You Like Us, You Really Like Us!
I just received my Premier issue of Live Design, and I have to say it looks fantastic! Very nice. Congratulations to the whole Live Design crew for a job very well done.
— Steven Hoffman
When I got back to work after Christmas break, I found in the post the December issue of Live Design. What a magazine! It is vibrant, informative, new, and very well laid-out. I just wanted to congratulate you and everyone else involved in a great launch issue!
Looking forward to receiving the January issue!
— Sabrina Marenghi
Tryka LED
I got the inaugural issue of Live Design today — and you've made quite a huge change! Congratulations. I think it's an excellent magazine. I love the size, the style — and more importantly — the content. Bravo!!
I've always said the industry really didn't need any more “paper” magazines, but this one is a consolidation of some very good veteran mags, and I think is a job very well done.
— Marcel Fairbairn
Gear-Source Inc.
Stuff Happens
First off, great magazine. Just received the December issue of Live Design and couldn't be happier. Great format with lots of info. Keep up the good work.
Comment to Zachary Borovay, Re: “A Stranger In A Strange Land” (December 2005, p. 84): I didn't see it listed in the items he purchased for the new computer, but I hope he invests in external storage (an actual stand-alone hard drive or a Gigabyte of memory stick) to back up his show files. Early in my career, I learned to backup files early and often because of static electricity. Now it's the “I don't know, it just happens” syndrome or programs that crash because of lack of RAM. Better safe than sorry.
— Tom Rodeheaver
Brooklyn, NY
Whole Lotta Influence
I hope that you will publish “Under Their Influence” on a regular monthly basis. There are a lot of young people out there that are thirsting for knowledge and history. My suggestions, in no special order, are: Gordon Craig, Adolph Appia, Joe Mielziner, John Kliege, Ed Kook, Stanley R. McCandless, Lee Simonson, Abe Feder, David Belasco, Louis Hartmann (Belasco's electrician) Fred Bentham, Fred Wolff, and Orson Welles. The new magazine looks great. Keep pressing the “Go” button.
— Sonny Sonnenfeld
Las Vegas
Someone Didn't Get The Memo
Just writing in regards to Live Design magazine. The genesis is a little cloudy to me — is this magazine replacing Entertainment Design? If it is, I have to admit that I hate it. Really and truly. There is no mention of sound or sound designers anywhere in the magazine. I also don't believe that I saw any mention of costumes in there either. And there's very little to no mention of live theatre.
Entertainment Design (and the magazines that preceded it) was the only magazine to take a serious interest in sound for the theatre. If it is indeed dead, it is a sad day for us, not only for the loss of the news from around the industry, but in the march towards acceptance in the design community. Somehow projection design is more “legit” already after only 5-10 years of existence than sound design is after 30+ if people take Live Design's lead. It will be an exceptionally sad day if there is a Tony award for projection design before there is one for sound.
— Jeremy Lee
David Johnson's response to Jeremy:
Looks like you may have missed the emails we sent out to subscribers and my letter to the editor in November ED. We merged Entertainment Design and Lighting Dimensions and created a new monthly magazine called Live Design, focusing on lighting, staging, and projection, as a reflection of the convergence of those disciplines.
But we haven't given up on theatre or on theatre sound at all. We're also launching a quarterly supplement called Live Design's Theatre Quarterly (TQ), which will focus solely on theatre for sound, costumes, lighting, and sets. The first issue will be mailed in March with Live Design. In addition, we've launched a bi-weekly e-newsletter called TQ Now, which contains original content on theatre as well. So if anything, we're increasing our coverage of theatre sound, but in a multi-edia format.
And Jeremy Lee's response to David Johnson:
David,
Thanks for the response. I was obviously in the dark about the change in your magazine. I'm glad to hear that sound and theatre were not discarded in the move to Live Design, but given their own outlet. Hopefully TQ can cover some of the ground (pro/B'way/touring) that ED did.
Depends On The Meaning Of “Professional”
I am writing concerning the cover on your December 2005 premier issue of LiveDesign. I and other female professionals have found this cover picture to be highly offensive and vulgar. I would certainly never place this issue on display in our office for other professionals to peruse.
— Cathy L. Wright
JJA
Dallas