Ladies and Gentlemen: the Australian Open just got a little more interesting. Perhaps things are done a little differently in the land down under. Or perhaps they're just a little less stiff. How so? There's a burlesque show as part of the Australian Open's official entertainment that features amongst other things obscenity and simulated-masturbation. In other words...awesome?Well, perhaps not so awesome. As if that wasn't enough, there's more. The New York-based show Absinthe is not only for those 18+, but also those who are less tolerant.
The show has featured racial slurs - including anti-German, anti-Asian and anti-black references – as well as references to gay bashings.And as always, it's always fun until enough people complain. Tennis Australia CEO Steve Wood didn't have a problem with it until Sunday. Bit here's what he had to say first.
In an announcement posted on the Australian Open website on Saturday, Mr Wood recommended the show as “a great late-night option after a day at the tennis. It is a bit of an edgy show, a bit of a dare, a bit of a risk, we are trying to innovate and we are looking to find ways to entertain customers who have never been to the tennis. As well as being sheer good fun, the combination of athleticism and artistry makes Absinthe a great late-night option."Oops. But Sunday Wood was singing a different tune, saying that he'd asking those behind the show to make things a little more PC. “We have got off to an awkward start,’’ he said.
Indeed. What's art to someone is another person's rubbish - and that's what makes art interesting. But it probably doesn't have a place at an event like the Australian Open. That being said, don't be surprised if the tournament has a lot more buzz than before. And in the end that's what it's all about.
Original Story:
http://lioninoil.blogspot.com/2009/01...
