“All it takes is typing a little dialogue, picking some characters, and bingo! You have a robot-voiced key scene from ‘Pride and Prejudice.'” Or, if Austen’s not your cup of tea, from any other work of literature in the public domain.
Tag: 03.01.10
National Theatre Wales Takes Drama To The People
“Like Scotland’s national theatre, the company has no permanent home. Its home is all of Wales, and its first season will feature a dozen productions stretching from Cardiff, Swansea and Newport in the south to the beaches of north Wales, via Barmouth, Bangor and a military firing range in the Brecon Beacons.”
A Disillusioned Simon Rattle Regards UK From A Distance
“Does he find himself echoing Kennedy’s ‘Ich bin ein Berliner’ line? ‘No, I don’t feel like a doughnut yet,’ Rattle grins. ‘Just a bit deracinated. I’m the one who can’t speak English any more, without necessarily being able to speak German.'”
What A Lovely Morning To Be Naked At The Opera House
“[T]he one thing the 5,200-odd people who posed for the American artist Spencer Tunick at the Sydney Opera House earlier today had in common was that they were all totally naked.”
Alberta Ballet Website Overrun With Elton John Fans
“No sooner did tickets go on sale Monday for Love Lies Bleeding, the new ballet inspired by the songs of Elton John, than they went off again.” Would-be buyers had crashed the site.
As Theatre Budgets Tighten, Co-Productions Flourish
“Last season included two coproductions in the region, one more than the year before. This season, at least five plays are a result of sharing by 10 theaters – with two out-of-town companies in the arrangements.”
Dallas, Fort Worth Tussle Over Cultural Bragging Rights
“There’s a showdown brewing in Texas: between the neighboring cities of Dallas and Fort Worth. They’re not fighting over land, or water, or oil or gas rights; they’re fighting for cultural supremacy. Who’s got the best art museum? Who’s bigger in the music world?”
It’s Making Music, Not Listening, That Hones The Brain
“If you want music to sharpen your senses, boost your ability to focus and perhaps even improve your memory, the latest word from science is you’ll need more than hype and a loaded iPod. You gotta get in there and play. Or sing, bang or pluck.”
Music Helps People To Heal — But How?
“While music therapists use a mix of improvisation and proven techniques to help patients, neuroscientists are looking to uncover the scientific basis for music’s healing powers. They are trying to understand how music can help rewire a brain affected by illness or injury, or provide a work-around for injured or underperforming brain regions.”
Faced With E-Book Pricing, Publishers Do The Math
“Just how much does it actually cost to produce a printed book versus a digital one? Publishers differ on how they account for various costs, but a composite, and necessarily simplified, picture might look like this….”