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London’s Contemporary Moves

In the past decade London has emerged as a major hotspot for contemporary art. “The rise of the contemporary art market is being driven both by the age-old laws of supply and demand and by a change in taste. Collectors are finding it increasingly hard to buy great Impressionist and Old Master pictures, many of which are in museums, while living artists can feed a hungry market. Contemporary art is also more fashionable, especially among the new rich who have made their money in the past decade.”

DC Arts Finally Recover Post-9/11

After 9/11, arts institutions in Washington DC struggled to find audiences (and income). But the post-9/11 slup is officially over, with attendance (and income) on the rise. “The upturn is attributed to the rise in tourism, resumption of school field trips, economic security enjoyed by the theater-going public, and rise of the Internet as an easy way to buy tickets, according to managers of many of the region’s 60-plus theatrical companies.”

Dreyfus Cancellation Could Be A Hit

So Richard Dreyfus is unable to go on in “The Producers” when it opens in London in a few days. But wait – it’s not a disaster. Indeed, it could make the show a bigger hit, as Nathan Lane steps in to fill the role. “Whether or not Dreyfuss is a victim of the role, or the demands of the backers, or just bad luck – one thing’s clear: for those in possession of a ticket, it’s the equivalent of getting an unexpected upgrade from economy to club class. And, in many ways, the moment of panic couldn’t have arrived at a better time – everyone will now be pulling together harder than ever to ensure that it’s all right on the night.”

Getting Rid Of That Unwanted TV…

The TV in your local bar bugging you? Well, now you don’t have to suffer the blare. A new device called TV-B-Gone shuts off any television set in the vicinity. “The device, which looks like an automobile remote, has just one button. When activated, it spends over a minute flashing out 209 different codes to turn off televisions, the most popular brands first.”

Greeks In New York

This season’s big new thing in New York theatre? It’s Greeks. New York is awash in Greek revival plays. “Between the threat of terrorism and the war in Iraq, we’re all apparently in desperate need of a whopping catharsis—or at least a few old-comedy laughs at the rulers driving us to the brink of catastrophe.”

Pushing Your Brain’s “Buy” Button

Is there a “buy button” in the brain? A new study of the brain has scientists wondering. “Some corporations have teamed up with neuroscientists to find out. Recent experiments in so-called neuromarketing have explored reactions to movie trailers, choices about automobiles, the appeal of a pretty face and gut reactions to political campaign advertising, as well as the power of brand loyalty.”

Domingo To Run Metropolitan?

Who will be the next general director of the Metropolitan Opera? Insiders say Placido Domingo is on the short list. “Mr. Domingo is quietly pursuing the position, meeting individually with several Met board members, the officials said. In addition, he spent time with members of the board’s search committee on Oct. 6.”

García Márquez Vs. The Pirates

It’s taken Gabriel García Márquez a decade to get his new book ready for publication. Now the publication date is being moved up by the book’s publishers to combat pirates who are getting their own version out. “In a full-page advertisement in Colombia’s leading newspaper on Saturday, the publishers announced the early launch and denounced the pirated versions being peddled on the streets of the Colombian capital as ‘mutilating the content of the work’.”