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- AI Slop Is Flooding Streaming Music Services, But Who Wants It?
Very few, though “fully generative AI music will continue to be a threat to working musicians, session artists, library music composers, and the like. But they may struggle to find footing on the charts.” – The Verge
- Oh God, What Happened To The New Animal Farm, And Why?
Oh God, indeed: “A family of Latter-Day Saints heads up Angel Studios, and a fair share of its titles across both television and film spaces are right-leaning media with Christian values.” – Salon
- TSA And Lufthansa Lost The Oscar Of The Director Of Mr. Nobody Against Putin
But after an international outcry, Lufthansa managed to find it. The blame, though, rests with certain U.S. security forces: “A TSA agent stopped him and said the Oscar could be used as a weapon.” – CBC
- Stop Saying Satire Is Dead
“Can satire really change anything? Isn’t it a limp, almost quaint kind of protest?” – LitHub
- The Long History – And Surprising Philosophy – Of The Mummy Movie
Every era (and country) gets the mummy movies it deserves. And “in recent decades, the mummy film has taken on a decidedly populist and, in some cases, postmodern status.” – Reactor
- If You Want Privacy, Never Watch TV
Why? “Your TV and smartphone are far more interoperable and indistinguishable than ever before, and an inescapable user-tracking singularity is developing, accordingly, in your own living room.” – Slate
- The Pianist Who Cut Short His Career Because Of Stage Fright, And Then Became A Movie Star For Ethan Hawke, Has Died At 99
“Although he managed to perform well despite his stage fright, [Seymour] Bernstein eventually decided to quit. He gave his final public concert in 1977, at the age of 50.” – The New York Times
- Wait, Portland Has Another New Analysis Saying Two Concert Halls Would Be Just Fine
Competing studies find that Portland can support one performing arts center or maybe two performing arts centers, or not. And of course, “Portland has appointed a number of advisory committees to study the choices more closely before holding public hearings to make a final decision.” – Oregon ArtsWatch
- The White House’s Potential New Ballroom Has Even More Issues
“Each fence, bollard, and inch of blast-resistant laminated glass is a barrier between the people and their government. Virtually every modern presidency has understood this, leaning into discretion. … It was a bit of a fiction, but now we see the alternative, and it is grim.” – The Atlantic
- Consumers Sue To Block Paramount Merger With Warner Bros
“The lawsuit … alleges the Paramount-Warner deal will lead to increased prices, fewer consumer choices and reduce production of film and TV since a major rival in the entertainment business will be eliminated.” – Los Angeles Times (MSN)
- How Booker-Nominated Author Katie Kitamura Reads
“Even a book that I know I wouldn’t enjoy now would still be interesting to read, to figure out how both it and I had changed. And there is always the possibility that I would enjoy it after all. Books are always surprising you.” – The Guardian (UK)
- Wait, Just How Big Is Trump’s Desired Garden Of Heroes Supposed To Be Now?
Big, with a “Heroes Walk,’” and “accompanying the statues would be formal gardens, reflecting pools and plazas arranged in a style reminiscent of classical European planning traditions, according to renderings.” – The New York Times
- The Motion Picture Academy Says No AI Creation Will Win An Oscar
In another rule change, “the Academy also requires screenplays to be ‘human-authored’ and said it reserved the right to investigate the use of generative AI in any submission.” – NPR
- Not Even Vinyl Is Winning As Major Labels Try To Scoop Up Every Last Indie Act Possible
“Vinyl sales peaked during the Covid lockdowns and are now, after returning to pre-pandemic levels, plateauing or even on the downturn, while production costs are going up.” Streaming actually … isn’t as bad? – The Guardian (UK)
- Way, Way Too Early Predictions For The Emmys
“The tea leaves are there — it’s time to start scrutinizing them.” – Vulture (MSN)
- Whew, Hollywood Actors And Studios Seem To Have Figured Out A Contract Without A Strike
“The major issues on the agenda included artificial intelligence and streaming residuals, both of which also featured prominently in the 2023 strike.” – Variety
- So Many Actors Are Bopping Between HBO And New York’s Stages This Season
Actors from The Pitt, The Bear, and Hacks are taking their (in some cases, newfound) television fame back to where it all began for many of them: the stage. – The New York Times
- The Epic Journey Of Ukraine’s Origami Concrete Deer To The Venice Biennale
The journey began in 2018. “Over time [the deer] became a landmark, a well-known feature of the city. It was a peaceable, delicate creature to replace a symbol of military domination and violence. Fast forward to the summer of 2024.” – The Guardian (UK)
- Director of Production – Union Arts Center
Union Arts Center, home of ACT Contemporary Theatre & Seattle Shakespeare Company, is excited to announce an opening for a Director of Production (DOP). Union Arts Center (UAC) has successfully launched our inaugural season, which includes both contemporary and classical works. This is a momentous opportunity to join our merged organization within a collaborative and creative work environment. See more details about responsibilities and qualifications at https://www.unionartscenter.org/about/work-with-us/
The Director of Production is the head of the Production Department and an integral member of UAC’s senior leadership team. The DoP is responsible for the realization of UAC’s artistic vision, accountable for the quality of production values, and the efficient management of all production and artistic resources.
As Head of the Production Department, the DoP is responsible for developing, planning, budgeting, scheduling, implementing, and supervising all production activities. An essential component of this position is being a consistent role model of inclusive leadership, incorporating performance management best practices such as routinely thoughtfully receiving and delivering feedback.
The DoP reports to the Artistic Director. Direct reports include the Technical Director, Costume Department Manager, and Associate Production Manager. Indirect management of all shop staff. Position requirements include working onsite and managing an irregular schedule, including nights and weekends.
The annual salary for this full-time, exempt position is $110,000. The role is a primarily onsite position. UAC provides comprehensive benefits, including access to medical insurance, with UAC paying 92% of monthly deductible for the HMO plan, and dental and vision insurance with
employee contribution. Long term and life insurance premiums are fully covered by UAC. We offer 11 paid holidays, access to a 403b plan and $6 downtown Seattle parking and free tickets to UAC productions. PTO begins at 20 days per year and employees accrue sick time per Seattle Paid Sick
and Safe Time (PSST).Please apply by email your resume and a cover letter outlining your interest in the position and your qualifications at work@unionartscenter.org. If accommodations may be needed for the application process, please contact work@unionartscenter.org.
- AJ Chronicles: Are Our Attention Spans Killing Culture or Reassembling It?
Depth hasn’t disappeared. Perhaps it’s gone lateral. The vertical architecture that produced “official” cultural memory has cracked, but the appetite for tradition — for context, for lineage, for the why — has migrated to wherever audiences and individuals can build their own context and throughlines. Sometimes those lines are deep obsessive sturdy. Sometimes they are skimming across the surface of micro-videos and news of the day.
The post AJ Chronicles: Are Our Attention Spans Killing Culture or Reassembling It? appeared first on diacritical.
- Kaneza Schaal talks about America 250 at the Detroit Opera
Kaneza Schaal, Theater & Opera Artist & Director, talks about the extraordinary upcoming America at 250 season at Detroit Opera and its impact for audiences and community.
- Six Elite Ballet Dancers On What They Did After Retiring From The Stage
One became a kindergarten teacher and social worker; another became a midwife. One lucky fellow got to be artistic director of a company; another studied music and started conducting ballet orchestras. One got appointed to Britain’s House of Lords. And one, of course, became a consultant. – The Guardian
- The Struggle To Protect Mauritania’s Medieval Library Town
Chinguetti developed as a trading post on the trans-Sahara caravan route to Timbuktu — and, as in Timbuktu, over the centuries Chinguetti families came to amass important collections of medieval manuscripts on religion, law, and science. Now, as the population dwindles and the desert sand encroaches, preserving these collections is a challenge. – The Dial
- London’s New Banksy Statue Appears In The Middle of The Night
The sculpture depicts a man marching forward off a plinth while carrying a large, billowing flag that obscures his face. A video Banksy posted on social media shows the statue being towed to Westminster in the dead of night, alongside shots of the nearby statue of Winston Churchill. – The Guardian
- Troubled Minneapolis Theatre Puts Its Building Up For Sale
Three months after pausing its programming because of financial hardship, the Jungle Theater has put its south Minneapolis home up for sale. The company announced April 30 that it is actively looking for a buyer of its Lyndale Avenue S. building. – Minneapolis Star Tribune
- Lockhart: Boston Symphony Is Living On Borrowed Time
Keith Lockhart, longtime conductor of the Boston Pops, said Wednesday “there is a lot of blame to be spread around” for the turmoil that has engulfed the Boston Symphony Orchestra, noting that the BSO for years has been “living on borrowed time.” – Boston Globe
- Pay-To-Play: Rich People Are Hiring Themselves Orchestras To Conduct
“These experiences allow people with money but little musical ability to roleplay composer and conductor — for a price. This development flows naturally from this era’s extreme inequality as well as classical music’s precarious state, even in such historically generous countries as Germany. It risks reshaping the art itself to align with the whims of wealthy dilettantes.” – The Baffler
- Are Online Worlds The Only Place Children Have Unsupervised Freedom?
According to results from a 2025 Harris Poll, 62 per cent of American kids aged eight to 12 have never walked or biked somewhere without an adult. Roughly the same percentage have never made plans with friends without adult assistance, and almost half have never walked in a different aisle than their parents at a store. – Psyche
- What If There’s No Such Thing As Infinity?
“A lot of mathematicians just find the whole proposal preposterous,” said Joel David Hamkins(opens a new tab), a set theorist at the University of Notre Dame. Ultrafinitism is not polite talk at a mathematical society dinner. – Quanta
- 70-Year-Old Evelyn Hart Returns To Dance With The Royal Winnipeg — 50 Years After She Joined It
“I keep waking up every day, pinching myself, thinking I’m so lucky. It feels, literally, as if I’ve just been transported back in time,” says Hart, 70, who joined the company 50 years ago, in 1976. – Winnipeg Free Press
- An August Wilson Play In Italian? Yes, And With African-Italian Actors
“Renzo Carbonera, an Italian filmmaker, is making his theatrical directing debut with a production (of Jitney) that he says will be the first Italian-language translation of a Wilson play to be performed by a cast of Black-Italian actors in both Italy and the United States.” – The New York Times
- AI And A Permanent Underclass
Whether you talk with engineers, venture capitalists, founders or managers, or with doomers, accelerationists, lefties or libertarians, the so-called San Francisco consensus on the impact of A.I. for workers is bleak. – The New York Times
- This Season’s Broadway: Familiar, Yet Different
The shows that left the biggest impression on me — “Cats: The Jellicle Ball,” “Ragtime” and “Chess” — are well-known properties. But these warhorses have been rejuvenated in startling ways. – Los Angeles Times
- Gallery Appoints Economist-In-Residence
“We radically, radically need something new, because old thinking isn’t getting us anywhere. In my 30 years in the cultural sector I’ve never known a situation in which so many major institutions — the National Gallery, Tate — are in such a precarious economic state. If they catch cold, the rest of us will get pneumonia.” – Financial Times
- Check Out The Plans For Putting An Actual Park In The Middle Of Park Avenue
“A century ago, the median down … Park Avenue was much more welcoming than it is today, a place with seating and substantial plantings where you’d consider spending time. … In 2024, (New York City) announced a call for proposals wherein those two lanes would be reclaimed from traffic for leisure and greenery.” – Vulture (MSN)
