Christopher Barron, chief executive of Scottish Opera, has become the third major executive to leave Scottish Opera. “Barron has been joint chief executive of both Scottish Opera and Scottish Ballet since 2000. However, the two boards were split last year after the opera’s escalating debts forced a restructuring deal on the company, making Barron’s dual position untenable. His departure, which had been widely speculated for some time, follows that of chairman Duncan McGhie, who stepped down in July 2004, and music director Richard Armstrong, who announced in December that he would leave in the summer.”
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Mackie Wins Beck’s
Christina Mackie has won this year’s Beck’s Futures Prize for her sulpture and media installation. Mackie beat five other artists – Donald Urquhart, Luke Fowler, Ryan Gander, Lali Chetwynd and Daria Martin.
Kani: Arts Demand Respect
South African playwright/actor John Kani says the arts need more respect. “What the Government underestimates is the role that the arts can play in building and healing a nation, and in giving young people in particular a holistic sense of what a human being can be. Australia, with a little more experience than us in this thing called ‘democracy’, hopefully treats the arts with a bit more respect.”
Are Girls Who Read Fairy Tales More Likely To End Up In Abusive Relationships?
“A study of both parents of primary school children and women who have been involved in domestic abuse claims than those who grew up reading fairy tales are likely to be more submissive as adults. Susan Darker-Smith, a graduate student who wrote the academic paper, said she found many abuse victims identified with characters in famous children’s literature and claimed the stories provide “templates” of dominated women.”
The Antiquities Game
“At first glance, the connection between those who loot antiquities and those who collect, trade, and preserve them seems the stuff of academic seminars and journals. Yet such is the allure of ancient treasures that, since the 1970s, this relationship has spawned global treaties, inflamed Third World nationalism, created a secretive Washington bureaucracy, and triggered federal prosecutions. To some, this international cooperation reflects the ability of the world’s nations to unite to protect an endangered world resource. To others, it demonstrates the hazards resulting when “feel-good” multinationalism collides not only with the sovereignty of the United States but with the basic human desire to surround oneself with objects of beauty.”
Hollywood’s German Connection
How to finance that $100 million Hollywood blockbuster movie? First you go to Germany. “The Hollywood studio starts by arranging on paper to sell the film’s copyright to a German company. Then, they immediately lease the movie back—with an option to repurchase it later. At this point, a German company appears to own the movie. The Germans then sign a “production service agreement” and a “distribution service agreement” with the studio that limits their responsibility to token—and temporary—ownership.”
The Literary No-Man’s Land
Even well-established writers with great reviews are having difficulty getting their books sold these days. “If you speak to publishers about the sales of literary fiction – I mean we’re in real trouble in this country. Sales are shocking these days, even compared to 10 years ago. And publishers are seriously cutting back.”
Ex-La Scala Chief Speaks Out: Unions Out To Get Me
Mauro Melli speaks out about his difficult tenure and departure as general manager of La Scala. “From the day I became general manager, the Scala unions quit speaking to me. They pushed against everything: against me, against Maestro Muti, against the world. I am very sad in this moment, because I came to La Scala with great passion and enthusiasm.”
A Jazz Concert Recording That Adds History
A long-forgotten concert recording of a jazz concert provides some interesting historical insight. “The tapes come from a concert at Carnegie Hall on Nov. 29, 1957, a benefit for a community center. The concert was recorded by the Voice of America, the international broadcasting service, and the tapes also include sets by the Dizzy Gillespie Orchestra, Ray Charles with a backing sextet, the Zoot Sims Quartet with Chet Baker, and the Sonny Rollins Trio. But it is Monk with Coltrane that constitutes the real find. That band existed for only six months in 1957.”
The Rise Of Asian Cinema
The Asian film industry is coming into its own. “World culture is a growth industry, and national cinemas in Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan and Hong Kong have become a significant part of the equation. The films of the region are part of an aesthetic continuum, although it is sometimes hard to tell the voice from the echo. Individually, they are rooted in national trends, myths and cultural interests that collectively form a pan-Asian consensus.”