Comments on: Cultural elites don't exist, study finds – Continued…

By: Adrien

Adrien — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 04:14:17 +0000

It did the last time I saw it. All the ramping. But it’s probably revived by now. This might turn into one of those musical hairsplitting type conversations.
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Dude, The Pixies are a post-punk garage band with an indy twist.
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No Dude you’re nuts they’re obviously a post-garage indy band with a punk twist.
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You’re both nuts. They’re a twisted indie band with post-punk garage influences.

By: Mark

Mark — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 02:25:36 +0000

I’ll have to watch the dvd again, Adrien, because I’m not sure I’d agree that it’s dated. But I’ll keep an open mind. But it seems to me the transposition of Shakespeare to a contemporary setting is actually a characteristic of modernism in the performance history of the plays.

By: Adrien

Adrien — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 02:16:49 +0000

Mark – Why postmodern?
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Various things, the transposition of 16/17th century into a modern cotext stuff like Post Haste as Fed Ex. The video clip aspects like when Mercution does his ‘Young Hearts Be Free’ thing. Postmodern is a word so stretched as to be meaningless. Let’s just say it was contemporary. In fact because its so contemporary it’s actually dated quite rapidly.
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John – it was Upnapishtim. The Sumerian Noah. The bit I like the most is that the gods don’t cause the flood that almost wipes humanity because we’re wicked. Rather it’s ’cause we’re making to much noise. The humanist angle was a piss-take.

By: John Greenfield

John Greenfield — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 23:07:59 +0000

Adrien

I haven’t read it for a while. When we studied it, the tutor asked for a quick summary, I said “humanity’s first gay buddy flick.” Shocked silence from the class!

From memory, the gods are all very active and present in Enkidu and Gilgamesh’s journey. Don’t the gods even kill Enkidu, and Gilgamesh turns for solace to some dudes who the gods made immortal (Utnapishti???). And doesn’t Gilgamesh ultimately learn that he is not equal to the gods and it is foolish to disobey their wisdom? And then all that stuff about civilisation versus nature?

Also, I would reject the “humanist” label unless we had evidence that the Babylon of 3,000 BCE was a crucible of humanist intellection as was fifth century BCE Greece (or Ionia at least)? Anyways, without the text nearby I am all out of Uruk!

By: Mark

Mark — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 13:01:28 +0000

Baz Lurhmann’s Romeo + Juliet was very postmodern.

Why postmodern?

I thought the over the top Catholic imagery actually was far more baroque in feel, but I don’t think it was used in a pomo sense.

Bloody brilliant use of music too.

By: Adrien

Adrien — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 08:37:50 +0000

Well it was joke about Gilgamesh. But it’s still pretty good. Apparently Neil Gaiman wants to adapt it. I’ve always loved the following:

I have been to the House of Dust
I saw the Kings of the Earth there
Their crowns put away
Forever.

By: John Greenfield

John Greenfield — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 04:44:12 +0000

Adrien

You could well be right on Gilgamesh, but I’d need a bit more persuading.;) On modern translations, I agree with you 100%. As Oscar Wilde said about there being no moral or immoral books, only well-written and badly-written ones, so too with adaptations of old art works.

And for the record, I loved Clueless

By: Adrien

Adrien — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 04:26:15 +0000

John G – I argue that Antigone is the first humanist work of art.

The first humanist work of art is The Epic of Gilgamesh
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There’s nothing wrong per se with setting up Shakespeare with house music. It’s called art. Orthodoxy and art are bitter enemies. The only question is: does it work? The only responsibility an artist has is to make good art. That’s it.
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Baz Lurhmann’s Romeo + Juliet was very postmodern. It also probably switched a generation onto Shakespeare. And Horlld Perreneaux was brilliant as Mercutio.

By: FDB

FDB — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 03:28:22 +0000

Pornographic and unAmerican in the same sentence. You jolly jackanapes Adrien.

By: John Greenfield

John Greenfield — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 02:55:20 +0000

Nabakov

The Greek tragedies have been tarted up to suit this or that ideological/political/aesthetic agenda for hundreds of years. In the article I am trying to get published on Orientalism in fifth century Greece, there is a whole section (which will probably be edited out) on productions of The Persians within the former Soviet bloc, during the first Gulf War, and a few other instances.

Many moons ago, I saw a Richard Wherrett production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Sydney Wharf. He set the whole thing at a dance party, complete with house music, trannies, eckies, the whole nine yards.

This is what the “Theatre Studies” set does 24/7. Luvvies that they are.