The fuss, in recent months, has been all about the British Museum’s use of the wrong kind of stone for its new portico. “Yet now the scaffolding has been removed, it is evident that the critics have simply latched on to one mistake and failed to perceive the greater glory of the whole. Norman Foster’s treatment of the Great Court wonderfully ennobles the austere Greek Revival architecture of Sir Robert Smirke.” – The Times (UK)
Tag: 11.07.00
CLEMENT GREENBERG’S COLLECTION
“The persistent fascination with Greenberg, who died in 1994, extends to his art collection, the acquisition of which was announced last month by the Portland Art Museum in Oregon. Comparing the Greenberg acquisition, the second- largest in the museum’s history, to “going from zero to 60 miles an hour,” museum director John Buchanan added, ‘I am a great believer that museum collections are built by collecting collections’.” – New York Times
PROMOTING A DISTINCT CULTURE
“In the international arena, Korean culture, long overshadowed by those of China and Japan, has received only marginal attention, often becoming subject to the view that regards it as a branch of theirs.” Now an initiative to promote Korean culture in other parts of the world as a distinct entity.” – Korea Times 11/07/00
COLOR BIND
The number of minority actors in theater productions on Broadway is dwindling – and most of those working are either in choruses or race-specific parts, rarely getting a chance at major roles. “A report by Actors’ Equity shows a sharp dip in the number of minorities on stage. In musical productions, nonwhite casting was 19.3 percent during the 1999 season, down from 31.2 percent the year before. In nonmusical productions, the numbers for 1999 – the last time such a study was conducted – were even more bleak, with only 7.2 percent of casts drawn from ethnic minorities, down from 8.5 percent in 1998.” – Seattle Times (New York Daily News)
A HISTORY OF THE THEATRE
Theatre is a vanishing art – that is, once produced on a stage it recedes into memory, and even a film of a performance can’t truly capture its essence. So how do you produce a TV history of the theatre? “Sir Richard Eyre, doyen of British theatre, has produced a history of 20th-century stagecraft. He says it won’t please everyone. – The Independent (UK)
MARGARET ATWOOD WINS BOOKER PRIZE —
— for her tenth novel, “The Blind Assassin.” Toronto’s Atwood had been shortlisted for the award three times previously. – BBC
- CHOOSING THE WINNER: The decision was not unanimous, but was a ‘consensus’ among the judges. – New York Times
- ATWOOD ON THE BETTING THAT SURROUNDS THE BOOKER: This is a betting country and this prize really took off when some genius put together the three words: Booker, book and bookie. I think there’s something deeply whimsical and appealing about the fact that the bookies get together and read all of the books; I mean, I love to think of them reading away, and then I love to think of them making the odds.” – National Post (Canada)
- NY TIMES REVIEW OF “BLIND ASSASSIN”
BOOKER FAILS TO EXCITE
Tonight the Booker Prize for literature is announced. “Baffled by such a mixed bag, Britain has shown less Booker spirit than usual this year. The shortlisted novels have failed to take over the nation’s bookshops, and sales are modest. “The list is slightly odd, and people aren’t quite sure what to make of it.” – National Post (Canada)
SETTING STANDARDS
Everyone agrees that e-books are the road to the future. But “the industry is nowhere near establishing a common e-book format that will permit consumers to read any e-book on whatever device they happen to own.” Until that happens, it’s likely to be rocky time for e-publishing. – Publishers Weekly
A NEW MEDIA FIGURE OF STAGGERING PROPORTIONS
Dave Eggers has become a hero of the New Media, he and his friends publishing books and the literary magazine McSweeney’s pretty much on their own terms. Is this how the New Media world was supposed to happen or is Eggers a passing flash? – New York Magazine
JUST THE RIGHT SIZE
Novellas are this fall’s literary sensation, with one after another short work of fiction hitting the bookshelves. An easy way out for stymied writers? A concession to readers’ dwindling attention spans? “When push comes to shove, perhaps the word represents a state of mind rather than a specific number of pages. There is something dangerous about the narrative choices the writer takes. If Steve Martin’s novella had been a page longer, it would have been mawkish; a page shorter, dismissible.” – Village Voice