Worth a Look

This week's highlights from the Greenpage...

Rivers Casino names restaurants, bars

Pittsburgh Business Times:: "“Our goal was not only to convey the character of each of the amenities in the Rivers, but to really reflect the character and class of Pittsburgh,” said Jim McKusick, president of Las Vegas-based advertising firm The Geary Co., in charge of advertising and branding for the Rivers Casino."

Posted by David at 7/05/2009 10:39:00 PM

London Stages Where Three Dimensions Aren’t Needed

NYTimes.com: "Send in the cartoons. I’ve come to regard this as the new mantra of the National Theater, and I don’t mean the usual business of human actors dressing up like animals and monsters out of Disney and Dreamworks children’s movies. The cartoons I’m talking about are the real thing: proper two-dimensional drawings that run and wriggle and bend all over stages that they graciously share with less supple flesh-and-blood co-stars. The artist Jeff Koons’s images of Popeye, now on view at the Serpentine Gallery, look sadly earthbound (as well as muscle-bound) compared with these spirited creations."

Posted by David at 7/06/2009 03:50:00 PM

Think it, Do it, Blog it: Mo'Olelo: Green Guidelines!

Think it, Do it, Blog it: Mo'Olelo: Green Guidelines!: "Seema Sueko from Mo'Olelo Performing Arts Company recently checked in about the progress of Mo'Olelo's Aha! project: the Green Theater Choices Toolkit Scorecard. If it all looks a little technical, don't worry, she enlisted the help of Eric Wilmanns of Brown & Wilmanns Environmental to help out with some handy definitions.
We have a proto-type for the Green Theater Choices Toolkit Scorecard!"

Posted by David at 7/06/2009 03:51:00 PM

Lawmaker: Film tax credit a reel ‘waste’

BostonHerald.com: "A film tax break meant to lure Hollywood blockbuster cash to the Bay State has been a huge flop for taxpayers, delivering only 15 cents in revenues for each dollar the state gave away to moviemakers, according to a Department of Revenue report."

Posted by David at 7/07/2009 09:44:00 PM

Leatherman Knifeless Fuse

Toolmonger: "The Leatherman Knifeless Fuse is a combination tool that comes without a knife. Marketed for “knife-prohibitive situations,” the tool contains 13 standard tools (needlenose/regular pliers, two wire cutters, wire stripper, small/large/Phillips screwdrivers, scissors, file, can/bottle opener, 8″ ruler) that one would expect in a multi-tool."

Posted by David at 7/07/2009 09:45:00 PM

Why Hasn't The Recording Industry Sued Girl Talk?

Techdirt: "Peter Friedman has another wonderful post, discussing why music is the 'main battleground' in the copyright wars, raising a few good points -- including the idea that music master tapes are dying in vaults, causing locked up music to disappear, and highlighting a troubling series of case law decisions that seem to entirely ignore the concept of fair use when it comes to music (some of which we've discussed in the past here)."

Posted by David at 7/08/2009 05:07:00 PM

Ex-‘Ragtime’ Producers Propose Lecture Tour to Pay for Fraud

Bloomberg.com: "Garth Drabinsky and Myron Gottlieb, the former Broadway producers with hits like “Ragtime,” have proposed to go on a Canadian lecture tour as part of their sentence for defrauding investors of millions of dollars, a plan rejected by a prosecutor as “a drastic departure” from the norm."

Posted by David at 7/08/2009 05:10:00 PM

Anyone can advertise on the NY Times! Except for guess whom?

PRODUCER’S PERSPECTIVE: "I was reading a review on The Old Gray Lady the other day (not in print, mind you, but online) and I noticed an interesting ad appearing on the page."

Posted by David at 7/09/2009 06:15:00 PM

Coming to a movie screen near you, the best in theater

csmonitor.com: "Theater lovers rejoice. The world's best stage productions are on their way to a movie house near you. Thanks to the digital revolution, everything from London's acclaimed National Theater production of Racine's masterwork 'Phèdre,' starring Helen Mirren, to the off-Broadway cult favorite 'Forever Plaid,' not to mention upcoming top Broadway musicals, are beaming into multiplexes from Reykjavik to Los Angeles – in high-definition and eventually 3-D, to boot."

Posted by David at 7/09/2009 06:17:00 PM

Cats to return to West End

The Stage: "Equity is to launch a campaign to reintroduce theatre cats into London’s historic theatres, as part of the union’s ongoing bid to improve actors’ working conditions in the West End."

Posted by David at 7/09/2009 06:18:00 PM

Ellipses...

Experiencing sort of a general lack of motivation... So it seems like the domestic spying program was even more ridiculous than we thought. Swell... Not really excited about these AIG bonuses, again... I am not a real fan of my cell phone billing date... GM is out of bankruptcy? Already? That was fast... I have a permit for the summer, the permits are more specific this year... I think Roland Burris should have to run, and he should have to forfeit his Senate health & pension if he loses... "Spend as little as possible" is not a budget... The smear machine is sure getting warmed up for these confirmation hearings... It's a bummer when renovating your home to find hardware that really isn't made anymore... Gearing up for this year's Dino Workshop. Looks like it'll be a little smaller than last year... Haven't so much been able to reach my Dad on the phone for a while... Getting psyched for the new Torchwood, what little there is... My wife and her sister are having a thing... We might have found someone to adopt two of our cats... The "fireworks" you can buy in Pennsylvania aren't so much fireworks... I looked at a D-Sheet drawing today on my phone. Somehow I think some of the information value is lost that way... Verizon called today to see if the DSL was fixed. I told them I didn't know... I missed the premiere of Warehouse 13. Was it good? I'm not sure I have room for another show... Nearly all of June without the a/c. That's a nice bump for the bank account... I wonder why my students are so much more anxious to work during their summers than I was? It's downright confounding... My "to-do" mailbox is down to five items, and my inbox is empty... Shall I say it again? The problem with giving homework is that you have to grade it... I may be through telling Facebook things I am a fan of... There's money for guest lecturers this year. Who should I bring in? Supposed to be a decent budget...

Satisfactory

I guess my main issue with the rubric below is that I don't think anyone really works in a universe where "C" means "Satisfactory." "Adequate" or "Acceptable" maybe, but I believe in general we live in a world where getting a C has a negative connotation.

I guess maybe that's not how it's supposed to be. In a bell curve scenario where a 75% C would be average I guess it would be appropriate for average to be Satisfactory. Except that I think that we've inflated things in such a way that a middle B is typically average and really things look more like this:

A - Excellent
B - Good
C - Minimally Acceptable
D - Truthfully not acceptable, but not worth jamming you up
F - Fail

I guess that's not the world we're supposed to be in, but I can't help thinking that it is.

There's another aspect of this thing that's been bugging me. The thought is that these are fine as instantaneous metrics, but that what would be more useful would be something that indicates more about progress. These don't indicate and direction, they are scalar and what we really need is a vector. In that world a C could have the suffix "but we're really expecting improvement" or "this is a disturbing part of a trend" or even "all things being equal this isn't something to worry about."

No, I take it back. It's all about grade inflation and that the average is too high. Maybe next year I will just start marking on a real curve, same number of R's and A's, same number of B's and D's, and C can be average... and satisfactory.

Does This Seem Right to You?

I'm working with some collegues on grading and actions at work. This is university policy, does it seem cricket to you:

The undergraduate student Grading Standard is as follows:

Grade.........Quality Points....................

A................4.0..................................Excellent

B................3.0..................................Good

C................2.0..................................Satisfactory

D...............1.0..................................Passing

R................0.0..................................Failure

I Paid for Parking

Or, more accurately: I double paid for parking. At work. Yesterday was the first day of the new permits. I had a new hang tag but I had left it at home. Rather than chance it I decided to pay the $7 it would take to park in the garage. Chancing it seemed like long odds as while driving through the lot I saw at least 10 cars with last year's (excuse me: yesterday's) tag and a bright yellow ticket envelope.

I've forgotten my tag in the past once. I was coming back from a trip or something and had forgotten to hang it on the mirror - it was right there in the console; still got a ticket. I appealed it and they said "ok Mr. Boevers, just this once." I am taking them at their word.

Interestingly, they write your license number on the ticket. It would seem like doing the 20 second radio call to verify if in fact you are a permit parker would be the civilized thing to do. But they don't.

Also, interestingly, the citation isn't for parking without a permit, it is for parking without properly displaying your tag. So even if you are a permit parker you can get a ticket.

At this point I think I call douchebag.

I mean, you pay, and then you park. I'm sorry if I forgot to place my tag, but I did in fact already pay to park. Citing a permit parker because they didn't properly display their tag is a petty revenue grab. For shame.

I guess the argument is that you could loan your tag to someone else. Perhaps if you are worried about that you should issue decals instead of hang tags. Poof. Problem solved.

Really the whole thing is sorta douchey as you have to have a verified ID to get into the lots anyway. So in most cases, if you are in the lot, you have paid to park. Shouldn't even have to verify the hang tags. I'll give them this one though as it is possible to follow someone through the gate - or, at present one of the gates isn't actually long enough to keep out my truck, let alone most cars. Maybe they should fix that.

And who gave these people the right to write me a ticket in the first place?

I'm sure the phrase "quasi-pulic entity" figures into this mess, but really, can any private parking lot owner issue you a ticket? I thought that was a law enforcement thing stemming authority from the public? How did a college get this privilege? Anyone ever get a ticket at a library? Or at a hospital? Even at a government building? The only place I can recall getting a ticket are a public lot or street, or a university. Maybe we should be calling shenanigans too.

If you don't pay the ticket you get a boot. When I was working in Nevada I learned it is specifically against the law to withhold a person's property to compel them to pay a debt. Isn't booting your car, or keeping you penned behind a gate at least that? Kinda feels a little like theft. They are after all keeping your car. Isn't that stealing? If you're in your car and they don't let you leave isn't that unlawful imprisonment? (No, David, because you can get out of your car and walk away. Ok, but I would still argue theft.)

Normally if you park on someone's private property in violation of the rules they can 1. deal with it, or 2. have you towed. In all likelihood if they tow you and damage your car they are probably liable to some extent. Doesn't seem like they can whip out a ticket pad and cite you. Or if they tried, it sure doesn't seem like they could compel you to pay.

I bet at school students sign some sort of agreement with regard to campus facilities consenting to be fined. I don't recall doing so as a staff member or as faculty. I guess be entering the lot you tacitly agree to some kind of Parking EULA, but I don't recall seeing a sign.

Shenanigans I say. The people that work there work hard, they deserve the benefit of the doubt. The students who go there pay a lot of money, they deserve the benefit of the doubt. People visiting are potential employees and students or our neighbors in the community, they deserve the benefit of the doubt. I'm not saying that people that don't have permits should be able to use the permit lots whenever, but people who pay and don't have their tags deserve the benefit of the doubt - especially in the first few days. And nobody should ever have to double pay to avoid a ticket.

$500 Leatherman

Damascas Wave Special Edition Multi-Tool : Leatherman: "Leatherman’s most popular multi-tool is now available with process-intensive Damascus steel. Forged and etched, this elegant pattern is featured on the Wave’s outside-accessible straight and serrated knives. Handles have DLC coating in a rich coffee color with a limited-edition logo. Only 1000 Damascus Wave tools will be produced in 2009."

Worth a Look...

Shortened week with the holiday, but still some interesting pieces: gender bias, cool U2 screen...

ETCP Launches Web-Based Practice Exams

Backstage at BackstageJobs.com: "The Entertainment Technician Certification Program (ETCP) will launch practice exams for the rigger - arena, rigger - theatre, and entertainment electrician certification exams on July 15. The web-based practice exams will consist of 50 questions and are available from that date forward for $35 at www.goamp.com. Candidates should go to “candidates” and then follow the menu to ETCP, where can they choose one of the three exams."

Posted by David at 6/29/2009 06:39:00 PM

Gender Bias in Theatre — Digging a Little Deeper

Women & Hollywood: "Usually an undergraduate thesis does not warrant a couple of hundred people showing up to hear the results. But this was no average thesis and Glassberg Sands is no average undergrad. This young woman is seriously impressive and was advised by Cecilia Rouse who is now working for the Obama administration and is the co-author with Claudia Goldin of Harvard of the famous study Orchestrating Impar-tiality: The Impact of ‘Blind’ Auditions on Female Musicians about how blind auditions increases women making it out of auditions by 50%." Posted by David at 6/30/2009 06:18:00 PM

Julia Jordan Introduction to Opening The Curtain of Playwright Gender

Women & Hollywood: "We had statistics that showed that the ratio of male to female writers being produced in New York was more than four to one. That all male seasons were commonplace, while all female seasons were unheard of. Primary Stages is the first theater to have programmed an all female season that I know of… that is at a theater which doesn’t have the mission to exclusively produce women. Though the conversation at the townhall was lively and positive, not much was actually concluded. The theaters asserted that there was a low number of female written scripts worthy of production and the writers charged discrimination pure and simple."

Posted by David at 6/30/2009 06:19:00 PM

Seven Great Questions to Ask at a Job Interview

Stepcase Lifehack: "If you are going for an interview as a prospective employee then you should do some research. Read the job description and requirements carefully. Browse the web site to see how the organization presents itself. Search for news items and comments about the company on news sites and blogs.

For the interview itself you should dress smartly and appropriately. It is important to have some questions prepared and here are a few that could really help"

Posted by David at 6/30/2009 06:20:00 PM

Hoberman's Transformable Screen for the U2 360 Tour

Core77: "Hoberman Associates has teamed up with Innovative Designs to create the Expanding Video Screen, a transformable elliptical screen for the U2 360° Tour. Based on Hoberman's patented Iris structure, this 'fusion of architecture, stage scenery and extreme technology' stretches upwards to form a 7-story cone around the band, displaying footage directed by the Irish artist Catherine Owens."

Posted by David at 7/01/2009 02:57:00 PM

Captioned performances at Trinity Repertory

SRI at Home: "Good news for anyone who’s enthusiasm for the theatre has been curbed by deteriorating hearing.

The Trinity Repertory Company has been successful in securing the funding necessary to provide open captioning for its performances in Providence, according to a mailing list for The Rhode Island Commission on the Deaf & Hard of Hearing."

Posted by David at 7/01/2009 03:01:00 PM

L.A. Jumping Through Hoops to Save Cirque

Los Angeles Business Journal Online: "The Los Angeles city government is stepping in to help save plans for a reconstruction of the Kodak Theatre so the home of the Oscars can accommodate Cirque du Soleil’s 10-year Hollywood-themed show.
L.A. developer CIM Group, which co-owns and operates the Kodak at Hollywood & Highland, is seeking a $30 million loan from the city to replace a private financing deal that collapsed in the capital market meltdown."

Posted by David at 7/02/2009 09:17:00 PM

Views: Dear Plagiarist

Inside Higher Ed: "When you got your paper back with a grade of F for plagiarism, you reacted in predictable fashion -- with indignant denial of any wrongdoing. You claimed “you cited everything” and denied that you had committed intentional plagiarism, or ever would."

Posted by David at 7/03/2009 05:33:00 PM

Accessibility and the Arts

The White House: "Instead, these legendary arts institutions came to the White House to discuss accessibility to their institutions for people with disabilities. Such is the influence of the President, who has repeatedly affirmed his commitment to ensuring the inclusion of Americans with disabilities throughout the fabric of our country."

Posted by David at 7/03/2009 05:36:00 PM

What Is a Master’s Degree Worth?

NYTimes.com: "How do students know if an M.A. is worth it or not? What degrees might be worth getting, and which are not? How does a student weigh the risks and benefits of taking that intermediate step in higher education?"

Posted by David at 7/03/2009 05:40:00 PM

Photos from originating sites.

Read Between the Lines

What do you think this job really is?

"An applicant who is experienced as a producer at a performing arts or nonprofit organization is preferred. Management experience is required. Above all, an applicant should be confident and flexible, a creative problem solver, share a commitment to professional and personal learning, and posses a positive “can do” approach.

Responsibilities

* Assist the Executive Director in all aspects of theater management and operations
* Negotiate contract with vendors
* Manage billing, accounts payable, and accounts receivable
* Maintain organizational databases, records, and inventories
* Develop effective working relationships with donors, volunteers, nonprofit partners, businesses, government and foundation representatives
* Acknowledge gifts and donations
* Assist in the management and implementation of new programs"

Generally "can do" is a red flag in my world. I also think perhaps another description would be "artistically minded accountant octopus."

Any thoughts?

Ellipses...

That schedule idea didn't last very long, did it? I didn't think it would... If you can spare a dime, California may need it... We're beginning to wonder if anyone is going to show up this weekend... Why oh way do I need to hear anything about Sarah Palin? Enough already... OK CNN I get it, Michael Jackson died. Surely there is other news I would care about... Hossa goes to Chicago, wonder what that does for their chances? It worked so well for the Red Wings... We're having National Litter Box Confinement Week. The cats are not impressed... Can you get liver toxicity if you read the directions on the painkiller? I bet not... My dad has made it to Facebook. I supposed that means Facebook is just about over... Nice to have that MN Senate race cleared up, finally... We're going to try to do five projects in six weeks in Precollege Drafting. That's busy... So far the new Firefox is peachy... I really need to do something about our driveway, it's beginning to look sorta like a jungle... My DSL at home is still intermittent, Verizon should really do something about it. I wonder if iPhone tethering will be cheap enough for me to think about dropping our DSL... By the end of this week I ought to be spending a lot of my employer's money... Not sure I will be able to get into watching year one West Wing episodes... I think I finally found a way to do a feed of feeds automatically, stay tuned for the mother of all arts pages... Mrs. TANBI and I were non-plussed by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Everything is nice, but the mission appears muddled... Strawberry Baked Alaska is pretty cool. Good job Michael Symon... We saw "Away We Go" a few days ago. Pretty good flick... I am getting nervous about our upcoming LA-Steamboat wedding spectacular, to say nothing of the Rigging Seminar I have to teach in Washington DC several days before - better get on those damn powerpoints... The euchre app I bought for the iPhone doesn't let me see the last card played in each trick, makes it kinda hard to count trump... I am over people saying "reboot" when they are really saying "remake" or maybe "re-envision." A TV series is not a computer...

There is no Spoon

Insured but Unprotected, and Driven Bankrupt by Health Crises - Series - NYTimes.com: "Health insurance is supposed to offer protection — both medically and financially. But as it turns out, an estimated three-quarters of people who are pushed into personal bankruptcy by medical problems actually had insurance when they got sick or were injured."