Despite the absence of dachshunds, Dobermans and dirigibles, Ring Festival LA is being billed by Plácido Domingo, the superstar Spanish tenor and L.A. Opera’s general director, as “the largest, most significant cultural festival in Los Angeles since the 1984 Olympic Arts Festival.”
Tag: 04.04.10
Anna Halprin Talks Dance
“Does dance make a difference? It’s a question that I’ve been asking myself every time I step in the studio. In other words, what’s the point? And what is there about this particular art form that keeps intriguing me? And why are we doing this? What do we have to say? It’s a hard life. Of all the arts, it’s probably the least rewarding financially and in terms of the comfort zone.”
The Struggle To Reinvent The Book
“People want to interact with all content now – books included. They want additional material and they want to be able to share material they like with friends. It’s our job as publishers to use the technology available and make this as easy and innovative as possible – while devising clever pricing models.
China Blocks Bob Dylan Tour
“Dylan’s planned tour of east Asia later this month has been called off after Chinese officials refused permission for him to play in Beijing and Shanghai, his local promoters said. China’s ministry of culture, which vets planned concerts by overseas artists, appeared wary of Dylan’s past as an icon of the counterculture movement.”
San Diego Old Globe Theatre Founding Director Craig Noel, 94
Apart from a break for military service in World War II and a brief stab at a Hollywood film career, Noel spent nearly his entire professional life at the theater set among the eucalyptus groves of San Diego’s Balboa Park. He was named resident director in 1947, and even though he turned over the position of artistic director to Jack O’Brien, his hand-picked successor, in 1982, he never relinquished his leadership role.
James Levine Withdraws From Rest Of Met Season
According to the Met, Levine is “to undergo corrective surgery for an ongoing lower back problem.” Press Director Peter Clark said there would be no further comment.
Cleveland Chamber Orchestra Struggles For Survival
“The Grammy Award-winning ensemble, which concentrates on works by living composers, is one of numerous orchestras and artists who perform late 20th- and 21st-century music in Scorsese’s psychological thriller. But the Cleveland Chamber Symphony hasn’t given a concert since last fall, and it’s struggling to stay alive.”
Unveiled: Giant Senegalese Bronze Statue Higher Than Statue Of Liberty
“The statue, which cost £17m and is taller than the Statue of Liberty, stands on a hill overlooking the capital, Dakar. It marks Senegal’s 50 years of independence, and the president, Abdoulaye Wade has said he hopes it will become a tourist attraction.”
Can Animals Be Gay? (Didn’t We Settle This Already?)
Lesbian koalas and gay male orangutans going at it, bisexual dolphins, the albatross eggs that have two mommies … Animal researchers are now documenting same-sex behavior which had been overlooked or explained away for 150 years. Activists, both gay and conservative, try to use this research for their own ends. But does the idea of gay animals even make sense? As one researcher puts it, “‘lesbian’ is a human term.”
In Classical Recordings, Orchestras Are Doin’ It For Themselves
“The modern symphony orchestra has thudded out of bed, stretched its lumbering limbs and woken up to the new reality of recordings: the industry has faded away. It’s do-it-yourself time.”