Chicago Theater Blog News

Belarus Free Theatre finds safe refuge in Chicago, to the applause of the theater world

Chris Jones — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 10:10:29 PST

The Belarus Free Theatre’s "Being Harold Pinter" will be hosted in Chicago by the Goodman Theatre and performed at three different venues. (GET YOUR TICKETS; more details below). Natalia Kolyada, the co-founder of the dissident Belarus Free Theatre, has never...

Sickness

(author unknown) — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 16:00:00 PST

Audiophiles

(author unknown) — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 16:00:00 PST

Good Code

(author unknown) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 16:00:00 PST

A large-scale test of using the internet for performance

Patrick Hudson — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:05:56 PDT

This past Monday, I was privileged to be working part of the national simulstaging of The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later, An Epilogue. Over 150 theatres across the US and around the world (in fact, more than were listed on the website) took part in this event, which included many of them starting their performances in sync with the “lead” performance at The Lincoln Center. The Lincoln Center provided a live internet feed of the opening remarks and greetings, as well as of the Twitter based question and answer session following the performance.

Prior to the event, tests were done for Lincoln Center and for participating theatres. Days before, and day of, a live feed of rehearsals was provided to allow theatres to test their connections, as well as set video and sound levels. Coordination was handled via Twitter accounts and “hashtags” for trending topics, allowing each theatre to get information, as well as ask questions if needed.

All in all, the event went relatively smoothly. There were the expected delays in getting started, owing to different sized houses at each venue, as well as the sudden load on the server providing video when everyone finally connected at once. The use of Twitter, as opposed to live chat, or live audio chat, allowed the Lincoln Center techs to announce information to the participating theatres without being overwhelmed with hundreds of “can you hear me?” or “what’s going on?” questions. At intermission, it was interesting to see which theatres got there earlier than Lincoln Center, and which ones started intermission later. My theatre started intermission about 5-8 minutes after Lincoln Center, yet due to the house size difference (more people to get back in their seats at Lincoln Center) we ended up starting Act II ahead of them.

The two main worry points for syncing up were the top of the show, and the question and answer session at the end. Top of show was easier, as we had an estimated start time plus the Twitter feed. But syncing up with the question and answer session was dependent on ending the performance before, or at the same time, as Lincoln Center. With no performance feed from NY, and no desire to “rush” the performers just so we can go to video (plus no way to tell them mid-performance, anyway), we were dependent on the Twitter updates. This was complicated by the fact that they gave out updates as the script page number they were on, but other theatres may not have the same page numbers for a given section of the script.

I have to give a lot of credit to the Lincoln Center staff, as well as Tectonic Theatre Project, for pulling this off. My hat goes off to @bmcclcinc for keeping us up to date, and remaining calm under what had to be tremendous pressure.

To view the Twitter communications: (please do not bother anyone who posted to these feeds)

#laramietech: The tech feed for everyone running the event, lead by Tectonic Theatre and @bmcclcinc

#laramie10: The general feed for the event, still getting new posts

@laramieQA: The account that questions were sent to for the live question and answer session. No responses were sent from that address, so don’t bother “following” it.

A few things I observed from this use of the current technology:

1. If internet based communications are to be used, as well as internet based media, then multiple, separate, internet lines need to be provided for this purpose. In our case, we had two, plus cellular networks. Once line for the video feed, the other for Twitter feed and backup for the video line. We also had at least 3 smartphones available checking Twitter for the latest tech updates from NYC.

2. Relying solely on Twitter, or any single service, for an event of this scale was extremely risky. If a major world event occurred, or simply a bug popped up in the Twitter servers, Twitter could have gone down from the strain, and we would have had no way of communicating. A secondary system should be used for future events of this type, and not only publicized to the participants, but updates posted to both systems simultaneously. That way if one goes down, everyone can switch over without waiting to be told.

3. Everyone needs to be on the same page. The technical staff running the show in each venue should all know which feeds are being monitored for info. With so much riding getting information in a timely manner, relying on just one person to check/get updates is foolhardy. In some cases, event staff had to search Twitter themselves to find the feeds they needed, instead of being informed about each feed in advance.

4. Have a backup plan. “Oh, we’ll just find out from Twitter” doesn’t cut it when you have 800 people wondering what is going on. Have plans to vamp for time, and what the host will talk about while vamping for time. Also figure out a way to communicate with the host when they are onstage, so they know what is going on while a problem is being resolved.

5. For those that are the “lead” theatre: Keep someone on the Twitter (or whichever service) account at all times, and keep them sending out updates. In this case, the information we received was great. But it wasn’t always timely (for us). Continuous updates on time, technical issues, and whatnot, keep everyone else down the line calm, and informed. When the tech feed goes silent, the concern rises that there is an internet issue somewhere.

One last thing: The interactive map showing which theatres were taking part was nice. But for an event so dependent on the internet, it was discouraging to discover that it was not up-to-date. For instance, it was quite a surprise to discover, through the Twitter feed, that Loyola University in Chicago was also presenting the performance, as they were not listed on the website. This would have been of great help to potential audience members trying to find a nearby venue to experience this event. I am concerned that many hundreds, if not thousands, of interested people were unable to see a production simply because the publicized website did not list it. If you are aware of a theatre or group that participated in Monday night’s event, but was not listed on the website, please let me know in the comments.

Any criticisms I may have made do not in any way mean that this was not a successful event. I believe it was an incredible success not only for it’s cause, but also for large scale event staging. Every live performance is a learning experience, and this one was groundbreaking both on an artistic, and technical stagecraft level. It was a history making event on both sides of the curtain.

All My Sons

Rob Kozlowski — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 13:29:53 PDT

Like I said to a fellow audience member Monday night, "Say, this is better than Finishing The Picture!" And it is. I saw FTP in its world premiere at the Goodman Theatre in the fall of 2004, a rather turgid remembrance of the filming of John Huston's The Misfits. It ended up being Arthur Miller's final play, and he joined Tennessee Williams (A House Not Meant to Stand) as legendary American playwrights whose final plays premiered at the Goodman, proving once and for all that if you're over 65, accepting a commission from the Goodman is tantamount to a death sentence.

Fortunately for the play I saw Monday evening at the Greenhouse Theatre Center, Arthur Miller wrote it long before he met Marilyn Monroe, long before he had the burden of being Arthur Miller and All My Sons' examination of a family destroyed by greed rings far as true today as ever. What is ultimately intriguing about the play today is the reaction from the audience. I wonder whether audiences in 1947 were shocked by the revelation that Chris's father was indeed guilty of approving the shipment of defective airplane parts and ultimately responsible for the deaths of 21 flyers, because from my cynical perspective of 2009, there was never any question of his guilt. Of course he was guilty, because this is the country of getting to the top no matter who it hurts. Or kills.

To say TimeLine Theatre is on a hot streak is an understatement. While The History Boys has been extended till the end of September (thanks to the sponsorship, according to the company's program, of Bernie Holicky, which cracks my shit up to no end, believe you me), the company comes up with this absurdly gorgeous production that some might say is Broadway-worthy but I would counter by saying it's Chicago-worthy. After all, Broadway tried its own revival last Autumn, and it fell faster than a large falling thing on a planet with superstrong gravity.

Alas, this is the first time I've ever seen a production of All My Sons, so I can't compare it to other revivals, but what struck me with what Miller did was make Joe an incredibly flawed human being who honestly believed in what he was doing for the good of his family. I think a lot of writers forget that the villain of the piece almost always believe what they're doing is the right thing. There is absolutely nothing false about this play, and there is nothing false about a single moment in TimeLine's production. And holy fucking crap: Janet Ulrich Brooks.

Janet Ulrich Brooks is just phenomenal as Kate, transforming what could easily be turned into someone weak and withering by a lesser actor into someone who just believes. Man, what writer wouldn't give his or her eyeteeth (or eyes or teeth) to see a desperate want made so real. Wow.

See, Brooks is my Aunt Jo's very favorite Chicago actor, and that's saying something because Aunt Jo is not remotely capable of faint praise. One of my parents' oldest friends, Joanne Notz was deeply involved in Theatre First for its entire lifetime, 1959-1990, and she is a tough critic, but she has never said anything less than wonderful things about Brooks' work, leading me to think after the show, "Aunt Jo is going to fucking flip over this!"

And what the play did Monday night was once again renew my love of theater. It needs renewal from time to time, especially after this long summer. Holy crap.

Quote of the Day for May 21, 2009

Patrick Hudson — Thu, 21 May 2009 16:23:38 PDT

“I hear tales of John Malkovich being an illiterate, mumbling fool who could not act or even memorize lines until his hand accidentally came into contact with another actor’s Equity card, and as if under some magical spell he suddenly absorbed almost superhuman acting abilities from the small rectangle of cardboard stock.”

-Rob Kozlowski, from his blog.

A mystery unsolved ...

leisureblogs — Wed, 20 May 2009 09:49:17 PDT

Rob Kozlowski is a Chicago writer who posts about theater on The Rob Kozlowski Chicago Theater and Vintage Film Medicine Show. He occassionally posts about this blog, none so funny as this recent item about blog commentors and their identities....

Rock 'n' Roll

Rob Kozlowski — Thu, 14 May 2009 06:10:00 PDT

Oh, Tom Stoppard. You are so smart, you English bastard. Your latest play, Rock 'n' Roll, shows again how frakking smart you are, you little so-and-so. Covering the tumultuous span of 1968 to 1990 in Britain and Czechoslovakia, we encapsulate all of humanity's dreams and foibles in three hours and tie it together with a bow. It's an ambitious play, despite being a step down in ambition from his previous work The Coast of Utopia (what was he going to do next, finish A Tale of Possessors Self-Dispossessed?), and what's a particularly interesting choice is having so much of the dialogue surrounding the famous underground Czech band The Plastic People of the Universe while we never see the band. I'm always intrigued by choices like that because they're risky choices. Sure, Stoppard's considered to be the greatest living British playwright by some but I think it does a disservice to him and all playwrights not to nitpick dramaturgical choices. Of course, the thing works. It helps, I suppose, that I was already familiar with the Plastic People from watching a documentary at a Czech Film Festival at Facets, so I think I was a step ahead of a lot of audience members who might not get a lot of the references, but that's the danger with Stoppard. He's SO DAMN SMART.

Of all the actors in the production, the one who actually blew me away was Mary Beth Fisher. I've seen her mainly in comic plays like The Little Dog Laughed and The Clean House, and here, playing two roles in interpretations different enough it took quite a few moments to register that it was really her in the second role. There's also an emotional scene near the Act One where she made my hair stand on end, which never happens because I'm a cold, cold person.

Now did I like the show? Yes. Did I understand all of it? Not necessarily. Did that bother me? No. Did the use of some seemingly obvious rock'n'roll song choices during the transitions bother me? Not so much. I think some folks are troubled by the title of the play and the fact that the play isn't about rock'n'roll and I think it is. Sure, it's sort of a clumsy, obvious symbol for rebellion and freedom, but I think the obviousness is part of it, y'know. I also think a more active role for the Plastic People of the Universe would have served the play well. At least that's what I think.

A Change is Gonna Come

Travis Bedard — Mon, 11 May 2009 19:49:50 PDT

Leonard Jacobs in the ever invaluable Clyde Fitch report on Monday noted that with a return to simply anemic (rather than starvation) funding for the NEA that the Big Boys might be able to forestall the model change that Mr. Daisey and the head of the galumphing horde has been calling for.

Mr. Jacobs is, of course, right. An increase in funding will perpetuate the status quo. So what?

The change that Mr. Daisey was calling for was never going to come from the entrenched seats of power. In every situation self perpetuates self. Colleges feed aspiring regional/Broadway performers to the regionals and Broadway, and in a few years everyone not earning enough to have kids on (who stuck with it) returns to claim their trophy tenure track position.

And you know what? That has its place. Honestly. They make theatre that a lot of people like, and a lot of people make a living that way - Not enough people, and not enough money, in not the right places by my reckoning. But I am quite literally nowhere near a regional theatre. You can even check Scott’s map. It’s true.

Look, the revolution was always going to be grassroots that’s the only way revolution ever is. Kings don’t throw themselves out of windows because patriarchal succession is a load of crap… they have help.

Stop trying to force other people into the model you want to see.
Create the model you want to see.
Create the artist focused model you cry out for.
Support others who are doing it.

99Seats called out for his practical revolution in a widely shared post, and I was sort of puzzled as to the acclaim because…

Isn’t that what the storefront and indie groups are already doing?

The only difference is the money and the money will come. Success breeds attention breeds respect breeds financial support.

But what choice will you make when that moment comes? Will you cash it in for better board members and a yearly executive salary? Or will you dance with who brung ya?

www.cambiareproductions.com

Jason Tratta releases QAutoSaver

Christopher — Sat, 02 May 2009 11:51:47 PDT

Check out this cool new application from Jason Tratta:

It’s one of those great little apps that does one thing and does it well: it uses the new scripting hooks in QLab 2 to provide customizable periodic backups of your workspace.

It’s even smart enough to skip a save if you’re in the middle of running a cue.

Congratulations to Jason for a slick little app! QAutoSaver extends QLab’s existing functionality in a really nice way.

What cool utility will show up next?

People.....people who need......people.....

Dianna — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:07:26 PDT

As I was re-reading my post I just posted, I was looking over my blog layout, and I started thinking about all the people I link to..... ya know..... over THERE..-------->

might as well take them in order, eh?

1. Chris Bohjalian - fantastic author, just discovered his blog and added it a week or 2 ago - I keep forgetting to pop him toward the bottom in the "famous people blog" zone. SO, love his books (yeah, yeah, Midwives was an "Oprah" book - don't let that dissuade you. ) His blog is more topical, though, which I enjoy.

2. Sara - my love & partner in crime. She hasn't updated her blog in FOREVER, but she has to be there or else I'll get in trouble. (in fact, she SHOULD be first, hence the need to pop Bohjalian down a few notches.) Personally, I wish she'd use it to write again. When we first got together, she wrote poems (good ones) and hasn't in a long time. Well, now I've thrown the gauntlet and mayvbe she'll respond. We'll see.

3. Toxic Blog's Bag - written by my pal Joe Griffin, this is his production company. Joe's one of those "all around great guys" everyone should have in their life. But go find your own - you can't have my Joe. His list of talents and accomplishments are many. While lots of folks identify him as "sound guy Joe", he is first and foremost a talented musician. And yeah, he'll design sound for your show or dance program. But he is also a good friend. When I was younger, I always felt smart around some of my social circles, mostly because I was one of the smarter people there. Now - my adult social circles have me with people who are FAR smarter than I, and through I at times feel dumb in their presence, I heartily enjoy the conversation. Joe is one of the smart kids.

4. Brownlee? really, I have to talk about Brownlee?

Brownlee and I used to joke that we had the same brain and it was cleaved in half and seperated into the 2 of us. We usually think the same, and quite often when we're hanging out we'll make the same sarcastic remarks at almost the same time. Creepy, I know. Anyway - he's a funny guy, a good friend, a good writer and a fantastic photographer.

5. Don is the strangest mixture of person out there. He is the most lewd and crude and yet smartest guy I know. My "Bostonian language skills" (read: cussing like a sailor), are supremely attracted to his unique brand of blue humour. On a serious side, he's one of the most passionate artists I know. When he's involved in a project, he attacks it balls out (LITERALLY). I am both grossed out and in love with the guy. I heart Don Hall.

6. Jen Ellison. Dude, the chick makes me laugh. And she's SMRT. And we both like funky socks. And have shameful choices on our respective iPods. What's not to love?

7. Joe Janes is a brilliant comedy writer. We worked together last summer on Metaluna, and will be working together in next month's Throwing Heat at the Atheneum (plug). Another one - funny, smart, talented. He recently changed his regular blog over to a personal challege of "365 sketches". He's going to write and post a comedy sketch/scene every day for a year. He's on day 86 so far, which adds up to being almost a 1/4 done. He's the man.

8. Paul Rekk (AKA Bries Vannon). Bries and I worked on The Crucible back in the fall of '05 I think? It was an artistically awesome production to work on, and Bries was a big part of that. He's a great guy with some very thoughtful theatre discussion on his blog - love him.

9. Rebar - WNEP company member, she was also in Metaluna last summer. Her posts are hilarious, and I love her political points of view. She's a funny gal and I hope she follows through on her latest promise and posts more :)

10. Bob Fisher is a director & writer, founder of The Mammals and company member of WNEP. I've only met Bob twice I think? He was the director of my favorite piece at last summer's Raw series (Boneweaver), and he's directing some friends of mine in next month's Devil's Don't Forget, which I will unfortunately be UNABLE to see (pout). Great blog, cool guy. One of these days we may actually have a conversation :)

11 Dan Granata - thinking about his performance in Touch at New Leaf a couple of months ago STILL makes me misty. (I wrote a little about it here) . He's most well known for 2 things (in my head, at least). He's the boyfriend of my favorite Texan, and he co-founded the Chicagio Theatre Database. He's super smart, and a great guy.

12 Nick Kennan. Funny story, when Nick and I finally met face to face this past winter, the first thing I said to him was "man, I totally thought you were shorter". Am I a dork, or what?

Nick is taking the theatre world by storm, with his amazing sound designs (still can't get over how good Dining Room was...), his great theatre ideas (hence name of blog) and his involvement with the Chicago Theatre Database is awesome. He's a good guy to know - and again, like all the poeple listed above... totally smarter than me.

13. Diffraction - Beth Cummings. Beth is married to Regan Davis, who was in (you guessed it) last summer's Metaluna. She is not only a funny gal, but a talented artist (see items on her website), and she's a GREAT COOK!!!!!!! If you ever get invited to Regan & Beth's for anything, GO for crying out loud.... and bring and empty belly.

14. Rob K - Rob writes about theatre AND old films on his blog, which is great. Rob is one of those great online folks whom I have actually NEVER met face to face. And he's the only guy (other than Tony) who talks football on his blog too, during the appropriate seasons.

15. Bilal... I love that I follow Bilal's website (on old-school LiveJournal, natch), and we follow each other on Twitter (and comment back and forth to each other), and yet, have NEVER met face to face. I feel like it would be a tremendous let down for each of us - I'm not nearly as funny in face-to-face settings - so I think we should keep this relationship online.....FOREVER!!!!!
MUA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!!! ok, enough of that.

16. GreyZelda - Rebecca, whom I've never met either, this is her blog for her company GreyZelda Theatre. She actually linked to me FIRST, and I was all a-flutter about it. Rebecca seems VERY cool, and I'm looking forward to meeting her one of these days.

17. Tony Adams - Tony is AD for Halcyon Theatre, and we've worked together (WAY back in the day). He's married to my old college buddy, who is the one who moved to Chicago with me in the first place. We haven't spoken in a long time (my fault - see my post that sheds light HERE), but I REALLY enjoy his blog - he's a smart guy and we used to have some great conversations about THeatre. Plus, he's a fellow Beastie Boys man.... I'll never forget the 2 of us rocking out to the Beastie's at he & Jenn's wedding. Classic.

18 - Chris Jones - Tribune Theatre Critic

19 - Kris Vire - TimeOut Theatre critic - this blog isn't affiliated with TimeOut, and Kris has some great theatre insights and info on his site.

20. My friend Stacy started a blog when she headed to Mongolia for the Peace Corps. You feel lazy now just because of reading that. Yeah, me too.

21. My friend Valerie started a blog to post all her travel pictures (her goal is to be on all continents before 30 - she's almost done). But then she wasn't able to update for awhile. She recently changed it over to be a "one great picture a week" kind of site, and she's doing great so far. She's a great photographer and she has the cutest damn dog.

22. Yeah, so this is Rosie O'Donnell's blog - yeah, so she's a little crazy, big deal. She does great work for the LGBT community, and she's a pretty cool role model. I love her....

23 Wil Wheaton - supergeek. His blog awesome, his twitter updates are great, too. He's developed into a great writer (I own a few of his recent books) and it's great to see a child star doing positive things with their life and not blowing it on Porshes, Red Bulls & drugs.

24. Margaret Cho. No explanation necessary, the woman freaking rocks.

Aeroplane Over the Sea, Amanda Palmer and High Schoolers.

Boo — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 15:33:53 PDT

I would love love love to see this.Aeroplane Over the Sea is one of my favorite albums of all times. It played on repeat in my cd player for probably a good 6 months...amanda fucking palmer » blogPosted using ShareThis

The Critic As Artist?

Chloe Veltman — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 12:31:09 PDT

I recently applied for a grant to help support my activities as a performing arts blogger from a Bay Area-based organization that funds theatre artists and companies. Before I applied for the grant, I asked the the grant's leaders if I would be eligible to apply. They told me that as a theatre critic, I would indeed be eligible to apply under the "artist" category, which I thought was very forward-thinking of them. "Yes, you are eligible...You would want to define yourself in terms of being a "theatre artist" (personally, I feel theatre journalist fits that bill)," the grant-giving organization's director wrote to me in an email. So in the spirit of experimentation, I applied for the grant.

The experiment, somewhat unsurprisingly, failed. Even though I'd be told I was eligible to apply, in the end the grant's panelists decided not to consider a theatre critic as an artist, so my application was deemed eligible. The rejection letter I received from the grant-giver last week stated that my application could not be considered because a theatre critic is not, according to the panel, an artist. "The panel reluctantly ruled your application ineligible because it appeared that you are not a theatre artist..." the grant-giver wrote in my rejection letter.

All of this raises interesting questions about where arts critics fit into the arts spectrum these days -- if they fit in at all. With old media dying and new media still trying to figure out a way to make ends meet, journalists of all kinds are looking for different ways to feed their commentary beyond the old paradigm of the salaried newspaper/magazine/television/radio employee.

It's true that the changing media landscape has made high quality writing about the arts less prevalent today, perhaps, than it was in the past. But just as hacks are not a novelty -- they've always been around -- so beautifully-composed, thoughtful writing about culture is still to be found in plentiful amounts. Oscar Wilde thought of critics as artists. Why can't grant givers do the same?

Broadway Grosses w/e 4/26/09

Ken Davenport — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:46:58 PDT

Show Name	Gross
33 VARIATIONS	$291,195
9 TO 5	$625,252
ACCENT ON YOUTH	$176,923
AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY	$203,577
AVENUE Q	$236,576
BILLY ELLIOT: THE MUSICAL	$1,158,561
BLITHE SPIRIT	$524,435
CHICAGO	$516,557
DESIRE UNDER THE ELMS	$190,498
EXIT THE KING	$520,068
GOD OF CARNAGE	$747,164
GUYS AND DOLLS	$553,946
HAIR	$829,747
IMPRESSIONISM	$212,523
IN THE HEIGHTS	$691,181
IRENA'S VOW	$195,899
JERSEY BOYS	$1,037,565
JOE TURNER'S COME AND GONE	$263,799
MAMMA MIA!	$875,597
MARY POPPINS	$762,384
MARY STUART	$283,488
NEXT TO NORMAL	$207,775
REASONS TO BE PRETTY	$104,247
ROCK OF AGES	$376,529
SHREK THE MUSICAL	$693,744
SOUTH PACIFIC	$842,947
THE 39 STEPS	$172,636
THE LION KING	$1,128,044
THE LITTLE MERMAID	$689,228
THE NORMAN CONQUESTS	$131,403
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA	$764,301
THE PHILANTHROPIST	$179,498
WAITING FOR GODOT	$385,712
WEST SIDE STORY	$1,191,832
WICKED	$1,458,664

Stupid Things Said By House Crew

noreply@blogger.com (One NYC StageHand) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 19:11:00 PDT

Theatrical Lighting Database

L Jean Burch — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 12:53:50 PDT

The New York Public Library and Lighting Archive has created an online Theatrical Lighting Database. On this site you can browse the lighting info available for A Chorus Line, Sunday in the Park with George, and several others. The information includes the plot, paperwork such as magic sheets and cue sheets, and even notes.

Promptbook Porn

noreply@blogger.com (The Playgoer) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 12:07:00 PDT

Promptbook for the original Mikado, by Gilbert & Sullivan.

London's Victoria & Albert Museum has a beautiful collection of original D'Oyly Carte promptbooks, now available for full perusal on their site.

Calm down, stage managers...

Canadian Gov't Offers Theatrical "Stimulus"

noreply@blogger.com (The Playgoer) — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 09:16:00 PDT

In our own recession emergency measures, we Yanks were lucky to get a few more pennies for our National "Endowment" for the Arts.

Our neighbors up north meanwhile just pumped extra millions directly into their two largest theatre institutions.

Sayeth Variety:

The Canuck government [really Variety? Canuck?] is pumping funds into attractions it considers significant tourist draws, with the Stratford Shakespeare Fest and the Shaw Fest, both in Ontario, receiving hefty sums. Stratford gets about $3 million Canadian (about $2.5 million in U.S. greenbacks) while the Shaw Fest receives around $2.1 million Canadian (US $1.7 million).

Unfortunately, if our representatives decide that only tourism makes theatre worth the investment, all the money would go directly into the coffers of the League of Broadway Producers.

Modern Art

(author unknown) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:05:52 PDT