The FCC Rules on White Space

TCG Bulletin: "On September 23, the Federal Communications Commission unanimously adopted a “Second Memorandum Opinion and Order” in its TV White Spaces proceeding. The Commission will permit the operation of new White Space devices, but has also imposed protections for licensed and unlicensed wireless microphones such as those used in the performing arts.

It's Showtime

Carnegie Mellon University: "Subscriptions to the 2010-2011 School of Drama season are still available. The upcoming season features a new musical and two new adaptations, as well as a banned German play. Students in the Dramaturgy Program will hold post-performance talkbacks with the audience, casts and crews following Tuesday evening performances.

Casting Call

Carnegie Mellon University: "ABX Productions and WSA Casting held auditions for extras and background performers of all types and ages for the upcoming feature film 'Abduction' at Carnegie Mellon University's University Center.

Blessing of the Artists set for Downtown

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "Artists and those who love the arts are invited to the annual Blessing of the Artists at Trinity Cathedral, Downtown, on Wednesday evening. You needn't have drumsticks, ballet slippers or paintbrushes to attend, but artists are encouraged to bring the tools or symbols of their trade.

Regional showcases help performers and arts groups connect

Post gazette: "These days most arts organizations are all a-Twitter and busily interfacing on Facebook to increase audience awareness. But in the end, human contact is still the best way to communicate for these organizations, both on stage and off. The Performing Arts Exchange will reflect that when it returns this week to Pittsburgh for the first time since 2004.

Choreographer Rioult follows instincts to success

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "The work of choreographer Pascal Rioult has been praised as original, bold, courageous and disciplined; he's even been compared to the legendary George Balanchine.
Yet, the core of his creativity is something of a mystery to him.
'I believe, as do a lot of artists, that the true work comes instinctively,' Rioult says. '(Composer Maurice) Ravel talks about this as well. You don't really know where it comes from, but always something develops that just makes sense.'

Sometimes it's better to stay home

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "In my column on Aug. 15, I gave readers five good reasons why they should take children to the theater.
In the interest of fair and balanced reporting — as well as in the hope of promoting public sanity — I'm offering four really bad reasons to take children to the theater and one reason to leave at intermission.

Without Star, Often Broadway Shows Can’t Go On

NYTimes.com: "To understand why the hit Broadway musical “Promises, Promises” will close after just nine months, gaze up at the show’s giant billboard over Times Square. There are the smiling faces of Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth, stars who are the chief reasons the show usually grosses $1 million a week.

New York Musical Theater Festival’s Memoir Season

NYTimes.com: "During rehearsals last week for his autobiographical entry in this year’s New York Musical Theater Festival, the composer and lyricist Jay Alan Zimmerman sat with his wife, Lisa Ingram, watching a scene inspired by his anxieties about their marriage. In the song “Fall,” an actress playing Lisa reveals feeling torn between the happy memories of falling in love with Jay years earlier and the heartache she feels as her husband begins to lose his hearing.

Five Best Presentation Creation Tools

Lifehacker: "Gone are the days when presentations are limited to poster boards you can haul into the conference room, and you've also got more options than the de facto office suite provides. Here's a look five of the most popular presentation creation tools.

World Maker Faire NYC

- John's Blog Main Page - : "I went today to the first ever Maker Faire(r) in NYC, and it was great! They had a great turn out, and as I've said before, this kind of thing that gives me faith for our future in America: proof that tens of thousands of smart people (and their children) spend their time inventing, exploring, building, and experimenting, and not all the stupid stuff you routinely hear bloviating idiots whine about on cable TV.

Book Review: The Designs of Jules Fisher

iSquint.net: "The history of lighting design is taught in almost every entry level theatre appreciation class at the college level in the states. It almost every textbook associated with that level of class gives a brief and limited lesson of the history of lighting design and the pioneers of the our field. It’s in these classes that we begin to hear the names Appia, Melziner and other designers that shaped our future and formed the foundation of what we know and understand today.

SAG Tells Members Not to Work on 'Hobbit'

Backstage: "Actors guilds including SAG, AFTRA and several international unions have issued an alert against the big-budget adaptation of 'The Hobbit,' stating that their members 'are advised not to accept work on this non-union production.' The guilds say the producers of the MGM/New Line fantasy blockbuster, to be directed by Peter Jackson, have rebuffed organizing efforts by the New Zealand unit of an Australian actors union.

CLO Cabaret show 'Triple Espresso' is good to the last laugh

Post Gazette: "'Triple Espresso' banks on theatergoers yearning for no-holds-barred comedy from a kinder, gentler time.
The CLO Cabaret show has hit on a formula that delivers PG-rated hijinks without seeming childish, owing its format more to vaudeville-style variety shows than musicals.

BGA white-no projection.flv

YouTube: "Edited video of the Ball Grid Array in the Chinese Private Enterprise Pavilion at the World Expo Shanghai 2010 China.

10 Essential Pages in Your Freelance Site

FreelanceFolder: "I saw something interesting on my Twitter stream the other day: “Your blog is the new resume.”
How true! Everyone is so web savvy nowadays that we know we can get the dish on anybody by Googling their name.
Even if your prospects don’t have online businesses, they know that they can easily find out more about you on the Internet.

David Letterman And Joaquin Phoenix Discuss Fair Use As Letterman Threatens To Sue

Techdirt: "You see, earlier this week, Letterman had Phoenix back on to discuss the hoax, and where things got interesting was where Letterman began discussing fair use and publicity rights and demanded money from Phoenix. Letterman points out that Affleck's lawyers had initially said that they could use Letterman in their movie because, as a documentary, it was 'fair use.' But... since it's no longer a documentary, Letterman suggested his normal fees should apply.

Schwartz's deli story to be Montreal musical

CBC News: "Montreal's Centaur Theatre plans a new musical about Schwartz's deli, the local landmark known for its smoked meat.

Ballroom steps on to stage

smh.com: "BAZ Luhrmann's 1992 hit movie Strictly Ballroom, which starred Paul Mecurio, is to become a multimillion-dollar stage musical, with a world premiere expected in 2013.
Luhrmann said yesterday creative workshops would begin in Sydney in November.

American Theatre Wing Announces Grant Recipients

Backstage: "The American Theatre Wing announced today the recipients of its 2010 National Theatre Company Grants. In a departure from previous years, the organization will give grants of $10,000 each to 10 U.S. theaters. In past years, the ATW has issued a larger number of grants for fewer dollars. Last year, 50 theaters received grants of $2,500.

SAG Election a Mandate for Merger

Backstage: "In a Screen Actors Guild election that was widely considered a referendum on merger with the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, proponents of that idea emerged with a clear mandate.

How many bricks are in The Wall? We explain how Roger Waters builds a giant wall at his concerts

chicagotribune.com: "To answer one of the great unasked questions in rock 'n roll: All in all, there are precisely 424 bricks in The Wall.
There are 242 bricks in the 100-foot-long center section, with the rest stacked along the edges of the stage, climbing off into the arena; these edges are called 'ramparts' by the creators of The Wall, the small corps of British architects, musicians and American filmmakers responsible for it.

Fall Arts Preview: From Shakespeare to a flying nanny, stages are set for fall

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "Shakespeare three ways, a nanny that drops from the sky, the return of some perennial favorites and some brand new plays you almost surely haven't seen are in the works for the fall theater season.
If you're a Shakespeare fan, you'll have to act fast. Two of the trio of Shakespeare comedies on the fall schedule already are nearing their final performances.

Dance review: Attack Theatre lights up nightclub

Post Gazteet: "'Do you believe in magic?' That Lovin' Spoonful lyric and dozens of similarly unanswered questions drove Attack Theatre's latest intoxicating concoction, 'Site/Re-site.'
Designed to be a recollection of the company's 15 years, it turned out to be a celebration of another ilk. The company once again took on a new location for this program, moving to the former Questions club in the Strip District for a two-week run that featured a quartet of distinctly different bands.

A Shakespearean Sparks Revival of 'Deathtrap' in London

NYTimes.com: "Actors, no matter how committed to their art, deserve a chance simply to have fun, not least this country’s more established thespians who can be forgiven for sometimes wanting a break from the heavy lifting that tends to come their way. One thinks, for instance, of the Academy Award that went in 1999 to Judi Dench for eight minutes of screen time in “Shakespeare in Love,” a trophy that seemed genuine, generous payback for the decades that Ms. Dench has devoted to the Bard on stage.

Actors' union facing internal labor dispute

Los Angeles Times: "Hollywood's actors unions will begin early contract negotiations with the major studios next week in the hopes of averting a standoff.
But one of the two principal unions involved in the talks — the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists — is confronting the embarrassing prospect of a potential labor dispute within its own ranks.

Cut!

Props: "It wasn’t because they didn’t like it. In fact, they never even looked at it. They had decided the scene would play better without the actors eating a lamb. So they cut it.

5 Signs that Broadway is becoming more like Vegas.

PRODUCER’S PERSPECTIVE: "I've been in New York for just shy of two decades now, and to say things have changed in the theater district is as obvious as saying Wicked is a big hit.
The transformation of Times Square into a Vegas Strip-like scene seems to have had an effect on what's happening inside our theaters as well.

Pecs v performance: the flaws of attraction in theatre

guardian.co.uk: "Whether it's Michael Coveney hymning about Nancy Carroll, Michael Billington pining for Summer Strallen's pins or Charles Spencer sighing in the stalls over Nicole Kidman, nothing makes us blanch quite like a critic talking about a performer's physical charms.

Equity Honors 'Fela!' Chorus

Backstage: "Broadway musical 'Fela!' will receive the Actors Equity Association's fourth annual Advisory Committee on Chorus Affairs award for outstanding Broadway chorus, the union announced today. The presentation will be held Sept. 28 at Equity headquarters.

AFTRA-Teamsters Talks Continue Today

Backstage: "Negotiators for the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists' Los Angeles local and Teamsters Local 399 will continue talks today on a new contract for 11 AFTRA-employed business representatives covered by the Teamsters

Winners of 2010 IT Awards Announced

Backstage: "Winners of the 2010 New York Innovative Theatre Awards were announced Monday night in a ceremony hosted by Lisa Kron at Cooper Union. The IT Awards celebrate the stars of the Off-Off-Broadway community.

Primetime TV: Fall Line-Up

Carnegie Mellon University: "Grab a snack and settle in as your favorite stars from Carnegie Mellon University's School of Drama light up primetime TV.
New this fall on NBC is The Event, a conspiracy thriller starring Blair Underwood (A'88). Aaron Staton (A'04) is back on screen in AMC's award-winning drama Mad Men. Tamara Tunie (A'81) returns to NBC's hit series Law and Order: SVU, as does Cote DePablo (A'00) to NCIS on CBS.

Drama graduates grace the Pittsburgh stage

The Tartan Online: "On Sept. 30, the 1920s comedy The Royal Family will open at the O’Reilly Theater downtown, and it will include two members of Carnegie Mellon’s own family in the cast. Lindsay Kyler and Evan Alex Cole, both of whom graduated from the School of Drama in 2008, will take the stage as Gwen Cavendish, a member of the famous family of actors, and Perry Stewart, Gwen’s fiancé, respectively. Between sushi trips and new plays, both actors talked about the play, the significance of the Cavendishes, and their experiences as actors.

Musical theater lab debuts with 'Putnam County Spelling Bee'

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "Staging contemporary plays in a vintage performance space is the latest venture for Pittsburgh Musical Theater and Robert Morris University.
Beginning Sept. 22, the university and the theater company will collaborate on a plan to provide a theater laboratory for their student performers. The first show in the new theater will be the Robert Morris Colonial Theatre's production of 'The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,' which will run Wednesday to Sept. 26.

Attack Theatre work makes playground of the stage

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "An anniversary is a perfect excuse for a retrospective. That was Attack Theatre's intention during early planning for the first program of its 15th season.
'The problem was that we'd go to rehearsal and keep making new things. In theory, it was supposed to include some older things. There are some references but a lot of ideas we walked in with ended up, quite honestly, getting canned,' says co-director Michele de la Reza.

Dan Lauria in ‘Lombardi’ on a Broadway Gridiron

NYTimes.com: "THREE women, all widows of men who worked with the exalted Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi, recently heard a familiar phrase barked their way.

Illustrated Categories of Props

Props: "I’ve made a diagram to better illustrate the various types of props

New AutoCAD learning opportunity

AutoCAD Insider: "AutoCAD veteran Brian Benton has recently narrated an AutoCAD 2011 Tutorial video in partnership with leading training provider Infinite Skills. Brian aims this course towards the beginner. He shows how to create drawings step by step, edit them, and print or share digitally with clients online.

U.S. Theater Productions for Toddlers Are Getting Big

WSJ.com: "During a recent performance of 'The Green Sheep,' a spectator burst into tears. Some in the theater feared the worst: a mass audience meltdown.
Luckily, most patrons at this play—designed for children aged 1 to 4—maintained their composure.

'Catch Me If You Can' to Open on Broadway

Backstage: "A musical adaptation of Steven Spielberg's 2002 film 'Catch Me If You Can' will open on Broadway on April 10, 2011, the show's producers announced today. The theater has not yet been named.

Attack Theatre to open season by revisiting its past

Attack Theatre to open season by revisiting its past: "For some people, challenges are roadblocks. For others, they're merely hurdles to be jumped.
Attack Theatre has been scaling its share of obstacles while prepping for 'Site/Re-site,' which opens Thursday at the former Questions Night Club in the Strip District as part of the modern dance company's 15th season.

Goo-goo for Gaga

The Tartan Online: "This past Sunday, as the debut performer in Pittsburgh’s brand-new Consol Energy Center, Lady Gaga performed for wild fans in an epic four-act show that brought together Pittsburgh’s most eclectic people to celebrate the “Monster Ball.” Needless to say, the experience was mind-blowing.

SAG, AFTRA approve contract proposals

Los Angeles Times: "Hollywood actors will seek higher minimum pay rates and an increase in contributions to their health and pension plans in the upcoming round of contract negotiations for work in film and prime-time television.

Jennifer Tipton is an artist using light

latimes.com: "Lighting designer Jennifer Tipton met Sardono W. Kusumo, an Indonesian dancer and choreographer, in 2008 at a workshop she was giving in Java. Tipton, one of this country's preeminent designers, had participants reverse their usual roles: Lighting designers made dance pieces; choreographers lighted them.

Mr. Molière, Meet Stanley Kowalski

NYTimes.com: "The gilded and red velvet Salle Richelieu is the most hallowed stage of the Comédie Française, the three-centuries-old acting troupe. It has survived war, fire, political turmoil, financial difficulties but only now is it encountering its very first American play.

Questions swirl around Shattered Globe

The Theater Loop: "After more than two decades, things appeared to have shattered at Shattered Globe Theatre. According to ensemble member Linda Reiter, the board of the venerable off-Loop company has decided to cease operations, return grant monies and dissolve the entity.

Royal Opera House backs down in legal row with blogger

The Stage: "The Royal Opera House has been forced to apologise to a theatre blogger after its head of legal and business affairs threatened to sue her for breach of copyright and ban her from attending Covent Garden.

SAG OKs Negotiating New Industrials Contract

Backstage: "The board voted unanimously via cross-country videoconference to approve a motion to begin the 2011 Industrial and Educational Contract negotiation process. As part of that motion, SAG national executive director and chief negotiator David White has approval to expand SAG and AFTRA's TV-theatrical joint bargaining agreement to include negotiations for a successor to the current industrials contract.

It's reigning men in Las Vegas

Variety: "f you want to succeed in Las Vegas, it helps to be one of the boys.
The top-selling entries in each of the three major entertainment genres that Sin City offers -- headliners, Broadway shows and Cirque du Soleil -- are all driven by the guys they showcase.

Pee-wee friends online followers to box office

Variety: "Today's secret marketing word is … 'nontraditional!'
With Broadway producers on the lookout for concrete ways to translate new-media initiatives into ticket sales, those behind 'The Pee-wee Herman Show' have found some intriguing options.

Chi's broadway bandwagon

Variety: "When Broadway in Chicago was created in 2000, some local Chicago politicians with chips on their Second City shoulders weren't shy about criticizing the appropriation of a Gotham brand. 'Why Broadway in Chicago?' asked one cantankerous alderman at the time. 'Why not Chicago in Chicago?'

August Wilson Center opens new 'In My Father's House' exhibition

Post Gazette: "'In My Father's House,' the first exhibition commissioned by the August Wilson Center for African American Culture, Downtown, will have a grand public opening from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. today in the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation Changing Exhibit Gallery.

Jersey Boys Celebrates Milestone Broadway Performance

Playbill.com: "The Tony, Olivier and Grammy Award-winning musical Jersey Boys plays its 2,000th Broadway performance Sept. 11 at 2 PM at the August Wilson Theatre.

Raúl Esparza and Brooke Shields Take a Leap of Faith in Los Angeles, Starting Sept. 11

Playbill.com: "The world premiere of the new musical Leap of Faith — co-starring four-time Tony nominee Raúl Esparza and Golden Globe Award nominee Brooke Shields — begins performances Sept. 11 at the Center Theatre Group/Ahmanson Theatre.

Jerry Lee Lewis and ‘Million Dollar Quartet’ Self

NYTimes.com: "FRESH off a matinee performance of “Million Dollar Quartet,” Levi Kreis ran a nervous hand through his pompadour as he stood in the living room of a hotel suite high above Times Square on Wednesday. Mr. Kreis, the actor and musician who plays Jerry Lee Lewis in that Broadway musical, seemed unsure of how to comport himself when the suite’s primary occupant arrived. First he propped himself between two chairs, like a sprinter waiting for a starting pistol. Then, half-reverently and half-jokingly, he got down on one knee, which was the position he was found in when the real-life Mr. Lewis entered the room.

10 reasons why the Spider-Man musical will blow your damn mind to smithereens

I09: "Internet reaction to Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark has oscillated between abject horror and Doc Brown's face when the model DeLorean catches on fire in 1955. But I'm going to be contrarian and say that this musical will be transcendent.

September 11th, 2010

- John's Blog Main Page -: "On Wednesday September 8 this year, I got to visit the Tribute in Light while the crew was setting up, and got some pictures

Dünden Bugüne Batman

Tasarım: "1943 yılından beri pelerinli kıyafetiyle kahramanlık yapmayı kendine görev edinmiş olan Batman, modadaki değişime ayak uydurmakta da başarılı oldu.

Tix for Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark Go on Sale to General Public Sept. 12

Playbill.com: "Tickets for the long-awaited Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark, which will begin previews at Broadway's newly renamed Foxwoods Theatre Nov. 14 at 3 PM with an official opening scheduled for Dec. 21, will go on sale to the general public Sept. 12.

Michael Cohl Gambles on ‘Spider-Man’

NYTimes.com: "Nearly a hundred feet above the stage of Broadway’s Foxwoods Theater, Michael Cohl wrapped his right hand around one of the cables that will soon fly actors over the audience at the musical “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.” For a moment Mr. Cohl, the accidental producer of the most expensive show in Broadway history, was on top of the theater world, and appropriately so: he is the money man who after years of delays has sent “Spider-Man” airborne. Thanks to him, theatergoers will get to see for themselves if it soars, or falls to earth.

The man behind Spider-Man.

PRODUCER’S PERSPECTIVE: "The article would have been interesting even if Mr. Cohl wasn't producing Spider-Man. It tells the tale of his rise to super-entrepreneur after dropping out of high school and facing an empty wallet many, many times in his illustrious career. And now, he's behind the biggest Broadway musical ever. Ever. (He admits in the article that the budget is now up to $60 million.)

‘Spider-Man’ Musical Villains Debut, First Song Performed

mtv: "Earlier today we brought you some news from this morning's pseudo-debut for 'Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark,' the upcoming Spider-Man musical directed by Julie Taymor.

'The Umbrella Man' is staged screenplay of a novel

Post Gazette: "Just about all of Pittsburgh's professional theater companies stage a premiere now and then, but none, not even City Theatre, makes new plays such a large part of its mission as Playhouse Rep.

FDA Fuming Over E-Cigarettes

The Consumerist: "It's been a busy week of letter-writing for the FDA. First, they sent out miffed missives to Canada Dry and Lipton over their questionable claims about their green tea drinks. Now the regulators are going after five manufacturers of electronic cigarettes for what the FDA alleges are illegal marketing tactics.

Globalised theatre and the rise of the monster musicals

guardian.co.uk: "There really is no business like showbusiness – at least when it comes to London's track record for blockbuster theatre. Everything about it is appealing – at least if you're an international producer. For while the ring of West End cash registers has been celebrated year on record-breaking year by the industry's annual box office reports, it is the export market in British drama that has recently caught the eye of the financial press.

Fall Arts preview: Caffeinated stage season

Post Gazette: "Starting today, have a 'Triple Espresso' at the CLO Cabaret Theater to kick off the fall theater season, then wander over to McKees Rocks and help the Pittsburgh New Works Festival celebrate its 10th anniversary. And rain or shine, Playhouse Rep will present 'The Umbrella Man,' opening Friday.

On stage or screen, 'Umbrella Man' has it covered

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "'The Umbrella Man' made such an impression on Ronald Allan Lindblom that he decided to produce it not once, but twice.
Lindblom serves as both the artistic director for the Pittsburgh Playhouse and the dean of Point Park University's Conservatory of Performing Arts.
Last November, Robert A. Miller, a Hollywood-based director, producer and screenwriter who often directs plays for Point Park's professional theater company, The Rep, asked Lindblom to read a screenplay Miller thought might also work as a stage play.

'Triple Espresso' magically brews taste of vaudeville

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "The result of a creative collaboration among three successful solo performers, 'Triple Espresso' used songs, a little vaudeville and slapstick, audience interaction, magic tricks and a lot of comedy to create a rags-to-rags story about three guys, a coffee house, a complete lack of common sense and a shot at fame and fortune that ends as a nationally televised embarrassment.

Critic’s Notebook - ‘Freedom Club’ and ‘Cankerblossom’ in Philadelphia

NYTimes.com: "Freedom — such a lovely word. Currently adorning the best-seller lists, thanks to the latest literary blockbuster from Jonathan Franzen. And sure to be gravely or raucously intoned in political speeches from coast to coast as the election season heats up.

Fake unfinished concrete wallpaper

Boing Boing: "ConcreteWall is a Norwegian company that sells wallpaper silkscreened to look like unfinished concrete in a variety of textures.

Inside the NEA: Getting to Know Michael Killoren

Art Works: "In October, Michael Killoren will join the NEA as our new director of Local Arts Agencies and Challenge America Fast Track. (Read our press release here.) Michael joins us from Seattle where he’s been serving in Mayor Mike McGinn’s cabinet as the city’s director of arts and cultural affairs. To borrow a phrase from the late great Ed McMahon—heeeeeere’s Michael!

The Goods: September 2010's Hottest Gadgets

Popular Science: "Bosch Axial Glide Miter Saw Since it replaces the usual guide rails with retractable hinged arms, this miter saw is more compact and stable than competitors. Its two arms are fitted with 12 ball bearings, so the blade moves smoothly and stays true over time.

SAG, Business Reps Reach Deal

Backstage: "Unionized SAG employees voted Wednesday night to accept a contract with the guild offering 2% annual wage increases over the next three years. The employees, SAG business representatives, turned down the same offer a week ago. Had they rejected the deal again, the employees would have initiated a strike against the guild.

Superb choreography stars in Broadway shows

Post Gazette: "'Come and meet those dancing feet,' warbled the cast of '42nd Street.' But dance fans have been doing that for decades, experiencing the high-bounding energy that drove Broadway musicals in production numbers, ballets and featured solos.

Offbeat troupe goes out of orbit to perform 'Hamlet' in Klingon

Post Gazette: "Don't you love that remarkable moment when roSenQatlh and ghIlDenSten exit the stage and Khamlet is left alone to deliver the immortal words: 'baQa', Qovpatlh, toy'wl'a' qal je jIH'?
No? Well, it always kills on Kronos. That's the home planet of the Klingons, the hostile race that antagonizes the Federation heroes of 'Star Trek.' We learned back in '91 in 'Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country' that the Klingons love Shakespeare. Or as he's known to his ridged-foreheaded devotees in the space-alien community: Wil'yam Shex'pir.

Cherry Jones as Shaw’s Mrs. Warren

NYTimes.com: "CHERRY JONES has made a specialty lately of playing iron-willed women. She was the terrifying, unyielding Sister Aloysius in the stage version of “Doubt,” for which she won a Tony. More recently, for two seasons on the television series “24,” she was Allison Taylor, the first female president of the United States, who stood up to the Russians and the crazed dictator of Sangala and had her own daughter arrested.

A Brief History of IATSE

props: "Happy Labor Day, everyone! I hope you are having a relaxing weekend, though more likely, you are taking this long weekend to work on this fall’s shows (like I am). Regardless of how you feel about unions in general, or IATSE in particular, there is no doubt that the history of IATSE has shaped the history of working in theatre and in props in America.

What will happen to Broadway if Spider-Man is a hit?

PRODUCER’S PERSPECTIVE: "When the work started back up at the Hilton Theater recently, it felt like that moment in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory when, after years of silence, smoke started coming out of the chimneys. 'The Oompa-Loompas are back to work! They're making chocolate again!'

New Features in Google SketchUp 8

Popular Woodworking: "Every week, one million people around the world use Google SketchUp. Last week, I was one of 250 SketchUp users invited to Boulder, Colorado for 3D Base Camp. While there, the release of a new version of SketchUp was announced. For woodworkers using the free version of SketchUp 7, the changes are minimal, but there are some nice enhancements. For users of the Pro version, the addition of solid modeling is big news. If you do detailed modeling, this addition will cut the time you spend in front of your computer considerably.

Controversy still dogging the Helpmanns

smh.com: "Since the Helpmann Awards began a decade ago they have gained in stature, despite the backroom stoushes and embarrassing oversights that have threatened to bring them unstuck.
The annual performing arts awards, encompassing theatre, musical theatre, dance, opera, classical and contemporary music, comedy and cabaret, were once better known for their anomalies than for the talents they sought to acknowledge.

Research Upends Traditional Thinking on Study Habits

NYTimes.com: "Every September, millions of parents try a kind of psychological witchcraft, to transform their summer-glazed campers into fall students, their video-bugs into bookworms. Advice is cheap and all too familiar: Clear a quiet work space. Stick to a homework schedule. Set goals. Set boundaries. Do not bribe (except in emergencies).

TD1 - Show Breakout

In class you mentioned the number 50 for the number of units we should have. Was that a rough estimate or a “there are only around this number” comment? Also on a related topic, is it better to list all the different types of molding as different elements or to note that they are different and there fore make each one that is indeed different a specific unit?

The 50 number was a hypothetical estimate, like “bigger than a breadbox.” If you wind up with one element for each of the set pieces elevated on drawings 3-9 you will be short.

The “different types of molding” thing is about the picture gallery, yes? So they aren’t molding at all they are frames. Are all the frames individual elements for this assignment? That’s a judgment call. There are two picture gallery units, between those two units there are five non-consecutive pieces, and those pieces are each made from multiple components. How many elements it is depends on how useful it is or isn’t for you to have them as individual elements. Usually I base that on a couple things:

1. Will I treat the pieces substantively differently with regard to schedule or fabrication?
2. Is it likely we’ll cut one bit without the other for budget?

It only makes sense to create multiple elements from single set pieces when it does you some good organizationally.

Traditional jobs support careers in the arts

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "Being a full-time actor, musician, comedian, filmmaker or playwright in Western Pennsylvania often doesn't pay the bills. To support their creative pursuits, many artists need to hold down 'real' jobs. Here's a look at how some of these two-career performers make ends meet.

New Works festival continues development mission

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "As the Pittsburgh New Works Festival celebrates its 20th season, little has changed except its location.
And that's just fine with those involved in this year's festival, which begins performances of the staged one-act plays Thursday in the Father Ryan Arts Center in McKees Rocks.

Dominatrix Gives S and M Coaching to ‘Trust’ Cast

NYTimes.com: "The critics, the financial backers, the friends and the family of cast and crew came to see Paul Weitz’s comedy “Trust,” but one more interested observer needed to weigh in, and she wasn’t there to judge which lines got the biggest laughs.

Five Best Mobile To-Do List Managers

LifeHacker: "Managing to-dos from your desktop has its perks, but being able to carry that to-do list in your pocket is even better. Here's a look at Lifehacker readers' five favorite mobile to-do list managers.
Earlier this week we asked you to share your favorite mobile to-do list manager. Now we're back to highlight the five most popular contenders.

3D or not 3D? Shakespeare's face 'recreated' by scientists... but have they got the right man?

Mail Online: "Scientists have used state-of-the-art 3D computer technology to create what they say is the first true likeness of William Shakespeare.
The image shows every wrinkle on the playwright's face and the figure's haunted stare is radically different from existing images which purport to be of the Bard.

Cast Software Set to Debut BlackTrax at PLASA

iSquint.net: "CAST Software of Toronto, Canada will be debuting their newest technology, BlackTrax (patent pending), at PLASA, September 12-15 at Earls Court in London, Stand 1-G15. BlackTrax is a revolutionary motion tracking system for people and objects that operates in real time. BlackTrax is designed to work with CAST’s game-changing BlackBox system of multi-directional high-speed control coordination.

All the Globe's a stage

The Independent: "They aren't so much smashing through the glass ceiling as sweeping aside layers of dusty parchment; but it is progress. As the first play penned by a woman opens at Shakespeare's Globe today – breaking a 411-year tradition – top theatre directors report a surge in prominent female playwrights, with a wave of talented women coming to the fore in Britain's male-dominated theatres.

How to create a High Perfoming Team by understanding Group Dynamics

Behind the Scenes at Taylor Studios, Inc ©: "Last week a few of us went to a presentation by Pat Murray on Group Dynamics. Since we all work in groups it is good to know the psychology of groups. We are a social animal. Our behaviors, character, identity, status and place in the world all come from imprinting from our groups. These groups could include our family, military, corporate, religious and other social organizations. Groups are a mental configuration. There is no individual action there is only group action. Connection to a group is a requirement for human survival. Many people don’t get over being dumped from a group. Long term military people die on average 18 months after leaving the military.

Is mainstream theatre politically engaged enough?

The Observer: "Director Max Stafford-Clark and actor/playwright Stephanie Street debate South African writer Athol Fugard's claim that today's theatre does not engage properly with political issues

Arena takes spotlight on national stage

Variety: "With its $135 million building renovation virtually completed, D.C.'s Arena Stage is preparing to unveil its refurbished campus with a head of steam unimagined at the start of the facelift's campaign almost a decade ago.

'Addams' in the slow Lane

Variety: "Anyone who doubted how valuable topliner Nathan Lane is to 'The Addams Family' got a wakeup call during week 14 (Aug. 23-29): Ticket sales for the Broadway tuner plummeted 32% -- more than $350,000 -- with the thesp out on vacation.