The Art Of Libraries
The announcement that the New York Public Library will sell off some of its art brings attention to the fact that New York’s public libraries have a lot of art in them…
UK Music Ed Stabilises
Music education in English schools is not well supported. But at least a long decline has been slowed, writes Julian Lloyd Webber.
Maazel Takes On 1984
Composer/conductor Loren Maazel’s first opera is about to debut. It’s an adaptation of George Orwell’s 1984. “Whether 1984 works or not depends, however, on Maazel’s music. Few of his works have been performed in the UK, and as a composer he remains an unknown quantity.” The score is described as “a mixture of atonal and lyrical, with dramatic crises.”