Michael Riedel

"A revered and provocative theater observer presents a grand history of the producers, directors, actors, and critics battling for creative and financial control of Broadway"--Front jacket flap.

The Battle for Broadway

Razzle Dazzle

“Fun and gossipy.” —The Wall Street Journal * “A masterful history.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review) * “Engaging.” —Newsweek A “brisk, insightful, and deliciously detailed take” (Kirkus Reviews) on a transformative decade on Broadway, featuring behind-the-scenes accounts of shows such as Rent, Angels in America, Chicago, The Lion King, and The Producers—shows that changed the history of the American theater. The 1990s was a decade of profound change on Broadway. At the dawn of the nineties, the British invasion of Broadway was in full swing, as musical spectacles like Les Miserables, Cats, and The Phantom of the Opera dominated the box office. But Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard soon spelled the end of this era and ushered in a new wave of American musicals, beginning with the ascendance of an unlikely show by a struggling writer who reimagined Puccini’s opera La Bohème as the smash Broadway show Rent. American musical comedy made its grand return, culminating in The Producers, while plays, always an endangered species on Broadway, staged a powerful comeback with Tony Kushner’s Angels in America. A different breed of producers rose up to challenge the grip theater owners had long held on Broadway, and corporations began to see how much money could be made from live theater. And just as Broadway had clawed its way back into the mainstream of American popular culture, the September 11 attacks struck fear into the heart of Americans who thought Times Square might be the next target. But Broadway was back in business just two days later, buoyed by talented theater people intent on bringing New Yorkers together and supporting the economics of an injured city. “Told with all the wit and style readers could wish for” (Booklist) Michael Riedel presents the drama behind every mega-hit or shocking flop. From the bitter feuds to the surprising collaborations, all the intrigue of a revolutionary era in the Theater District is packed into Singular Sensation. Broadway has triumphs and disasters, but the show always goes on.

The Triumph of Broadway

Singular Sensation

Einen einzigen Moment, einen Augenblick. Was bleibt davon über. Wenn wir fassungslos davor stehen und versuchen diesen Moment zu greifen? Sie denken, Momente wären ein Teil vom Glück? Ich denke, Sind der Bruchteil der Bruchteil von Zeit. Glück ist die Zeit den Moment zu begreifen. Nehmen wir uns die Zeit. Begeben Sie sich mit mir gemeinsam auf die Reise in die Unsichtbare Welt der Gedanken. Einer Zeit, in der alles passieren kann. Erkenntnisse des Tages, ein Tag ohne Erkenntnisse und Erfahrungen ist etwas wie Schaum der langsam schwindet. Vorher noch in der Leere hoch auflösend. Allein in dieser Form hier zu schreiben, ist Neuland für mich. Bis jetzt war es eher gedankenschwere Kost a la Unsichtbare Welt der Gedanken. Ich werde in den folgenden Zeilen in Auszügen über Sichtweisen berichten.

Ein Irrweg zwischen Selbstzweifel und Angst

Krisenmodus

Over the past decade, German artist Michael Riedel has incorporated a wide range of media into his practice, including large-scale works on canvas, fabric works, film and video, audio recordings, installations, and events. A central focus of his work is the publishing and production of artist’s books, catalogues, brochures, posters, and cards. In 2000, Riedel and Dennis Loesch launched a collaborative project in an abandoned building in Frankfurt. Using the building’s address—Oskar-von-Miller Strasse 16—as the name for their new space, they created an experimental laboratory where they restaged cultural events held at other locations throughout the city, effectively duplicating them in space and time. Occasionally, these re-presented events—which included book readings, film screenings, art exhibitions, and music concerts—were hosted on the same night as the actual event elsewhere in the city, but mostly, they were presented days or weeks after the original activity took place. According to Riedel, “We presented one concept over and over again. To create a distance to some original that had been done at another place.” With the call of “record, label, playback,” a group of young artists reiterated the language of a city’s cultural offerings, often without a full understanding of what they were reciting, but always with an acute aesthetic interest in the faults of transmission and transference. Oskar is the account of Oskar-von-Miller Strasse 16. The art space became renowned as a gigantic “replication device,” and this book itself is a product of such practices. Scores of audio and visual materials, partly in the form of transcripts from two Conferences of Anecdotes, chronicle its years of activities. Produced by the artist, this book was published to coincide with Riedel’s 2014 exhibition, Laws of Form, at David Zwirner in London.

Michael Riedel: Oskar

Nein, ich bin nicht hier um Ihnen die Zeit zu stehlen. Auch nicht um Ihnen welche zu geben. Ich weiß ja nicht einmal, wie viel Zeit ich noch habe. Ich halte das nicht so genau nach. Man schaut halt was morgen kommt. Jeder Tag sieht irgendwie anders aus. Weiß ich was morgen ist? Zeit sieht jeder in seinem Leben anders. Neue Eindrücke und Erfahrungen, die man ständig anders verarbeitet und neu beurteilen muss. Hierbei kommen Sie ins Spiel, haben Sie Zeit?

Michael Riedel

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