It’s a difficult thing to admit, but critic John Moore has come to the conclusion that he actively hates playwright David Mamet, the brilliant wordsmith responsible for some of the more provocative plays and film scripts of the last century. And Moore doesn’t deny Mamet’s skill or talent. He doesn’t even resort to the most frequent criticism of Mamet, that he is a barely-disguised misogynist. “I hate Mamet because he is so infuriatingly brilliant, and yet he has spent the majority of his career honing a peculiar, cruel adeptness for showing men and women at their most amoral and violent. His world is a vulgar wasteland devoid of ethics and compassion.”
Blog
Philly Hoping To Avoid A Strike
“A contract extension for musicians of the Philadelphia Orchestra expires just after midnight tonight, but players say a strike is not imminent.” That doesn’t mean that a settlement is near, only that the orchestra is scheduled to play children’s concerts this week, and striking against a bunch of kids wouldn’t look too good. Still, there seems to be at least some optimism that a deal could be reached without a work stoppage, especially with the mayor of Philadelphia now taking an aggressive and active role in the process.
Play-And-Talk In Cleveland
The Cleveland Orchestra will avoid a work stoppage when a 2-month extension of its current contract expires tonight, with an open-ended play-and-talk agreement and an agreement from management that the existing deal will be honored until a new one is settled.
Demolishing A Decade
“In a society otherwise enamored of the styles of the 1960’s, the architecture of that decade is rarely loved and frequently reviled. All over the country, 60’s buildings are being torn down while much older buildings survive. Functional problems, like leaky roofs and inadequate heating systems, are often to blame. But just as often, the buildings are simply disliked by institutions that have enough money to replace them.” There is a burgeoning movement afoot to save the structures, but the “so-bad-they’re-good” logic doesn’t seem to be attracting many supporters for the boxy, concrete buildings that dominated the ’60s.
George W., Theatrical Muse
You can’t turn around in the theatre world today without bumping into an on-stage characterization of the President of the United States. Ben Brantley has watched a wide array of the Bush portrayals, and is amazed at the passion the man seems to have inspired in actors and playwrights. “This wide-ranging theatrical Bush garden is the more remarkable considering that in the 1990’s, I never reviewed a work in which William Jefferson Clinton was the leading character.”
U.S. Makes Venice Biennale Selection
“A committee of American museum curators has selected Ed Ruscha, a leading painter, to represent the United States in June at the Venice Biennale, putting an end to a year of questions about whether the country would participate in the prestigious art festival.”
The New MoMA, From The Inside Out
Much has been made of the new home of New York’s Museum of Modern Art, but what about what’s inside the building? MoMA’s collection has been wholly reordered and rearranged, and the results are impressive, says Linda Hales. The museum has made use of the increased space to broaden its outlook and move beyond the Bauhaus to a much wider array of contemporary art. The idea is for MoMA to retain its commitment to featuring 20th-century art movements, even as it devotes more energy to current themes.
Socrates: Books Cause Stupidity
Has the printed word replaced good old-fashioned brain power? “In the days before print, books had to be copied out by hand, like medieval manuscripts. If you were a copyist, you wanted to make sure you weren’t wasting a few years of your life writing out some piece of trash. You stuck with the tried and true: the Bible, or Aristotle, or Virgil. But a printer could publish anything reasonably quickly,” even if it had no real value. Besides, books were never any use to anyone, according to such noted thinkers as Socrates. Writing down information is really just an excuse not to memorize it, and the easy availability of books just encourages idiots to substitute regurgitated information for original thinking.
A Matter Of Obscurity (But Not Awards?)
Some critics blasted the National Book Awards’ shortlist for being too obscure. Like including Christine Schutt, whose book sold only 100 copies (or is it 1099 copies?). But what’s a writer got to do to pay dues?…
Would Satellite Radio Help Or Hurt Canada?
Satellite radio is gaining steam in the U.S., but in Canada, the technology still hasn’t managed to get the government’s stamp of approval. In a country which is deathly afraid of being overrun by American culture, the notion of a national radio service exempt from Canadian-first cultural rules is a controversial one. But satellite companies argue that their service would actually help independent Canadian musicians.