*The Austrian government has appointed Dominique Meyer, 51, director of the Theatre des Champs-Elysees in Paris, to head the Vienna State Opera starting in 2010. Succeeding Seiji Ozawa as music director there will be Franz Welser-Most, 46, an Austrian who holds the same position with the Cleveland Orchestra and the Zurich Opera. Meyer will replace Ioan Holender, director of the venerable Vienna opera since 1992.
*The new Broadway musical version of “Shrek” is holding auditions in Chicago on Monday at the Lou Conte Dance Studio, 1147 W. Jackson Blvd. “Shrek” is slated to open on Broadway in 2008. For details, visit www.Iwanttobeshrek.com.
*A ball hit by Rob Lowe during a celebrity golf game hit the Iowa state bird in midflight Wednesday. The 43-year-old actor was playing in a charity tournament in West Des Moines when his ball hit a goldfinch, dropping about 50 yards short of the green, The Des Moines Register reported. After looking at the motionless bird, Lowe said: “That’s my birdie.”
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Personals was compiled by Alan Leo from Tribune news services and staff reports.
