Britten's coronation opera revived after 60 years

LONDON (AP) ? The Earl of Harewood may have been exaggerating when he described the premiere of "Gloriana" as "one of the great disasters of operatic history."

Still, the Benjamin Britten opera, commissioned to help mark the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, was hardly a rousing success back in 1953.

Instead of the joyous celebration many expected, Britten and librettist William Plomer produced a somber work about the first Queen Elizabeth and her relationship with the Earl of Essex. Though the opera has festive elements, it ends on a downbeat note, with the monarch portrayed as an aging, disillusioned woman contemplating death.

The first night audience at Covent Garden ? which included many members of the royal family ? greeted it with bewilderment, some wags dubbed it "Boriana," and the piece soon disappeared from the Royal Opera's repertory.

Until now.

This month, "Gloriana" is back in a new production by Richard Jones that the company's director, Kasper Holten, notes commemorates a "triple anniversary": 60 years since the coronation and the opera's premiere and 100 years since the composer's birth.

"There was feeling that it deserved another chance, to be looked at again," said Holten, who holds the same job Lord Harewood did in 1953. "To see whether the piece isn't really better than its reputation."

That it is. "Gloriana" contains some of Britten's finest music, though it possibly falls short of being a masterpiece to rank with his "Peter Grimes" or "Billy Budd."

"There are fantastic moments," Holten said in an interview. "The courtly dances, the lute song. I think the problem is that there are other parts that dramatically fail to pick up the same pace. That makes for an uneven evening."

What may have seemed an inappropriately dark portrayal of monarchy 60 years ago also feels different with the passage of time ? a perspective heightened by Jones's production. He frames the work as a pageant being staged for the young queen by a local community group of amateurs. This mixture of Tudor pomp with nostalgia for a Britain that was still recovering from World War II makes for a poignant combination.

"On opening night I had a strong feeling that from the first moment, people got it," Holten said. "This piece is a part of their history and it says something about them."

Critical reaction has been mixed. Many applauded Jones's staging while finding fault with the piece itself. Writing in the Financial Times, Richard Fairman said it was "brave of the Royal Opera to bring the work back to the theatre where it had its troubled birth," but he added that "drama and music are stretched painfully thin. Perhaps that first-night audience was not so wrong-headed after all."

More positive was Michael Church in The Independent, who noted that in 1953 "people just weren't ready for a work which chimes so neatly with our post-modern consciousness. . Covent Garden," he said, "has now shown that 'Gloriana' is, if not a great work, certainly one of the most intriguing in the canon."

Part of what's intriguing is the way Britten and Plomer depict the title character. Basing his libretto on Lytton Strachey's psychological history, "Elizabeth and Essex," Plomer presents a queen who, as Holten says, "is quite a flawed character, struggling with the dilemma between personal and public roles."

The idea of the queen as outsider in her own court, beloved by her people but lonely nonetheless, struck a chord with Britten, who was drawn to portrayals of outcasts in many of his other works as well.

In the opera's final scene, after Elizabeth has condemned Essex to death for treason, she is left alone on stage. Britten daringly subverts expectations here: Instead of giving her a final aria with a soaring vocal line, he has her abandon singing altogether for stretches of spoken declamation.

"It's almost as if the musical language falls apart at the end, as if she loses her language," Holten said. "There's no more singing in her, she's been worn out. I think that's a beautiful effect."

"Gloriana," starring soprano Susan Bullock in the title role and tenor Toby Spence as Essex, runs through July 6.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/brittens-coronation-opera-revived-60-years-095241157.html

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David Hasselhoff, Ray Liotta, Shaun Toub Join Joe Carnahan's 'Stretch' (Exclusive)

By Jeff Sneider

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Director Joe Carnahan continues to assemble an impressive ensemble for his action-comedy "Stretch," adding Ray Liotta, David Hasselhoff and Shaun Toub.

Patrick Wilson stars in the Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Productions film as a down-on-his-luck limo driver named Stretch who discovered he only has one shift left to pay off a big debt to a bookie. When the chauffeur picks up a reclusive billionaire (Chris Pine) with some deviant appetites, Stretch vows to fulfill his every request, no matter how weird, to score the big tip that could settle his score.

As the night grows stranger and Stretch is pushed into some dangerous encounters, he worries that the freak in his back seat might just be his final fare.

Toub will play the no-nonsense owner of the limo company that employs Stretch, while Liotta and Hasselhoff are expected to cameo as themselves, according to an individual familiar with the project.

Ed Helms and James Badge Dale co-star alongside Brooklyn Decker.

Blumhouse's Jason Blum will produce with Tracy Falco and Carnahan, while Leon Corcos and Nila Najand will co-produce. Charles Layton will executive produce.

Universal will release the low-budget movie in North America on March 21, 2014. Production begins June 30 in Los Angeles.

Liotta recently starred in "The Place Beyond the Pines" and has several movies on the horizon including the Disney sequel "Muppets Most Wanted" and "Sin City: A Dame to Kill For" in 2014. He's repped by UTA, Untitled Entertainment and attorneys Stewart Brookman and Craig Jacobson.

Hasselhoff is best known for his heroic portrayal of Mitch Buchannon on "Baywatch," which holds the Guinness World Record for most watched television series in history. He's currently in pre-production on the indie comedy "Killing Haselhoff," which he'll produce and star in. He's repped by manager Eric Gardner of Panacea Entertainment.

Toub co-starred in "The Last Airbender" as well as "Iron Man" and "Iron Man 3." He's currently in production on the Ernest Hemingway movie "Papa," which reunites him with his "Crash" producer Bob Yari. Toub is repped by Abrams Artists Agency.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/david-hasselhoff-ray-liotta-shaun-toub-join-joe-230524936.html

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Miesha Tate to pose nude in ESPN the Magazine

UFC bantamweight Miesha Tate is joining the ranks of MMA fighters who have posed nude in ESPN the Magazine's Body Issue. The magazine announced today that Tate will appear in the yearly issue that shows off athletes' bodies. It will hit newsstands on July 12.

Tate's opposing coach on the upcoming season of "The Ultimate Fighter," UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey, was on last season's cover. Both women appearing in the magazine will give them one more thing to trash talk about as they film the TUF that will air in September.

[Related: Mets' Matt Harvey to flaunt curves in 'Body Issue']

UFC president Dana White said the filming is filled with their squabbles every day.

"It's going exactly the way you thought it would be going: bad," White said. "Dead serious. Miesha and Ronda hate each other. It's literally crazy drama every day. It's irritating."

Other fighters who have been in the Body Issue include Jon Jones and Gina Carano.

Related coverage on Yahoo! Sports:
? Native American fighter Dan Hornbuckle more than a face in the crowd
? Is Chris Weidman the one to take out Anderson Silva?
? Ricardo Lamas depending on family to get over disappointing pursuit of UFC belt

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/miesha-tate-pose-nude-espn-magazine-201403709.html

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Mobile Advertising Ecosystem Infographic - Business Insider

We are in the post-PC era, and soon billions of consumers will be carrying around Internet-connected mobile devices for up to 16 hours a day.?Mobile audiences have exploded as a result.

So, mobile advertising should be a bonanza, right? Not exactly. It has been a bit slow off the ground, and its growth trajectory is not clear cut. Part of the reason is that the mobile ad ecosystem is not as strictly delineated as the desktop ecosystem.?In mobile advertising, the rules of the road change with different combinations of device, wireless operator, and operating system.

In a recent report from?BI?Intelligence?on, we?explain the complexities and fractures of the ecosystem. We specifically examine the central and dynamic roles played by mobile ad networks, demand side platforms, mobile ad exchanges, real-time bidding, agencies, brands, and new companies hoping to upend the traditional banner ad.

Access The Full Report And Data By Signing Up For A Free Trial Today >>

Take look at this infographic from our report:
?

Mobile lacks the technical consensus that enables ad targeting, delivery, and measurement to work fairly seamlessly across the desktop world.?As the mobile ad industry matures it will likely become more streamlined and simple, but for now there are innumerable actors interacting with one another and attempting to find a niche.

Here's an overview of some of the major players in the ecosystem:

To access BI Intelligence's full report on The Mobile Advertising Ecosystem, sign up for a free trial subscription here.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/mobile-advertising-ecosystem-infographic-2013-6

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D.C. Opens a Teddy Roosevelt-themed Restaurant | Devour The ...

Jun 25

by Lawrence Bonk posted at 10:00 am

When you think of restaurants and bars patterned after our nation?s long list of esteemed politicians, perhaps Teddy Roosevelt wouldn?t be the first name to pop in your head. After all, Honest Abe?s Burgers and Freedom is an actual place and who can top that? Well, trust-busting Teddy is going to give it the ole college try.

Introducing Teddy & The Bully Bar, a new D.C. establishment that seeks to honor our 26th president by filling you up with delicious food and drink. President Roosevelt?s profound love of hunting takes center stage here, as the dining room is filled with fake taxidermy animals and hunting trophies. The drink and dining specials are also similarly themed, offering up dishes made from bison, ostrich and other game.

The restaurant officially opened to the public yesterday, so if you are in the area why don?t you sling a couple back for Mr. Rough Rider himself.

Tags: food news

Source: http://blog.cookingchanneltv.com/2013/06/25/teddy-roosevelt-restaurant-washington-dc/

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Senate faces key vote on immigration

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama campaigned from the White House for immigration legislation on Monday in advance of a Senate test vote on a bill calling for more than $30 billion worth of new security measures along the border with Mexico and offering a chance at citizenship for millions living in the country illegally.

Far outnumbered, conservative critics attacked without letup in speeches and electronic appeals. "It will encourage more illegal immigration and must be stopped," Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, exhorted supporters, urging them to contact their own senators with a plea to defeat the measure.

After three weeks of desultory debate, the end game was at hand in the Senate for the most ambitious attempt to overhaul the nation's immigration system in decades.

Supporters exuded confidence they had more than the 60 votes required to send the measure over a key hurdle and on its way toward Senate passage by week's end.

Democrats appeared unified on the issue. Republicans were anything but, as evidenced by the divide among potential 2016 presidential contenders. Among them, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida was an enthusiastic supporter of the bill, while Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Cruz were opposed.

Passage would send the issue to the House, where most conservative Republicans in the majority are strongly opposed to citizenship for anyone who came to the country illegally or overstayed their visa.

Some GOP lawmakers have appealed to Speaker John Boehner not to permit any immigration legislation to come to a vote for fear that whatever its contents, it would open the door to an unpalatable compromise with the Senate. At the same time, the House Judiciary Committee is in the midst of approving a handful of measures related to immigration, action that ordinarily is a prelude to votes in the full House.

"Now is the time to do it," Obama said at the White House before meeting with nine business executives who support a change in immigration laws. He added, "I hope that we can get the strongest possible vote out of the Senate so that we can then move to the House and get this done before the summer break" beginning in early August.

He said the measure would be good for the economy, for business and for workers who are "oftentimes exploited at low wages."

As for the overall economy, he said, "I think every business leader here feels confident that they'll be in a stronger position to continue to innovate, to continue to invest, to continue to create jobs and ensure that this continues to be the land of opportunity for generations to come."

Leaving little to chance, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced it was launching a new seven-figure ad buy Monday in support of the bill. "Call Congress. End de facto amnesty. Create jobs and economic growth by supporting conservative immigration reforms," the ad said.

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated the legislation will reduce the deficit and increase economic growth in each of the next two decades. It is also predicting unemployment will rise slightly through 2020, and that average wages will move lower over a decade.

At its core, the legislation in the Senate would create a 13-year pathway to citizenship for an estimated 11 million immigrants living illegally in the United States. It also calls for billions of dollars to be spent on manpower and technology to secure the 2,000-mile border with Mexico, including a doubling of the Border Patrol with 20,000 new agents.

The measure also would create a new program for temporary farm laborers to come into the country, and another for lower-skilled workers to emigrate permanently. At the same time, it calls for an expansion of an existing visa program for highly-skilled workers, a gesture to high tech companies that rely heavily on foreigners.

In addition to border security, the measure phases in a mandatory program for employers to verify the legal status of potential workers, and separate effort to track the comings and goings of foreigners at some of the nation's airports.

The legislation was originally drafted by a bipartisan Gang of 8, four senators from each party who negotiated a series of political tradeoffs over several months.

The addition of the tougher border security provisions came after CBO informed lawmakers that they could potentially spend tens of billions of dollars to sweeten the bill without fearing higher deficits.

The result was a series of changes negotiated between the Gang of 8 and Republican Sens. John Hoeven of North Dakota and Bob Corker of Tennessee. Different, lesser-noticed provisions helped other lawmakers swing behind the measure.

In a speech on the Senate floor, Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, likened some of them to "earmarks," the now-banned practice of directing federal funds to the pet projects of individual lawmakers.

He cited a provision creating a $1.5 billion jobs fund for low-income youth and pair of changes to benefit the seafood processing industry in Alaska. Sen. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., issued a statement on Friday trumpeting the benefits of the first; Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican, and Mark Begich, a Democrat, took credit for the two others.

Grassley also raised questions about the origin of a detailed list of planes, sensors, cameras and other equipment to be placed along the southern border.

"Who provided the amendment sponsors with this list?" asked Grassley, who is a member of the Judiciary Committee that approved an earlier version of the bill. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano "did not provide the committee with any list. Did Sikorsky, Cessna and Northrup Grumann send up a wish list to certain members of the Senate?"

___

Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick and Jim Kuhnhenn contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/senate-faces-key-vote-immigration-204341973.html

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Arbor The Painting Dog Donates New Painting To Oklahoma Pets ...

(ACTIVISM) OKLAHOMA CITY ? Arbor, the painting rescue dog, is slowly becoming one of the world?s most adored painters. Her most recent painting, Hope Through The Rubble, sold for $1,000, with all the proceeds going to the Central Oklahoma Humane Society. And previously, she has painted in support of abused animals. Not to burst the late Vincent Van Gogh?s bubble, but that number makes Arbor a more successful living artist. Continue reading below, to find out how the painting?s proceeds are helping the victims of the Oklahoma City tornado, and learn who is the new lucky owner of Arbor?s most recent work. ? Global Animal

Las Vegas rescue dog, Arbor, paints once again, this time the proceeds will benefit victims of the Oklahoma City tornado. Photo Credit: Facebook

Oklahoma City News, Ted Malave

OKLAHOMA CITY ? Rescue dog, turned internationally recognized painter, Arbor the Painting Dog, sold her latest painting, ?Hope Through the Rubble,? for $1,000. Arbor won?t be burying any of the money in her backyard, however, as 100% of the net proceeds are going to benefit the Central Oklahoma Humane Society.

The COHS was one of the primary organizations providing care and shelter for pets that were displaced after the devastating May 20th tornado outside of Oklahoma City.

The auction ended Thursday night, receiving 79 bids, with the winning bid going to Michelle Barker of Wichita, KS.

Michelle has ties to Oklahoma and states, ?I wanted to take part, in a small way, in the extraordinary generous gesture and gift created by Arbor to help the COHS.?

The artwork will be a birthday gift to her best friend, Shadow, her Labrador/Border Collie mix, who will be 10 years old in July.

This is Arbor?s highest selling painting to date trumping her previous high of $453. Arbor?s parents, Bryce and Jennifer Henderson, of Henderson, NV, have an inquiry in with Guinness World Records to see if this is the highest selling painting, by a dog, ever sold.

The Henderson?s were elated with the final selling price of the painting.

?It?s hard to believe,? said Bryce, ?that a little over two years ago Arbor was a stray sitting in a kennel at the county shelter with no home or future. She is a great example of the many wonderful pets you can find at your local shelter and we hope it encourages others to adopt.?

Amy Shrodes, Director of Outreach with the COHS says they already have plans for the donation, ?The funds raised will be used to support our Adoption Program, and will help enable us to find loving homes for the homeless dogs and cats from the May 20th tornado.? She adds, ?We are so thankful to be selected as the beneficiary of one of Arbor?s masterpieces during our time of need. Our animals consider her a role model for the canine population.?

The painting, entitled ?Hope Through the Rubble,? was painted entirely by Arbor as she holds a paintbrush in her mouth. The only assistance she receives is applying paint on the brush and an occasional rotation of the canvas.

More Oklahoma City News:?http://kfor.com/2013/06/14/arbor-the-painting-dog-auctions-off-work-for-1000/

Watch this heartwarming video of Arbor painting ?Hope Through the Rubble,? interspersed with pictures of pets found and reunited after the storm:

DONATE: Global Animal is collecting donations for vetted animal rescue organizations working on the ground to help with medical costs for injured animals, boarding and food, as well as helping reunite pets with their guardians in Oklahoma.

Your compassion in action and support of Global Animal Foundation can help save the lives of animals in crisis.

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Source: http://www.globalanimal.org/2013/06/24/picasso-pooch-paints-for-oklahoma-pets/101194/

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