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- This Musician Returned From Two Strokes To Two Decades More Of A Highly Successful Career
“Returning to music wasn’t even among the most optimistic goals of his recovery plan, but this week the artist kicked off a 10-date tour of Spain.” – El País English
- Slightly Too Early Tony Awards Predictions
“Lincoln Center Theatre’s revival of Ragtime will likely lead the nomination field, with the possibility of six performers getting nods, mirroring its season-leading eight Drama Desk bids.” But there’s a lot of competition out there in a strong year. – Variety
- The New Workplace Surveillance Wants To Keep Your Emotions In Check
“It is not that hard for me to imagine a near future in which workers in all industries are pushed to work not only harder and more, but more happily and more agreeably. This is the new era of employee surveillance: invisible, AI-supercharged, always on.” – The Atlantic
- On May Day Weekend, Looking At Fifty Years Of Labor Documentaries
“Some scenes in union documentaries are almost guaranteed: organizers rallying the rank and file at meetings, workers expressing concerns about the strike’s impact on their families, tensions flaring up at the picket line. There will be corporate spokespeople, union-till-I-die old-timers, and scabs.” – The Guardian (UK)
- Is This Mystery Holbein Sitter Actually Anne Boleyn?
That’s what AI thinks, anyway. – The Guardian (UK)
- Goodbye, Golden Lion: There Will Be A People’s Choice Winner At The Biennale Instead
This seems totally fine; no issues at all. In addition, Russia and Israel are back in the running. – Hyperallergic
- Dictators Always Want Their Big Triumphal Arches
This is not what democracy looks like. – Salon
- All The President’s Men Is Now Fifty
Why does that matter? Robert Redford, for one, “insisted that fearless owners were every bit as important in preserving democracy as the reporters he and Hoffman helped glamorize.” – Los Angeles Times (MSN)
- Irish Actor Gary Lydon, Of Banshees Of Inisherin, Has Died Suddenly At 61
“Gary had honed his craft as one of the finest actors in Ireland on the Wexford Arts Centre stage in many of Billy Roche’s plays. He forged a stellar career performing across Ireland and the UK.” – BBC (AOL)
- The Performance Art Mall Walkers Of (You Guessed It) Portland, Oregon
One, er, artist: “It’s such a fun way to just get exercise, do something really silly, builds community. And I just love a shenanigan.” – NPR
- Bet You Didn’t Know Sylvester Stallone ‘Rescued’ The First Rambo Movie
And not by starring in it – by cutting it, from more than 3 hours down to 93 minutes. – Open Culture
- When an Oscar Becomes a Weapon
Good Morning,
A TSA agent reportedly stopped Pavel Talankin — director of Mr. Nobody Against Putin — because the Oscar in his luggage “could be used as a weapon.” Lufthansa promptly lost it. International outcry recovered the statuette but the absurdity is harder to retrieve (CBC).
The cultural sector spent the week drawing lines. The Motion Picture Academy ruled that no AI-generated film will win an Oscar, and that screenplays must be “human-authored” (NPR). SAG-AFTRA reached a tentative deal with the studios on AI and streaming residuals, dodging another strike (Variety). And consumers filed suit to block the Paramount-Warner merger, arguing it shrinks choice and production (LA Times).
Meanwhile the squeeze keeps showing up. Indie labels like Sub Pop and Rough Trade are being absorbed by majors as vinyl plateaus and streaming, oddly, isn’t the worst option anymore (The Guardian). The proposed new White House ballroom is reading less like architecture than fortification (The Atlantic). Portland, ever Portland, has commissioned yet another study about whether it can support two concert halls (Oregon ArtsWatch).
A quieter note: pianist Seymour Bernstein — who quit performing at 50 over stage fright and was rediscovered at 88 by Ethan Hawke — died at 99 (The New York Times).
All of our stories below.
- AI Slop Is Flooding Streaming Music Services, But Who Wants It?
Very few, though “fully generative AI music will continue to be a threat to working musicians, session artists, library music composers, and the like. But they may struggle to find footing on the charts.” – The Verge
- Oh God, What Happened To The New Animal Farm, And Why?
Oh God, indeed: “A family of Latter-Day Saints heads up Angel Studios, and a fair share of its titles across both television and film spaces are right-leaning media with Christian values.” – Salon
- TSA And Lufthansa Lost The Oscar Of The Director Of Mr. Nobody Against Putin
But after an international outcry, Lufthansa managed to find it. The blame, though, rests with certain U.S. security forces: “A TSA agent stopped him and said the Oscar could be used as a weapon.” – CBC
- Stop Saying Satire Is Dead
“Can satire really change anything? Isn’t it a limp, almost quaint kind of protest?” – LitHub
- The Long History – And Surprising Philosophy – Of The Mummy Movie
Every era (and country) gets the mummy movies it deserves. And “in recent decades, the mummy film has taken on a decidedly populist and, in some cases, postmodern status.” – Reactor
- If You Want Privacy, Never Watch TV
Why? “Your TV and smartphone are far more interoperable and indistinguishable than ever before, and an inescapable user-tracking singularity is developing, accordingly, in your own living room.” – Slate
- The Pianist Who Cut Short His Career Because Of Stage Fright, And Then Became A Movie Star For Ethan Hawke, Has Died At 99
“Although he managed to perform well despite his stage fright, [Seymour] Bernstein eventually decided to quit. He gave his final public concert in 1977, at the age of 50.” – The New York Times
- Wait, Portland Has Another New Analysis Saying Two Concert Halls Would Be Just Fine
Competing studies find that Portland can support one performing arts center or maybe two performing arts centers, or not. And of course, “Portland has appointed a number of advisory committees to study the choices more closely before holding public hearings to make a final decision.” – Oregon ArtsWatch
- The White House’s Potential New Ballroom Has Even More Issues
“Each fence, bollard, and inch of blast-resistant laminated glass is a barrier between the people and their government. Virtually every modern presidency has understood this, leaning into discretion. … It was a bit of a fiction, but now we see the alternative, and it is grim.” – The Atlantic
- Consumers Sue To Block Paramount Merger With Warner Bros
“The lawsuit … alleges the Paramount-Warner deal will lead to increased prices, fewer consumer choices and reduce production of film and TV since a major rival in the entertainment business will be eliminated.” – Los Angeles Times (MSN)
- How Booker-Nominated Author Katie Kitamura Reads
“Even a book that I know I wouldn’t enjoy now would still be interesting to read, to figure out how both it and I had changed. And there is always the possibility that I would enjoy it after all. Books are always surprising you.” – The Guardian (UK)
- Wait, Just How Big Is Trump’s Desired Garden Of Heroes Supposed To Be Now?
Big, with a “Heroes Walk,’” and “accompanying the statues would be formal gardens, reflecting pools and plazas arranged in a style reminiscent of classical European planning traditions, according to renderings.” – The New York Times
- The Motion Picture Academy Says No AI Creation Will Win An Oscar
In another rule change, “the Academy also requires screenplays to be ‘human-authored’ and said it reserved the right to investigate the use of generative AI in any submission.” – NPR
- Not Even Vinyl Is Winning As Major Labels Try To Scoop Up Every Last Indie Act Possible
“Vinyl sales peaked during the Covid lockdowns and are now, after returning to pre-pandemic levels, plateauing or even on the downturn, while production costs are going up.” Streaming actually … isn’t as bad? – The Guardian (UK)
- Way, Way Too Early Predictions For The Emmys
“The tea leaves are there — it’s time to start scrutinizing them.” – Vulture (MSN)
- Whew, Hollywood Actors And Studios Seem To Have Figured Out A Contract Without A Strike
“The major issues on the agenda included artificial intelligence and streaming residuals, both of which also featured prominently in the 2023 strike.” – Variety
- So Many Actors Are Bopping Between HBO And New York’s Stages This Season
Actors from The Pitt, The Bear, and Hacks are taking their (in some cases, newfound) television fame back to where it all began for many of them: the stage. – The New York Times
- The Epic Journey Of Ukraine’s Origami Concrete Deer To The Venice Biennale
The journey began in 2018. “Over time [the deer] became a landmark, a well-known feature of the city. It was a peaceable, delicate creature to replace a symbol of military domination and violence. Fast forward to the summer of 2024.” – The Guardian (UK)
- Director of Production – Union Arts Center
Union Arts Center, home of ACT Contemporary Theatre & Seattle Shakespeare Company, is excited to announce an opening for a Director of Production (DOP). Union Arts Center (UAC) has successfully launched our inaugural season, which includes both contemporary and classical works. This is a momentous opportunity to join our merged organization within a collaborative and creative work environment. See more details about responsibilities and qualifications at https://www.unionartscenter.org/about/work-with-us/
The Director of Production is the head of the Production Department and an integral member of UAC’s senior leadership team. The DoP is responsible for the realization of UAC’s artistic vision, accountable for the quality of production values, and the efficient management of all production and artistic resources.
As Head of the Production Department, the DoP is responsible for developing, planning, budgeting, scheduling, implementing, and supervising all production activities. An essential component of this position is being a consistent role model of inclusive leadership, incorporating performance management best practices such as routinely thoughtfully receiving and delivering feedback.
The DoP reports to the Artistic Director. Direct reports include the Technical Director, Costume Department Manager, and Associate Production Manager. Indirect management of all shop staff. Position requirements include working onsite and managing an irregular schedule, including nights and weekends.
The annual salary for this full-time, exempt position is $110,000. The role is a primarily onsite position. UAC provides comprehensive benefits, including access to medical insurance, with UAC paying 92% of monthly deductible for the HMO plan, and dental and vision insurance with
employee contribution. Long term and life insurance premiums are fully covered by UAC. We offer 11 paid holidays, access to a 403b plan and $6 downtown Seattle parking and free tickets to UAC productions. PTO begins at 20 days per year and employees accrue sick time per Seattle Paid Sick
and Safe Time (PSST).Please apply by email your resume and a cover letter outlining your interest in the position and your qualifications at work@unionartscenter.org. If accommodations may be needed for the application process, please contact work@unionartscenter.org.
- AJ Chronicles: Are Our Attention Spans Killing Culture or Reassembling It?
Depth hasn’t disappeared. Perhaps it’s gone lateral. The vertical architecture that produced “official” cultural memory has cracked, but the appetite for tradition — for context, for lineage, for the why — has migrated to wherever audiences and individuals can build their own context and throughlines. Sometimes those lines are deep obsessive sturdy. Sometimes they are skimming across the surface of micro-videos and news of the day.
The post AJ Chronicles: Are Our Attention Spans Killing Culture or Reassembling It? appeared first on diacritical.
- Kaneza Schaal talks about America 250 at the Detroit Opera
Kaneza Schaal, Theater & Opera Artist & Director, talks about the extraordinary upcoming America at 250 season at Detroit Opera and its impact for audiences and community.
- Six Elite Ballet Dancers On What They Did After Retiring From The Stage
One became a kindergarten teacher and social worker; another became a midwife. One lucky fellow got to be artistic director of a company; another studied music and started conducting ballet orchestras. One got appointed to Britain’s House of Lords. And one, of course, became a consultant. – The Guardian
- The Struggle To Protect Mauritania’s Medieval Library Town
Chinguetti developed as a trading post on the trans-Sahara caravan route to Timbuktu — and, as in Timbuktu, over the centuries Chinguetti families came to amass important collections of medieval manuscripts on religion, law, and science. Now, as the population dwindles and the desert sand encroaches, preserving these collections is a challenge. – The Dial
