AJ Four Ways: Text Only (by date) | headlines only
DANCE
IDEAS
- ATG, Major Broadway And West End Theatre Owner, Bought By Hollywood Superagent Ari Emanuel
ATG Entertainment (originally Ambassador Theatre Group) owns seven Broadway venues, ten London venues, numerous theatres in Europe, and the discount app TodayTix. Now Emanuel’s company Mari, which owns Frieze art fairs and two large pro tennis tournaments, has agreed to acquire ATG for a rumored $6 billion. – The Hollywood Reporter
- Paramount Boss Threatens To Pull Out Of California Unless State Settles Lawsuit Against Warner Bros. Merger
“David Ellison is eager to reach a swift resolution in the antitrust case filed by 12 states seeking to block the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger. And he’s prepared start moving Paramount out of California as soon as October unless the state’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, agrees to settlement talks.” – Variety
- A Look At 75 Years Of History In Juilliard’s Dance Division’s Archives
“A perusal of the archives shows how rich the Dance Division’s history has been, with a roster of teachers and students that reflects the arc of American dance in the 20th century. And the curriculum, a mix of ballet and modern dance, once seen as eccentric, now is the norm.” – The New York Times
- Matthias Pintscher Appointed Music Director Of Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
The German-born, New York-based composer-conductor, who is also music director of the Kansas City Symphony, succeeds Jamie Martín at the helm of the LACO as of the 2027-28 season. – Los Angeles Times (Yahoo!)
- Canada’s Top Literary Award Broke With Its Sponsor. Now A Foundation Has Come To Its Rescue.
Early last year the Giller Prize broke ties with its longtime sponsor Scotiabank — leaving it without the means to support the C$100,000 award and other programs. Now the foundation which stepped up with C$! million in bridge funding has made a C$4 million donation to keep the Giller going longer-term. – The Canadian Press (MSN)
ISSUES
- Former Exec Accuses Smithsonian’s National Gallery Of “Soft Censorship” Of Symposium
A May 2025 symposium about race issues in the art of the US and Mexico, created and organized by the National Gallery, was abruptly moved offsite and scrubbed from the museum’s website — a decision made, says a former executive, after a visit from Trump’s DOGE. – The New York Times
- Why Are America’s Houses Turning Gray?
Today, almost no one seems to be looking to the hues of jelly beans for inspiration for their home—or car or couch or fridge or practically anything else. Since the late 2000s, essentially colorless colors—think white, beige, gray—have taken over. – The Atlantic
- Trump Arch “Horribly Flawed” Says Cultural Landscape Foundation
“The process for the selection and siting of the Triumphal Arch has been horrifically flawed from the outset. Remarkably, there was no design competition, which is a dangerous and radical decision for what would be the second largest monument in the Monumental Core after the Washington Monument.” – Los Angeles Times
- Uffizi Unveils Its Most Extensive Renovation Plans Ever
Described as one of the Uffizi’s most ambitious projects to date, the nearly $58-million effort will leave virtually every space with new infrastructure or a fresh look. – Smithsonian
- Stolen Picasso Suddenly Turns Up
The Spanish artist’s 1949 etching — “Torero,” or “Bullfighter” — was hanging in the lobby of DeLind Fine Art Appraisals in downtown Milwaukee when it vanished in February 2018. – Washington Post
MEDIA
- A Radio Station That Erroneously Broadcast The Death Of King Charles Is In Some Trouble
Whoops: “Once the staff member who accidentally played the files realised what they had done, they stopped playing them, ‘panicked and left the premises.’” – BBC
- Study: Arts Orgs That Got More COVID Relief Funding Are Doing Better Than Those That Didn’t
From Sacramento and Seattle to New York City and Philadelphia, the study highlights diverging trends across cities — some rebounded from the pandemic and even exceeded their 2019 numbers, while others plummeted. – Hyperallergic
- Seven Smithsonian Museums Closed Due To HVAC Issue
The museums, all on the south side of the National Mall, share one of the General Service Administration’s HVAC plants; the chilled water supply at that facility was disrupted on Thursday, leaving the museums without air conditioning during a heat wave. The buildings will reopen once the issue is resolved. – Washington City Paper
- Do The People Of This Slovakian Village Really Want To Lose UNESCO World Heritage Status?
That’s what all the headlines said, but the people of the well-preserved medieval village of Vlkolínec say it’s not that simple. They want to protect their small, still-living community from the pressures of overtourism, which could easily overwhelm it. – Deutsche Welle
- Dallas’s Perot Museum Of Nature And Science Seems To Be Planning A Big Expansion It Hasn’t Announced
The news comes from a filing the museum made last week with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation; management has also filed with the city of Dallas for a construction permit. Work is expected to start early next year. – The Dallas Morning News (MSN)
MUSIC
- Canada’s Top Literary Award Broke With Its Sponsor. Now A Foundation Has Come To Its Rescue.
Early last year the Giller Prize broke ties with its longtime sponsor Scotiabank — leaving it without the means to support the C$100,000 award and other programs. Now the foundation which stepped up with C$! million in bridge funding has made a C$4 million donation to keep the Giller going longer-term. – The Canadian Press (MSN)
- Judging Books By Their Covers
We can thank the Preraphaelite coterie for this tendency. ” – LitHub
- Companies Using AI To Create Writing Are Missing The Entire Point Of Books
“It speaks about the creative process as though it were something getting in the way of our creativity, slowing us down, rather than being the path that leads us to it. Then again, it’s no surprise that a capitalist venture focuses on the product and speed to market.” – Irish Times
- Millennials Miss Their Childhood Book Program So Much That They’ve Recreated It For Adults
Personal pan pizzas for reading? Yes: “Pizza Hut’s Book It! program is part of the lore of countless childhood readers turned adults. According to Pizza Hut, over 70 million children have participated since the program was founded in 1984, a Reagan-era initiative.” – Slate
- Book Prizes Judges Are Human, And In An Age Of AI, We Should Be Deeply Thankful For That
“Modern prize culture has existed for about 125 years; James F. English, in his excellent book The Economy of Prestige, dates the current craze for literary awards to the Nobel Prize, which debuted in 1901.” – The New York Times
PEOPLE
- ATG, Major Broadway And West End Theatre Owner, Bought By Hollywood Superagent Ari Emanuel
ATG Entertainment (originally Ambassador Theatre Group) owns seven Broadway venues, ten London venues, numerous theatres in Europe, and the discount app TodayTix. Now Emanuel’s company Mari, which owns Frieze art fairs and two large pro tennis tournaments, has agreed to acquire ATG for a rumored $6 billion. – The Hollywood Reporter
- Paramount Boss Threatens To Pull Out Of California Unless State Settles Lawsuit Against Warner Bros. Merger
“David Ellison is eager to reach a swift resolution in the antitrust case filed by 12 states seeking to block the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger. And he’s prepared start moving Paramount out of California as soon as October unless the state’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, agrees to settlement talks.” – Variety
- A Look At 75 Years Of History In Juilliard’s Dance Division’s Archives
“A perusal of the archives shows how rich the Dance Division’s history has been, with a roster of teachers and students that reflects the arc of American dance in the 20th century. And the curriculum, a mix of ballet and modern dance, once seen as eccentric, now is the norm.” – The New York Times
- Matthias Pintscher Appointed Music Director Of Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
The German-born, New York-based composer-conductor, who is also music director of the Kansas City Symphony, succeeds Jamie Martín at the helm of the LACO as of the 2027-28 season. – Los Angeles Times (Yahoo!)
- Canada’s Top Literary Award Broke With Its Sponsor. Now A Foundation Has Come To Its Rescue.
Early last year the Giller Prize broke ties with its longtime sponsor Scotiabank — leaving it without the means to support the C$100,000 award and other programs. Now the foundation which stepped up with C$! million in bridge funding has made a C$4 million donation to keep the Giller going longer-term. – The Canadian Press (MSN)
PEOPLE
- ATG, Major Broadway And West End Theatre Owner, Bought By Hollywood Superagent Ari Emanuel
ATG Entertainment (originally Ambassador Theatre Group) owns seven Broadway venues, ten London venues, numerous theatres in Europe, and the discount app TodayTix. Now Emanuel’s company Mari, which owns Frieze art fairs and two large pro tennis tournaments, has agreed to acquire ATG for a rumored $6 billion. – The Hollywood Reporter
- Paramount Boss Threatens To Pull Out Of California Unless State Settles Lawsuit Against Warner Bros. Merger
“David Ellison is eager to reach a swift resolution in the antitrust case filed by 12 states seeking to block the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger. And he’s prepared start moving Paramount out of California as soon as October unless the state’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, agrees to settlement talks.” – Variety
- A Look At 75 Years Of History In Juilliard’s Dance Division’s Archives
“A perusal of the archives shows how rich the Dance Division’s history has been, with a roster of teachers and students that reflects the arc of American dance in the 20th century. And the curriculum, a mix of ballet and modern dance, once seen as eccentric, now is the norm.” – The New York Times
- Matthias Pintscher Appointed Music Director Of Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
The German-born, New York-based composer-conductor, who is also music director of the Kansas City Symphony, succeeds Jamie Martín at the helm of the LACO as of the 2027-28 season. – Los Angeles Times (Yahoo!)
- Canada’s Top Literary Award Broke With Its Sponsor. Now A Foundation Has Come To Its Rescue.
Early last year the Giller Prize broke ties with its longtime sponsor Scotiabank — leaving it without the means to support the C$100,000 award and other programs. Now the foundation which stepped up with C$! million in bridge funding has made a C$4 million donation to keep the Giller going longer-term. – The Canadian Press (MSN)
THEATRE
VISUAL
- This AI Moment Could Be Clarifying For How We Think About Culture. Or…
“Our contention is that, if we fail to think through and delimit the role of AI in our lives, we risk undermining the intelligibility of our own guiding cultural concepts, and thus initiating a period in our own society of which it may someday be possible to say that “nothing happened.” – The Point
- There’s A Lot Of Sex In This Summer’s Movies
OK, not The Odyssey or Spider-Man, but the other movies. – The Guardian (UK)
- Which Is More Tiring: A Christopher Nolan Movie Or The Discourse About A Christopher Nolan Movie?
“Perhaps you didn’t leave The Odyssey wondering what kind of chief executive Odysseus would be. That’s OK — Forbes has you covered.” – The New York Times
- The Field Museum Is Now Mixing Pokemon And Fossils
And making money hand over fist, er, phalange over … anyway, the exhibit “is drawing huge crowds by hitching its star to the Poke-verse, using fossil Pokemon to teach about hunting and collecting fossils in the real world.” – NPR
- This ‘Chat’ Is Fully Human-Powered, And Now Very Popular
“The experience is just very average — or maybe bad. … It’s just me saying, like, ‘I don’t know, maybe make a sandwich for yourself’ or whatever.” – San Francisco Chronicle