Deborah Borda, president of the New York Philharmonic, gave me a virtual tour on Zoom the other day. What I saw leads me to believe that Geffen Hall will leave the rest of the world playing catch-up. - The Critic
"I never expected Russian artists to publicly take a stand, to venture, to risk, but when they did, I am struck (mostly) by the humanity, and the specificity of language in conveying that humanity." - The Opera Queen
The Moscow-based ballet company were set to return to London this summer but their tour has been called off as Ukraine was hit by air strikes and Russian fighters closed in on the country's capital Kyiv. - Daily Mail (UK)
First of all, "the Warner Grand Theater building was originally designed for film screenings, not live performances, so the depth of the stage had to be expanded from 18 feet to 53 feet." - Fast Company
"In the last few years, as China’s diplomatic relations with the west – and in particular the US – plummeted, the preferences of Chinese audiences changed, too." Now homegrown Chinese media is in vogue, changing Hollywood calculations (and funding). - The Observer (UK)
"The props are collectively valued at roughly $200,000, and include a replica of a Fabergé egg, several sets of silver and gold candelabra, a clock face of a William IV grandfather clock, a 10-piece silver dressing table set and crystal glassware and decanters ."- The New York Times
At least, new info to the public. Investigators have been looking at links between the 1990 art heist and a 1991 execution-style murder for a decade or so. - Boston Globe
It's so intense right now that "Screen Ireland ... is to open five film academies, including one specialising in animation, to keep up with the demand for talent." - The Guardian (UK)
For instance, among the dozens of hard stories, "at the shutdown’s outset, Signature Theatre in Arlington had to scratch the world premiere of Camille Claudel, a decades-in-the-making musical by Frank Wildhorn and Nan Knighton that has not been rescheduled." - Washington Post
If you missed them yesterday, they're getting rebroadcast on HBO, but as usual, the Oscars discussion heats up as American awards start to roll in. - The Hollywood Reporter
A real shocker this year, leaving the way open for newbies like Paramount Plus and Showtime: "Like fellow top docu distributors including Amazon, National Geographic, Apple TV Plus and HBO, Netflix was left out of the race." - Variety
When the Academy snubs every actor, the director, and the movie - but just can't bring itself to leave the movie off the nominations list. "If you curated a film festival of 'lone screenplay' nominees, you’d have a program filled with crowd-pleasers." - The Atlantic
