“Just three years removed from a rash of bankruptcies and cinema closings, [St. Louis’s movie] theater business is growing again. By early 2006, a building binge will add at least 56 new screens to the region’s western edge… In a transition that’s been far from painless, theater operators are continuing to move to these newer, larger cinemas. The trend takes amenities that debuted in the 1990s, such as stadium seating, and makes them standard theater fixtures. As a result, modern megaplexes are replacing smaller theaters from the 1970s and ’80s.”
Tag: 12.11.04
Maybe Some Asterisks Would Have Helped
When the Dallas-based Meadows Museum sent out invitations to its new exhibit featuring works from the extensive collection of Nona & Richard Barrett, the thinking was that the museum was celebrating a rich legacy of Texan art. But some artists attending the opening were stunned to discover that their Barrett-owned works were not in the show, despite the fact that the museum had listed their names in the brochure. It was all a big misunderstanding, of course, but the hurt feelings have remained.
Could Slatkin Fill Barenboim’s Shoes?
True, Leonard Slatkin has recently lost two high-profile music directorships amid rumors of his increasing unpopularity amongst musicians in London and Washington. But John von Rhein says that the time is right for the Chicago Symphony to appoint its first American music director, and Slatkin, with his famous enthusiasm and 30-year history of good relations with the CSO musicians, might be just the man for the job.
Forget The Scandal, Those Are Some Nice Fiddles
Ever since philanthropist Herbert Axelrod was indicted for tax fraud, his sale of two dozen valuable violins to the New Jersey Symphony has been spoken of mainly in terms of the scandal surrounding the seller. But questions of authenticity aside, the NJSO musicians are thrilled with the chance to play on some of the finest instruments ever crafted, and while they are certainly unhappy to be at the center of a controversy they had no part in creating, many are still amazed that “people who could never hope to play such instruments now have regular access to them. Superstar violinists, of course, can buy, or are lent, famous instruments, but they are out of reach for back-benchers in a midsize orchestra.”
News Flash: Diplomas Don’t Win Auditions
New York’s Juilliard School might be the world’s most famous training ground for young musicians. But even armed with a Juilliard degree, the highly competitive world of classical music is a tough place to make a living, and no one on an orchestral audition committee will give a rip where you went to school if you can’t nail that fast run in Don Juan four times in a row. A look at Juilliard’s graduating class of 1994 reveals that, ten years removed from the school’s rigorous teachings, some have gone on to great success as soloists or orchestral musicians; others have become teachers themselves; and still others have given up the dream of playing music professionally altogether.