Benedikt Taschen’s company puts out big, lush volumes on the likes of Picasso, Monet, Stanley Kubrick and Zaha Hadid, of course. But his projects range from The Big Book of Breasts (and its sequel, The Big Butt Book) to a glossy volume of raunchy gay comics by Tom of Finland to a facsimile of the 1534 Luther Bible to GOAT, a 20-inch-square, pink-leather-bound tribute to Muhammad Ali.
Tag: 05.02.10
Will A Young Choreographer Attract Young Audiences To Royal Ballet?
That’s what the company is hoping as it prepares to premiere a new dance by 23-year-old Royal Ballet corps member Liam Scarlett.
Boston Pops Struggle With Dwindling Audience
“The Boston Pops is facing a very 21st-century problem. Ticket sales are down, television exposure is scarce, and the orchestra, one of Boston’s grandest traditions, is looking for answers as it kicks off its anniversary season.”
Far From Shriveling, Off-Broadway Gets Ready To Grow
“Just a few years ago, off-Broadway was facing its final curtain call. Theaters with fewer than 500 seats–the dividing line between off-Broadway and Broadway venues–were being shuttered at a rapid pace and producers were abandoning Broadway’s lower-priced cousin. Now, a revival is under way.”
Blaze Destroys A Portland Bookstore
“A bookseller mourned the loss of his livelihood and more than 100,000 books as firefighters continued extinguishing a three-alarm fire that engulfed the Great Northwest Bookstore on Sunday. … In Portland’s dwindling rare and used book community, some say the store has long been a major player.”
Is New York Afraid Of Tall Buildings? (One Has To Wonder)
“Jean Nouvel’s Tower Verre was going to be the biggest thing to hit the midtown skyline since the Empire State Building. Then the city told him to chop off 200 feet. Scoffs the French architect: Why is Manhattan, of all places, afraid of heights?”
After 50 Years, Fantasticks Still Paying Off For Original Investors
“While these investors will never earn as many dollars as those who made much bigger bets on blockbuster musicals like “The Phantom of the Opera” and “Wicked” with much higher ticket prices, “Fantasticks” backers will still most likely enjoy a more sizable profit in percentage terms: accountants for the show estimated their total return at about 24,000 percent since 1960.”
So What’s Competing For This Year’s Tony Glory?
“No star presence on the order of Hugh Jackman, so majestically miscast as a thuggish Chicago cop in the sold-out autumn bore ‘A Steady Rain.’ No scandalous, headline-grabbing target, a la the wildly overproduced British import ‘Enron.’ And not a trace of the cynical, formulaic approach of the desperately unfunny musical version of ‘The Addams Family.'”
Now Everyone’s A Music Video Producer
“As with other viral phenomena, the professional productions inspire others who learn the choreography and share videos of their performances online. Then the tributes lead to tributes.”
Oakland: Culture On The Surge
“There are now 30 arts festivals that take place in Oakland, up from 2 in the mid-’80s, and about 50 art galleries where there were only a handful a decade ago. Industrial-arts organizations like the Crucible, founded in 1999, have been instrumental in supplying the Burning Man Festival with eye-popping installations.”