Top of the big era

There are dozens of theaters on Broadway Avenue, with the Broadway Theater and the Empire Theater as the center, forming this art district. Generally speaking, every theater can be called a Broadway theater.

When traveling to Manhattan, more than 60% of tourists come here to watch a movie.

Many well-known Hollywood movies are actually adapted from Broadway plays, such as "Chicago" which won numerous Oscars.

This is the highest art form in the acting industry, higher than Hollywood movies.

After all, the threshold for watching a show is too high.

Ordinary people can't afford the tickets, even if they can afford it, they can't understand it.

Let alone ordinary people, how could Zhou Buqi be like this? When he was in China, he had never seen any traditional theater performances.

Look at Broadway again...

It’s really shameful.

I still ridicule the United States every day for its lack of culture and heritage, but others are actively appreciating this advanced art form... Domestic Kun Opera, Peking Opera, Yue Opera, etc. are all dying, and the new ones are all popular. They are shallow amusing groups like Deyun Club and Happy Twist.

Zhou Buqi decided.

He has bought tickets to come to Shakespeare's opera, so he has no reason not to watch his own Kunqu opera!

I won’t say whether I can understand it or not.

People come to the United States to perform, so they always have to support them.

Look at the date, it's three days away.

Zhou Buqi and Ning Lu entered the theater in a low-key manner. The ticket was bought by Don Mattrick, and the seat was better, in the sixth row. It’s neither too far away nor too far forward that requires you to keep raising your neck.

When I saw Mattrick's wife and his daughter, I went to shake hands.

While waiting for the opening, Ning Lu whispered: "Haven't you seen "The Peony Pavilion for Youth"?"

"No..." Zhou Buqi glanced at her, "What are you doing? Have you seen it?"

Ning Lu nodded lightly, "Yeah, I've seen it."

"Real or false?" Zhou Buqi was a little surprised, "Where did you see it?"

Ning Lu chuckled and said, "When I was a sophomore, I was in school."

"School?" Zhou Buqi curled his lips, "It's performed by the college student art troupe? What's the point? It's Kun Opera, and it requires child skills. It's not something that any college student can perform on stage."

Ning Lu said softly: "It's not the art troupe in the university, it's the team of "The Peony Pavilion", the actors on the poster just now."

Zhou Buqi was very surprised, "The original team members?"

Ning Lu said: "Yes, that's them. Not many people listen to Kun Opera, so they just walked into the campus and performed for college students for free to promote it."

Zhou Buqi was not completely stunned, and nodded, "Well, the threshold for appreciating Kun Opera is too high. Peking Opera is all vernacular, and Kun Opera is all classical Chinese. Not to mention college students, not even any university. !”

Ning Lu pursed her lips and smiled, glancing at him.

Zhou Buqi was surprised, "What's wrong?"

Ning Lu joked: "You're right. A drama team works so hard to perform in universities. It certainly can't go to every university. There will be choices, and we won't go to the universities that are worse."

Zhou Buqi was speechless.

He and Ning Lu were basically college students at the same time.

In other words, when "Youth Version of Peony Pavilion" entered the university campus to perform, it happened to be the period when Zhou Buqi was studying in university.

But he had never heard of it.

That can only explain one problem. People don't like Beike at all, and they feel that going there is a waste of time... Those college students in Beike may not be able to understand it.

Zhou Buqi explained: "My place is a university of science and engineering, and yours is a university of liberal arts. There is already a distinction, so why is it strange? You can check it later and see what is going on with this team..."The Peony Pavilion" I do know that it is the most famous piece in Kunqu Opera and comes from the playwright Tang Xianzu of the Ming Dynasty."

Ning Lu said softly: "Tang Xianzu and Shakespeare were from the same era. One was from the East and the other was from the West. They are equally famous in the theater world. Their greatest work is The Peony Pavilion."

Zhou Buqi asked: "Then why is it "Youth Version of The Peony Pavilion"?"

Ning Lu had seen this scene live and of course knew what was going on, "Actors, the actors used here are all young and beautiful actors, very youthful. Well, this is originally a story about a young man and woman falling in love. Traditional "The Peony Pavilion" is performed by old artists, and they are all male. It is difficult to be attractive in appearance when you are older."

Zhou Buqi agreed very much, "Well, it should be like this. Traditional things must be adhered to, but we must not be conservative. There is a lot of dross in traditional things. Men are superior to women and women are not allowed to take the stage. How can there be such a reason? There is also class nature. With the Why do old artists cling to their positions? It is a general trend for a new generation to replace old talents."

Ning Lu kept it in mind.

She has already felt it, and the big boss seems to be very interested in this matter.

Check back carefully.

As a liberal arts student, Ning Lu also has a certain admiration for art. When she watched "The Peony Pavilion for Youth" live in the university auditorium, she still remembers that scene to this day.

She and many of the surrounding students shed tears.

It's not because of the story that moved me.

Rather, I was infected by the powerful artistic tension of Kun Opera, as if my soul had been baptized.

…

The next day, Zhou Buqi made an appointment with Carl Icahn.

Went to his studio in the business district of Manhattan.

The design of the office is really artistic.

There is a famous European painting from the 19th century on the wall. The protagonist in the painting is Napoleon riding a horse, invincible on the battlefield. This is probably Carl Icahn's self-description, thinking that he can be like Napoleon in business wars, always able to defeat his opponents in one fell swoop.

However, he was dressed simply.

Wearing casual cotton pants and boat shoes, with a pair of reading glasses wrapped around his neck, and his white hair hanging down when he lowered his head, he looked like a research scientist from Silicon Valley.

But if you really believe it, you will be fooled.

The old guy in front of me is definitely full of fighting spirit!

At the front, things about Yahoo have not yet been settled; behind, things about PayPal are still on the schedule.

He has already made a new move, launching a hostile takeover of Lionsgate Pictures, a well-known Hollywood film company. This man is notorious for scaring Lionsgate to death as soon as he made a move, and then immediately responded to launch the "Poison Pill Plan".

That's not all.

Just a few days ago, Netflix CEO Hastings suddenly called Zhou Buqi and asked in a serious tone whether Netflix needed to launch a poison pill plan!

Zhou Buqi was stunned, "Poison pill plan? Why?"

Hastings said solemnly: "Carl Icahn has taken action. He just announced yesterday that his stock holdings have reached the critical point of 5%. Today he made a request, saying that he wanted to join Netflix board of directors because he has already obtained 10% of Netflix’s shares.”

"So fast……"

Zhou Buqi was also really surprised.

Hastings said: "He didn't buy it from the secondary market, he bought it from several important investors... He has a wide network of contacts in this field, and big capital institutions respect him. He has already It is proposed to hold a shareholders’ meeting and elect him to the board of directors.”

Zhou Buqi was very cautious about this.

Although Netflix is ​​a godson, he is very capable and can make money!

You must protect this godson.

Carl Icahn is an old bastard, and no serious company would want a Wall Street jackal like this on its board.

That means risk and uncertainty!

Zhou Buqi told Hastings, "Don't worry, I'm going to New York to meet him."

That's why this trip to New York came about.

After arriving in New York, he got another piece of news that shocked Hollywood.

Carl Icahn launches hostile takeover bid for Lionsgate Films.

Prior to this, he was already the second largest shareholder of Lionsgate Pictures. He wanted to acquire further shares, become the largest shareholder, and then become the chairman and CEO of Lionsgate Pictures, gaining power over the company.

It's too obvious what the purpose is.

Carl Icahn's most typical investment style is to make acquisitions first, then spin them off along the way, sell high-quality assets at high prices, make a lot of money, and then cash out and leave.

As for whether this company will live or die in the future, what does it have to do with him?

This must be the reason why he went to take over Lionsgate Pictures in a hostile manner this time!

It probably has something to do with Netflix as well.

Carl Icahn wants to get control of Lionsgate Pictures, and then sell all the copyrights of Lionsgate Pictures’ film and television copyright library, so that he can not only make a lot of money, but also curry favor with Netflix. .

Then, he cashed out and left Lionsgate Pictures, and then smoothly entered the decision-making level of Netflix.

For Zhou Buqi, he has no control over whether Lionsgate Pictures is dead or alive.

But no matter what, Carl Icahn cannot be placed on Netflix's board of directors.

Zhou Buqi was not in a hurry. He first chose to start with Yahoo and said with a smile: "I heard that the new CEO of Yahoo has some small problems?"

Carl Icahn looked at him with a half-smile, "Who said that?"

Zhou Buqi said: "He lost the support of the board of directors."

Carl Icahn sighed, "Thompson is a capable person. He is better than the previous Yahoo CEOs. In the past few months, he has sorted out Yahoo's mess without the help of external funds. It even gave a very nice financial report.”

This is for sure.

The current CEO of Yahoo is named Scott Thompson, who was previously the CEO of PayPal. As a subsidiary of eBay, PayPal did not fall behind in the mobile era thanks to this Thompson.

Unfortunately.

In the face of larger strategic arrangements, one person's excellence or lack thereof cannot save the overall situation.

At best, he can only be a talented outcast.

Next, Carl Icahn said frankly: "Yahoo's board of directors must continue to be reorganized. Yang Zhiyuan has left, and his followers must also leave. They must bear the responsibility for appointing Scott Thompson."

Zhou Buqi asked: "What happened to Thompson? Wasn't the financial report he gave excellent?"

Carl Icahn glanced at him and curled his lips, "I have been following him for several years! I even sent a private detective to check on him!"

Zhou Buqi sighed secretly.

What the hell!

What a jackal, tiger, and leopard!

It's really crazy for a business war to go to such an extent.

Carl Icahn said calmly: "The plan has been made, and the results will definitely be available within two or three months. Scott Thompson's falsification of academic qualifications has caused a huge scandal, and he must take the blame and resign. The director behind him We must also bear relevant responsibilities and leave with him."