dirac

He's new to the part and will only get better, I'm sure.

Hi, Ed. Good to hear from you. The music is ravishing, isn't it? Next time, turn your engine off, though. Sorry I missed the broadcast.

Princess Beatrice’s hat is being auctioned off on eBay.

The former child star is dead at 88. Loved him in 'Treasure Island.' And no squabbling over the will, kids:

The Library of Congress has launched a new service called the National Jukebox. Opera, pop, spoken word, take your choice. Cheers to the Library (and the Internet).

Thanks for posting this, Sandy.

A video BBC interview with David Morrissey.

Thank you so much for this review. I enjoyed reading it. Very pleased to hear of a production of this play with no curse on it.

I've been meaning to read that. I hear it's good. Laurents' own autobiography, "Original Story By," is great reading.

Thank you for keeping us informed, Rosa! All of those titles are new to me except the Welty.

Laurents was a screenwriter as well as a playwright, so it's hardly surprising that he was a doughty fighter in the credit wars. And if you were a book writer you’d be “deeply protective,” too, especially with Jerome Robbins around. The writer of the book often has the most thankless of the major creative roles involved in making a musical. Nor is it especially surprising when collaborators disagree. I once read a joint interview about the making of “West Side Story” given by the Four Horsemen and nobody could agree on anything. At least it means that although Laurents is gone, he leaves plenty of his opinions on the record.

Another obit, illustrated with a photograph of Rodgers, Laurents, and Sondheim while the three of them were working on 'Do I Hear a Waltz?'

I saw Baby Face some years ago in a revival house. Good picture. The Mae Clark version of Waterloo Bridge is an interesting contrast to the Vivien Leigh version, ten years apart.

The movie is now out on DVD.

Arthur Laurents has died at age 93. What can you say? He lived a long, full life and takes a big chunk of American theater history with him. Quotes from friends and colleagues.

Thanks, Kathleen. Any other suggestions?

A reminder to everyone that we have a longstanding rule about not discussing the discussion. Mashinka, I read that Prince Andrew recently sold his mansion to a relative of Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan for well above market price. He’s never met a deep-pocketed despot he didn’t like, evidently. I didn’t, either, sandik. I thought it looked fine – on her. Thanks. I, too, was wondering how those fascinating fascinators stayed in place.

Not me, MakarovaFan, but perhaps there's another poster who has a recommendation for you.

Very true, GoCoyote! Great art can move us in a profound and spiritual way. A theater performance is indeed different in kind from a royal wedding(or the funeral of a state figure), which in our day are mass communal experiences and there is the historical aspect, as well.

Thank you, GoCoyote! I didn't think you meant 'disappeared' literally in the Soprano sense of the word. I don't think there is anything wrong with describing a wedding of this nature in theatrical terms. In addition to its formal purpose it is also a form of public theater and ritual and intended as such.

A trifle over stated don’t you think. "Disappeared" is a bit much but GoCoyote has a point. And yes, it's also worth noting that the wedding wasn't a state occasion. I don't want to cut off the discussion but it won't be long before this degenerates into pure tit-for-tat. Please say your say and let it go. Thanks.

Which would prove Mashinka's point about bread and circuses. The populace can forget its bad fortune for one day watching the privileged enjoying their privileges. Still works, I guess. A general request: I ask that we all refrain from getting personal about the views of others, and I also note while my moderator beanie is on that opinions on how the bin Laden operation was carried out, and any comments on it, "celebratory" or otherwise, are not within the scope of this discussion or this board.

Thank you, leonid. Terry Gilliam is going to direct The Damnation of Faust, I see. Interesting combination.

Thank you for posting this, Pamela. I'd never heard of the Polar Prize. I learn something new every day on this site!

I would say that the very existence of an hereditary monarchy and an hereditary titled aristocracy at the top of the social heap implies that coming from a family of tradesmen like the aptly named Mr. Middleton is undesirable. It’s natural that he and the missus should be treated with a considerable degree of condescension. As the article leonid linked to notes, the Middletons give a whole new meaning to the term “commoner” as applied to marriage into the royal family. It’s true that Elizabeth I was able to boast, “If I were turned out of my realm in my petticoat, I would prosper anywhere in Christendom,” and I haven’t the slightest doubt of it. However, that was a long time ago and the sayings and conduct of many of the Windsors suggest that stripped of their privileges they’d be unemployable except possibly as ski instructors, a skill learned on their frequent vacations. Because we don’t have such a system in the US, pulling yourself up by your bootstraps is considered admirable and our class distinctions take different forms. Which is not to say similar treatment doesn't take place over here, although our few remaining tabloids are not nearly as vigorous as those in the UK. For example, I remember some unkind things said and written about President Clinton’s late mother and the President himself, that were blatantly or covertly class-based. On the other hand, recent studies seem to suggest there is nowadays more social mobility in Britain than the United States, a scary thought, and there’s also that nice National Health thingy. We don’t have titles over here, but we do have what appears to be a nascent oligarchy and medical bankruptcies. So there you are.