Oberender to Stay as Director of Salzburg Festival

Thomas Oberender will not step down as Director of the Salzburg Festival as previously announced. Oberender claimed creative differences for his early departure and said the last 3 seasons were “the most painful time of my life”. He told the AP that disagreements and personal conflicts with management led to his early departure. Ulla Kalchmair, the Festival spokeswoman, said that Oberender would stay on, and in an email, that his contract would be reinstated thru 2011.

Josef Fritzl Incest Soap Opera to Open in Vienna

A German producer once told me she thought the English-language theatre (primarily Broadway and the West End) were all about appealing to the lowest common denominator and filling the houses with as many people as they could, where German-language theatre in Austria, Germany and Switzerland were about alienating as many people as possible. This theory may be put to the test soon. The 3raum-anatomietheater in Vienna says it will mount a satirical soap opera based on Josef Fritzl, the man accused of holding his daughter captive for 24 years and fathered her 7 children. Fritzl, whose trail is set for March, is accused of rape, incest, false imprisonment, enslavement and murder. The production is being directed by the well-known Austrian comedian, Hubsi Kramer, who, in the past, attempted to attend Vienna’s Opera Ball dressed as Adolf Hitler. The show is titled Fritzl’s Bed and Breakfast and opens February 23.

MAKE: Theatre Forum Ireland: 22-29 March 2009

MAKE is a collaborative initiative by Dublin Fringe Festival, Project Arts Centre and Theatre Forum, committed to the generation of new performance work. It will take the form of a residential laboratory open to Irish and international artists, whereby ideas for new performance works will be developed with the assistance of renowned international theatre artists Florian Malzacher, Richard Gregory and Gerardo Naumann. Over the course of one week, 15 practitioners will come together at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre, Annnaghmakerrig. Their purpose there will have an expressed emphasis on creating new work with assistance, mentoring and support, rather than learning specific skills or techniques. The week long laboratory will culminate in a short showing of the work they have developed over the course of the week. The emphasis of this workshop will be on the generation of new performance work outside of the traditional writer-led model. Click here for more information about the program and how to apply.

U.S. Increases Regulations for Visa Waiver Nations

Effective today, Monday, January 12th, citizens and nationals from all Visa Waiver eligible countries must have approval through the ESTA system before traveling to the United States on a Visa Waiver. Visit ESTA for more information. The Visa Waiver program allows persons from certain countries to travel here for purposes of business or tourism for a period of 90 days or less without a visa. Last year, 7 new countries were added to the list: the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, the Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, and Malta. The other eligible countries are: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

Iraqi Theatre Reappears

This is an article from 'Variety' by Bryan Pearson published January 7, 2009

BAGHDAD -- With security improving throughout Iraq, once-ubiquitous theater groups are starting to reappear. The National Theater led the way in October when it staged a series of evening performances for the first time since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003. The National Theater led the way in October when it staged a series of evening performances for the first time since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003.

Playwright Ali Hussein's biting satire "Bring the King, Bring Him," marked the Eid al-Fitr holiday -- one of the most important on the Muslim calendar. Because violence is still a real and present danger in the Iraqi capital, theatergoers were forced to make their way to the perfs on foot, and police closed off roads near the venue.

Security was as tight for a series of performances of yet another satire (Dec. 21-23) in the western city of Kut, capital of Wasit province, which was handed back to Iraqi security control by U.S. forces in late October.

But as a measure of the improvement in security in Kut, which until March was under the control of Shiite militiamen, some 500 people turned out for each of the three performances of the play, dubbed "Mud House" because the actors are from an Iraqi sitcom of the same name.
With local elections set for the end of January, the importance of voting was as much a focus of the play as the effects of administrative corruption -- always a favorite theme with Iraqi audiences.

"Using a play as a way to educate people helps to get important messages out to the audience through comedy, and the popularity of 'Mud House' definitely gets people out to see the show," said U.S. military official Staff Sgt. Melissa Powell, who helped organize the event.

Testing the Boundaries of Drama in Syria

A recent performance of Al Muhajiran, Samer Omran’s adaptation of Slawomir Mrozek’s Polish play, The Emigrants, has caused a stir on the streets of Damascus. The drama, being presented at the Al Qazzazine air-raid shelter, is about the dark intimacy of two exiled compatriots, and has been a nearly impossible ticket to get. Read the full article from 'The National' here.

Sec. of the Arts and Arts Stimulus Plan Petitions

Here are two petitions for U.S. citizens to our soon-to-be-president and new Congress to help them make the arts a vital and necessary part of American life. As of this posting, over 16,000 people have signed this first petition encouraging President-elect Obama, upon the recommendation of Quincy Jones, to create a Secretary of the Arts cabinet position. The second petition encourages the new Congress to dedicate 1% of the upcoming economic stimulus package for funding for the arts. Visit both sites and sign today.

Faculty Positions in Theatre at NYU Abu Dhabi

New York University is establishing a campus in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and invites applications for faculty positions at various levels (assistant, associate or full professor).

The Arts Program of NYUAD will offer a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural curriculum for study of the arts and training in artistic practice within the context of a broad liberal arts education. They are looking for extraordinary faculty who have either previously inaugurated programs or have the combination of qualities to design and implement an inter-arts curriculum in a global environment.

They encourage applicants in all fields of theatre and performance, including acting and design, theatre history, drama, and performance studies; however, they have a particular interest in comparative approaches to performance traditions and world theatre. Preferred candidates will have an active agenda of creative or scholarly work and significant undergraduate teaching. Ph.D. or M.F.A. at time of appointment is expected. Successful applicants will be able to integrate themselves within the trans-national culture of the Emirates and would be open to re-thinking their own disciplinary boundaries within an innovative arts curriculum.

The teaching load is three undergraduate courses per year (semester system), including one in the core curriculum. The terms of employment are competitive compared to U.S. benchmarks and include housing and educational subsidies for children. Faculty may spend time at NYU in New York and at its other global campuses. The appointment may begin as soon as September 1, 2009 but could be delayed until September 1, 2010.

Moreover, NYU New York and NYU Abu Dhabi will be integrally connected, together forming the foundation of a unique global network university, actively linked as well to NYU's study and research sites on five continents. NYU Abu Dhabi's first class of students will arrive in fall 2010; its research and public programs have commenced this fall.

The review of applications will begin on December 15, 2008 and will continue until the positions are filled. Please send curriculum vitae, statement of research and teaching interests, plus names and address of three referees via email to nyuad.arts@nyu.edu, or send a hard copy to: NYUAD Arts Search Committee, New York University, 70 Washington Sq. South, Rm. 1242, New York, NY 10012. Information concerning the faculty, programs, facilities and benefits of NYU Abu Dhabi, can be obtained at: http://nyuad.nyu.edu/. NYU Abu Dhabi is an Equal Opportunity/ Affirmative Action Employer.

China's Broadway

Now that Broadway has closed (9 shows concluded runs on Sunday), who better to take up the baton but China? As reported in Variety, Beijing is constructing a 32-theater complex to the tune of $686 million, which will feature Western musicals and other shows year-round. Being built by Beijing Shibo Real Estate in the city’s Haidian district, the biggest theater will seat 2000 people, while the others will accommodate between 300 to 500 audience members. With the success of such recent imports as The Lion King and Hairspray, the complex expects to produce more than 100 shows a year.

2009 European Capitals of Culture: Vilnius & Linz

Vilnius, Lithuania and Linz, Austria are the European Capitals of Culture for 2009. Check out their respective websites for the year’s upcoming programs: Vilnius and Linz.

Where's the Arts Bailout?

Michael Kaiser, president of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, has written an article for the 'Washington Post' about the current U.S. government bailouts of the financial markets, and asks where the ones are for the arts. He comments on what many of us in the arts community already knew, that “in the past few months, dozens of opera companies, theater companies, dance organizations, museums and symphonies have either closed or suffered major cash crises.” Kaiser suggests that “we need an emergency grant for arts organizations in America, and we need legislation that allows unusual access to endowments. Washington must encourage foundations to increase their spending rates during this crisis, and we need immediate tax breaks for corporate giving.” Read the full article here.

Irish Arts Council Slashes Funding

And the global theatre funding cuts continue. This time it’s The Abbey, Ireland’s national theatre. The Arts Council has cut 16% of its annual grant to the theatre from €10 million to €8.35 million. In addition to the Abbey, the highest profile recipient of Arts Council funding, the average grant cut to Irish theatre in 2009 will be just over 8% including major companies like the Gate and the Druid. Unfortunately, companies like the Irish Writers’ Centre in Dublin and the Galloglass Theatre Company in Tipperary have lost all Arts Council funding in the cutbacks. The council is also taking some of its own medicine, promising to cut its administration costs next year by €1.5 million. Happy New Year indeed.

Buddhist Monks Force Ban on Cambodian Musical

Not to be outdone by right-wing Christian conservatives in United States, Buddhist monks in Cambodia have convinced authorities to ban the nation’s first rock opera, Where Elephants Weep, because it features actors dressed as clergy who sing and dance. In a letter sent to both the media and the ministry of religion and cults, the Supreme Sangha Council also demands an apology from the director, writer and actors. The show, a modern love story that merges pop with traditional Cambodian music, played in Phnom Penh for a few weeks starting in late November. The complaint and ban followed the airing of the musical on a local television station. The monks, who steer clear of earthly pleasures such as entertainment, said “some scenes in the story insult Buddhism”, including one in which an actor leaves the monkhood and sleeps with a woman, only to return to the robe soon after. The show, which had a US preview last year, is expected to tour South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan before returning to the United States.

New Year's Eve(ry) Hour

World Stage Design 2009

Korean Theatre Artist Association and OISTAT have launched a new website for World Stage Design 2009. Check out the website for their gallery of world theatre design and a competition for scenographers/theatre designers to be presented online and at Seoul World Stage Design exhibition in 2009.

Visas / the discordant note

Ole Reitov & Hans Hjorth have released a white paper on visa issues, Europe and artist mobility. Focused primarily on the music industry, the paper hightlights a number of problems faced by creative companies working with artists from non-EU countries. Read the paper here.

Seasons Greetings

Happy Holidays from New York!!!

Applications for Romania's man.in.fest 2009

man.in.fest is a non-competitive international experimental theatre festival taking place between the 18th and 25 October 2009 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania and organized by Teatrul Imposibil (The Impossible Theatre), an independent Cultural Association located in Cluj-Napoca. man.in.fest is an event addressing young people (15-45), artists and public, both from Romania and abroad, interested in new/experimental arts and media, as they are the ones whose new perception needs and social references are served by the experimental artistic field. Also, either as public or as artists they need this kind of collaborative activities in order to have access to different perspectives on the cultural, political and social issues, through art. The participants will be “cultural ambassadors” of their countries, and will have the opportunity to represent their national cultural specificity. In the same time the event will offer them the time and the place to exchange experiences and points of view and to work in unfamiliar media, in order to challenge their creativity and to discover other perspectives, as a result of our across borders intercultural approach. Applications are due 1 March 2009.

The ‘Greening’ of London Theatres

Mark Shenton has written on the Guardian blog about London’s promise to reduce energy use in their buildings. According to a report from the mayor’s office, the theatre industry creates 50,000 tons of cardon emissions a year. The action plan proposes a 60% reduction by 2025, which would be the eqivalent of converting 5000 London homes to zero-carbon. The Arcola in Dalston has lead the charge by promising to becoming the world’s first carbon-neutral theatre.

Boyd and Sacks Discuss Actors and Memory

RSC Artistic Director Michael Boyd and neurologist & author Dr. Oliver Sacks recently had a conversation at Columbia University about memory and actors. Check out some excerpts here.

Brantley says 'year of trans-Atlantic theatre in NY'

Ben Brantley, chief theatre critic of the 'New York Times', summed up the 2008 theatre season with this opening:

"According to all current maps the theater district known as Broadway is still in Manhattan, while its British counterpart, the West End, is firmly based in London. Yet a majority of the items in the list below might have been culled from either place. This was the year of trans-Atlantic theater in New York, when Anglo-American cooperation (a subject wittily excoriated this season in Caryl Churchill 's Drunk Enough to Say I Love You? at the Public Theater) produced a hearty crop of expertly mounted — and in some cases transcendent — productions. The year’s best new musical (Billy Elliot) originated in the West End, and the most important New York premiere (Blasted) was a production of a show first seen in London more than a decade ago."

He's right and he's wrong. Sure, it was a great year for English language UK imports, but that really doesn't encompass 'trans-Atlantic'. Brantley does follows it up by saying 'Anglo-American cooperation' which is much closer to the truth, so let's not kid ourselves. The Brits have, on average, have had better large scale productions, both dramatic and musical on Broadway for years (I mean, when will f*#king Phantom close?). But saying it's the 'Year of Trans-Atlantic theatre' is like Sarah Palin saying 'Africa is a country'. If London is all Brantley thinks is 'trans-Atlantic', then I encourage him to seek out productions from places like Reykjavik, Oslo, Madrid, Lisbon, Algiers, Casablanca, Dakar or Capetown. All of those are right across the Atlantic too.

Yes, Billy Elliot is another example of how a successful movie has made it to the West End/Broadway. Big deal. Shouldn't Lord of the Rings be coming soon? And Blasted was fantastic, as it was 10 years ago. So why has it taken so long for it to finally get here? New York likes to think it's the center of the universe, but in the 21st century, the center is everywhere. Instead, the city is quickly becoming a museum town like Rome or Paris. It's not the cutting edge anymore, just a theme-park replica of a place where things once happened. Americans can easily mass produce, package and promote a product in order to make money, but the art often gets lost in the shuffle. The Brits play the same game, but they haven't completely lost their sense of quality yet. They will, but not yet.

And it's far from over. 2009 begins with the biggest Anglophile f*#kfest imaginable with The Bridge Project at BAM. The radical concept of having Yanks and Red Coats work together on the same stage at the same time. This isn't a comment on the productions (I actually think they'll probably be pretty good compared to what else is out there). This is a comment on what is supposed to be radical. New York didn't experience a British Invasion as Brantley seems to suggest. The Brits have been here forever and don't seem to have any plans of leaving. We get our revenge in London by making them watch Josh Hartnett in Rain Man.

Tercer Festival Internacional de Teatro y Danza

La Compañía de Teatro ANTIFAZ, fundada en la ciudad de Iquique, Región de Tarapacá el 03 de Marzo de 1993, a la fecha convertida en una de las organizaciones teatrales de mayor prestigio dentro y fuera de sus fronteras, convoca a todas las agrupaciones del arte representativo en las áreas del Teatro y la Danza al TERCER FESTIVAL INTERNACIONAL DE TEATRO Y DANZA FINTDAZ 2009, A realizarse del 12 al 17 de Octubre, en la ciudad de Iquique, Región de Tarapacá – Chile.

IQUIQUE - Tierra de Sol, Playas, Desiertos, Salitreras, Oasis y Zona Franca.

El FINTDAZ es un evento de iniciativa privada, de autogestión, que logra su soporte económico a través de Proyectos Artísticos Culturales, Auspicios de Empresas Comerciales y Aporte de Colaboradores Anónimos.

The Irish New Wave in New York

Belinda McKeon has written a great article for the ‘Irish Times’ about the new wave of Irish theatre that hit New York in 2008, and it sure wasn’t the Yeatsian vision that many traditional theatregoers and critics were expecting, including Rough Magic's Improbable Frequency at 59E59. Read it here.

“It's not such a bad thing to bring to New York a piece of theatre which belongs clearly neither in one box or in another…Preconceptions about Irish theatre - let alone Irish musical comedy - won't have been much help to them. Again, not such a bad thing. Because, in fact, it has been the year of living variously for Irish theatre in New York. Improbable Frequency is far from being the first Irish show which critics have found difficult to pin down.”

Antonin Artaud for President

I read in the morning paper today that of all of the write-in votes for the recent U.S. presidential election, amidst the ballots cast for Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, someone wrote in 'Antonin Artaud'. Lord knows what ol' Antonin would think of Barack Obama, but I trust we can be pretty thankful that Artaud isn't around to run for office. Hasn't George W. Bush conducted enough 'Theatre of Cruelty'?

Peter Brook Begins Hand Over of Bouffes du Nord

Legendary stage director, Peter Brook, now 83, will begin a “gradual transition from the inside”, resulting in handing over the reigns of the Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord in 2010 to Olivier Mantei, deputy head of the Paris opera company Opéra-Comique and currently head of the musical programming at the Bouffes du Nord. Olivier Poubelle, a theatre entrepreneur specialising in modern music at some of Paris's most cutting-edge popular music venues, will work alongside him. The worn old theater, which Brook rescued from ruin in 1974, is where he has based his International Centre for Theatre Research.

Brook said: "I wanted to look very realistically to the future. I can't say I'll stay here forever. Everyone says something has been created almost invisibly in this theatre over 34 years. A lot of thought went into what would be the proper continuity. I didn't want to just place someone here and say, 'Here, take over.' I never talked about retirement as retirement is something forced on you by the state if you are unfortunate enough to work for the state. This has always been a private theatre… The first thing I wanted to establish – having spent all my life fighting against tradition and saying everything in the theatre must always be in a state of evolution, must always refuse to have a method, a way of working – was to avoid [appointing] a successor who would have to try and prove my line, which is against the whole life force of the theatre."

Read about here in English and here in French.

ERICarts Study on Mobility in Creative Sector

Check out the ERICarts Institute’s study for the European Commission on mobility incentives in the culture/creative sector. This was not intended to be an audit of all mobility related schemes in Europe, but rather a survey and analysis of the range and scope as well as motives and results of such programs.

During the course of the study, ERICarts collected information on:
* mobility trends in different regions of Europe;
* recent debates taking place within individual countries;
* existing mobility schemes (their objectives, kind of support, target beneficiaries, eligibility conditions and the nature of benefits);
* the main motives for funding bodies to support mobility; and
* the main sources where professionals can find information about mobility incentives or barriers.

NEA Announces Report on Nonprofit Theaters

Washington, D.C. -- Nonprofit theaters in the United States have seen unprecedented expansion across the United States, according to new research from the National Endowment for the Arts. All America's a Stage examines developments in the growth, distribution, and finances of America's nonprofit theater system since 1990. While the research indicates broad growth and generally positive fiscal health, it also reveals decreasing attendance rates and vulnerability during economic downturns.

"America has created a magnificent national network of nonprofit theaters," said NEA Chairman Dana Gioia. "Our challenge now is to use them ambitiously to bring the power of theater to our citizens, students, and communities."

Nearly 2,000 nonprofit theaters were analyzed for the study, which draws from several data sources such as the Internal Revenue Service, Theater Communications Group member survey data, the U.S. Census Bureau's Economic Census Data, and data from the NEA's Survey of Public Participation in the Arts. The investigation revealed that NEA funding is a likely catalyst in drawing sizeable contributions from other sources. Each dollar in NEA grant support is associated with an additional $12 from individual donors, $1.88 from businesses, and $3.55 from foundations. Among the key findings:

Broad and rapid expansion across the country
The number of nonprofit theaters in the United States has doubled over a 15-year period. In 2005, there were 1,982 nonprofit theaters with annual budgets of at least $75,000, up 100 percent from 991 in 1990.
Among the top ten states with the highest per capita concentration of theaters are Vermont, Alaska, Montana, Oregon, Connecticut, and Minnesota.
Although theaters continue to cluster in high-population states, the number of theaters in small and mid-sized population states has grown substantially. From 1990 to 2005, the sharpest growth rate occurred in Nevada, Arkansas, Utah, Colorado, Idaho, and Mississippi.

Theater finances – generally good news
Nonprofit theaters generally have maintained a healthy balance sheet. Between 1990 and 2005, real assets (such as land, buildings, and equipment) grew by nearly 60 percent, while liabilities remained flat.
Nonprofit theaters have achieved a more equitable balance between earned and contributed income. Earned income made up 52 percent of all nonprofit theater revenue in 2005, the remainder was mostly contributed. Individuals and foundations remain the biggest contributors to nonprofit theater.
In 2002, individuals donated 40 percent of all contributed revenue, and foundation giving made up 22 percent.
Between 1990 and 2005, nonprofit theater revenues fluctuated sharply with business cycles in the U.S. economy. After the 2001 recession, nonprofit theater revenue (including both ticket sales and contributions) dropped nearly 12 percent in 2002. Revenue continued to decrease slowly from 2002 to 2005.

Flat or shrinking attendance rates
Audience trends are flat or in decline. The percentage of the U.S. adult population attending non-musical theater has declined from 13.5 percent (25 million people) in 1992 to 9.4 percent (21 million people) in 2008. The absolute size of the audience has declined by 16 percent since 1992.
The number of adults who have attended musical theater has grown since 1992, but remains largely constant as a percentage of the population.
Attendance trends do not seem primarily related to ticket prices. Statistical models predict that a 20 percent price hike in low-end subscription or single tickets will reduce total attendance by only 2 percent. These data suggest that other facts are likely affecting the demand for theater.

Press Release from NEA

Edinburgh Fringe Gets A Bailout

It’s nice to know that in some countries, such as Scotland, it isn’t only the financial and auto industries getting bailed out, but theatre festivals as well. The funding package for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival includes a loan of £125,000 from the city council and a one-off grant of £65,000 from the Scottish Arts Council. The Scottish Government will also provide an advance of £60,000 on future funding. Read the full BBC report here.

Austrian Actor's Accidental Suicide On Stage

Daniel Hoevels, 30, accidentally slit his throat on stage last Saturday night when the prop knife for his suicide scene was actually a real one. Hoevels was performing his final scene in Friedrich Schiller’s Mary Stuart at Vienna’s Burgtheater, when he committed the unfortunate act. When blood began pouring from his neck, the audience applauded, thinking it was a very life-like ‘special effect’. The police have questioned the cast and crew to determine whether it was a mistake or an attempted murder. Hoevels survived only because he missed his carotid artery. The knife was reportedly bought at a local shop and one possibility is that the props staff forgot to blunt its blade. After emergency treatment at a hospital, Hoevels declared that ‘the show must go on’, and returned to the stage on Sunday night with a bandage tied around his neck, ready to once again meet his mock demise. So the valuable lesson to be learned here for any actor is: Always check your props.

UNESCO Committee Meets on Cultural Diversity

UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Committee of Convention on the protection and promotion of diversity of cultural expressions is meeting in Paris from December 8-12 to discuss international cooperation and sustainable development. The 24-member committee, chaired by Canadian Gilbert Laurin, will examine means of promoting international cooperation in the field of cultural expressions as well as means of encouraging the parties to integrate culture into sustainable development in accordance with the terms of the Convention. It will also examine a preliminary draft on the use of resources of international funds for cultural diversity whose objective is to support the emergence of a dynamic cultural sector. Decisions taken by the Committee will be submitted to a conference of the parties to the Convention that will meet in June 2009.