In a three-paragraph e-mail message, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation announced that it had withdrawn its proposal to build a polymorphous, 400-foot-tall building designed by Frank Gehry on Piers 9, 13 and 14, south of the Brooklyn Bridge in Lower Manhattan.” The plan would have cost $950 million, and the museum admits that was an unrealistic goal.
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British Museum Puzzled Over Missing Goblet
“Archivists at the British Museum are scratching their heads after learning that the biggest hoard of Roman treasure ever found in Britain comprised 35 pieces – not 34, as has been believed for the past 60 years – and that the goblet that is missing could be worth more than £1 million.” The discovery was made when a 94-year-old man who had worked on cleaning one of the goblets came to visit the museum and discovered it was missing.
Tune Smith
San Francisco’s Davies Hall is “tuned” for every performance. The computer-controlled acoustical canopy that dangles over the stage looks like some huge constructivist sculpture and reflects sound back to the musicians and out to the audience. It’s composed of 59 slightly bowed 6-foot squares of Plexiglas – they collectively cover 3,400 square feet – whose height and angle are adjusted according to the size of the ensemble or to the piece being performed.”
I’d Rather Eat News
It seemed like an interesting experiment – a radio drama with an all-star cast broadcast daily for a week to a national American audience. But reaction to National Public Radio’s radio play “I’d Rather Eat Pants” was swift – and negative. Of the 1,000 e-mails the network received, about 75 percent were negative, and execs are trying figure out why. Cast member Ed Asner is disappointed. “It’s a shame that intellectual newshawks who occupy NPR – or think they are intellectual newshawks – have to be so grouchy.”
Who We Lost
Here’s the AP’s list of A&E notables who passed away in 2002.
In Print We Trust
In this day of instant information on the internet, is there still a place for the printed encyclopedia? Surprisingly, yes. “Publishers are rediscovering how to reach the customer who thinks a printed book is still the best source of knowledge. After a four-year hiatus, Encyclopaedia Britannica, based in Chicago, has almost sold out the new edition it released this year and is planning a revision for next year. Libraries remain the best customers, but there is still a core of people who want that row of books at home.”
Broadway Perks Up
For much of 2002, Broadway seemed caught in a downdraft. But “for the fall and winter, Broadway ticket sales have been running 15% ahead of last year’s levels, says Jed Bernstein, president of the League of American Theatres & Producers. Sales could even surpass 2000’s record-setting figures. Thanksgiving week alone racked up $18.6 million, vs. $16 million for the same week in 2000. Now, with 33 shows on the boards, Broadway is wrapping up its holiday season, traditionally the strongest time of the year. What happened?”
Where Are The New Stars?
Where are dance’s new stars? “A new century has come, but where are the new voices? Where is a Nijinsky, with his blocky new look, echoing the fresh perspectives that were also energizing Picasso, Braque and Stravinsky? Where are the new pairs of eyes, the new synergies, the new conversations? Granted, it is more difficult – and costly – to break through the static nowadays than when Duncan and Graham and the like were embarking on their exploratory ventures. Yet surely artists of 100 years ago were as bound by their constraints as we are by ours. It is up to the artists of today to overcome the constraints, to claim their place in the pantheon of the greats.”
Spanish-Language TV Up In US
Growth in the American TV audience is being driven by Hispanic Americans. “Hispanics, it turns out, are driving the overall growth of the country’s television audience, and according to the latest Nielsen research, account for 18 percent of viewers who are 18 to 34, and 15 percent of those 18 to 49, the most desirable groups for advertisers.”
A Very Good Year For Movies (At The Box Office)
“More than $9 billion worth of tickets were sold in North America in 2002, up about 10 percent over last year’s record. Even with higher prices, actual attendance was up at least 5 percent, reaching levels not seen since Eisenhower was in the White House. But let’s not pop those Champagne corks just yet. There are plenty of reasons for concern and doubt amid the hype and hyperventilating.”