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- Gillian Fox shares key strategies to engage the next generation of arts supporters
Gillian Fox, President & CEO of Caramoor, shares strategies to engage the next generation of arts supporters.
- Can We Beat the Lies? All the Lies?<a href="https://www.artsjournal.com/herman/2026/05/can-we-beat-the-lies-all-the-lies.html" title="Can We Beat the Lies? All the Lies?“
- A system designed to overwhelm
Good Morning,
Three AI stories today, all pointing the same way. The Atlantic argues that the speed of the AI rollout is the strategy — it’s designed to overwhelm us (The Atlantic). The magazine also reports the anti-AI backlash is growing whether or not layoffs materialize (The Atlantic). And a new study finds that generative AI, while boosting individual output, is narrowing the diversity of creative ideas across users (PsyPost). The productivity dividend is starting to look like a creativity tax.
The plucky Washington National Opera unveils its post-Kennedy Center season — five operas on five stages, including a world premiere about Georgia O’Keeffe (The New York Times). San Francisco Arts Commission staff are publicly asking where their absent director has been (San Francisco Chronicle). And a Louvre employee was indicted for selling thousands of fraudulent tickets (ARTnews).
A Rothko sold for $86 million at Sotheby’s this week. It was bought for $6.7 million in 2003 (Wall Street Journal). Art as investment asset, not artwork. And Gen Z — the generation supposedly killing the movie theater — is going more often than boomers are (The Guardian). They see the virtues.
All of our stories below. Till tomorrow,
Doug
- ARTISTIC DIRECTOR BALLET WEST
BALLET WEST, founded in 1963 by Willam Christensen, is one of America’s leading and largest ballet companies. The Company boasts a rich and varied repertoire, elegant and versatile artists and an American style and legacy that is as dynamic, expansive, and unexpected as the Rocky Mountain region it represents. Ballet West has toured the world several times, presenting the very best in American classical ballet. Nearly 100,000 students are served through outreach programs each year, reaching 100% of all Utah school districts. The Company continues to build future ballet artists and audiences by providing classical ballet training through the Frederick Quinney Lawson Ballet West Academy and its four campuses in downtown Salt Lake City, Pleasant Grove (Utah County), and Park City. With more than 1,000 students, it is the largest ballet and dance school in the Intermountain Region.
Responsibilities
I. Artistic Vision and Leadership
• Serve as the artistic leader of Ballet West. Develop and articulate a clear artistic vision for Ballet West– a vision that is innovative, inspirational, and engaging.
• Co-lead the organization with the Executive Director, consistently communicating purpose and vision to the staff and community.
• Collaborate with Board leadership and senior management to develop plans for achieving artistic and strategic goals. Effectively implement strategic plans adopted by the organization.
• Direct and lead all the artistic and production aspects of Ballet West, including planning seasons that will advance the organization’s mission and build audiences while maintaining fiscal integrity.
• Conceive, oversee, and enhance the high quality of Ballet West productions and the level of training of the dancers in all performances in Salt Lake City and on tour, in lecture demonstrations, and in all promotional activities.
• Select all dancers for the main company, Ballet West II, and the Ballet West Academy Trainee Program; determine retention and non-retention of all dancers in the main company, Ballet West II, and Ballet West Academy Trainee Program.
• Collaborate on and approve promotional and advertising images of Company artists for marketing, press, and social media.
• Serve as Artistic Director of the Frederick Quinney Lawson Ballet West Academy, fully aligning its work with Ballet West’s mission, vision, and values.
• Further diversity, inclusion, and accessibility through all facets of the organization.
• Oversee the Music Director, collaborating to bring outstanding musical accompaniment to productions featuring the Ballet West Orchestra.II. Artistic Planning and Administration
• Supervise and nurture the professional development of dancers, artistic staff, FQL Ballet West Academy School Director, Education and Outreach Director, and leading production personnel in accordance with Ballet West HR policies including annual performance reviews; follow collective bargaining agreements into which Ballet West has entered.
• Maintain a program plan of no less than three, and ideally five years to assist in planning, budgeting, marketing, and fundraising.
• Participate in annual budgeting process.
• Support Ballet West’s external affairs department with campaigns designed to marketing each company season, tours and the FQL Academy.
• In conformity with Ballet West’s employment and hiring guidelines, goals for increasing diversity, and Board approved budget, oversee and approve the hiring, retention and termination of dancers and other artistic personnel (including, but not limited to, the School Director, Rehearsal Directors, Choreographers, Composers, Conductors, Music Director, FQL Academy faculty, Rehearsal Pianists, Set Designers, Lighting Designers, Costume Designers, etc.)
• Manage the FQL Ballet West Academy Director, ensuring that training is comported to professional standards and promotes ballet and dance in the community:
• Develop, collaborate, and oversee curriculum on ongoing basis.
• Approve teaching methods, syllabus, theory of technique or style of placement.
• Manage and oversee scheduling of classes, rehearsals, and performances with a focus on dancer health, fitness, and well-being.
• Approve all sets, costumes, and lighting designs.III. Advocacy and Relationship Building
• Act as a face of Ballet West and one of the Ballet’s principal voices in the community.
• Work closely with the Executive Director and Board to accomplish fund-raising objectives of the Ballet, especially developing and maintaining key donor relationships.
• Attend all meetings of the Executive Committee of the Board and all meetings of the full Board, reporting on the activities of the Company and, as appropriate, academy and community programs.
• Participate in fundraising, marketing, and promotional activities as requested.
• Take a leading role in forging collaborations and partnerships to increase the visibility and importance of Ballet West.
• In concert with the marketing team, enhance the strength of the Ballet West brand throughout the region.Education and Experience
Extensive experience in ballet performance and rehearsal skills. Overall knowledge of production requirements in all aspects of bringing large scale productions to performance standards.
• Extensive knowledge of ballet, dance, and ballet technique.
• An understanding and respect for stylistic differences and a flexibility in approach to each unique work.
• Good mentoring skills.
• Basic computer and audio equipment skills.Requirements
I. Knowledge and Abilities
• Knowledge of various syllabi, teaching techniques.
• Abilities – choreography, repetiteur.
• Characteristics – patience, intuition, creativity.
• Experience- 10 years of performing and teaching.
• Flexible availability during rehearsal and production periods.
• Ability to solve problems and deal with student emergencies including, but not limited to, injury and illness.
• A passion for working with students of all ages.
• Positive attitude and inspiring presence.
• Sound interpersonal and team building skills.
• Ability to work closely with the artistic, production, and management staff.
• Strong organizational and administrative skills.II. Physical Requirements
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit for long periods of time. The position may require walking primarily on a level surface for long periods throughout the day and demonstrating/correcting dance steps and choreography. The employee must have visual acuity to read and draft reports, memos, letters, etc. Specific vision and aural abilities required by this job include vision and hearing adequate for the incumbent to perform the responsibilities and functions of the job efficiently. Must be able to speak English and communicate clearly.Background check required after a conditional offer of employment. Ballet West may deny or terminate employment based on background check results, subject to applicable laws.
Interested parties should contact:
Michael M. Kaiser
Chair
DeVos Institute of Arts and Nonprofit Management
Attention: AJCohen@devosinstitute.netBallet West embraces diversity and equal opportunity. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. We strongly encourage women, people of color, LGBTQIA+ individuals, people with disabilities, members of ethnic minorities, foreign-born residents, and veterans to apply. Ballet West is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will not be discriminated against due to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status.
- The Reinvention Of Washington National Opera
The opera, which announced it was severing its relations with the Kennedy Center as President Trump sought to put his imprint on the institution, said it would produce five full-length operas — including a world premiere based on the life of Georgia O’Keeffe — and three smaller-scale works on five stages across the region. – The New York Times
- How Langston Hughes’s “The Black Clown” Became An Opera
“The magic of creator, lead actor, and bass-baritone Davóne Tines’s operatic adaption of Langston Hughes’s 1931 dramatic monologue The Black Clown lies in its everythingness. (The) poem … consolidates 300 years of the Black American experience into 18 emotional stanzas.” – The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
- The AI Revolution Is Meant To Overwhelm You
I’ve written previously that one of AI’s enduring cultural impacts is to make people feel like they’re losing their mind. But lately, I believe, it’s the accelerated nature of the AI boom that’s driving people everywhere mad. – The Atlantic
- One Of Cuba’s Most Unusual Choreographers Tries To Stay Afloat Amid The Island’s Economic Collapse
“For nearly three decades Cuba’s Danza Voluminosa regularly filled prestigious venues like the 2,000-seat National Theater. Directed by Juan Miguel Mas, the troupe pioneered a new movement by working exclusively with larger-bodied dancers. … (Now) Mas’s daily life has been upended by persistent blackouts, water outages, soaring costs and a lack of transportation.” – AP
- A Rothko Sells For $86 Million
The seller of the 1957 work, “Brown and Blacks in Reds,” was the estate of former Goldman Sachs banker turned art dealer Robert Mnuchin, who paid $6.7 million for the work in 2003. The winning telephone bidder at Sotheby’s was anonymous. – The Wall Street Journal
- The Anti-AI Backlash Is Growing
Even absent any uptick in AI-induced layoffs, the anti-AI sentiment is likely to keep growing. – The Atlantic
- Sorry, But Introspection Is Just An Illusion
There are no such stable beliefs and desires “inside” us that can be observed and reported. Instead, the human mind is a wonderfully fluent, but profoundly deceptive, improviser: spinning stories justifying our thoughts and actions as fast as we ask questions. And these invented explanations are vague, inconsistent, and often provably wrong. – IAI News
- Trial Begins For Murder Of Art Dealer Brent Sikkema, Allegedly By Order Of His Husband
“The estranged husband of a prominent New York City art dealer said he wished his spouse was dead before the co-owner of a contemporary art gallery was found stabbed to death in his Brazilian townhouse, a witness testified Tuesday as a murder-for-hire trial got underway in Manhattan.” – AP
- What Kinds Of Non-Fiction Reporting Wins Pulitzers
If you do look closely at the history, biography, memoir, and general-nonfiction honors, a noticeable pattern emerges. The picks typically share a particular quality. – The Atlantic
- Would Paying Reviewers Help Fix The Peer Review Problem?
“The current system of unpaid reviews undermines the standards of the peer-review process. It produces late reviews and excludes large segments of the research community who cannot afford to work for free. If you have a financial commitment from the reviewer, it creates a lever for expecting quality. Payment creates accountability, not corruption.” – InsideHigherEd
- GenZers Are Going To Movie Theatres: Here’s Why
People born between 1997 and 2012 are now more frequent cinemagoers than some older age groups, according to a US-based survey by Fandango, with 87% having seen at least one film in a cinema in the last 12 months compared with 58% of baby boomers. – The Guardian
- London Museum To Return Old Jain Manuscripts (Though They Aren’t Leaving Britain)
The Wellcome Collection is ceding ownership of more than 2,000 documents, dating from the 15th to 19th centuries, bought from a Jain temple in present-day Pakistan in 1919. Now deeming the purchase of the manuscripts “unethical,” the museum is turning them over to the UK-based Institute of Jainology. – The Telegraph (UK) (Yahoo!)
- Study: Use Of AI Narrows Diversity Of Creativity
A recent preprint study provides evidence that while these tools might boost individual performance, they contribute to an overall reduction in the diversity of ideas across different users. – PsyPost
- Knoxville Removes Alex Haley’s “Roots” From School Libraries
“Roots” is a multi-generational story following the descendants of a man sold into slavery in the United States. It won the Pulitzer Prize and was adapted into a mini-series. There is a statue of Haley in East Knoxville. – WATE
- What Pop Music Criticism Has Become
The “Greatest Living Songwriters” list was dumb clickbait which omitted an entire pantheon of irreplaceably brilliant songwriters. But the thing I most lament is the loss of a critical landscape in which you could open up the paper each morning and read six reviews of weird shows on the Lower East Side. – Gabrial Kahane
- How Some Of Broadway’s Biggest Stars This Season Get Themselves Into Character
Daniel Radcliffe, Every Brilliant Thing: “My ideal version is that the play starts without you noticing.” Ana Gasteyer, Schmigadoon!: “People from my particular background, which is Saturday Night Live, which is sketch, work very quickly. There is no process.” – The New York Times
- Have A Look Inside The New Home Of Chicago’s TimeLine Theatre
“It’s a $46 million project built within the shell of a historic storage warehouse that was built by the W.C. Reebie and Brother Company in the 1910s, and the big vertical sign is easily visible to anyone traveling past.” – Chicago Tribune (Yahoo!)
- Staffers At San Francisco Arts Commission Want To Know Where The Hell Their Boss Is
“Employees and artists are speaking out about turmoil in the San Francisco Arts Commission, alleging that its leader has been chronically absent and arguing that it’s harming the arts by cutting staff and changing how it funds artists.” – San Francisco Chronicle (Yahoo!)
- The Dallas Opera Appoints New CEO, David Lomelí
Previously chief artistic officer at Santa Fe Opera, Lomelí — who had an 11-year career as a tenor — has spent more than a decade over the years working with The Dallas Opera as consultant, artistic administrator, and founding director of the Hart Institute for Women Conductors. – The Dallas Morning News (MSN)
- Suspect Arrested In Massive Louvre Ticketing Scam
“A Louvre employee was indicted and detained on Wednesday on charges including organized gang fraud as part of an investigation into a scheme to defraud the Paris museum of ticket fees for thousands of visitors. Six others had been placed in custody ‘because of the communications they may have had with the first defendants’.” – ARTnews
- Settlement Reached In South Florida Public Radio Lawsuit
“In an out-of-court settlement announced Thursday, the Miami-Dade County School Board, which owns the news/talk outlet (WLRN), and South Florida Public Media Group, which manages it, say they have struck a seven-year management deal for WLRN.” – Inside Radio
- Claudine Longet — Singer, Actress, Notorious Criminal Defendant — Has Died At 84
“The French-born singer, actress and ex-wife of Andy Williams was at the center of a scandalous 1976 trial and media circus after she fatally shot her boyfriend, Olympic skier Spider Sabich.” – The Hollywood Reporter
- The State Museum of Pennsylvania – Director
The State Museum of Pennsylvania (SMOP) seeks a strategic, collaborative leader to serve as its Director.
As a bureau of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC), the Museum brings Pennsylvania’s natural and cultural history to life through collections of more than 12 million artifacts spanning cultural history, art, archaeology, geology, paleontology, and natural history.
Over the next several years, the Museum will undergo a $58 million transformation — the largest investment in the complex since 1964. This is a rare opportunity for a mission-driven museum leader to guide a statewide institution through a once-in-a-generation renewal. The Director will shape a reimagined visitor experience, deepen community engagement, collaborate with staff and steward collections through the transition, championing the importance of Pennsylvania’s history now and for the future. PHMC seeks a collaborative, experienced museum leader with a passion for public history who will serve as a visible, compelling spokesperson, sustain engagement during closure, build momentum for reopening, and thrive in the Museum’s public-sector environment.
The Museum has an annual operating budget of approximately $4 million, as well as a planned capital budget of approximately $80 million over 10 years to support continued exhibition development. Salary begins at $115,000 and includes a competitive Commonwealth benefits package. The start date is projected for late summer 2026. The search is being led by Syrah Gunning of the DeVos Institute of Arts and Nonprofit Management. Learn more and apply at: https://tinyurl.com/SMOPaj
- Remembering “The Pied Piper Of Early Music,” David Munrow, 50 Years After His Suicide
“With all the bravura of the 1960s, David Munrow erupted into the world of early music and transformed what had been a minority interest into popular listening. His … impact lives on in the music he rediscovered and popularised, and the innovative ways in which he presented and performed it.” – The Guardian
- Ontario Starts Crackdown On Ticket Resellers
The Ontario government has begun cracking down on ticket scalpers and resale websites to make sure they’re complying with new rules brought in last month that cap the resale price of tickets at face value, as some ticketing platforms still openly list tickets for well above their original price. – CBC
- The Producer Who Wants To Make Microdramas Which Are Actually Good
“Snow Story Productions CEO Austin Herring said the big hits in microdramas were ‘borderline unwatchable’ when he entered the field in 2024, where salacious and soap opera-level storytelling were the norm. But he remained committed to elevating the production standard.” – TheWrap (MSN)
- Neue Galerie To Merge With The Metropolitan Museum
Beginning in 2028, the Metropolitan Museum of Art will own the Neue’s Fifth Avenue home and the prestige collection of 20th-century Austrian and German art built by Ronald S. Lauder. – The New York Times
- Netflix Becomes An Ad Giant: 250M Subscribers
The streaming titan said Wednesday during its “upfront” presentation to advertisers that its ad-supported subscription tier reaches reaches more than 250 million global monthly active viewers, up from the 190 million it cited in November of 2025. – Variety
- Study: People Are Bad At Figuring Out What They Don’t Know (Yet They Think They Can)
People aren’t just bad at remembering things they see all the time, but also in actually knowing how they work. In a 2006 study, many people made significant errors when drawing a bicycle, like putting the chain around the front wheel as well as the back wheel. – The Conversation
- Aszure Barton’s Final Choreography Commission For Hubbard Street Dance Chicago
LubDub is the fourth and final piece of Barton’s three years as Hubbard Street’s resident choreographer. “Asked to discuss the movement vocabulary she employs here, Barton demurred. But when the descriptor ‘unruly’ was suggested, she was quick to embrace it. … (And) there are plenty of quirky, unexpected sights in the piece.” – WBEZ (Chicago)
- How Your Brain Toggles Between The Familiar And Exploration
Research from my team suggests that people balance between exploration and habit – that is, trying something new or sticking with the familiar – when deciding what route to take. Which navigation strategy someone chooses depends not only on their spatial abilities but on their network of brain regions that support navigation. – The Conversation
