There are plenty of composers who take up conducting (and do quite well). There are few conductors who can turn the other way. So why are Lorin Maazel and Andre Previn both writing operas well on in their careers?
Tag: 06.18.04
UK To Investigate Ticket Rip-Offs
The UK is launching an investigation into ticket agency fees for concerts and West End theatre. “The consumer affairs watchdog has launched a fact-finding study to discover if agents are distorting the market and overcharging customers following a series of complaints.”
Artists: No Testimony Against Kurtz
Artists are refusing to testify in the grand jury bioterrorism investigation of Buffalo artist Steve Kurtz. “At least six people who were called to testify before the grand jury in the Kurtz case Tuesday refused to appear, invoking their Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination.”
FBI Visits Seattle Museum Asking Questions
Two FBI agents came to the Henry Gallery at the University of Washington recently to ask curators about artist Steve Kurtz, the subject of a grand jury investigation into bioterrorism in Buffalo, N.Y. Kurtz had a show at the Henry. “I don’t know what I was expecting from the FBI, but they asked incredibly inflammatory questions. … I remember one of them asked, ‘If you heard there was an explosion in Buffalo that killed 100 people and Steve Kurtz was involved, would you be surprised?’ I said, ‘Yes, of course, there couldn’t be an explosion involving Steve. He’s an artist, not a terrorist.’ “
Ontario Culture Budget Gets A Bump Up
The province of Ontario is having budget problems like governments everywhere. But the new budget for culture is going up. “Estimates for the 2004-05 fiscal year, released this week, show that the Ontario government’s cultural program will involve expenditures of close to $150-million. That’s an increase of almost 7 per cent over last year, and the first substantive hike in culture funding in more than five years.”
Study On State Arts Agencies Sparks Debate
A new RAND study on US state arts agencies criticizes them for “failing to be forward-thinking in their visions and politically astute in their operations, and for failing to become financially insulated from the vagaries of the economy and state budgeting.” But Jonathan Katz, CEO of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, takes issue with some of the report’s findings.
Did Avenue Q Producers Dupe Tour Presenters?
National tour presenters are feeling betrayed by producers of Avenue Q. They feel that they were “duped” into voting a Tony for the show thinking that it would help the tour business. Instead,”the news that the show would skip a national tour and instead run, in the fall of 2005, in a $40 million, 1,200-seat theatrical venue being built by Steve Wynn in his new $2.5 billion casino, the Wynn Las Vegas Resort and Country Club, snapped the business (and those who cover it) to attention. For road presenters, it caused a reaction as close to a paroxysm as the theatre ever sees.”
Russian Trial On “Blasphemous” Art
“A prominent Russian human rights advocate and two other defendants went on trial Tuesday, accused of organizing a blasphemous exhibit. Their lawyers said the charges were so vague it was impossible to answer them.”
MPAA Objects To Bill Allowing Edited Movie Versions
The Motion Picture Association of America is objecting to a proposed new law in the US Congress that would exempt from legal liability anyone using software to make “family friendly” versions of movies. “Our objection is simply to Congress providing legal cover to companies that want to make a profit by offering an edited, abridged version, without regard for the wishes of the director who created the movie or the studio that owns the copyright.”
Stolen Paintings (Including “Cezanne”) Recovered In Australia
“A hoard of stolen paintings, including a work said to be by impressionist Paul Cezanne, has been recovered by police in Australia.” The paintings were stolen from an Australian art restorer in February, and he claimed that a Cezanne worth $50 million was among them. But the paintings were uninsured, and Cezanne experts said they had never heard of such a Cezanne.