ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

Today's Stories

Electrician Stumbles Across Hidden 17th-Century Frescoes

Davide Renzoni was inspecting cables in the Pompeian Hall of Rome's Villa Farnesina when he opened two trap doors in the ceiling and happened on a set of perfectly preserved frescoes, likely by Carlo Maratta, one of the last masters of Baroque classicism, and two of his students. - The New York Times

Letter Reveals Shakespeare Did Not Abandon His Wife

For more than 200 years it has been believed that Shakespeare left his wife in Stratford-upon-Avon when he travelled to London and that a decision to leave her almost nothing in his will meant he probably felt bitterness towards her. - BBC

Five Months In, How’s America’s First TKTS Booth Outside New York Doing?

“Based on recent ticket sales and Visitor Center website traffic, … the formula has proven to work in Philadelphia. … While Philly tourism and theater attendance have been down compared to 2019, Amy Murphy, Arden Theatre’s managing director, said TKTS is already paying dividends.” - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)

The New Yorker: A Magazine Of Words Defined By Iconic Wordless Covers

Beyond the masthead and issue date, no set typography has ever been allowed, maintaining a unique wordless space in magazine publishing where only an image connotes the idea. The absence of copy is arresting, the silent core of what the solely visual can communicate. - The Conversation

Why The World Is Fascinated By David Hockney

Since 2020 there have been 32 exhibitions of his work, staged everywhere from the National Gallery in London to Washington DC, Tokyo, California, Ontario, Istanbul and across Europe. The world is currently Hockney mad. - New Statesman

Does Music Really Need A Purpose?

I’m inclined to agree with Adorno on at least some of this. I am allergic to the suggestion that music needs to be attached to claims about something else to be worthwhile – be that its ability to make money, or aid focus (and productivity), or to optimise health. Can’t it just be for its own...

“Improper Ideology” And The Smithsonian’s African-American History Museum

“The Museum … is not a place that traffics in improper ideology. It …recognizes that America has been suffused with improper ideologies for most of its history: ideologies that ignore the centrality of slavery to the nation … (and) tell us the Civil War was simply about states’ rights.” - The Atlantic (MSN)

Pope Dies And “Conclave” Viewership Surges

The film, which won best picture at the Baftas earlier this year and was nominated for eight Oscars, is available on assorted streaming platforms worldwide. According to Luminate, which tracks streaming viewership, Conclave was viewed for about 1.8m minutes on 20 April, and 6.9m minutes the next day – an increase of 283%. - The Guardian

Anti-Streaming: A New Video Store Opens In Brooklyn

Just in time for Easter, the physical video store has risen again. This month, Night Owl Video in Williamsburg became New York City’s first new physical video store in a long time. The store’s provocative slogan is: “Death to streamers! Physical media forever!” - The Guardian

Venice Renews And Expands Day-Tripper Entry Fee

“Visitors who download a QR code at least three days in advance will pay €5 — the same amount charged last year throughout the pilot program. But those who make last-minute plans pay double.” The number of days this charge is in effect is up from 29 last year to 54 for 2025. - AP

Why Did A Chinese Online Censor Help A Critical Writer?

No matter how tactful, restrained and oblique the criticism, the Communist party still detests it. A lot of content is deleted, and accounts on Ordinary Fascist’s watchlist frequently disappear for no apparent reason. These people are banned from posting, their accounts are shut, and some of the individuals behind them are even arrested. - The Guardian

Detroit Arts Institutions Stand Up, Stay The Course On Diversity

“We have to resist and persevere,” Barclay said in a video interview. “Attempts to undermine the significance of our culture are nothing new to us. We will continue to tell our stories.” - The New York Times

Jacksonville University Axes Music, Theatre

Jacksonville University will cut music and theater programs from its curriculum in a reorganization that will affect about 100 students and cost 40 faculty members their jobs. The cuts, an effort to save $10 million, are intended to align the university’s courses with the needs of today’s working world. - Jax Today

Kronos Quartet Has New Violinist And Violist For First Time In 47 Years

“The annual Kronos Festival … introduces the Bay Area to the quartet’s latest incarnation, with violist Ayane Kozasa and violinist Gabriela Díaz taking over chairs held, respectively, by Hank Dutt and John Sherba for more than four decades.” - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)

Chief “60 Minutes” Producer Resigns, Saying His Independence Is Threatened

“In a memo obtained by CNN, (Bill) Owens said to 60 Minutes staff that the last few months have made it clear that he ‘would not be allowed to run the show as I have always run it’ or make ‘independent decisions based on what was right for 60 Minutes.’” - CNN

Judge Temporarily Halts Trump Order To Shut Down Voice Of America

“Judge Royce C. Lamberth … wrote that the administration's decision to dismantle the agency was ‘arbitrary and capricious. … Not only is there an absence of 'reasoned analysis' from the defendants; there is an absence of any analysis whatsoever." The order also apples to Radio Free Asia but not Radio Free Europe. - NPR

Pawn Shop Owner In L.A. Charged With Trying To Sell Stolen Warhol

“Glenn Steven Bednarsh, 58, has been charged with knowingly buying a stolen Warhol trial proof depicting Soviet Union leader Vladimir Lenin in February 2021 for $6,000. He then attempted to sell it to a Dallas-based auction house … (and later) lied about the scheme to federal agents,” prosecutors allege. - Los Angeles Times (Yahoo!)

Woman Sues Kehinde Wiley For Sexual Assault

Artist Ogechi Chieke sued under New York City’s Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Law, filing the day before the window closed. The suit claims that Wiley committed a “crime of violence motivated by gender” which “would not have occurred if Plaintiff was male.” (Wiley is an openly gay man.) - Artnet

Elon Musk’s DOGE Pays A Little Visit To The National Gallery Of Art

“Members of the U.S. DOGE Service met with National Gallery of Art leadership Thursday, ... signaling that cuts or other changes may be on the horizon for the Washington institution that makes its world-class art collection freely accessible to roughly 6 million visitors a year.” - The Washington Post (MSN)

The Debut Of Climate-Protesting Ballet Vandals

At opening night of New York City Ballet’s spring season, as the dancers performed Balanchine, a woman began yelling from a balcony, “We’re in a climate emergency. Our country has become a fascist regime, and we are enjoying this beauty.” - The New York Times

By Topic

Scientists Believe They’ve Found The Part Of The Brain That Perceives Consciousness

Conscious perception is the ability of human beings to become aware of the stimuli received by their senses. It is a different state from simply being awake, where sensations are processed automatically and unreflectively. Rather, conscious perception requires a detailed and voluntary analysis of external stimuli. - Wired

What Happens To Our Culture When Hobbies Get Too Expensive

Hobby inflation, understood in this light, is about much more than price hikes: It’s about the shrinking and possible disappearance of opportunities for people from different backgrounds to get to know one another. - The Atlantic

Artists In The United States Survived A Rabidly Anti-Art Government Before

And here’s how to do it again. - The Conversation

How Trump And His People Want To Capture The History Of The United States

“The president has gone beyond rhetoric, moving to challenge or seize control of history-related federal cultural institutions including the Smithsonian, the National Park Service and the National Endowment for the Humanities.” - The New York Times

When An AI Chatbot Simply Makes Up A Company Policy, Things Can Go Very Wrong

This seems fine: “Instead of admitting uncertainty, AI models often prioritize creating plausible, confident responses, even when that means manufacturing information from scratch.” - Wired

Can Architecture, And Urban Planning, Help Older People Age In Safer Neighborhoods?

“Cities are often defined by spatial ageism where environments are not set up for older people. The age-friendly movement aims to ensure older people can still play a part in civic life.” - The Guardian (UK)

“Improper Ideology” And The Smithsonian’s African-American History Museum

“The Museum … is not a place that traffics in improper ideology. It …recognizes that America has been suffused with improper ideologies for most of its history: ideologies that ignore the centrality of slavery to the nation … (and) tell us the Civil War was simply about states’ rights.” - The Atlantic (MSN)

Venice Renews And Expands Day-Tripper Entry Fee

“Visitors who download a QR code at least three days in advance will pay €5 — the same amount charged last year throughout the pilot program. But those who make last-minute plans pay double.” The number of days this charge is in effect is up from 29 last year to 54 for 2025. -...

Why Did A Chinese Online Censor Help A Critical Writer?

No matter how tactful, restrained and oblique the criticism, the Communist party still detests it. A lot of content is deleted, and accounts on Ordinary Fascist’s watchlist frequently disappear for no apparent reason. These people are banned from posting, their accounts are shut, and some of the individuals behind them are even arrested. -...

Detroit Arts Institutions Stand Up, Stay The Course On Diversity

“We have to resist and persevere,” Barclay said in a video interview. “Attempts to undermine the significance of our culture are nothing new to us. We will continue to tell our stories.” - The New York Times

A Short History Of Public Funding In The Arts

Artists and arts organizations have a long legacy of persistence and strategic organizing during periods of political and economic upheaval. - The Conversation

Warning: Australia’s Arts Education System In Crisis

NAAE Chair Dr John Nicholas Saunders said the sector was in crisis after years of cuts to arts education pathways and growing barriers to access. - Limelight

Does Music Really Need A Purpose?

I’m inclined to agree with Adorno on at least some of this. I am allergic to the suggestion that music needs to be attached to claims about something else to be worthwhile – be that its ability to make money, or aid focus (and productivity), or to optimise health. Can’t it just be for...

Jacksonville University Axes Music, Theatre

Jacksonville University will cut music and theater programs from its curriculum in a reorganization that will affect about 100 students and cost 40 faculty members their jobs. The cuts, an effort to save $10 million, are intended to align the university’s courses with the needs of today’s working world. - Jax Today

Kronos Quartet Has New Violinist And Violist For First Time In 47 Years

“The annual Kronos Festival … introduces the Bay Area to the quartet’s latest incarnation, with violist Ayane Kozasa and violinist Gabriela Díaz taking over chairs held, respectively, by Hank Dutt and John Sherba for more than four decades.” - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)

The Frick Museum Needed A New Piano. Here’s How They Went About Choosing It

With a team that included Raj Patel, the acoustician who worked on the auditorium, Ney assembled a trio of pianos to choose from, all Model D Steinways but with distinct sounds based on when they were made and where. - The New York Times

Bucking The Trends, Houston Grand Opera Is Growing

“With many opera companies in a doom loop of shrinkage caused by rising costs and stagnant (or worse) earnings, Houston has proved an exception. Driven by creative leadership and generous donors, its programming budget has risen steadily, (as has) its endowment.” - The New York Times

A New Opera About A Historic Supreme Court Case, Directed By Denyce Graves

“This month, Virginia Opera and Richmond Symphony will present the world premiere of composer Damien Geter and librettist Jessica Murphy Moo’s Loving v. Virginia, an operatic retelling of the events leading to the landmark 1967 Supreme Court decision that declared laws against interracial marriage unconstitutional.” - The Washington Post (MSN)

Electrician Stumbles Across Hidden 17th-Century Frescoes

Davide Renzoni was inspecting cables in the Pompeian Hall of Rome's Villa Farnesina when he opened two trap doors in the ceiling and happened on a set of perfectly preserved frescoes, likely by Carlo Maratta, one of the last masters of Baroque classicism, and two of his students. - The New York Times

Pawn Shop Owner In L.A. Charged With Trying To Sell Stolen Warhol

“Glenn Steven Bednarsh, 58, has been charged with knowingly buying a stolen Warhol trial proof depicting Soviet Union leader Vladimir Lenin in February 2021 for $6,000. He then attempted to sell it to a Dallas-based auction house … (and later) lied about the scheme to federal agents,” prosecutors allege. - Los Angeles Times (Yahoo!)

Elon Musk’s DOGE Pays A Little Visit To The National Gallery Of Art

“Members of the U.S. DOGE Service met with National Gallery of Art leadership Thursday, ... signaling that cuts or other changes may be on the horizon for the Washington institution that makes its world-class art collection freely accessible to roughly 6 million visitors a year.” - The Washington Post (MSN)

Medieval Cathedral Puts A Spotlight On Its Centuries’ Worth Of Graffiti

“You don’t notice them at first. ... But once the marks carved into the stonework of Salisbury Cathedral by centuries of pilgrims, churchgoers and mischief-makers are pointed out, they begin to pop out all over the place.” - The Guardian

What’s Left Of Palmyra After Syria’s 13-Year Civil War

“The scale and beauty of the site still impress, although some of the showcase monuments are so badly damaged that it is hard to imagine what they had looked like.” - The New York Times

Coming To Terms With Richard Serra

Over the past half century the art history industry has produced reams of interpretation, incorporating no shortage of words by Serra himself. The author of work so totally laconic has set the terms of its understanding as if the death of the author bypassed him entirely. - N + One

The New Yorker: A Magazine Of Words Defined By Iconic Wordless Covers

Beyond the masthead and issue date, no set typography has ever been allowed, maintaining a unique wordless space in magazine publishing where only an image connotes the idea. The absence of copy is arresting, the silent core of what the solely visual can communicate. - The Conversation

Is There A Future For Scots Gaelic?

“What was until the 14th century the primary language of Scotland was, in the 2022 census, spoken by 2.5% of the population (up from 1.7% in 2011). Ever-greater numbers of people are learning the language in school or through apps …, but the shift to English is at an advanced stage.” - History Today

What Does It Mean To Win A Book Award For Translation?

While the International Booker might have heralded a rise in the status of literary translators, is there a commensurate deepening of appreciation for, and understanding of, translation itself? While translators are being made more visible, is translation being made more invisible? - Sydney Review of Books

A Mathematical Model To Better Understand Language?

By thinking of language as a mathematical category, Tai-Danae Bradley's been able to apply established tools to study it and glean new insights. Linguists hope her model can help them to prove certain theories about how grammar and meaning emerge from strings of words, and to identify how AI-generated text differs from human language....

Study Literature? What It Means

As the English degree craters, and the idea of the university itself is under assault in the United States and elsewhere, those of us who remain interested in literate culture are sensing in its decline some correlation with the current apoplexy, if not direct causation. - 3 Quarks Daily

Books Have “No Economic Value” Claims Meta

Meta cited an expert witness who downplayed the books' individual importance, averring that a single book adjusted its LLM's performance "by less than 0.06 percent on industry standard benchmarks, a meaningless change no different from noise." Thus there's no market in paying authors to use their copyrighted works, Meta says. - Futurism

Pope Dies And “Conclave” Viewership Surges

The film, which won best picture at the Baftas earlier this year and was nominated for eight Oscars, is available on assorted streaming platforms worldwide. According to Luminate, which tracks streaming viewership, Conclave was viewed for about 1.8m minutes on 20 April, and 6.9m minutes the next day – an increase of 283%. - The Guardian

Anti-Streaming: A New Video Store Opens In Brooklyn

Just in time for Easter, the physical video store has risen again. This month, Night Owl Video in Williamsburg became New York City’s first new physical video store in a long time. The store’s provocative slogan is: “Death to streamers! Physical media forever!” - The Guardian

Chief “60 Minutes” Producer Resigns, Saying His Independence Is Threatened

“In a memo obtained by CNN, (Bill) Owens said to 60 Minutes staff that the last few months have made it clear that he ‘would not be allowed to run the show as I have always run it’ or make ‘independent decisions based on what was right for 60 Minutes.’” - CNN

Judge Temporarily Halts Trump Order To Shut Down Voice Of America

“Judge Royce C. Lamberth … wrote that the administration's decision to dismantle the agency was ‘arbitrary and capricious. … Not only is there an absence of 'reasoned analysis' from the defendants; there is an absence of any analysis whatsoever." The order also apples to Radio Free Asia but not Radio Free Europe. - NPR

Academy Makes New Rule: No Voting In An Oscar Category Unless You’ve Seen All The Nominees

That wasn’t a rule already? No, it wasn’t, except for Best Foreign-Language Film (now Best International Feature Film) and Best Documentary Feature; otherwise, things were on the honor system. The change could lead to more upsets and surprise wins, although it might also reduce the number of Oscar voters. - TheWrap

Netflix’s Big Time Bet On Streaming Live Sports

The stakes are high. WrestleMania, which began in 1985, is being treated as a litmus test - not just for WWE's global expansion, but for Netflix's potential move into live sports. - BBC

The Debut Of Climate-Protesting Ballet Vandals

At opening night of New York City Ballet’s spring season, as the dancers performed Balanchine, a woman began yelling from a balcony, “We’re in a climate emergency. Our country has become a fascist regime, and we are enjoying this beauty.” - The New York Times

Queensland Ballet: An Unexpected Unraveling

The company that former artistic director Li Cunxin turned into a powerhouse with an international reputation is now “beleaguered”, as one headline put it. - InDaily (Australia)

Two More Ex-Dancers Sue Shen Yun

“Two former dancers … filed a lawsuit on Thursday accusing the group of amassing a financial fortune and worldwide renown by subjecting an ‘army of child laborers’ to brutal working conditions and psychological coercion.” Another former company member filed a similar suit last November. - The New York Times

The Book That Transformed How We See Ballet

Alexey Brodovitch’s Ballet gets an 80th anniversary reprint. He "intended to foreground shape, blur, contrast, gesture and motion — the atmosphere of dance — in the photographs. ‘The photograph is not only a pictorial report,’ Brodovitch said. ‘It is also a psychological report.’” - The New York Times

How Is It That Ireland Hasn’t Had A National Dance Company?

How is it that an island that has managed to produce one of the strongest theatrical traditions in the West could be without a national dance company? - Fjord Review

Chicago Loses A Key Dance Venue, Links Hall

“Since its founding in 1978 …, Links has been a cornerstone of the city’s dance scene, often giving a home to experimental new works that pushed the envelope, both artistically and politically. Executive Director SK Kerastas said Thursday that the venue will continue with performances scheduled through June.” - WBEZ (Chicago)

Five Months In, How’s America’s First TKTS Booth Outside New York Doing?

“Based on recent ticket sales and Visitor Center website traffic, … the formula has proven to work in Philadelphia. … While Philly tourism and theater attendance have been down compared to 2019, Amy Murphy, Arden Theatre’s managing director, said TKTS is already paying dividends.” - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)

Broadway Has Its Biggest Non-Holiday Box Office Week Ever

The figure, for 40 shows, is a huge 47% greater than this week last year. Total attendance of 357,319 was 19% more year-over-year. - Deadline

Producing Theatre Is About So Much More Than Just Producing Shows

We should cherish the miracles that happen on stages all over the country every night, even as we question why theatre needs miracles, when actually a very small amount of investment would enable it to produce lasting wonders, both artistically and in how it serves communities. - The Stage

Immersive Wall Street Play By “Sleep No More” Creators Shuts Down Without Warning

“Life and Trust, an immersive follow up to Sleep No More from the producing team Emursive, closed abruptly on April 19 after beginning performances in the summer of 2024. … No official reasoning was provided for the show’s sudden closure … after tickets were mysteriously refunded over the weekend.” - TheaterMania

Samuel Beckett Versus The Archbishop’s Censorship

“After the archbishop’s interference, Beckett withdrew all rights in protest, for all of his works in Ireland, indefinitely.” - Irish Times (Internet Archive)

An Evening In The Life Of A “Drunk Shakespeare” Star

“Marissa Chaffee starts her shift by housing a Five Guys burger with pickles, mustard and ketchup. … Later tonight, she’ll chug (a "Witches' Brew") potion while half-dressed in Spider-Man underwear and knee-high boots in front of 85 theatergoers. The test is … whether she can remember her iambic pentameter.” - The Washington Post (Yahoo!)

Letter Reveals Shakespeare Did Not Abandon His Wife

For more than 200 years it has been believed that Shakespeare left his wife in Stratford-upon-Avon when he travelled to London and that a decision to leave her almost nothing in his will meant he probably felt bitterness towards her. - BBC

Why The World Is Fascinated By David Hockney

Since 2020 there have been 32 exhibitions of his work, staged everywhere from the National Gallery in London to Washington DC, Tokyo, California, Ontario, Istanbul and across Europe. The world is currently Hockney mad. - New Statesman

Woman Sues Kehinde Wiley For Sexual Assault

Artist Ogechi Chieke sued under New York City’s Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Law, filing the day before the window closed. The suit claims that Wiley committed a “crime of violence motivated by gender” which “would not have occurred if Plaintiff was male.” (Wiley is an openly gay man.) - Artnet

Chuck Connelly, Neo-Expressionist Artist, Dead At 70

“(He was) known for his thick applications of paint and his furious brushstrokes … (and) an uncompromising personality; (his) paintings depicted scenes like Noah’s Ark breaking apart in a storm and a huge candy-cane-colored funnel cloud looming over a rural landscape.” - The New York Times

Meet The Attorney Whom Trump Tasked With Weeding Out “Improper Ideology” From The Smithsonian

“Lindsey Halligan, 35, is a Trump attorney who seems to have tasked herself as a sort of commissioner — or expurgator, according to critics — of a premier cultural institution.” In fact, the executive order appears to have been her idea. - The Washington Post (MSN)

After A Movie That Lionized Him, The Guy Who Popularized Tetris Wants To Tell The Truth

The movie, described by one outlet as The Big Short meets The Bridge of Spies, was a bit, let’s say, intensified. But the real guy’s “story is especially notable as Tetris continues to thrive.” - The Verge

AJ Premium Classifieds

Executive Director – Portland Symphony Orchestra

Portland Symphony Orchestra (PSO) invites dynamic and enterprising leaders with a passion for music to apply for the role of Executive Director.

Fall 2025 + Winter 2026 Applications Open for MS in Leadership...

Northwestern University’s MS in Leadership for Creative Enterprises (MSLCE) program develops leaders across Entertainment, Media and the Arts. Earn your Master’s in One Year.

Old Models Are Broken — Which New Models Are Surging? 3...

Join us in Toronto, June 24-25; San Francisco, July 22-23; or New York City, August 5-6. Sign up by May 2 to get 3-for-1 registration!

AJClassifieds

Assistant Director of Digital and Lifelong Learning

The Lifelong Learning Program brings the performing arts to older adults, ensuring that excellence in education reaches students wherever they are, with the belief that development is not limited by age.

Executive Director, Greenwich Historical Society

Company: Greenwich Historical SocietyLocation: Cos Cob, CTDate Posted: March...

Payroll Administrator, Mark Morris Dance Group

This role will be directly responsible for the timely and accurate processing of payroll and independent contractor fees for approximately 200 full-time, part-time and seasonal employees

Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra seeks President & CEO

The President & CEO will partner with the Music...

Director of Marketing and Communications

The Mark Morris Dance Group is seeking a Director of Marketing and Communications to strategically advance our visibility, reputation, and audience engagement.

The Naval Academy Was Supposed To Host A Lecture On Idea Censorship And Reading Fearlessly

Then the Academy, apparently not fearless, censored the lecture. "I did not want to cause them trouble. I did, however, feel it was essential to make the point that the pursuit of wisdom is impossible without engaging with (and challenging) uncomfortable ideas.” - The New York Times

How Trump And His People Want To Capture The History Of The United States

“The president has gone beyond rhetoric, moving to challenge or seize control of history-related federal cultural institutions including the Smithsonian, the National Park Service and the National Endowment for the Humanities.” - The New York Times

More Cuts Hobble The Kennedy Center In A Variety Of Departments

Marketing, campus planning, and the entire social media team - gone as of Friday. “Kennedy Center staff members ... spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. Most former employees had to sign non-disparagement agreements.” - Washington Post (MSN)

Ambient Music? An Online Archive Of Soundscapes From The Environment

“The Sonic Heritage project is a collection of 270 sounds from 68 countries, including from famous UNESCO-designated sites such as Machu Picchu and the Taj Mahal, … a monarch butterfly sanctuary, … wind turbines, rare whales and the Amazonian dawn chorus.” Also, sea lions who sound like drunk frat boys. - The Guardian

How Marshmallow Peeps Are Born

A visit to the headquarters of Just Born Quality Confections in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, where some two billion Peeps are made each year (along with Hot Tamales, Mike and Ike, and Goldenberg’s Peanut Chews). - The Philadelphia Inquirer

Have A Look Around The Grand Egyptian Museum, Now Open At Long Last

“There is perhaps no institution on earth whose opening has been as wildly anticipated, or as mind-bogglingly delayed. ... Its construction has been such a fiasco — mired by funding lapses, logistical hurdles, a pandemic, nearby wars, revolutions (yes, plural) — that it begs comparison to that of the pyramids.” - The New York Times

It’s About Time We Acknowledged That Andrew Wyeth Was A Genuinely Great Artist

“The slow collapse of the postwar avant-garde’s underlying tenets (no figuration! no storytelling! no obvious skill!) has allowed many to admit that Wyeth was onto something specific and powerful …, (and) I find it tends to overwhelm most reservations. What he was onto, in short, was mortality.” - The Washington Post (MSN)

Producer Jeffrey Seller Recounts The Gestation And Birth Of “Rent”

“In this excerpt, adapted from Seller’s memoir, Theater Kid (out on May 6 from Simon & Schuster), the producer lays out the musical’s long road from dispiriting workshop to its simultaneously triumphant and tragic first preview performance.” - Vulture

Mario Vargas Llosa, Last Of The Latin American ‘Golden Generation’ Of Writers, Has Died At 89

“Vargas Llosa, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2010, gained renown as a young writer with slangy, blistering visions of the corruption, moral compromises and cruelty festering in Peru.” - The New York Times

Looks Like The White House Has Replaced Obama’s Official Portrait With Portrait Of Trump Raising His Fist

A spokesperson wrote that the Obama portrait was simply moved. “Last month, the Trump administration and the Kremlin confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin gifted a portrait to the president. It is unclear whether the portrait now hanging in the White House was a gift from Putin.” - Hyperallergic

Ireland’s Trailblazing Artists Were Treated So Badly That One Retreated To A Convent

"The Irish Times used the phrase 'freak pictures’ in a review, and Russell again had a field day, referring to their work as ‘artistic malaria.’ It all weighed heavily on them both.” - The Guardian (UK)

The BBC Did What With A Pedophile’s Art?

They reinstalled Eric Gill’s statue, is what they did. Now it’s behind a “protective screen” (to protect the sculpture, that is), but, uh, "visitors can now scan a QR code near the building to understand the dark background of the sculpture’s creator.” - The Guardian (UK)

Subscribe to our newsletter

Join our 30,000 subscribers

function my_excerpt_length($length){ return 200; } add_filter('excerpt_length', 'my_excerpt_length');