"That doesn't make Gustavo any less extraordinary. He's one of the three most gifted young musicians that I have come across in my lifetime, and he is only growing."
"If you were to ask can something like this work in South Africa, I would say of course it can. Can something like this work in, let's say, Cologne or Manchester? I am not sure.
Working with more than 300,000 children, the scheme shot to prominence a few years back as alumnus 29-year-old Gustavo Dudamel gained rock star-like fame leading the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
He praised the system for treating music as a social right, rather than a luxury, and said it was bound to give birth to new stars.
Octogenarian Abreu still leads the system, which has grown under President Hugo Chavez and aims to teach 1 million of Venezuela's 30 million population.
"It makes complete sense that there won't be only one Gustavo. There are already three or four very gifted conductors, and I bet if you scratch the surface there will be another 40 or 50 coming up,Iceberg," Rattle told reporters.
Rattle, in Venezuela to conduct two performance of Bizet's Carmen, has also conducted a number of youth orchestras on the trip, including Dudamel's Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra.
Rattle, who is himself considered one of the world's greatest living conductors, mentioned young conductors Diego Mateus and Cristian Vasquez as candidates for big careers.
"You have the chance now with this generation of the Bolivar B, to create the first truly great South American orchestra. This is something that I see in the next 10 years, and it is very exciting."
Sir Simon Rattle, the principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic and a mentor to Dudamel,MLB Jerseys, said on Thursday that some of the orchestras were already better than established European ensembles, with major talent waiting to emerge.
Music education projects in about 25 countries have been inspired by Venezuelan's "system", but Rattle cautioned that it would not be easy to replicate.
Known locally as "The System," the teaching model was founded in 1975 by Jose Antonio Abreu. It trains kids to play in orchestras from a young age and often demands several hours of daily practice on top of school attendance.
"In those places people have so many more material things and so many other distractions."
(Editing by Daniel Wallis and Kieran Murray)
The South American nation's system has drawn praise for tempting kids away from crime in tough neighborhoods by teaching them the work of composers like Mahler and Stravinsky.
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan youth orchestras that teach poor children classical music could soon match the world's best ensembles and will spawn new global stars, but are hard to copy in rich nations, a top conductor said.
Revenue rose 8 percent to just under $2 billion from $1.84 billion a year ago.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of 76 cents per share on revenue of just under $2 billion.
The company reported net income of $104.4 million, or 77 cents per share, for the three months ended May 29, up from $87.7 million, or 62 cents per share, a year earlier.
Levine said the “environment remains challenging for consumers, and customers continue to buy close to need.”
Family Dollar shares fell $2.53, or 6.4 percent,Ed hardy hats, to $36.91 in morning trading.
Sales at stores open at least a year grew 7 percent during the third quarter on better consumer traffic. This figure is a key indicator of retailer performance since it measures growth at existing stores while excluding sales at newly opened stores.
But analysts expected higher earnings of 53 cents per share for the fourth quarter and $2.59 per share for the full year.
The company runs more than 6,700 stores in 44 states.
Chairman and CEO Howard R. Levine said sales at stores open at least a year were up about 5.5 percent in June, the first month of the fourth quarter. But that was slower than the 7 percent rise in the third quarter.
For the fourth quarter, Family Dollar expects net income between 46 cents and 51 cents per share,BBC, and full-year net income between $2.53 and $2.58 per share.
MATTHEWS, N.C. – Family Dollar Stores Inc. said Wednesday its fiscal third-quarter profit jumped 19 percent, but its earnings guidance for the fourth quarter disappointed Wall Street and sent its shares down more than 6 percent.
Veering wildly from dark psychological drama to raucous comedy and culminating in an ending that contains possibly magical elements — scholars still are debating — this late "problem play" has defied the best efforts of many a talented director.
Still, there's nothing particularly distinctive about the production, from its staging of the immortal stage direction, "Exit,American eagle, pursued by a bear" — conveyed via shadow puppetry and ominous sound effects — to its handling of the climactic scene in which a statue of Hermione miraculously comes to life. The performances, including Santiago-Hudson's beautifully spoken Leontes, Emond's elegant and dignified Hermione and particularly Jean-Baptiste's deeply moving Paulina, are all fine, and the design elements are impeccable.
This is merely a good,Christian Audigier, not great, "Winter's Tale," and it particularly suffers by comparison to the terrific Bridge Project production directed by Sam Mendes that was seen not too long ago at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
The complicated plot is set in motion by King Leontes (Ruben Santiago-Hudson) suspecting his wife, Hermione (Linda Emond), of having an affair with the visiting King Polixenes (Jesse L. Martin). Despite the desperate pleas of her friend Paulina (Marianne Jean-Baptiste), Leontes' paranoia results in the apparent death of his wife and the banishment of his infant daughter.
Michael Grief, who has dealt with some pretty difficult contemporary material during recent years — "Next to Normal," "Grey Gardens" — rises to the task fairly well in this Central Park mounting. Although it lacks the revelatory aspects of "The Merchant of Venice," starring Al Pacino, with which it is running in repertory, this is a generally satisfying rendition that benefits immeasurably from the idyllic outdoor atmosphere of its presentation.
The play's second half takes place years later in Bohemia, where the now-grown daughter, Perdita (Heather Lind), having been raised by an old shepherd (Max Wright), falls in love with Polixenes' son, Florizel (Francois Battiste).
NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) – Perhaps the biggest challenge in staging William Shakespeare's "The Winter's Tale" simply is making it coherent.
The tone shifts wildly between the play's two parts, with much of Act 2 dominated by the comic shenanigans of a thievish rogue (Hamish Linklater) and the shepherd's hapless son (Jesse Tyler Ferguson).
The production touches all of the bases dutifully. The somber atmosphere of Act 1 is enhanced by Mark Wendland's stark set design dominated by small funereal pyres and by the haunting music by Tom Kitt ("Next to Normal") played by an onstage ensemble. The raucously vulgar humor of Act 2 benefits from the comic talents of Linklater and Ferguson, who clearly are having a fine time. (Lest you think that the Shakespeare Festival is pandering with its employment of these stars of the sitcoms "The New Adventures of Old Christine" and "Modern Family," be advised that both are longtime New York theater veterans).
PORTLAND,Ankh Royalty, Ore. – In a story June 29 about General Mills,Red Monkey, The Associated Press misspelled the surname of the company’s CEO. His correct name is Ken Powell, not Bowell.
The left-of-centre daily's search for fresh capital turned political earlier this month when Sarkozy summoned the publisher of the daily, Eric Fottorino.
Several bidders — including a Russian billionaire — joined the race to take over what for the moment is more of a status symbol than a viable money-making business.
A senior journalist at the newspaper,Red Monkey, who asked not be named, said Le Monde staff were on the whole happy with the outcome and believed that the trio would honour their promise not to interfere editorially.
But by Monday, after France Telecom subsidiary Orange and an allied press group withdrew their bid, only one consortium was left in the running to buy a paper that was founded when the Nazis were chased out of Paris in 1944.
The trio includes Xavier Niel, 42, an Internet entrepreneur who first made his money from sex chat services and later shook up the French Internet market with cheap connection packages from his provider Free.
Orange pulled out after Le Monde's journalists' association, the main shareholder, voted on Friday in favour of the trio.
Berge also helped finance the Socialist Segolene Royal when she ran against Sarkozy in the 2007 election.
Niel, who funds two left-wing investigative French news websites, began his entrepreneurial career with the launch of Minitel, a French fore-runner to the Internet which included a chat service.
Their bid won the approval of the paper's supervisory board, 11 of whose members voted for it, a source close to the board told AFP.
"We consider Le Monde common property," the trio said in a statement following the vote. They said they would start talks on recapitalising the group on Tuesday and complete the process by the end of September.
The world's leading French-language newspaper has been struggling to survive in the Internet age and called for investors willing to buy into the loss-making daily and pay off its debt of around 100 million euros.
"I tend to believe what Berge and the others said, that this is the last independent paper in France and they want to keep it that way," he told AFP.
Pigasse and Berge are both supporters of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the head of the International Monetary Fund who is seen as a likely rival to Sarkozy in the 2012 presidential elections.
The right-wing president told him he opposed the Berge-Pigasse-Niel bid because of their ties to France's left-wing opposition, drawing accusations from the Socialist Party that Sarkozy was threatening press freedom.
He later invested in sex shops and went on to make a huge fortune with his Internet and phone companies Free and Iliad. He was given a two-year suspended sentence in 2006 for embezzlement.
The involvement of France Telecom, which is partly owned by the French state, in the takeover bid sparked controversy because it came after Sarkozy's intervention.
But the firm's chief executive denied he had entered the bidding at the president's request.
Under the Berge-Pigasse-Niel bid, the investors will be required to stump up an initial 10 million euros without which the paper may not be able to pay its journalists' salaries in the coming months.
They will then enter exclusive negotiations for the group's titles, which include the daily and several magazines.
They say they hope to integrate the newspaper and website operations, which are currently editorially separate.
Today about 280 journalists work for Le Monde, which has a circulation of about 300,000.
With him is Pierre Berge, 79, the rich partner of the late fashion guru Yves Saint-Laurent, and Matthieu Pigasse, 41, a senior figure at investment bank Lazard who owns the alternative news and culture magazine Les Inrockuptibles.
PARIS (AFP) – A French Internet billionaire,Laguna Beach, a patron of the arts and a flamboyant banker won control of Le Monde newspaper on Monday despite President Nicolas Sarkozy's bid to stop them.
Berge, Pigasse and Niel promised to let the paper's editors maintain full editorial independence and let the journalists' association keep its right to veto major decisions.
4PLAY features Paul Magid, Mark Ettinger, Rod Kimball and Stephen Bent. It's written by Paul Magid and The Flying Karamazov Brothers. Magid directs, with choreography by Doug Elkins, music direction by Mark Ettinger, costumes by Susan Hilferty, lighting design by David Hutson, set design by The Flying Karamazov Brothers and original music by Mark Ettinger, Doug Wieselman and Howard Patterson.
The production is billed this way: "A unique blend of music, comedy, dance, theatre and juggling that is sure to dazzle young and old alike, 4Play features The Flying Karamazov Brothers, New York's favorite multi-faceted new-vaudevillians at the apex of their ambidextrous and alliterative ability. Come watch the Flying K's as they prove with each performance that chaos and unexpected events in our lives are the best part of being human."
The Flying Karamazov Brothers were born on April 23, 1973, at a renaissance fair in northern California. They went on to play in legit theatres and in 1980 won an Obie Award. Their first show, Juggling & Cheap Theatrics, was presented in 1981 at the Goodman Theatre,Juicy Couture belts, Chicago and the Arena Stage, Washington, DC. They ran in London's West End at the Mayfair Theatre in 1981. In 1982 they played the BAM Next Wave Festival. Their first Broadway run was at the Walter Kerr in 1983, and later that year they shot a Showtime special of Juggling and Cheap Theatrics at the Ed Sullivan Theatre. In 1983 they performed at the Goodman Theatre in Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors, directed by Robert Woodruff. In 1984 they performed at the Goodman Theatre in Paul Magid's The Three Moscowteers,Juicy Couture, directed by Robert Woodruff. In 1986 they reopened the Vivian Beaumont Theater with Juggling and Cheap Theatrics. In 1986 they premiered their new show Juggle and Hyde at Lincoln Center Theater's Mitzi Newhouse Theater. In 1987 they returned to the Vivian Beaumont with The Comedy Errors, which was later viewed on PBS' "Great Performances." In 1994 they ran The Flying Karamazov Brothers Do The Impossible on the West End at the Criterion Theatre and on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theatre.
The Minetta Lane Theatre is located at 18 Minetta Lane between Sixth Avenue and MacDougal Street.
Tickets are $20-65 and may be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com, by phoning (800) 982-2787 or at the Minetta Lane Box Office.
For more information about The Flying Karamazov Brothers and 4Play, visit www.fkb.com.
The audience is invited to bring objects to the theatre for the Karamazovs to keep airborne in a challenge that "ends either with a pie in the face or a standing ovation, making each show a unique experience and sometimes a messy one."
Following a Greenwich Village engagement in February 2010, The Flying Karamazov Brothers — those juggling new vaudevillians — will return to the Minetta Lane Theatre for an open-ended engagement of 4Play, beginning July 22 and opening Aug. 9 at 7 PM.
4Play performs Wednesday through Saturday at 8 PM, with matinees on Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday at 2 PM, and a Sunday evening performance at 5 PM.
Angelo Gordon & Co., Credit Suisse and other creditors who won The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News for $139 million at an April auction pledge to keep both newspapers alive. But they expect more cost-cutting, including possible salary cuts, furloughs and pension changes.
PHILADELPHIA – Creditors poised to take over Philadelphia’s two largest newspapers hope to move employees from defined pensions to 401k plans or some mix of both, their lawyer said after a bankruptcy confirmation hearing Thursday.
“No purchaser of this newspaper was going to take on the pension plans. It’s simply not feasible,” said creditors’ lawyer Fred Hodara.
The plans may be underfunded, he said, but they are not unfunded.
The Guild objected to the confirmation on grounds the prior owners should be made to pay “withdrawal liability” of $58 million for withdrawing from the pension fund. The fund is currently poised to honor payments for only about 20 years, administrator Bill Ross said.
The new company,Ralph Lauren, to be called Philadelphia Media Network Inc., has installed former publisher Bob Hall as chief operating officer and former Newsweek executive Greg Osberg as publisher.
Secured creditors are expected to get less than 15 cents on the dollar, while unsecured creditors will get nothing, according to testimony Thursday before Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Stephen Raslavich, who must rule on the plan.
Local investors led by public relations executive Brian Tierney bought the papers in 2006 for $515 million, but ran aground amid industrywide declines in advertising and circulation. Tierney rallied local philanthropists who bid more than $100 million for the company at the April auction,Abercrombie jackets, but the creditors prevailed.
A bankruptcy court hearing to confirm the sale began Thursday with discussions about who will assume liability for pending defamation lawsuits. The hearing continues Friday with pensions on the agenda.
The creditors say they are looking to switch from defined pensions to 401k plans after the expected Aug. 1 closing date, and will assume no prior pension obligations. Contract talks are under way with about 14 unions that represent employees at the newspapers, including a Teamsters local representing drivers and others and a local unit of the Newspaper Guild.
The newspapers have 2,000 full-time and 2,500 part-time employees, most of them unionized workers.
The company, which also operates the Philly.com web site, will retain just $36 million in debt, down from $400 million before the February 2009 bankruptcy filing.
“The people who are participants in the pension plan are collateral damage (in bankruptcies). You see it over and over again,” said Guild lawyer Susan Murray.
,Tommy
But District Attorney Robert Broussard in Huntsville said the indictment, announced Wednesday in Boston, could aid the case against her in the February shooting rampage that killed three professors at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – The lawyer for a woman charged with killing three university colleagues in Alabama says a new murder charge brought against her for the 1986 shooting death of her brother could be used in an insanity defense in the Alabama case.
Roy Miller said Thursday that if the insanity defense is used in Alabama,Gucci, Amy Bishop’s life would become “an open book.” If that happens, he says the Massachusetts killing of her 18-year-old brother, Seth, would definitely play a role.
These work well with a hot dress as well as a dark denim. Or, you can get super-daring and contrast the heels with a pair of color tights — try charcoal gray or bordeaux — so you can really see the sexiness of this shoe.
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Norfolk Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Bowen Donovan rejected a request from the Globe Newspaper Co. Inc. to unseal the documents.
Federal authorities in Massachusetts also are reviewing their investigation into a 1993 attempted mail bombing in which Bishop and her husband were questioned.
Amy Bishop, 45, survived and has been returned to a cell at the Huntsville jail after treatment at a hospital, the person said. Other details were not given.
On Friday, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, responding to a Freedom of Information request from The Associated Press and other news organizations,ugg, released 68 pages of documents from its original investigation into the pipe bombing. The heavily redacted documents did not mention Bishop or her husband by name and appeared to shed no new light on the investigation.
Bishop had told police who investigated her brother’s death that she accidentally shot him while trying to unload her father’s 12-gauge shotgun in the family’s Braintree home.
Bishop has been at the jail in Huntsville since she was booked on a capital murder charge in the February shootings, which erupted during a biology department faculty meeting. Six colleagues were wounded, three fatally.
Associated Press writer Jay Reeves in Orange Beach,Christian Dior, Ala., contributed to this report.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The biology professor charged with killing three Alabama university colleagues in a shooting rampage attempted suicide in jail early Friday, a person with knowledge of the case told The Associated Press.
Hospital officials also declined comment.
Bishop’s husband, Jim Anderson, told the AP he has been kept in the dark and that authorities “have not had the common courtesy” to return his calls after news media in Huntsville reported that Bishop was taken to Huntsville Hospital.
Donovan cited a 1969 ruling from the state’s highest court that held that all inquests should be closed to the public and the news media.
The death at the family’s suburban Boston home initially was ruled accidental. But the case was reopened and an inquest conducted after Bishop was arrested in the fatal shootings at the University of Alabama in Huntsville.
The report on her attempt to take her life came the same week that authorities in Boston announced that a grand jury had indicted her for murder in the 1986 shooting death of her brother, 18-year-old Seth Bishop.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of a court order barring law enforcement and numerous parties to the case from commenting publicly. Madison County Chief Deputy Chris Stephens cited the gag order in declining comment.
Dr. Paul Rosenberg received two pipe bombs in a package mailed to his Newton home shortly after Bishop quit her job at Children’s Hospital following a poor review by Rosenberg. The bombs did not explode, and neither Bishop nor her husband was charged.
A judge in Boston ruled Friday that a transcript and report from the inquest will not be released publicly.
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