A featured link in ArtsJournal describes the exodus of the Atlanta Opera from its performance home downtown to a new facility in the suburbs next year. Says the article: The move is historic: It marks the first time a major-city opera company will leave its established location within a city and move all its performances […]
The Artful Manager turns three
Hard to believe that it was three years ago today that I launched this weblog with its first missive, and its statement of purpose. I’m astonished at the wealth of new friends and colleagues I’ve connected with, and the spectrum of wonderful thinking and resources I’ve discovered along the way. Thanks to all who make […]
Striving for clarity, watching for jargon
"Have something to say and say it as clearly as you can. That is the only secret of style." Matthew Arnold British poet and critic, 1822 – 1888 That wonderful quote launches ”When Words Fail,” the most recent of Tony Proscio’s three diatribes against the jargon of public purpose, and the vague and cluttered language […]
Content and commerce
Fellow blogger Tyler Green calls out the growing commerce-friendly focus of the Smithsonian Institution in this LA Times editorial. Says Green: The Smithsonian’s leaders and their congressional overseers are allowing too much of our national museum to be transformed into a series of pavilions where, in exchange for sponsorship money and other deals, corporations may […]
The art of data visualization
I’ll admit that I’m a sucker for great data visualization — that is, the graphic representation of statistical information. It may sound extraordinarily boring to some, but a well-designed graph or graphic can truly help people see their world differently, and challenge soft assumption with grounded observation. That’s why I’m so intrigued by GapMinder, an […]
Jugglers wanted
St. Paul theater critic Dominic Papatola writes an open memo to the Ordway Center for the Arts regarding their search for a new president (after David Galligan’s resignation a few weeks back). Papatola’s concerns about the job could well be said for any performing arts center with both a presenting wing and resident performing organizations: […]
Lawsuits and Lion King
Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts — dogged by budget problems and acoustic snafus since its opening — has found at least a short-term formula to turn a deep operating deficit into a sudden surplus: Broadway blockbusters plus litigation. The Center is waiting for auditors to confirm a $1.2 million budget surplus in its […]
Growing out of creativity
The good folks at the annual, invitation-only TED conference (Technology, Entertainment, Design) are finally sharing some of their big-wig keynote speakers through on-line video and audio. Of particular note is creativity and human resource guru Sir Ken Robinson, talking about creativity and education. Robinson believes our public education infrastructure conspires to destroy creative thought, and […]
Off for the week (and then some)
I’ll be away from the weblog this week and early next week, tending to much-needed home chores and life maintenance. See you on July 6.
A massive dose of perspective
If you need a new sense of where you are in the universe (a common need for a Friday), just take nine minutes to watch Powers of Ten, the classic instructional film that’s finally available on the web. The film, created in 1977 by Charles and Ray Eames, begins with an image of a man […]
