When the series began, or even during financing, “There was scepticism about whether anyone in France, let alone audiences around the world, had any interest in a dramedy that pulled back the veil on the Gallic film industry.” Er … very, very wrong. - Irish Times
“The proposed class action alleges that Meta violated Illinois and California privacy laws by extracting biometric information from people’s photos without notice or consent” for training smart glasses - and generative AI images. - Wired
“Museum workers, the police and government officials are rattled. They worry about how to protect France’s cultural patrimony in an era of increasingly violent criminal gangs, some of whom have broken into museums in broad daylight.” - The New York Times
When Paulson got the script from fellow actor and writer Cody Fern, “I thought he must have sent to Cate Blanchett or Kate Winslet. … It’s a part in the film space that I haven’t had the opportunity to embody.” - Variety
“While not necessarily his best photograph — he wished it had been sharper — the Davis picture became part of a portfolio of remarkable depth.” - The New York Times
Of course, the “request” came on conservative social media site Truth Social. It “underscores a perception that he sees himself as curator-in-chief of the nation’s national museum.” - The Guardian (UK)
Timnit Gebru: Sometimes “I read quotes to people about artificial intelligence that I’ve gathered in my research, and I ask, What decade was this statement made in? Sometimes people get it right, but a lot of times they do not, because it all sounds the same.” - Wired
Hm: “A judge has instructed Paramount, California attorney general Rob Bonta, and the Writers Guild of America to sit down and talk face-to-face in a month.” - Vulture
Oh, says the company doing the spying, not that much. “The word ‘continuously’ is doing a lot of heavy lifting here as Gamers Nexus demonstrated on LG TV keeping extensive logs of ambient conversations.” This seems fine. - The Verge
What could justify moving the fragile tapestry to Britain this year? Probably politics: “Foot by foot, fiber by fiber, this is the material proof of England’s entwinement with the continent 21 miles from its coast.” - The New York Times
“Winning work highlighted during the 36th annual award ceremony” (which was in Zurich this year rather than Boston) “included hilarious research on the aerodynamics of nose blowing, gently stepping on venomous snakes, confirming that teenagers do indeed smell worse than babies and other side-splitting scientific undertakings.” - Smithsonian Magazine
In a tumultuous time for the industry, this transformation could help keep TIFF in the conversation, but as ticket prices rise, what does it all mean for the heart of this festival: the filmgoing public? - CBC
At this point in history, many of us think of the proscenium as conventional, perhaps limiting or even dull. Yet director Dominic Dromgoole describes it as “liberatingly restrictive,” like the sonnet form or the 12-bar blues. After all, the revolutionary work done by Chekhov and Brecht happened on proscenium stages … - The Guardian
The Chinese film and video industry is being transformed by AI-driven storytelling, fueled by rapid advances in video generation software, and at ground zero are the so-called micro dramas that play out on millions of smartphones. - Los Angeles Times
Flock was reported to have a valuation of more than eight billion dollars, with its biggest investor being the venture-capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. Around forty per cent of the United States’ law-enforcement agencies now have contracts with the company, and a reported hundred and thirty thousand cameras monitor roads in every state but Alaska. - The...
As young people, the future billionaires were spending hours (under their covers with flashlights, I imagine) consuming stories about killer robots or Mars colonies. What they seemed not to get—maybe couldn’t get—was that these were cautionary tales, stories that projected deep societal worries into space or onto a future many millennia away. - The Atlantic
“Experts say the revival in some of them is driven partly by second- and third-generation Africans in the diaspora finding it easier to reconnect with their roots and communicate with older relatives, thanks to social media, online learning and entertainment.” - AP
Shouting and a shoving match erupted as Italian-American artist Sergio Furnari unveiled his unpermitted life-size bronze memorial to slain right-wing activist Charlie Kirk in Times Square on Thursday. - ARTnews
Timnit Gebru: Sometimes “I read quotes to people about artificial intelligence that I’ve gathered in my research, and I ask, What decade was this statement made in? Sometimes people get it right, but a lot of times they do not, because it all sounds the same.” - Wired
“Winning work highlighted during the 36th annual award ceremony” (which was in Zurich this year rather than Boston) “included hilarious research on the aerodynamics of nose blowing, gently stepping on venomous snakes, confirming that teenagers do indeed smell worse than babies and other side-splitting scientific undertakings.” - Smithsonian Magazine
Flock was reported to have a valuation of more than eight billion dollars, with its biggest investor being the venture-capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. Around forty per cent of the United States’ law-enforcement agencies now have contracts with the company, and a reported hundred and thirty thousand cameras monitor roads in every state but Alaska. - The New Yorker
As young people, the future billionaires were spending hours (under their covers with flashlights, I imagine) consuming stories about killer robots or Mars colonies. What they seemed not to get—maybe couldn’t get—was that these were cautionary tales, stories that projected deep societal worries into space or onto a future many millennia away. - The Atlantic
"Far from merely raising a reactionary fist in the air at the new science, Swift identified an attitude that is still around today — and one that has created many of the greatest challenges now facing educators." - The Dial
When competent work is available at nearly zero cost, it provides little competitive advantage. We have seen versions of this value shift before: Cloud computing changed the skills required to manage infrastructure and GPS reduced the value of navigational skills. AI brought on a similar reset across a broader range of knowledge work. - Fast Company
“The proposed class action alleges that Meta violated Illinois and California privacy laws by extracting biometric information from people’s photos without notice or consent” for training smart glasses - and generative AI images. - Wired
Oh, says the company doing the spying, not that much. “The word ‘continuously’ is doing a lot of heavy lifting here as Gamers Nexus demonstrated on LG TV keeping extensive logs of ambient conversations.” This seems fine. - The Verge
Previous searches have largely revolved around professional qualifications. This one begins after Trump has spent more than a year demanding changes to the Smithsonian’s exhibits and leadership — and as Republicans and Democrats are already staking out competing visions for Bunch’s successor. - Washington Post (MSN)
After the attacks, Congress charged the Institution with documenting them and preserving the physical record. A quarter-century on, with the White House constantly accusing the Smithsonian of distorting American history, its 9/11 exhibit is especially fraught — and especially important. - The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
Where in most other industries bargaining occurs between workers and employers, in subsidised cultural institutions wage negotiations are often inseparable from questions of government support. - The Conversation
“As one of New York’s most popular cultural destinations, it faces a number of challenges: how to evolve its sensitive content, reach a generation with no memory of the tragedy, and secure its financial future as former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, its primary benefactor, ages.” - The New York Times
The debate has come a long way since the advent of Auto-Tune, when artists like Cher and T-Pain had hits that used the technology to turn their recorded vocals into something markedly robotic. - The New York Times
The go-to web platform for finding scheduling information about opera worldwide, Operabase developed the technology to convert fragmented information from different companies into a machine-readable, searchable record. Available in 31 languages, it has been online for three decades and is used by virtually the entire industry. - The Violin Channel
“The formerly prominent conductor Julian Wachner has been sentenced to nearly six years of probation after having pleaded guilty in July to five counts of possession of child sex abuse material and one count of possession of cocaine. Wachner must also register as a sex offender.” - NPR
“Last week leadership at the DSO informed employees that the positions of Director of Safety & Security, Manager of Volunteer & Patron Experiences, and Director of Culture & Inclusion had all been eliminated and that the responsibilities connected to these positions would now be managed by other members of the current staff.” - Encore...
“Many performances will be staged at multiple venues, bringing the NSO to new places and making the shows more accessible to the broader D.C. region than ever before. With so many venues to choose from, we put together a guide.” - The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
“Museum workers, the police and government officials are rattled. They worry about how to protect France’s cultural patrimony in an era of increasingly violent criminal gangs, some of whom have broken into museums in broad daylight.” - The New York Times
Of course, the “request” came on conservative social media site Truth Social. It “underscores a perception that he sees himself as curator-in-chief of the nation’s national museum.” - The Guardian (UK)
What could justify moving the fragile tapestry to Britain this year? Probably politics: “Foot by foot, fiber by fiber, this is the material proof of England’s entwinement with the continent 21 miles from its coast.” - The New York Times
Shouting and a shoving match erupted as Italian-American artist Sergio Furnari unveiled his unpermitted life-size bronze memorial to slain right-wing activist Charlie Kirk in Times Square on Thursday. - ARTnews
As French Culture Minister Catherine Pegard put it, “A break of two threads over a length of 70 meters was reported. … So today, if we say it is in the same state after having arrived in London as it was when it left Bayeux, I think we’re not very wrong.” - Le Monde
“Experts say the revival in some of them is driven partly by second- and third-generation Africans in the diaspora finding it easier to reconnect with their roots and communicate with older relatives, thanks to social media, online learning and entertainment.” - AP
The survey will talk to 5,000 book buyers and profile them by genre, covering how they discover books across every channel—including social media and other digital tools—where and how they buy, and their mix of print, e-book, and audio, with a deeper look at audio habits, subscription behavior, etc. - Publishers Weekly
The nonfiction collapse has profound implications for the industry. Nonfiction, historically, has always been seen as the more stable part of the business for logical reasons. The demand for nonfiction has always felt more predictable than fiction. - Dear Head of Mine
Vendler spent a lifetime – which ended in April 2024 – writing about lyric poetry. She believed literary criticism was about the pleasure of describing complex things and conveying the joy of understanding them to others. - London Review of Books
“Pinsky, an acclaimed poet and translator who served as U.S. laureate under the auspices of the Library of Congress from 1997-2000, won the Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize. He has long enjoyed recognition beyond the poetry world, even making public appearances with fellow New Jersey native Bruce Springsteen.” - AP
When the series began, or even during financing, “There was scepticism about whether anyone in France, let alone audiences around the world, had any interest in a dramedy that pulled back the veil on the Gallic film industry.” Er … very, very wrong. - Irish Times
When Paulson got the script from fellow actor and writer Cody Fern, “I thought he must have sent to Cate Blanchett or Kate Winslet. … It’s a part in the film space that I haven’t had the opportunity to embody.” - Variety
Hm: “A judge has instructed Paramount, California attorney general Rob Bonta, and the Writers Guild of America to sit down and talk face-to-face in a month.” - Vulture
In a tumultuous time for the industry, this transformation could help keep TIFF in the conversation, but as ticket prices rise, what does it all mean for the heart of this festival: the filmgoing public? - CBC
The Chinese film and video industry is being transformed by AI-driven storytelling, fueled by rapid advances in video generation software, and at ground zero are the so-called micro dramas that play out on millions of smartphones. - Los Angeles Times
The SCOTUS deadline is one day after the dozen blue states are set to argue against the David Ellison-owned Para’s desire for a $1.88 billion bond in front of a federal judge in Oakland. - Deadline
Brazilian dancer Nayara Lopes of Philadelphia Ballet spent this past season with FNB in Helsinki. In February, she was rehearsing the role of Cupid in Don Quixote when she was asked to wear white makeup for the staging. (As one might expect, she is now back in Philadelphia.) - Dance Magazine
“Nairobi’s street acrobats first began appearing in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, and they have since become normalized at traffic stops in and around the city, with acrobats taking advantage of gridlocks to perform in exchange for cash tips. It is how they earn a living.” - AP
“Located on a prominent site in Rotterdam’s historic docklands, … Danshuis will be the largest centre in Europe dedicated to the production and development of dance under one roof. Open to all ages and levels of experience, it will provide facilities for both professional and amateur dance-making.” - Gramilano
“Why do you keep adding professionally trained dancers to the cast?” tweeted one fan in response to the news that the next crop of celebrity competitors — Jenna Dewan, Julia Stiles, and Harry Shum Jr. — have all at some point danced for their livelihood. - The Independent (UK)
Guillem Alonso and his colleagues trained a new generation of tap dancers, and that generation, in turn, developed its own styles, pedagogies, and companies. They’re still developing them, as are their students. The result is a hotbed of creativity. - San Francisco Classical Voice
In the wake of a beloved production manager’s death in a tragic accident last year, questions remain about how staff and interns manage the intense dance festival workload. - The New York Times
At this point in history, many of us think of the proscenium as conventional, perhaps limiting or even dull. Yet director Dominic Dromgoole describes it as “liberatingly restrictive,” like the sonnet form or the 12-bar blues. After all, the revolutionary work done by Chekhov and Brecht happened on proscenium stages … - The Guardian
The company, saying it needs to cut personnel costs by 5%, is launching what it calls a “‘Voluntary Leavers Scheme.” Britain’s oldest continuously operating theatre, the Bristol Old Vic has for years been struggling with a pandemic-related decline in attendance and sharp reductions in arts funding from the city. - Bristol Live
The first, starting previews next month, is Bruce Norris’s Downstate, about four convicted sex offenders, one of whom is confronted by a now-adult victim. The second has less fraught subject matter; in fact, it has almost no words at all. Bess Wohl’s Small Mouth Sounds stars Julia Roberts and Paul Rudd. - The Hollywood...
“The Gate Theatre, which has punched above its weight ever since it was founded above a Notting Hill pub in 1979, is to close permanently next month. The announcement comes four years after the theatre had what it described as a ‘devastating’ 100% cut to its Arts Council England funding.” - The Guardian
We’ve actually grown to be the largest Fringe Festival in the United States in terms of the number of venues being used. This year, we have more than 350 shows at over 100 venues. We’re taking over the whole city, with performances at traditional venues and theaters but also in places you might not...
“While not necessarily his best photograph — he wished it had been sharper — the Davis picture became part of a portfolio of remarkable depth.” - The New York Times
“When Cabrera began her long career, few other women in Mexico were taken seriously as artists, and sculpture was something that only men were expected to do. While she enjoyed some early recognition, … major institutions only started noticing her pioneering work much later in her life.” - ARTnews
Joaquín Ledesma Marquina, a singer and choral conductor who was at the heart of a growing vocal music scene in the city of Querétaro, was giving a concert at the Centro de las Artes there when he suffered a heart attack. - OperaWire
Through a combination of principled stances and deft political skills, he has kept the sprawling institution on mission and aligned with its public. - The Atlantic
“He played a leading role in developing the independent dance scene through the 1970s and early ‘80s, before going on to direct Ballet Rambert for six years from 1986, and then the Richard Alston Dance Company from 1994 to 2020.” - The Guardian
This year’s laurates of the ¥15 million (approximately $95,000) prize, awarded by the Japan Art Association in the categories of painting, sculpture, architecture, theatre/film, and music, are visual artists Holzer and Goldsworthy, architect Libeskind, actress Blanchett, and 99-year-old conductor Herbert Blomstedt, who was still working until earlier this year. - Artforum
Florida Studio Theatre (FST) is seeking a talented theater professional to lead the planning and execution of the organization’s core programming as Artistic Director.
Florida Studio Theatre invites applications for its Managing Director, a role for individuals with strong talent for running complex, multi-venue producing operations.
“Museum workers, the police and government officials are rattled. They worry about how to protect France’s cultural patrimony in an era of increasingly violent criminal gangs, some of whom have broken into museums in broad daylight.” - The New York Times
What could justify moving the fragile tapestry to Britain this year? Probably politics: “Foot by foot, fiber by fiber, this is the material proof of England’s entwinement with the continent 21 miles from its coast.” - The New York Times
The BBC’s charter, the legal document which enables the national broadcaster’s existence, must be renewed every ten years. That renewal results from a multi-year negotiation, with plenty of public participation, between the network and the national government — a process largely hidden from public view. - The Guardian
“Bunch's resignation comes at one of the most politically fraught moments in the Smithsonian's 180-year history. ... Trump has sought to purge what he calls ‘improper ideology’ from its museums, while his administration has threatened the institution's federal funding, tried to fire a museum director and challenged its authority over personnel and exhibitions.” - The Washington Post...
Venice only has two films directed by women this year - and one of those directors says that “the enduring cult of male genius is keeping down female film-makers.” - The Guardian (UK)
It’s "a nearly three-hour barn burner, racing from event to event with whirlwind kinetic energy. … Nolan’s reluctance to take a pause should, actually, give us pause. After all, Homer’s poem doesn’t just involve a lot of waiting. It is a postwar tale about waiting.” - Boston Globe
“It’s no longer strange to think that AI might be everywhere, edging out all forms of human interaction: bots talking to bots, all the way down.” This is … not great. - The Atlantic
“In the wake of Helene and the subsequent inland migration, the is teaching so-called Old World skills — like fiber arts and clay throwing — as essential tools in the modern age.” - The New York Times
“Thieves in Spain have raided the Treasure of Villena – a stunning collection of Bronze Age gold artefacts that has been described as the most important prehistoric trove in Europe – in the latest high-profile smash-and-grab heist on the continent.” - The Guardian
“Tenacious, obsessive and, in the eyes of her critics, relentlessly self-promoting, she became a pop-culture fixture, making brightly colored, instantly recognizable paintings, sculptures and installations that were exhibited at major museums and made her one of the world’s top-selling contemporary artists.” - The Washington Post (MSN)
“Though Curry would forever be the face that launched a thousand Time Warp dances …, he (was) far more than a one-trick pony over a career that spanned more than a half-century.” His roles ranged from Pennywise the Clown (Stephen King’s It) to Mozart (Amadeus, Olivier and Tony nominations) to King Arthur (Spamalot). -...
