HubArts.com

EarthFest and other musical notes

The 13th Annual WBOS EarthFest at the Hatch Shell is set for May 27. No word on acts yet; the lineup will be announced around April 10. ... Concert announcements last night included Aqualung at the Somerville May 2, Pearl Jam with My Morning Jacket at the Garden May 24, and Andrea Bocelli at the Tweeter June 19. Details on tix are here. ... Aerosmith's Steven Tyler is scheduled for surgery, the AP reports, forcing the band to cancel the rest of its current tour. No word on what the deal is, although he's been having throat troubles lately, so a guess would involve the word "nodes." Maybe the Inside Track will tell us tomorrow.

LATE ADD: The Casino Ballroom in Hampton Beach just announced that the Black Crowes will play two nights at the venue, May 26-27, i.e. Memorial Day weekend. Could be festive. The venue confirms these are full-band concerts, although the Brothers Robinson have been on an acoustic tour over the last couple of months. Tix, $36, go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. at the box office, 603-929-4100 or www.ticketmaster.com.

MFA vs. Italy: All in for art?

If you missed it this morning, here's Geoff Edgers' latest on the "high-stakes poker game" between Italian authorities and the MFA. And if you think they're just kidding around over there, read this chiller about an American author who ran afoul of an Italian judge. Malcolm Rogers may want to think about sending a surrogate to Italy after all.

MFA chief plans negotiation in Italy

Museum of Fine Arts Director Malcolm Rogers is a smart guy. If he's got to work something out with the Italian government, then darn it, he's just going to have to visit Rome in the spring. Geoff Edgers reports in the Globe today that Rogers and other museum officials will travel to Italy in late April to try to reach agreement over works in the MFA collection that Italian officials think were looted from that country. The Met in New York recently sent back some allegedly looted works in exchange for long-term loans of other valuables, and Edgers says a similar deal might be in the works for the MFA. All I know is, if there's an editor out there who needs someone to cover the trip for them, I am so available.

The morning papers, in a rush

Upbeat James Levine health update here. ... Upbeat news for a Berklee singer here. ... Vaguely depressing concert news also here (second item). Ticket details here, if you must.

Boston Ballet announces its season

The season opens Oct. 19. No time for annotation right now, but here's the press release:

Boston Ballet’s 2006-2007 season was announced today by Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen, who will mark his fifth anniversary with the Company this fall.

Boston Ballet will present three full-length productions: the Company premiere of George Balanchine’s delightful A Midsummer Night’s Dream and revivals of two audience favorites – Rudolf Nureyev’s staging of Don Quixote and Maina Gielgud’s production of Giselle. An all-Balanchine evening features Ballo della Regina, the company premiere of the haunting La Valse, and one of the twentieth century’s masterworks, The Four Temperaments. A second mixed bill, New Visions, showcases ballets from the twenty-first century: a world premiere by Resident Choreographer Jorma Elo, the company premiere of Christopher Wheeldon’s thrilling Polyphonia, and the revival of Val Caniparoli’s much-lauded Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion. And Mikko Nissinen’s production of The Nutcracker will brighten the holiday season.

The upcoming season was designed as a celebration of Boston Ballet’s wonderful dancers,” said Nissinen. “I feel that Rudolf Nureyev’s Don Quixote is the best version of this ballet being performed today. Maina Gielgud’s Giselle is an incredibly satisfying theatrical production, in which dancing, acting and drama all meld seamlessly to breathtaking effect. Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is one of the loveliest story ballets of the past 50 years and includes many major roles, which is rare for a full-length ballet. All three of these ballets are superb showcases for the Company. Our Balanchine repertory evening is truly special: Ballo della Regina is a fun, bravura piece; La Valse is romantic and mysterious, and The Four Temperaments is one of the finest pieces of neo-classicism ever choreographed. This ballet is about to turn 60 and is as contemporary as any work of recent vintage. New Visions features ballets by three choreographers whose work I admire and who are all making their mark on the international dance scene.”

All performances are held at the Wang Theatre, with the exception of The Nutcracker, which returns to the Opera House for the second consecutive year.

Another headache for MFA?

Dealing with Italy's claims of looted artifacts is one thing. But now the Museum of Fine Arts may be embroiled in another nasty scrap over artifacts in its collection. The Chicago Tribune reports today on claims filed by a lawyer from Rhode Island; he argues that since Hamas is a terrorist organization and partially financed by Iran, then Iranian property in American museums should be conficated to compensate the victims of Palestinian terror attacks. And the MFA is on his list.

Levine out for three months

James Levine will miss at least three months of conducting after tests revealed he tore his rotator cuff in that recent fall from the Symphony Hall stage. But it's his other musical home, the Metropolitan Opera, that will bear the brunt of his absence, since he was almost at the end of the BSO season when he fell. Some editions of the Globe carried  this wire story. Levine says he hopes to be back at the baton in time for the
July 7 Tanglewood opener.

Full plate of the day

Press release from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum:
Boston, March 10, 2006 – The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is pleased to officially announce the appointment of Anthony Amore as its new Director of Security. Amore will be responsible for the security and protection of the museum and coordinating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to recover the 13 works of art stolen from the museum on March 18, 1990.

 Amore brings to the high-profile Director of Security position over fourteen years of national security, law, intelligence, and crisis management experience with federal government agencies: the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Transportation Security Administration (TSA); and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)’s Security Division. At the FAA, Amore was instrumental in the reorganization and regionalization of national security efforts post-September 11^th and was the agency’s lead agent responding to the attempted terrorist attack by Richard Reid, the so-called “Shoe Bomber” in December 2001. At the TSA, Amore was nominated by his superiors for a Service to America Medal in 2002 and 2003.

ICA atop the agenda

The big arts story this morning is all about the ICA and its move to a striking new home on the waterfront in September. The Times explains to its readers around the world that this isn't just a new building, but a new approach - the ICA will only now become a collecting institution. And the Globe's front page tells us about the first pieces the ICA has acquired. ...  In other arts news, the Mass. Cultural Council gave out $1.35 million in grants yesterday.

Howie in his sights?

As the festivities for Bulger-related books by Howie Carr and Kevin Weeks ramp up, Weeks hits "60 Minutes" on CBS  Sunday and tells Ed Bradley that he once had Howie in his sights - literally. Weeks claims he was waiting in the cemetery across from Howie's house one morning with a rifle, but abstained from pulling the trigger because Howie's young daughter was with him. Howie notes that it wouldn't have stopped Whitey. ... UPDATE: In this morning's paper, Howie basically says Weeks is making it up. But you have to pay up to read him online.