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DANCE
ABT’s Season At Met Opera House Will Be Cut By Three Weeks
One consequence of the Metropolitan Opera's recently-announced changes to its season schedule — Sunday performances, going dark in February, adding weeks in May and June — is that the available time for American Ballet Theatre's spring season there is being reduced from eight weeks to five. Marina Harss explains why the move might just make sense to the company, and she offers a suggestion for where they might go instead. … [Read More...]
Grappling With Balanchine’s Treatment Of Women
"The fact is, Balanchine had much more than a “roving eye” and his behavior can no longer be ignored or rationalized. His toxic relationships with women are one of many reasons that NYCB finds itself in the position it is today, struggling to understand how bad behavior was allowed to flourish for so long, both at the highest levels of leadership and in the lower ranks as well. At this moment, coming to terms with this unflattering side of the Balanchine legacy is arguably more important than preserving his choreography for future generations. Without an honest reckoning about its past, NYCB will never truly be able to move forward." … [Read More...]
Journalist/Guinea Pig Tries Auditioning For Alvin Ailey Dance Company (Uh-Oh)
Madison Mills: "What does it take to make it as a dancer in New York? I have no idea. I've never done ballet, I prefer jazz hands to leaps, and I'm more uncoordinated than most. Regardless, I decided to find out. So I auditioned for Alvin Ailey, one of the most prestigious dance companies in New York. It wasn't pretty." (video) … [Read More...]
How Can Small-City Ballet Companies Develop Big Reputations? Here Are Answers From Three Who Did It
"Small- to medium-sized companies based in cities outside dance meccas ... are often written off as 'regional,' or somehow lesser than their big city counterparts. But in recent decades, a few have defied such categorization as they've gained traction on the national and international scene. So how does a company build an international profile without losing connection to its hometown? We asked the directors of Tulsa Ballet, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet and Sarasota Ballet to share their strategies." … [Read More...]
‘Mr. Balanchine’s Stage Is Now Filled With Rot’, Writes Former New York City Ballet Dancer In New York Times Op-Ed
Toni Bentley: "The company has now formally hit its nadir after 35 years under the direction of Peter Martins, who succeeded Mr. Balanchine. As a lead dancer for Mr. Balanchine, Mr. Martins embodied a singular purity that made him one of the great male dancers of the 20th century. But the company, under his guidance, is now proffering vulgarity, narcissism and amorality ... [and] this descent into moral vacuity has been in the works for decades." … [Read More...]
IDEAS
Horror Is Having A Moment In The Arts
Our present era is one in which the heart of culture is blowing hard upon a coal of fear, and the fascination is everywhere. By popular consent, horror has been experiencing what critics feel obliged to label a ‘golden age’. In terms of ticket sales, 2017 was the biggest year in the history of horror cinema, and in 2018, Hereditary and A Quiet Place have been record-breaking successes. … [Read More...]
Reconciling A Need For History With The Necessity For Contemporary Skills
Fact-checkers know that in a digital medium, the web is a web. It’s not just a metaphor. You understand a particular node by its relationship in a web. So the smartest thing to do is to consult the web to understand any particular node. That is very different from reading Thucydides, where you look at internal criticism and consistency because there really isn’t a documentary record beyond Thucydides. … [Read More...]
On Cultivating The Inner Voice That Defines You
Do people in adulthood experience inner speech in the same way as children – or even as each other? Do most of us even have an inner voice – an internal commentator narrating our lives and experiences from one moment to the next? … [Read More...]
Charting A History Of How Creativity Works
When younger generations emerge to challenge the bygone revolutions of their forebears, it’s said to be in the service of a grand teleological arc, an earnest desire to do things better. But this has always struck me as an incomplete picture of how culture works. Sometimes brinksmanship tips toward true disdain, and desires to merely show someone up descend into fantasies of destruction. Can dark, trifling feelings produce uplifting art? … [Read More...]
What’s Coming To A Mall Near You? Memory Rooms
Or even memory towns. The plan is to help those with memory issue - Alzheimer's and other age-related dementia - in "reminiscence therapy." The hope? "Dozens of faux 'memory towns' will sprout around the U.S. in coming years. Amid a retail meltdown, the malls where teenagers used to hit up American Eagle and Orange Julius could morph into escapist domains for the elderly." … [Read More...]
ISSUES
Facing Cuts, Austin Arts Groups Push For Revamp Of City’s Funding Process
"Local arts groups facing dramatic cuts in their funding levels from the city could get some relief this budget year, and possibly an earlier heads-up in future budget years if their funding allocations appear headed for a decrease. ... The cuts were brought about by a combination of more than 100 new applicants for funding, increased administrative costs and lack of reserves that are typically rolled over from the previous budget year." … [Read More...]
Rio’s Police Department Gets An Artist-In-Residence
"I was very apprehensive and came with a stereotypical image of the police," says Tatiana Altberg. But, as she has done workshops with the staffers in her precinct, "I've tried to put myself in their shoes. As I listen to their side of the problems and issues facing them, I've realised that it is very hard to be a police officer in Rio de Janeiro." … [Read More...]
Academia’s Missing Republican Faculty
Democrats dominate most fields. In religion, Mitchell Langbert’s survey found that the ratio of Democrats to Republicans is 70 to 1. In music, it is 33 to 1. In biology, it is 21 to 1. In philosophy, history and psychology, it is 17 to 1. In political science, it is 8 to 1. The gap is narrower in science and engineering. In physics, economics and mathematics, the ratio is about 6 to 1. In chemistry, it is 5 to 1, and in engineering, it is just 1.6 to 1. Still, Lambert found no field in which Republicans are more numerous than Democrats. … [Read More...]
City Of Calgary Weighs Olympic Bid Versus Funding Arts
"I guess the question that I have is we have so many fundamental organizations that provide incredible quality of life for Calgary and we're talking about cutting them and at the same time we're talking about the Olympics. And I'm really struggling to rationalize this austerity budget or the Olympics." … [Read More...]
Small Arts Groups Are Thriving In Salt Lake, And Local Gov’t Funding For Them May Change
"[Salt Lake County's] Zoo, Arts and Parks (ZAP) program will fund more groups than ever this year with $2.2 million split among 183 organizations ... [Program director Kristen] Darrington said the growing applicant pool for Tier II, up from 156 in 2016 and 171 last year, is a 'really good problem to have.' It reflects the increased sophistication of small arts programs and demand for cultural programming across the county." … [Read More...]
MEDIA
20 Classic Movies And The Women Behind Them…
"Women have been on the cinematic front lines from the start. While men took most of the credit for building the movie industry, women — on camera and off, in the executives suites and far from Hollywood — were busily, thrillingly, building it, too. That's the reason for our list of Movie Women You Should Know, which is not a canon or a pantheon but a celebration and an invitation to further discovery. Here are some of the art's other pioneers — its independents and entrepreneurs, auteurs and artisans." … [Read More...]
In Troubled Iran, Audiences Are Packing Movie Theatres, Looking For Comic Relief…
"Iranians are flocking to the cinema in record numbers, attracted by relatively affordable ticket prices and a slew of mood-lifting new comedies." One director compares the current Iranian movie boom to the screwball comedies popular in the U.S during the Great Depression: "The reason why people are flocking to watch comedies is because they're so depressed." … [Read More...]
Why Awards Shows (Like The Emmys) Should Be Political…
It’s easy to understand why awards shows would rather praise the art of making entertainment than risk alienating viewers who are tired of reality. Hollywood is an escapism factory at its core. But the impulse to look away from the ugly parts, to conveniently ignore certain elements and focus instead on the glamour and the ratings (ratings being inextricably associated with money), is what allowed Cosby and Weinstein and so many others to get away with so egregiously abusing their power for so long. … [Read More...]
Head Of The BBC Says The Broadcaster Faces An Existential Crisis…
BBC chief Tony Hall warned Tuesday that repeated cost-cutting and the growing might of global giants such as Netflix and Amazon were endangering the world’s most prestigious public broadcaster, saying it was doubtful that “what we currently do is sustainable with the resources we have.” … [Read More...]
‘Green Book’ Takes Top Prize At Toronto Int’l Film Festival…
"Peter Farrelly's Green Book, starring Viggo Mortensen and Mahershala Ali, has joined the search for the next Oscar frontrunner out of the Toronto International Film Festival after picking up the top People's Choice honor on Sunday. ... The first runner-up for the top audience prize was Barry Jenkins' If Beale Street Could Talk; the second runner-up was Alfonso Cuarón's Roma." … [Read More...]
MUSIC
Watching Jaap Van Zweden Get Started At The New York Philharmonic
Reporter Michael Cooper and photographer Nina Westervelt follow the Phil's new music director through his first week on the job — unpacking his office, meeting with CEO Deborah Borda, strategizing with his publicist, taking selfies with passersby who recognize him from the ads around town, and (of course), rehearsing for the opening night concert. … [Read More...]
London’s Royal Opera House Finished Its Major Renovation Without Missing A Single Rehearsal Or Performance
The venue's CEO, Alex Beard, describes the $66 million project as "a bit like having open-heart surgery while going for a run." The architect said that "We had meetings every day where we'd work out the little windows of time we could make noise." Alex Marshall reports on the results, including a much larger foyer, a cafe, more ladies' loos, and a complete upgrade of the ROH's 406-seat Linbury Theatre. … [Read More...]
US Senate Passes “Music Modernization Act”
ASCAP CEO Elizabeth Matthews said: “Today’s unanimous passage of the Music Modernization Act in the Senate represents a Herculean industry-wide effort to promote and celebrate songwriters and ensure their right to a sustainable livelihood. We applaud Senators Hatch, Alexander, Grassley, Feinstein, Whitehouse, Coons and the entire Senate for recognizing the value music has in both society and our hearts.” … [Read More...]
After Mysterious Backstage Episode, Former Florida Grand Opera Boss Withdraws From New San Diego Job And Stays In Miami
The La Jolla Music Society, which presents touring classical and dance artists in metro San Diego, announced in late July that Florida Grand Opera executive director Susan T. Danis would become the Society's CEO and lead its move into a new venue. Seven weeks later, following a "defamatory letter" about Danis that was sent to the La Jolla board, and later retracted, by a former FGO staffer, the vindicated Danis decided nevertheless to give up the job in La Jolla and remain at FGO. George Varga explains (as far as possible). … [Read More...]
Boston Symphony Forced To Improvise Ending Of Its European Tour (Damn Airplanes!)
On Monday, the orchestra was at Charles de Gaulle Airport outside Paris, waiting to depart for that evening's concert in Amsterdam, the final performance of the tour — only to find out that their chartered aircraft had mechanical problems and could not fly. No trains or buses were available for all 110 musicians (not counting staff and patrons) to get to Amsterdam in time: the only option was a 76-seat propeller plane. 76 musicians are not enough to perform Shostakovich's Fourth Symphony, the main work on the program. Zoë Madonna reports on what happened next. … [Read More...]
