ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

Today’s AJ Highlights

Good Morning: What happens when you make things easy? Getting any music you want. News traveling in rivers of stories. Distraction to fill in every available crack in your day. Do we value the music, the news, the distractions more because its easy to get? Or because it’s so ubiquitous do we lose investment in seeking out music or news or movies? Or valuing the artists and reporters that created it? And if it’s so available and, conversely, easily dismissed with a click or a swipe, do we develop any relationships with the art or artists? Turns out, the right kinds of friction in an experience can make it richer and deepen your relationship with it. Read more here in the Guardian.

  1. Threat To Our Future? An Empathy Gap “People find it easier to empathize with a single individual than with groups, plausibly because individuals are easier to conjure in one’s imagination. Therefore, the difference in empathy toward a present person and future others in general is likely even greater than what we’ve found.” – Psyche
  2. How WH Auden Used Culture To Reconsider His Place In The World
    “His work of this period combined a proclamation of the value of microcultures with a commitment to an intellectual cosmopolitanism. He celebrated the ‘local understanding’, but what bound the members of that salon to one another was the combination of cultural and national diversity with moral sympathy.” – Hedgehog Review
  3. When Classical Music Forgeries Pass As The Real Thing, What Does That Say About Us? This thought-provoking piece examines the history of classical music forgeries and how our perception of authenticity shapes the value we assign to art. – The Guardian
  4. How AI De-Aged Tom Hanks In His New Movie Exploring cutting-edge AI technology, this article reveals the processes behind digitally de-aging Tom Hanks in his latest film, underscoring AI’s growing role in filmmaking. – Wired
  5. Major Neurological Study Looks At How Our Brains Respond To Live Dance A pioneering research project investigates the neurological response to live dance performances, blending neuroscience and choreography to uncover how we experience movement. – The Guardian

As usual, jump below to see all the stories we collected in the past day, arranged by art form. If you know someone who might be interested in AJ, send them here to subscribe, or forward this newsletter so they can sign up. See you tomnorrow.

Doug

Latest Stories

Japanese City Cancels Major Cherry-Blossom Festival Because Tourists Behave So Badly

City officials in Fujiyoshida, not far from Mount Fuji, said residents had been littering, entering private homes to use the bathroom, and even defecating in people’s yards and getting belligerent when confronted. The weeks-long event had attracted about 200,000 visitors each year for the past decade. - The Guardian

How Typists Have Shaped Literary Masterpieces

The typewriter, from its birth, has been tied to a set of assumptions about gender and skill. These assumptions persist to the present and color our cultural understanding of typists’ labor. - Public Domain Review

“& Juliet” — How A Jukebox Shakespeare Musical That Flopped In Britain Became An Unlikely Broadway Hit

“Today, (after almost four years in New York,) the musical is still packing in crowds, a feat for a show that isn’t a revival or a movie adaptation and lacks big stars or Tony wins. It’s ... one of only four new musicals since the pandemic to recoup their...

Premium

Executive Director – The Washington Ballet

The Executive Director of The Washington Ballet will co-lead the organization with Artistic Director Edwaard Liang..

2 Arts Marketing, Development & Ticketing Conferences Devoted to Solutions for the New Era!

Make Up for Lost Revenue from Traditional Sources. Join us in Toronto, July 14-15 or Seattle, August 11-12. Register by February 20 to get 3-for-1!

President & CEO – Wharton Arts

Wharton Arts welcomes nominations and applications for the newly defined leadership position of President and CEO, available in the Spring of 2026.

Chief Financial Officer – Sarasota Opera

Sarasota Opera welcomes applications and nominations for the position of Chief Financial Officer, available in the Spring of 2026.

The Illinois Symphony Orchestra seeks Director of Development.

The next Director of Development will lead all fundraising efforts for the Illinois Symphony Orchestra to strengthen the ISO’s visibility and supporter relationships.

Classifieds

Seeking Chief Marketing & Communications Officer with experience in the Performing Arts nonprofit industry

Seattle Theatre Group (STG) is seeking an experienced, innovative Chief Marketing and Communications Officer (CMCO). The CMCO is a vital member of STG's senior leadership.

Carmel Bach Festival Director of Development

The Carmel Bach Festival (CBF) seeks a dynamic and results-oriented Director of Development.

The McCallum Theatre seeks Vice President—General Manager

The McCallum Theatre seeks Vice President—General Manager. Salary range is between $170,000 and $185,000.

Columbia Museum of Art – Executive Director

The Columbia Museum of Art (CMA), in Columbia, South Carolina, an AAM-accredited institution, seeks an Executive Director to build upon its 75-year legacy.

Classic Stage Company seeks General Manager

Classic Stage Company seeks General Manager. Salary is $90,000. Expected state date is mid-March.

New York Theatre Ballet seeks Managing Director

Managing Director opportunity at NYTB, leading growth, operations, partnerships, governance, and teams, delivering expansion, innovation, and compliance across the dance community.

Director of Artistic Operations

The Knights seek a Director of Artistic Operations to work with the Artistic Directors and Executive Director on high-level artistic planning and program implementation.
function my_excerpt_length($length){ return 200; } add_filter('excerpt_length', 'my_excerpt_length');