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- The Politics Behind Israel And The Eurovision Song Competition
This previously undisclosed diplomatic push to keep Israel in Eurovision was just one aspect of a drama that unfolded over the past year around the world’s most watched cultural event. – The New York Times
- Opera Production Canceled After A Single Complaint
The Minack Theatre at Porthcurno pulled a planned production of Léo Delibes’s Lakmé after a US-based Hindu campaigner described the opera as “shallow exoticism based on prejudice”. – The Telegraph (MSN)
- Maybe Resilience Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Does?
Part of the appeal is that calling someone resilient in the endurance sense sounds kind. It feels like encouragement rather than judgment. But communicating kindness without taking any responsibility is just a way to make yourself feel more comfortable – that everything will be OK. – Psyche
- Why The Major Hollywood Studios Are Skipping Cannes This Year
“For a major release, paying for travel, accommodations and security for A-list talent … can run into seven figures. At a time when the U.S. entertainment industry is still in a period of contraction, … Cannes is an easily expendable line item.” – The Hollywood Reporter
- Researchers Use AI To Write New Moliere
More than 350 years after his death, the 17th-century dramatist has been revived after scholars at the Sorbonne University in Paris used artificial intelligence to help write an experimental play in his style. – The Guardian
- Inside The Ransomware Attack On Education
Hackers who had previously targeted Google and Ticketmaster had purposely chosen now, when college finals are happening, to threaten Instructure, the company that makes Canvas, that they would leak the personal information of 275 million Canvas users. – The Atlantic
- AI Is Forcing Architecture Firms To Rethink How They Operate
Artificial intelligence has made its way into almost every corner of professional workflows, prompting the architectural industry to rethink how it works. To adapt to this shift, firms are now facing the limits of a model that has changed very little over the past few decades. – ArchDaily
- Two Years After UArts Collapsed, Its Endowment Is Still Tied Up In Court
“Many parties, including colleges that accepted UArts students and a charitable trust that had funded more than half of the endowment, have been vying for the money in court.” – The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
- Study: Participating In The Arts Slows Biological Aging
The findings are the first to show that both participating in arts activities and attending events, such as viewing an exhibition, lead to people staying biologically younger. – The Guardian
- Will AI Make College Unnecessary?
The pressures on higher education seem extraordinary, even to someone like me, who is generally convinced that real change is rare, perhaps especially when it comes to America’s tried-and-tested system for replicating its élites. – The New Yorker
- Report: Humanities Department Chairs Are Pessimistic About The Field’s Future
Humanities chairs—anxious about increasing political interference, declining enrollments and students’ skepticism toward the value of humanities degrees—are largely pessimistic about the future of their departments, according to a new report from the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. – InsideHigherEd
- Critic Rex Reed, 87
“Reed’s reviews, as well as his stylishly written profiles of Hollywood and Broadway stars …, moved beyond the bland and laudatory, offering candid and penetrating portraits of artists and celebrities that stand out in an era where A-listers are (more protected). … His writing often moved beyond the incisive into the offensive.” – Variety
- Theatre Cinemacasts And Livestreaming Don’t Discourage In-Person Attendance: Study
“Indigo’s report (for Britain’s National Theatre) states that ‘there is very little evidence that filmed theatre reduces in-person attendance of theatre overall’ and that 93% of survey respondents who saw at least one filmed theatre production in the cinema or via streaming also attended a performance in person.” – The Guardian
- Chicago Sinfonietta’s “Pause” In Activities Blindsided Some Of Its Musicians
“The approximately 60 instrumentalists had a four-year contract with the orchestra that was due to end on Aug. 31, and they do not know if they will be re-hired. Beyond taking a financial hit, some in the group say they are concerned about the direction of the orchestra.” – WBEZ (Chicago)
- The City Where The Arts Are Funded By Cigarette Taxes
“Cuyahoga County, home to Cleveland, is thought to be the only place in the country where a tax on cigarettes goes to arts organizations. … The innovative model has been so successful, raising money by making cigarettes more expensive, that it threatened its own demise.” – The New York Times
- What Academics Found When They Examined A Guaranteed-Basic-Income-For-Artists Program
“As researchers who study artists, cultural work and public policy, we evaluated this (New York State) program to see whether it achieved its stated goals. Our main finding was simple: Artists did not stop working. Instead, they changed the kind of work they did.” – The Conversation
- Visitors Get A Rare Closeup Look At Ceiling Murals By Klimt
The 10 paintings were done by the young Gustav Klimt and his brother at Vienna’s Burgtheater from 1886-1888. They’re currently getting a cleaning, and while the scaffolding is up, the theater is allowing some visitors to climb up and get a closer view. – AP
- Dudamel Takes The New York Philharmonic Uptown To Play Salsa
As part of the lead-in to his formal assumption of the music director title, the Dude got the Phil together with the Spanish Harlem Orchestra to play both salsa-influenced classical compositions and genuine salsa. The program was a hit, both at Lincoln Center and 100 blocks uptown in Washington Heights. – The New York Times
- Mass250
My introduction of a concert of piano music performed by New England Conservatory students on April 14, 2026 in Jordan Hall, Boston.
This concert is part of two large projects: Mass250 (that’s Massachusetts 250), and America250. Both of these are many-part celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.
The students playing tonight were chosen through a competition. Any piano piece by an American composer could be played. And we had music from the 18th century all the way to the 21st.
We hold these truths to be self-evident: The pieces you will hear are widely diverse, in musical styles, in their differing approaches to beauty and truth. It turned out that many of the chosen pieces represent the history of this school as well. Music by Chadwick, and Price, Lee Hyla, Donald Martino, Schuller, all musicians who studied here, or taught here. Even Mrs. Beach was involved with NEC.
Let’s take a moment to thank the family members who support this concert in honor of Marion Berman. We are very grateful for your long support.
We will be hearing music tonight that represents the U.S. in past decades and centuries. It might be a good omen that can offer us hope for the future. I do not know what music will be written tomorrow. I believe that artists will continue to tell an American story. That the American dream, American ideals, the American promise shall not perish from the earth. And the sounds, the music of the United.States will continue to resonate, to ring out in this room.
Jordan Hall, Boston, April 14, 2026
Donald Martino: Piano Fantasy (1959)
Amy Beach: Valse-Caprice, op. 4 (1889)
Leon Kirchner: Interlude II (2003)
George Walker: Piano Sonata No. 1 (1953)
George Whitefield Chadwick: Les Grenouilles (Humoresque) (ca. 1905)
Lee Hyla: Basic Training (1999)
Gunther Schuller: Sonata-Fantasia (1992)
Florence Price: Clouds (1940)
Samuel Barber: Sonata, op. 26 (1947-49)
- Crumbling buildings, booming balance sheets
Good Morning,
A new GAO report finds 85% of U.S. museums dealing with deferred maintenance, and 77% with at least one structural issue that could put collections at risk (ARTnews). The buildings are failing. So are the businesses around them: LA’s family-run prop houses, florists, and craft shops — the literal hub-and-spoke of Hollywood production — are closing after the post-pandemic slump (Los Angeles Times). A working TV writer puts it more bluntly: the market has structurally reduced the number of jobs, and no amount of talent compensates (New Story).
Meanwhile at the top, the view is sunnier. Warner Music posted a $1.73 billion quarter (Music Business Worldwide) and turned around to announce a multi-year Paramount deal for a pipeline of artist biopics (MBW). A24, now valued at $3.5 billion — more than ten times rival Neon — has a hit restaurant and a hip theatre in NYC to go with its film slate (Hollywood Reporter). And what looks like organic buzz online increasingly isn’t: a new piece on “trend simulation,” the practice of paying people to fake-endorse bands so algorithms inflate them (The Atlantic). The middle is where the cracks show first.
All of our stories below. See you toimorrow.
- Three Wildly Different Accounts On Selling Art
Three recently published books give us some perspective on the selling of art: a long-view history going back to the Middle Ages; a memoir by a successful contemporary maker; and a wistful biography of a relationship between two talented 20th-century artists who struggled to find their place commercially. – The New York Times
- My Year Of Obsessive Listening To Keith Jarrett
By mid-October, I finally had something close to a single aphorism about Jarrett, an inversion of a half-remembered Wordsworth definition of the vocation of a poet. – The Walrus
- LA’s Family Businesses That Built The Film Industry Are Dying
From florists to prop rentals to catering and beyond, production services and craft businesses are the hub and spoke of L.A.’s film and TV industry. But many of these businesses — some of which have been family-operated for generations — are struggling to weather a post-pandemic slump in film activity. – Los Angeles Times
- Report: Museums Have Major Building Issues
Roughly 85 percent of museums across the country are dealing with deferred maintenance or major repair needs. Even more concerning, about 77 percent say they have at least one structural issue that could put their collections at risk. – ARTnews
- Managing Director, Sarasota Opera
Sarasota Opera welcomes applications and nominations for the newly defined position of Managing Director, available in the summer of 2026. The Managing Director will serve as the organization’s senior administrative leader and key partner to General & Artistic Director Richard Russell. The Managing Director will provide financial, operational, and organizational leadership for an artistically ambitious opera company entering a period of significant capital activity and institutional growth.
Sarasota Opera
Founded in 1959, Sarasota Opera is a nationally respected professional company recognized for artistic excellence, fiscal responsibility, and deep community engagement. Located in Sarasota, Florida, a vibrant cultural destination on the Gulf Coast, the Company presents a robust annual season of opera productions alongside education and community programs that advance opera as a vital and accessible art form.
Sarasota Opera has earned particular distinction for its commitment to the operatic canon, innovative programming, and high production values, which, in turn, attract leading artists and creative teams from across the country. The Company performs in the historic Sarasota Opera House, a 1,119-seat venue that has been hailed as “one of America’s finest” by Musical America. The Sarasota Opera today is a nationally respected professional opera company and a leading U.S. destination for international opera audiences. The Company just marked the Centennial of the Sarasota Opera House and concluded its 67th season with a robust Winter Opera Festival.
With an $11 million annual operating budget, a $16 million endowment, and an active $50 million capital campaign dedicated to facilities renovations and long-term sustainability, Sarasota Opera is entering a significant period of institutional growth. The Company is governed by an engaged Board of Trustees and led through a General & Artistic Director model that emphasizes close partnership between artistic vision and sound financial stewardship. A year-round staff of 30 expands to 200 during the peak winter season.
The Position
The Managing Director is Sarasota Opera’s senior administrative leader, a key partner to the General & Artistic Director, and a member of the Company’s executive team. This newly defined role provides financial, operational, and organizational leadership for a mid-sized, artistically ambitious opera company as it navigates a period of significant capital activity and institutional growth.
The Managing Director provides oversight and direction to finance, human resources, facilities, and administrative operations. The Managing Director supports stewardship of the organization’s endowment; provides financial leadership for a major capital campaign; and collaborates closely with artistic, production, and facilities leadership on upcoming renovations. The Managing Director supervises the finance department, including the Staff Accountant and the Accounts Payable/Accounts Receivable staff, who also serves as Payroll Manager.
The Managing Director leads the strategic and day-to-day oversight of all organizational finances, ensuring accuracy, transparency, and strict compliance with nonprofit accounting standards and industry best practices. The Managing Director directs the annual budgeting process in collaboration with department leaders and the General & Artistic Director to deliver a balanced budget aligned with organizational priorities for Board approval. Serving as the primary staff liaison to the organization’s investment advisor, the Managing Director manages the financial health of an endowment valued at approximately $16 million.
The Managing Director leads the financial planning, budgeting, and monitoring for the organization’s $50 million capital campaign. The Managing Director provides clear financial reporting for campaign activity, including sophisticated cash-flow planning and restricted fund tracking, and providing regular dashboards and updates for executive leadership and the Board.
As the primary staff liaison to the Board of Trustees, the Managing Director provides expert guidance on financial, administrative, and operational matters. The Managing Director works in close partnership with the General & Artistic Director to implement Board-approved policies, strategic initiatives, and long-range organizational plans.
The Managing Director serves as the organization’s primary human resources contact, overseeing payroll, benefits administration, and personnel policies. They ensure the company remains in full compliance with all applicable employment laws and regulations while actively supporting a professional, collaborative workplace culture that advances both artistic excellence and organizational effectiveness.
The Managing Director supervises the facilities department and oversees the maintenance, planning, and long-term stewardship of all physical assets. As liaison with an outsourced IT firm, the Managing Director ensures the optimal utilization of available technological resources. The Managing Director manages key vendor relationships and oversees organizational risk management. The Managing Director partners with the Director of Production and Director of Facilities on upcoming renovations.The Managing Director works collaboratively with all department heads to align financial resources with operational and artistic needs and ensures the continuity of operations. This allows administrative functions to maintain resilience during the peak opera season and throughout major facility projects.
This is a full-time, on-site position that requires evening and weekend attendance at Sarasota Opera performances and events, especially during the opera season.
Candidate Profile
The ideal candidate will be a leader who is passionate about opera, committed to non-profit service, and excited to contribute to a collaborative organization at a pivotal moment in its evolution. The successful candidate will be a seasoned financial manager with seven to ten years’ senior level experience with a non-profit performing arts organization, preferably with an annual operating budget of $10 million or more.
The ideal candidate will be thoroughly familiar with non-profit fund accounting and will have substantial experience overseeing organizational finance, including multi-year budgeting, forecasting, cashflow management, financial reporting, audits, and internal controls. The candidate will bring the demonstrated ability to provide strategic financial and operational leadership within an artistically driven, mission-centered organization. Familiarity working in a union environment with multiple collective bargaining agreements is highly desirable. Experience managing facilities renovations while maintaining ongoing performance operations is a plus.
The successful candidate will be thoroughly knowledgeable about institutional planning and helping to shape, implement, and monitor strategic plans. The candidate will have a thorough working knowledge of the technology available to support finance and operations. The successful candidate will also bring experience in human resources and benefits administration.
The successful candidate will be a strong communicator and collaborator with experience serving as a senior staff liaison to a Board of Trustees and staffing the Board’s finance, audit, and investment committees. The candidate will have experience working with endowment and investment advisors. Preferred qualifications include an advanced degree such as an MBA or MPA and/or a professional credential such as a CPA or CMA.
The successful candidate will be able to accept a work schedule that includes performances and events on nights and weekends during production periods. The candidate will welcome the opportunity to be an active participant in the Sarasota arts community and to represent Sarasota Opera with the area business community.
Compensation
Sarasota Opera offers a competitive compensation and benefits package. The annual salary range for this position is $160,000 to $180,000, plus a benefits package that includes paid time off; health insurance; life insurance; and a voluntary 403(b) retirement plan.
Applications
Sarasota Opera welcomes recommendations, nominations, and applications from all qualified candidates regardless of race, religion, political affiliation, disability, sexual orientation, gender, national origin, or marital status, or any other basis protected by law. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States.
Please submit a resumé along with a cover letter that describes your specific interest in the mission and work of Sarasota Opera and your qualifications for the position as described in the candidate profile. On a separate sheet, provide the names and contact information for several professional references. All applications will be treated as confidential and references will not be contacted without the applicant’s knowledge and agreement.
Electronic submissions are requested. Please send to:
Managing Director – Sarasota Opera
c/o Catherine French Group
applications@catherinefrenchgroup.com(Adobe Acrobat PDF attachments only, please)
- Warner Music And Paramount Make Deal To Make Movies Of Musicians
The partnership will see the companies develop movies drawing on the lives and music of WMG‘s roster of artists and songwriters. – Music Business Worldwide
- Director of Marketing & Sales – Morrison Center, Boise, ID
The Director of Marketing & Sales serves as part of the senior leadership team, and is a multifaceted leadership role responsible for the strategy, execution, and oversight of core marketing efforts for the Morrison Center for the Performing Arts. This role focuses on show-based marketing and revenue generation, leading the execution of ticket sales campaigns across paid, digital, and direct marketing channels. Works in partnership with the Director of Communications, who oversees brand, messaging, and institutional communications strategy. This role maximizes earned income and leveraging data analytics to drive ticket sales, and growth across the Treasure Valley and Idaho, aligning with the Center’s mission.
The successful candidate combines strategic, impact-driven thinking with strong execution, working seamlessly with cross-functional teams (executive, communication, box office, programming, front of house, business and finance, development, and education), as well as external partners to deliver results. They are accountable, collaborative, data-driven, and consistent, with a sharp eye for detail and accuracy.
Salary range: $67,000-$82,000
- Seeking Creative and Admin Assistant
DESCRIPTION
Director and writer Annie Dorsen is looking for a creative and administrative assistant to join her team. The assistant will work on managing calendars, budgets, and contacts, as well as assisting on current projects with logistical and occasional research support. The assistant should be able to juggle several different types of projects with attention to detail, transparency, good humor, and excellent communication.
Dorsen’s artistic practice includes technology, theater and performance, research, and activism. Familiarity with contemporary performance would be very helpful, but is not required. The assistant may be asked to coordinate travel for conferences or residencies, take notes in rehearsals, keep track of expenses and invoices, and keep communication moving.
She is looking for someone who is able to manage their own time and, when appropriate, take the initiative on balancing short-term priorities and ongoing projects. Good follow through is a must.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Day to day administrative support (contacts, emails, tracking budgets, etc.)
- Grant writing support
- Updates to website and/or newsletters
- Project coordination (including some limited company management)
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- 2+ years experience in arts administration, production, or related field
- Proficiency with Word/Excel, WordPress
- Must commit to not using GenAI in research, writing, or handling company data.
HOURS/PAY
Ideally this position is hybrid remote/in person in NYC, but exceptional candidates from elsewhere will be considered for fully remote work. 10-15 hours per week for $25/hour, with a guaranteed minimum of $1000 per month. The ideal candidate will be able to commit to this schedule at least through December 2026. There is potential for this to grow into a larger role, with an increase in compensation and hours.
HOW TO APPLY
To apply, please email info@anniedorsen.com with the following:
- CV
- A brief cover letter outlining your relevant experience and interest in the role
- A brief writing sample (no more than 2 pages)
We will reach out to potential candidates for an interview. If you don’t hear from us by May 29, we thank you for your time and interest in the position.
- The New New Thing: Trend Simulation
You’ve fallen prey to “trend simulation”: the marketing tactic of paying people online to post opinions they don’t necessarily hold, endorsing music they don’t necessarily care about, so as to trick social-media algorithms—and users—into regarding a band as more popular than it really is. – The Atlantic
- Denyce Graves’ Opera Afterlife
Graves is a perfect avatar of everything the Trump administration seeks to eradicate, a fact that gave her swan song an even more sentimental air. – The Atlantic
- A24 Has A Hip Theatre, Hot New Restaurant, And A String Of Indie Hits. It’s Also Wildly Profitable
Renowned as much for its taste as for its marketing acumen, the 13-year-old studio has developed a cult following not just for its films and shows but for the A24 brand itself. It was valued two years ago at $3.5 billion, more than 10 times the valuation of its closest indie rival, Neon. – The Hollywood Reporter
- The Brainiest Dumbest Combo on the Planet<a href="https://www.artsjournal.com/herman/2026/05/the-brainiest-dumbest-combo-on-the-planet.html" title="The Brainiest Dumbest Combo on the Planet” rel=”nofollow”>It’s
- Hollywood Insider: It’s The Worst It’s Ever Been
If you are a lower or mid-level television writer right now, you are not failing. You are navigating a market that has structurally reduced the number of positions available to you. That is not a referendum on your talent; it is a reality of the business. – New Story
- Warner Music Earnings Surged To $1.7B In First Quarter
WMG saw its quarterly global company-wide revenues reach USD $1.732 billion (across recorded music, music publishing, and other activities). Total revenue was up 12.1% YoY at constant currency. – Music Business Worldwide
- Breaking Down The Dance Quotes And Callbacks In Two Broadway Shows
“The pastiche numbers glue together scrapbook memories from multiple shows and even as far afield as Alvin Ailey’s Revelations. A dance that seems to derive from The Music Man might sneak in a gesture from The Sound of Music.” – The New York Times
