Tuesday, October 27, 2009

 

Theatre as Internet Downloads

New U.K. company Digital Theater has announced that productions from high-profile Brit legit troupes including the Royal Shakespeare Company, Almeida, Royal Court Theater, English Touring Theater and the Young Vic will now be available as Internet downloads

(from Variety).

The whole point about theatre is that it's live. Flesh-and-blood actors are up there on the stage. That’s why you spend big money on tickets and travel. To see the real thing. Everything else is merely moving pictures. But few people see theatre live. Okay, 50m or more have seen Les Misérables. Most shows, though, are lucky to get tens of thousands; some get hundreds. Then they are just memories. This is odd in the age of infinite copies.
Delamere and Tom Shaw, a film, video and live events expert, have taken the theatrical bull by the digital horns. Last night, at midnight, their website went live. It is a theatrical version of iTunes.
On the basis of what I've seen, the results are superb. When I visited Digital Theatre's Soho office, I was glumly expecting the usual deadness of the filmed stage performance. What I got was something quite new. Thanks to the editing and the multiple points of view, you feel inside the piece in a way that compensates for the loss of that flesh-and-blood thing

(from Times Online).

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Thursday, October 08, 2009

 

Snow on Sunday, Possible Lighter Theatre Crowds

Snow could be coming to town as early as this weekend. That’s right, snow. Flurries and flakes.
The forecast says that Saturday night rain will turn into the white stuff early Sunday morning

(from NBC Chicago). Typically the first very cold weekend sees theatre attendence drop slightly. Keep warm, have a good weekend!

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Wednesday, October 07, 2009

 

Filming in Iowa, Michigan and Wisconsin

According to Screen Magazine, a few films are in the Midwest shooting in nearby states, but not planning to shoot in Chicago.

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Monday, October 05, 2009

 

Chicago International Film Festival Extends 15 Days

In celebration of the 45th year of The Chicago International Film Festival, Cinema/Chicago is announcing that it will add an extra day to this year's schedule, bringing the Festival up to 15 days of cinematic exhibition

(from Screen Magazine).

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Thursday, October 01, 2009

 

Steppenwolf Named a Top Small Workplace

Steppenwolf named among The Top Small Workplaces for 2009 by the Wall Street Journal. From the article:

Professional theaters aren't known as stellar workplaces. People come and go, hours are long, and pay and benefits are meager. Steppenwolf Theatre Company, on the contrary, gives its employee practices a lead role.

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