“Veteran US director Abel Ferrara arrived in Switzerland’s lakeside resort of Locarno last week to receive the highest honour awarded by the town’s 64-year-old film festival – the Leopard of Honour. He ended up the butt of catcalls and whistles of anger after outraging festivalgoers” – by singing to them (at length).
Tag: 08.08.11
Looking In On The Construction Of The New Barnes Foundation Building
The new home for the museum “has been rising on the [Benjamin Franklin] Parkway for a year and a half, but with the addition of its beautiful limestone cladding, it’s beginning to show us what the finished product will look like when construction is complete by the end of the year.”
The Opera-ization Of The American Musical
Anne Midgette: “Opera companies all over the country are putting new emphasis on presenting classic musicals in the original orchestration, without amplification … [But] fetishizing authenticity is of questionable value when it comes to the Broadway tradition.”
How Super 8mm Film Let Everyone Make Movies
“Super 8mm, unleashed by Kodak in 1965, … no longer had to be threaded laboriously into place; instead it came in 3,600-frame cassettes that could be inserted in a couple of seconds. These developments increased the picture-area on each frame by 50 per cent and allowed space for a soundtrack as well. Suddenly, Everyman was a real film-maker. So were his kids.”
Dallas Arts Patron Charles Wyly, 77, Dead In Auto Accident
“The news stunned the Dallas arts community, where Mr. Wyly’s philanthropy had helped solidify the dreams of the Arts District. The AT&T Performing Arts Center named the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre in honor of the couple’s $20 million gift.”
Ai Weiwei Returns To Tweeting
The dissident Chinese artist, who has more than 95,000 Twitter followers, posted his first updates on the service since being freed from prison in June. Ai had reportedly been forbidden to use social media after his release.
Stephen Sondheim Archive Set Up At Marquette University
“Marquette has established the Stephen Sondheim Research Collection after acquiring a vast collection of materials relating to the works of the Broadway composer and lyricist.”
Boldly Going Where Klingon Went Before: Avatar Fans Learn To Speak Na’vi
When a UBC linguist posted an online questionnaire asking for people who were studying the language invented for the gentle blue people in James Cameron’s sci-fi juggernaut, she received hundreds of replies from all over the world, including 11 written in Na’vi.
Would You Like A Little Haggis Before That Plié?
The National Ballet of China has been busy catching up since the end of the Cultural Revolution – and now it’s marking new traditions by heading to Scotland.
A City-State’s Festival – Sex, Lies And Religion In Singapore
Ivan Heng began the Man Singapore Theatre Festival to showcase local playwrights. The topics this year could be explosive, but Heng says, “in theatre, we can discuss these issues in a safe but intelligent way, in a shared experience.”