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Posted: Sat., Feb. 17, 2007, 6:00am PT
'Messiah' lights Luminato launch
Idle's tuner at center of fest lineup.
Filmmaker Atom Egoyan will join with Turkish artist Kutlug Ataman for an
exhibition called "Auroras/Testimony."
By _RICHARD OUZOUNIAN_
(http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layou t=3Dbio&peopleID=3D1932)
TORONTO -- A new arts festival in Toronto has unveiled its lineup, and
Pythonite Eric Idle is front and center.
Luminato, which runs June 1-10, offers eclectic entries in an inaugural
outing that will include "Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy)," an oratorio
adaptation from the man behind "Monty Python's Spamalot."
The C$15 million ($13 million) festival is the creation of two magnates from
the local media scene: David Pecault of the Boston Consulting Group and Tony
Gagliano from St. Joseph Communications. They first conceived of Luminato in
2003, when the city was at a low point due to the SARS epidemic.
The recent explosion of local cultural architectural activity involving the
Art Gallery of Ontario, the Four Seasons Center for the Performing Arts and
the revitalized Royal Ontario Museum (with a gala reopening that is scheduled
to coincide with Luminato) provided a focal point for the event.
"The city is the canvas," said Pecault. "And (Luminato) is the paint."
Fest organizers tapped Janice Price to be CEO, a veteran of the culture wars
at the Stratford Festival, Lincoln Center and, most recently, Philadelphia's
Kimmel Center, from which she ankled to take the Toronto gig.
"I'm positive we're going to be able to program something that will be of
interest to everyone," Price says.
Given the success of "Spamalot" on Broadway, the most high-profile of the 90
events scheduled for Luminato is arguably the world preem of Idle's
"Messiah," a new comic oratorio loosely based on the 1979 Python film "Life of Brian."
Another item with marquee recognition is the pairing of composer Phillip
Glass with Canadian icon Leonard Cohen to create a piece called "Book of
Longing."
The famed Danza Cuba company of Havana has been adopted by Toronto's Mirvish
Prods. The company is working closely with the troupe to create "Vida!,"
which will premiere during Luminato.
Filmmaker Atom Egoyan will join with Turkish artist Kutlug Ataman for an
exhibition called "Auroras/Testimony."
Large-scale celebrations include a Mardi Gras-type affair called
"Carnivalissima!"; an all-star opera gala titled "Luna"; the Muhtadi Intl.
Drumming
Festival; and the Spiegeltent, a 1920s cabaret to house everything from showgirls
to acrobats.
Another large outdoor installation is "Summer of Love," an attempt to
re-create the atmosphere of Toronto's Yorkville during 1967, when Joni Mitchell and
other music stars made it the hip heart of the East Coast scene.
Most of Luminato's events will be free, with Price and her cohorts angling
for corporate and government donations to pick up the slack. So far, private
donors have contributed $3 million and the province of Ontario is in for $2
million.
Price addressed one other concern when she firmly stated: "This is absolutely
not a one-time-only event. We intend to be around for many years."
Read the full article at:
_http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117959692.h tml_
(http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117959692. html)
Like this article? Variety.com has over 150,000 articles, 40,000 reviews and
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© 2007 Reed Business Information
'Messiah' lights Luminato launch
Idle's tuner at center of fest lineup.
Filmmaker Atom Egoyan will join with Turkish artist Kutlug Ataman for an
exhibition called "Auroras/Testimony."
By _RICHARD OUZOUNIAN_
(http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layou t=3Dbio&peopleID=3D1932)
TORONTO -- A new arts festival in Toronto has unveiled its lineup, and
Pythonite Eric Idle is front and center.
Luminato, which runs June 1-10, offers eclectic entries in an inaugural
outing that will include "Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy)," an oratorio
adaptation from the man behind "Monty Python's Spamalot."
The C$15 million ($13 million) festival is the creation of two magnates from
the local media scene: David Pecault of the Boston Consulting Group and Tony
Gagliano from St. Joseph Communications. They first conceived of Luminato in
2003, when the city was at a low point due to the SARS epidemic.
The recent explosion of local cultural architectural activity involving the
Art Gallery of Ontario, the Four Seasons Center for the Performing Arts and
the revitalized Royal Ontario Museum (with a gala reopening that is scheduled
to coincide with Luminato) provided a focal point for the event.
"The city is the canvas," said Pecault. "And (Luminato) is the paint."
Fest organizers tapped Janice Price to be CEO, a veteran of the culture wars
at the Stratford Festival, Lincoln Center and, most recently, Philadelphia's
Kimmel Center, from which she ankled to take the Toronto gig.
"I'm positive we're going to be able to program something that will be of
interest to everyone," Price says.
Given the success of "Spamalot" on Broadway, the most high-profile of the 90
events scheduled for Luminato is arguably the world preem of Idle's
"Messiah," a new comic oratorio loosely based on the 1979 Python film "Life of Brian."
Another item with marquee recognition is the pairing of composer Phillip
Glass with Canadian icon Leonard Cohen to create a piece called "Book of
Longing."
The famed Danza Cuba company of Havana has been adopted by Toronto's Mirvish
Prods. The company is working closely with the troupe to create "Vida!,"
which will premiere during Luminato.
Filmmaker Atom Egoyan will join with Turkish artist Kutlug Ataman for an
exhibition called "Auroras/Testimony."
Large-scale celebrations include a Mardi Gras-type affair called
"Carnivalissima!"; an all-star opera gala titled "Luna"; the Muhtadi Intl.
Drumming
Festival; and the Spiegeltent, a 1920s cabaret to house everything from showgirls
to acrobats.
Another large outdoor installation is "Summer of Love," an attempt to
re-create the atmosphere of Toronto's Yorkville during 1967, when Joni Mitchell and
other music stars made it the hip heart of the East Coast scene.
Most of Luminato's events will be free, with Price and her cohorts angling
for corporate and government donations to pick up the slack. So far, private
donors have contributed $3 million and the province of Ontario is in for $2
million.
Price addressed one other concern when she firmly stated: "This is absolutely
not a one-time-only event. We intend to be around for many years."
Read the full article at:
_http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117959692.h tml_
(http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117959692. html)
Like this article? Variety.com has over 150,000 articles, 40,000 reviews and
10,000 pages of charts. Subscribe today!
_http://www.variety.com/emailfriend_ (http://www.variety.com/emailfriend)
or call (866) MY-VARIETY.
Can't commit? Sign up for a free trial!
_http://www.variety.com/emailfriend_ (http://www.variety.com/emailfriend)
© 2007 Reed Business Information