AJ Four Ways:
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- Finally, A New Broadway Musical Is Turning A Profit
“The Outsiders, … which opened in April 2024 and won the Tony Award for best new musical two months later, has recouped its $22 million capitalization costs. … The milestone, though occasionally achieved by plays and musical revivals, is an increasingly rare one for new musicals.” – The New York Times
- Study: AI “Creativity” Leads To Cultural Stagnation
The researchers called the outcomes “visual elevator music” – pleasant and polished, yet devoid of any real meaning. – The Conversation
- Trump Tries To Shift Blame For “Massive Deficit” At Kennedy Center
He posted on Truth Social, referring to cascading cancellations and plummeting ticket sales, “People don’t realize that The Trump Kennedy Center suffered massive deficits for many years and, like everything else, I merely came in to save it and, if possible, make it far better than ever before!” – The Daily Beast
- It’s An Old Question, But Let’s Consider Art Versus Entertainment
Entertainment is about diversion and pleasure. Fun. It occupies our attention, distracts us from boredom, and amuses. But many things in life can do that: food, games, conversation, idle distractions. If we define art solely as entertainment, we risk conflating it with any activity that gives pleasure, and end up with nothing distinctive about art. – 3Quarks Daily
- How The First Indigenous Work Commissioned By A Major Dance Company Came To Be
It’s part of an effort by the Royal Winnipeg, Canada’s oldest professional ballet company, to foster meaningful reconciliation with the country’s Indigenous people — echoing a broader national goal that has been pursued for decades. – The New York Times
- How Anthropic Scanned And Destroyed Millions Of Books Into Its AI Model
Within about a year, according to the filings, the company had spent tens of millions of dollars to acquire and slice the spines off millions of books, before scanning their pages to feed more knowledge into the AI models behind products such as its popular chatbot Claude. – Washington Post
- National Parks Pull Historical Signs And Displays To Comply With New Trump Directives
Trump officials have ordered national parks to remove dozens of signs and displays related to climate change, environmental protection and settlers’ mistreatment of Native Americans in a renewed push to implement President Donald Trump’s executive order on “restoring truth and sanity to American history.” – Washington Post
- How Do We Compete When “Excellence” Is No Longer The Quality That Stands Out?
The question is no longer just “How do we play Beethoven better?” but “How do we survive as a cultural institution in a digitized, competitive economy?” in a way to convince 21st-century society that it is still worthy? – LinkedIn
- Understanding The Trade In Culture Between The US And Canada
In 2023, the United States accounts for roughly two-thirds of all cultural exports ($18.1 billion, or 67%) and imports ($22.2 billion, or 62%). Canada had a $4.2 billion trade deficit with the USA in 2023. – Statistical Insights on the Arts
- Too Much TV? Let’s Think About What’s At Stake
I can’t imagine saying to my son that TV kills brain cells, but I do think it — or fear it. Our language might have shifted (today we talk about rotting), but the notion endures that watching too much TV and other visual content is detrimental for kids or at least has a whiff of moral failing. – The New York Times
- How El Sistema Has Survived During Venezuela’s Turmoil
Eduardo Méndez acknowledges that running El Sistema with the political and social backdrop of recent years has been challenging. – NPR
- Has Dancing In Clubs, Or In Public At All, Died Of Embarrassment And Fear of Social Media Shame?
“We spoke to DJs, dance experts, real estate agents who make dancing home-tour videos, aspiring professional dancers and club owners to get their take. Spoiler: Dancing is far from dead. But has it downsized? Migrated? Is it complicated? Yes, yes and yes.” – The Washington Post (MSN)
- Report: Financial Pressure Have Museums Rethinking Strategies
Over 50% of the AAM survey’s respondents reported fewer visitors than in 2019 and 29% reported “declines tied to weakened travel and tourism and/or economic uncertainty”. This, of course, varies hugely from state to state. – The Art Newspaper
- Philip Glass Cancels World Premiere At Kennedy Center
“(My) Symphony No. 15 is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message of the Symphony,” wrote the 89-year-old composer. “Therefore, I feel an obligation to withdraw this Symphony premiere from the Kennedy Center under its current leadership.” – The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
- Culture Change: Santa Fe Ties Its Minimum Wage To Cost-Of-Living
Starting next year, Santa Fe will become the first U.S. city to explicitly link the high cost of housing to the minimum wage. – Governing
- Cliburn Amateur Piano Competition Is Permanently Shut Down
The Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition, founded in 1999, was held eight times, most recently in 2022. News of its retirement comes just a few days after the announcement of the inaugural Cliburn International Competition for Conductors, to be held in June 2028 in Houston. – The Violin Channel
- What The New California Version Of The New York Post Is After
Says Nick Papps, founding editor-in-chief of the Murdoch tabloid California Post, “We’ll have the wit of the New York Post headlines, which is really important to it. … We want to be disruptors. We want to challenge status quos. We want to shake things up.” – TheWrap (MSN)
- BAFTA Nominations 2026: “One Battle After Another” Pips “Sinners”
One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson’s counterculture comedy, received 14 nominations for Britain’s equivalent of the Oscars, while Sinners, Ryan Coogler’s vampire thriller garnered 13. Marty Supreme and Hamnet each got 11 nods, while a sleeper, the Tourette’s comedy I Swear, landed five. – The Guardian
- Legal Teams Across The US Organize To Fight School And Library Book Bans
“Across America, publishers, libraries, and literary organizations are building a formidable litigation slate to ensure the availability of books in public and school libraries.” – Publishers Weekly
- Thieves Steal The Entire Collection Of Silver From A Silver Museum
Before dawn last Wednesday, two men broke into the Silver Museum in the Dutch city of Doesburg and stole every piece there except a few ceramic items on temporary display. – ARTnews
- Scholar Argues That Shakespeare Was Really Emilia Bassano, A “Black Jewish Woman”
The claim that Emilia Bassano Lanier was Shakespeare’s “Dark Lady” is now familiar; even the argument that she — a published poet under her own name — was the real writer of Shakespeare’s works has been made before. Historian Irene Coslet is now arguing that Bassano Lanier was both Jewish and Black. – The Standard (London)
- Seattle Center is Falling Apart: Notes from the East German Judge“Seattle’s Living Room” requires a billion dollar renovation. Here’s a thought…
- Opera Philadelphia Extends General Director Anthony Roth Costanzo’s Contract
The renowned countertenor/impresario, who took the helm of the admired-but-struggling company in 2024, has added two years to his contract, which now ends after the 2028-29 season. The company has also extended the contract of music director Corrado Rovaris through May 2029. – The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
- Good Morning
Today’s AJ highlights: The occupation of Minneapolis continues but signs of resistance mount. Philadelphia is suing the Trump administration after federal workers removed a memorial to the enslaved people of George Washington’s household from Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia, leaving only their names engraved on a wall (Bucks County Beacon). This act of erasure resonates with Salman Rushdie’s warnings from Sundance, where he argued that “for the authoritarian, culture is the enemy” because it represents the complexity that tyranny seeks to destroy (The Guardian).
In the digital realm, the resistance to “synthetic” culture is getting creative. An art student in Alaska explains why he ate a banana-taped-to-wall style AI artwork in protest, calling the machine-generated piece “insulting” to human effort (The Nation). Meanwhile, Wikipedia editors are cataloging the “tells” of AI writing to purge it from the encyclopedia (Ars Technica) , and critics are lamenting the descent of literary coverage into “book slop”—vacuous, list-based content designed for algorithms rather than readers (The Baffler).
Finally, stories about the infrastructure of the arts. The UK has announced a massive £1.5 billion investment to stabilize its cultural sector after years of austerity (The Conversation) , while Portland faces a difficult choice between renovating its seismically unsafe Keller Auditorium or building a new venue, with studies suggesting the city can’t support both (Oregon ArtsWatch). And in a twist of internet fate, Gary Larson’s The Far Side is enjoying a resurgence, driven by viral videos of cows using tools (NPR).
All of the stories we collected below:
- New York Theatre Ballet seeks Managing Director
The Managing Director (MD) serves as the company’s chief administrative and development leader. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the MD ensures that the organization’s activities and its administrative, financial, & operational systems effectively align with and support its mission and values. The MD works in close partnership with the Artistic Director (AD), Finance Director (FD) & Head of School (HS) to develop NYTB’s strategic plan & secure financial resources to implement, sustain, & grow the organization. Qualifications include strong experience in nonprofit leadership or arts administration; demonstrated success in grant writing, prospecting, & institutional fundraising; strong partnership & communication skills, especially in translating artistic/educational goals into compelling fundraising proposals; solid financial literacy; ability to manage multiple deadlines in a fast-paced, small-team environment; passion for performing arts & commitment to NYTB’s mission.
Key Responsibilities
Fundraising & Grant Development (Primary Focus)
- Lead NYTB’s overall fundraising strategy with special focus on researching, identifying, & securing grants (local, state, federal, corporate & foundation levels)
- Work closely with the AD & HS to collect annual data, align program plans, & devise strategy for funding artistic/educational initiatives & projects; translate the AD/HS visions into compelling grant cases to donors & institutions
- Work closely with the AD & HS to conceive & execute a thoughtful, coordinated yearly and long-term fundraising strategy for each program
- Execute the fundraising strategy by building & maintain a comprehensive grant and donation pipeline, including tracking deadlines, eligibility criteria, & reporting requirements; cultivate and develop strong relationships with program officers, foundation staff, government arts agencies, corporations, private philanthropic partners & donors; plan & lead fundraising events; track grant outcomes, reporting, & compliance to ensure all grant obligations are met
- Develop & oversee the company’s earned income strategy, including ticketing, touring & merchandising
Operations & Administration
Manage daily operations of NYTB’s facilities (office/studio, storage units) & vendor relationships
Oversee systems for data management, ticketing, CRM, & donor databases
Spearhead administrative tasks related to productions in NYC and on tour, including theater rentals & relationship with their staff; crew load-in & load-out schedules; hotel & transportation; food & per diems on tour
Help find, schedule, & negotiate NYTB tours
Serve as a spokesperson at public & fundraising events
Manage risk, including overseeing insurance and legal compliancePartnership with FD, AD & HS
• Manage the company’s brand identity, ensuring alignment with the company’s
community outreach, education, access & diversity goals
• Collaborate to align program plans/schedules & needs, advising on budget
implications of programming & helping to develop multi-year financial scenarios
• Cultivate supporters, schools & cultural organizations, major donors, businesses &
other local partners to expand community reach
Support marketing & audience-growth initiatives to increase ticket sales, school enrollment & overall visibility
Oversee external communications, including the company’s website, social channels, online campaigns & public relations, ensuring alignment with brand identity & grant narratives
Hire, supervise, train, & evaluate staff (including administrative assistant, office manager), contractors, interns, & volunteers
• Monitor and evaluate program effectiveness, using data to inform decisions & report
outcomes to funders & the Board
Develop, oversee, & monitor annual operating budget in collaboration with the AD, HS, & FD, supporting effective governance & strategic planning & jointly presenting to the Board & committees as necessary
Build & maintain relationships with Board – preparing materials for presentations & committees to support governance, strategic planning & Board development
Support the FD as needed to ensure accurate financial reporting, cash flow planning, compliance with nonprofit accounting standards, & preparing timely & accurate state & federal filings & audits.Inquiries: nytb@kelceycoffin.com
- The Allure Of “Lost” Civilizations
Who doesn’t want to know how a lost civilization got lost, or where it might be hiding? The trouble is that what gets touted as a lost civilization often turns out to have been there all along. – The New Yorker
- The UK Has Announced £1.5B Investment In The Arts. So…
A £1.5 billion investment is welcome news for a sector buffeted by years of austerity and inflation (not to mention the long tail of pandemic shutdowns). But the devil is in the detail, as ever, and the wider context: definitions of “infrastructure” beyond the landmarks, and its relationship to cultural workers. – The Conversation
- Lately We’ve Praised Boredom. But Maybe It’s Not Really The Path To Resetting
You might think that there’s so much at our fingertips now, surely boredom is gonna go away. But what we’re finding is that it’s actually increasing. So one speculation is that our capacity to connect well is diminishing, and as that’s happening, we’re getting more bored. – Nautilus
- How Book Reviews Became Book Slop
Lydia Kiesling reflects on how book coverage devolved into bloated, AI-adjacent list culture, tracing her own path through The Millions and the broader media collapse. – The Baffler
- Philadelphia Sues Trump Over Removal Of Memorial Of Enslaved People
Workers on Thursday removed the exhibit, which included biographical details about the nine people enslaved by the Washingtons at the presidential mansion. Just their names — Austin, Paris, Hercules, Christopher Sheels, Richmond, Giles, Oney Judge, Moll and Joe — remain engraved into a cement wall. – Bucks County Beacon
- Adults Should Maybe Use Their Phones Less? It’s Really A Matter Of Culture
Ultimately, this is an issue not of screens versus humans, but of how families navigate connection in a world where attention is mediated by devices in every age group. – The Atlantic
- Good Decisions Are About Culture (Which AI Doesn’t Have)
The most consequential decisions in business have never been about processing information faster or detecting patterns more efficiently. The most salient concerns are questions such as what kind of enterprise a firm should aspire to be, what culture it should embrace. – The New York Times
- Wikipedia Has Been Cataloging The “Tells” Of AI Writing. Here’s A List
The source material is a guide from WikiProject AI Cleanup, a group of Wikipedia editors who have been hunting AI-generated articles since late 2023. – Ars Technica
- Salman Rushdie On Violence And Culture
“For the authoritarian, culture is the enemy,” he added. “The uncultured and ignorant and tyrannical don’t like it. And they take steps against it, which we see every day.” – The Guardian
- Wikipedia At 25: What The Internet Can Be
Perhaps the greatest compliment to Wikipedia at 25 years old is the fact that, if the fascists can’t buy it, then they’re going to try to kill it. – Anil Dash
