It’s looking like this will be a banner fall for the publishing industry, but some observers are wondering if there may be more good books than the marketing apparatus can handle. “The situation has publishers trying novel marketing and publicity strategies as they struggle to get attention for their authors.”
Tag: 10.01.06
Are We Living In A Golden Age Of Art?
“Of contemporary art today, two things, and maybe only two things, can be said for sure. First, there is more of it — made in more styles and materials, by more artists who live, work and have exhibitions in more places — than ever before. Second, it doesn’t fit into neat categories or hierarchies.”
Reading, Race, And Rap
Can hip-hop culture be a tool to encourage greater literacy among ethnic minorities? Some London rappers think it’s essential. “What deters people [from reading] is that they are forced to do so much of it at school. It has the stigma attached to it of boredom. But Tupac [the late US rapper] said when he came out of prison that the knowledge he gained was from reading books.”
Place Prize Goes To Rajarani
“An Indian classical dancer has won Europe’s most prestigious award for choreography. London-based Nina Rajarani was last night awarded the £25,000 biennial Place prize, the dance world’s equivalent to the Turner prize.”
A Year Of Bad Art
You would think that it would be a great honor to be selected as a judge in Britain’s notorious Turner Prize competition. But for Lynn Barber, who has spent the last year viewing submissions for the Turner, the experience has been terribly depressing. “There is so much bad work around, so much that is derivative, half-baked or banal, you can’t believe that galleries would show it. I think what happened is that the huge success of the YBAs in the Nineties has created a peculiar post-boom glut whereby there are now more galleries looking for young artists than worthwhile artists to fill them.”
Rescuing Balanchine
There are at least 75 Balanchine ballets that remain in the standard repertory today, 23 years after the legendary choreographer’s death. But Balanchine created more than 400 ballets in his lifetime, many of which have not been preserved. Now, an ambitious effort is underway to rediscover some of what has been lost of Balanchine’s legacy.
The Great Shostakovich Debate
“Duplicity, codes, death threats, propaganda, the U.S.S.R. vs. the West — composer Dmitri Shostakovich’s life had all the elements of a Cold War spy drama. And the intrigue continues more than three decades after his death in 1975… Far from being a cut-and-dry commemoration of some distant figure, Shostakovich’s centennial has given a sharp crescendo to the controversy surrounding his participation in the oppressive Soviet system.”
Variety To Be Hallmark Of Miami PAC
Some observers have questioned the viability of Miami’s new performing arts center, given the fact that the Florida Philharmonic, which was to be one of the center’s anchor tenants, folded several years ago. But with 465 performances scheduled for the center’s first season, supporters are hopeful that they can build a loyal local audience with a succession of high-profile touring orchestras and a healthy dose of Latin flavor.
Will It All Be Worth It?
New performing arts venues have served as the cornerstone of a larger cultural renaissance in several American cities. But will it work in Miami? “For all its efforts and aspirations, Miami clearly is no Manhattan, no Vienna… [But the center] may put a more visible stamp on the cultural community here and get people to find out about other cultural organizations in Miami.”
KC PAC Digs In
After years of planning and fundraising delays, ground will finally be broken this week on Kansas City’s new downtown performing arts center. “The two-hall, $325 million project scheduled to open in fall 2009 will feature a state-of-the-art, 1,600-seat symphony hall, an 1,800-seat opera-ballet hall and a multipurpose Celebration Hall for chamber performances or educational purposes.”