A huge collection of plundered African art was intercepted in Niger recently. “The 845-piece collection, dating as far back as 70 million years ago, includes antiquities of incalculable value, ranging from dinosaur teeth to neolithic arrowheads and ancient pottery. While this seizure is notable for the size and breadth of the artefacts contained within the collection, such caches of treasures smuggled out of the continent and into private collections or curio shops around the world are neither rare nor exclusive to Niger.”
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Karl Haas, 91
Radio broadcaster Karl Haas has died. His “Adventures in Good Music,” an hour-long program in which Haas blended music and talk aimed at casual listeners, was syndicated to hundreds of stations in the United States, Australia, Mexico and Panama and was broadcast by Armed Forces Radio. Haas delighted listeners with his vast musical knowledge and his penchant for punny program titles, such as “The Joy of Sax” and “Baroque and in Debt.”
Heating Up The Copyright Wars
The stakes in the copyright wars are escalating. “With the Supreme Court scheduled next month to hear a pivotal case pitting copyright holders (represented by MGM Studios) against the makers of file-sharing software (Grokster and StreamCast Networks), some participants are putting their message machines into high gear. But winning hearts and minds – of teenagers, consumers and lawmakers – has never been a simple matter.”
Locking Up Culture (And Why?)
“It would be nice if everyone agreed that somebody who creates a speech, composes a piece of music or writes a book has the right not to be ripped off. But it’s not that simple. Every work of art builds on what has gone before, using ideas and images that entered the public domain long ago. David Bollier argues that those who plunder it and lock up the loot with copyrights and trademarks are robbing humanity of its ability to create new works of art. What’s worse, many corporations copyright things they obviously oughtn’t, simply because they can get away with it. Who can afford to fight armies of well-paid corporate lawyers? Not the impoverished poet in a garret who borrows a small image from, say, a popular song and transforms it into a huge new one.”
Kevin Spacey Theatre, Act II
Kevin Spacey’s debut running London’s Old Vic Theatre wasn’t exactly a smash with the critics. This season, though, he’s taking to the stage doing what he’s best-known for: acting.
Thou Shalt Not Reveal The Surprise Ending
Critics are torn when it comes to writing about the surprise ending of Million Dollar Baby. “Plot twists are sacred in entertainment culture, as lovingly protected as slumbering infants. And people who give away surprise endings are shunned and ostracized, treated as if they’ve raffled off nuclear secrets to terrorists. Apparently, the worst sin a critic can commit — judging from the zealous care with which many critics announce that they are tiptoeing delicately around certain plot points or earnestly warn that they’re about to spill the beans — is to mistakenly give away a surprise ending.”
Full Court Press – Chicago Stages Pick On Reporters
The press is in for a rough time on Chicago stages these days. “Maybe newspapers had it coming. All those egos running around in fedoras the first half of the 20th Century. Then, more grimly toward the end of that century and in this one, all that unattractive insecurity and self-loathing and corporatespeak. All that nervous-nelly focus-grouping. All those scandals. The stereotypes of reporter-as-scum are legion.”
Beyond Politics – British Theatre Moves On
Far from being risky, conscience has proved lucrative for impresarios. Last year’s hit political plays were mostly built on verbatim evidence with a bit of spin and make-believe thrown in. This year, the formula has changed. Donald Rumsfeld look-alikes are out. The arts have stopped grumbling about the results of bad political decisions and moved towards driving the agenda. Still, two can play at that game. As artistic directors wrestle with the great social issues of the day, Tony Blair has, in a modest way, been dabbling in culture.
Broadway Tools
What’s with all the mechanical special effects in Broadway theatres? “It’s an odd irony. The performing arts, by their nature, are handmade and transient. But on Broadway, the temptation to reach for the power tools is almost overwhelming. Why, the logic too often goes here, hone your concept with fine-grit sandpaper when a chainsaw will do the job so much more efficiently? There may be some ragged edges here and there, but everyone will get the general idea, and, these days, who wants more than a rough outline?”
The Baltimore Symphony’s DC Gambit
The Baltimore Symphony establishes a second home in the backyard of Washington DC’s National Symphony. “The orchestra is taking on additional costs to play at Strathmore. It is also establishing a second acoustical home, which risks compromising its sound, a characteristic shaped by the hall in which an ensemble performs night after night. And there is that fascinating subplot: will the center draw audiences away from the National Symphony?”