A musical and an opera
You know if BBC News has a story on Canada, then it's something to talk about. They tend to ignore much of what makes news in Canada. I could list examples, but that's not what this post is about. Besides, realistically speaking, a lot of what is considered news here is not all that significant when put in the global context.
What did make news on BBC recently: the upcoming Lord of the Rings musical, set to open in Toronto next year. Anyone who has been to downtown Toronto has seen the street banners; they've been up for a long time. Toronto beats the West End and Broadway for the premiere of this musical, which at CAD$27 million is reported to be the most expensive musical ever staged, 'a theatrical extravaganza of unparalleled ambition'. As the story goes, the city hopes to attract the huge fan following of the Tolkein books and their motion picture renditions.
I haven't read any of the books, and don't see myself reading them any time in the foreseeable future, mainly because there's a lot else I should be reading that I'm not. But I have seen the movies, and count them among my favourites of all time. I am intrigued to know how they portray everything in the stage version. But as a poor 1L law student, I will probably not get to see the musical, unless I get cheap tickets from somewhere.
Speaking of cheap tickets, a friend was able to get some yesterday for the opera at the Hummingbird Centre, Rodelinda by Handel. Good orchestra seats too. It was my first ever opera experience, and I should say it wasn't too bad. Generally good performances and very good music I thought, and the rest of the audience seemed to agree. Of course the surtitles helped, since my Italian is limited to recognizing cognates with words in English, and even that is not easy when they're in a libretto.
Of course all this means that I'm not studying as much as I should. That's what the weekend is for.
8 comments:
Of interest to those of you who pay provincial taxes you'll be interested to know that the Ontario Liberals are subsidizing $2.5 million dollars of it's budget for this for-profit enterprise. :(
http://www.taxpayer.com/main/news.php?news_id=2103
--B
Too little too late. But call/visit your MPP and write a letter.
Bilal, that "news release" link you included sounds more like cheap shot at the McGuinty government than an actual concern for where tax dollars are being spent.
Why aren't they considering the huge attraction factor of the musical, potentially bringing in tonnes of enthusiasts from all around who would contribute to Toronto's and Ontario's economy through their spending power?
That news release says eight out of ten Broadway shows fail to earn their money. Well then, why does New York have Broadway? Because it adds to NYC's charisma and it's a major stop on many a tourist's itinerary, the tourist who then also goes to other sites and spends his or her money there.
It's not about just one musical - it's part of what face Toronto wants to show the rest of the world.
I shake my head at the narrow and often tainted perspective of special interest groups.
Omar, the benefits may be imperceptible, but there will be benefits nonetheless. If all goes to plan, a succesful run of the show will bring in tourists from outside the province. Tourists will spend money in Ontario. Companies will profit. Ontario will tax these profits. The tax revenue will be used to support things like...oh I don't know...universities? hospitals? schools? Don't worry about it. $2.5 million is peanuts compared to the entire provincial spending.
For the record, there are no ogres or pixies in the Lord of the Rings.
Ali & Tanveer: I understand the Government's gamble. They expect a much greater return on their investment ($2.5 million). I'm just a little jaded with the private/public partnership model as it fails spectacularly at times.
Omar: I'd love to hear your thoughts on legal tax avoidance. Maybe my home based business can meet over coffee with your home based business and discuss further, pending that valid receipts will be exchanged.
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1151490012778&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154
I wonder if we'll get our money back?
--B
Yeah saw a report on this on CBC today. They said they'd made enough money to pay the bills and that sort of thing, but not anything that investors in the production would be able to profit from.
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