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Stories

Libraries As Activist Organizations?

The condemnation of the history of the American library, by its own gatekeepers, has done more than bring “Drag Queen Story Hour” to every children’s reading room. It has also upended the traditional role of the library as an organization primarily dedicated to the acquisition, preservation, and circulation of books. - New Criterion

Closing Of A Literary Magazine Demonstrates The Perilous Nature Of Literary Magazines

 Its short existence offers insight both into what is possible for a literary magazine to accomplish and into the tenuous place such publications occupy in the American publishing landscape. - The New York Times

London’s National Gallery Cancels Exhibition With Pushkin Museum

Although it was never publicized, the two institutions were to have jointly presented next year’s exhibition After Impressionism: Inventing Modern Art, but the arrangement was abruptly terminated following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. - The Art Newspaper

Steven Dietz: New Theatre Is More Important Now Than Ever

"We quit on the theatre much more readily than the theatre quits on us. I am aware now—as a working artist in my 60s—that the theatre has outlasted all my teachers and mentors and heroes; that the theatre will outlast me, and all my students; everyone I’ve ever known, and everyone I am yet to meet." - American Theatre

Pantone’s Color Of The Year Gets The Assessment It Deserves

The color company used AI to create an "endless new ecosystem to be explored, called 'the Magentaverse'."  Well.  As the subhed puts it, "Say hello to Viva Magenta, the color no one asked for, coming to a world where no one lives." - The New York Times

Woman Arrested For Spraying Fake Blood On Toulouse-Lautrec Painting in Berlin Museum

The incident was reminiscent of recent climate actions at European museums, however the prosecutor’s office announced on Tuesday that it has been deemed an isolated attack unconnected to any climate protection group. - ARTnews

Timbuktu Isn’t The Only Place With Badass Librarians.  They’re Heroes In Ukraine, Too.

"The brutal material horrors of the struggle, might make any cultural reading of the conflict seem fantastical or glib. But at its core, and from its origin, this Ukrainian conflict has been a war over language and identity. And Ukraine's libraries are the key." - The Observer (UK)

Why Theatre Isn’t Just For The Privileged

 We have to collect the stories and inspire people, rather than fighting hipsters and fighting people who are gentrifiers—people don’t really understand how gentrification works. It’s not about white people coming in; Latinos can gentrify too. - American Theatre

When Good Oral History Demystifies Hollywood, What Do We Really Learn?

"For all the clouds of publicity, moviemaking is an artisanal business with a craft base. How you light, shoot, edit, even make deals — all these things have more in common with candle-making and knitting than they do with creating art in the romantic, visionary sense." - The New Yorker

Theatre That Redefines “Disabilities”

“Disability theatre is not all cute little community projects. I know that sounds like I’m dissing community projects, but that’s not what I mean … We exist, too. We can be professionals. We can be just as much angels or devils as everyone else. We can have the same kinks or non-kinks as everyone else.” - The Guardian

A Battle Over Whether John Neumeier’s “Othello” Is Racist Rocks The Royal Danish Ballet

Neumeier's adaptation includes a dream sequence which takes the Venetians' stereotypes of Othello to their limit, with the Moorish general doing an "African hunting dance."  A number of the Copenhagen dancers found that offensive; subsequent disputes seem to have led to Neumeier's banning from the company. (in German) - NDR (Hamburg)

Teachers At The Mannes School Are On Strike. Here’s Why

Our base salary is some $70 per hour, as opposed to other parts of the university, where the average is about $130 an hour. Somebody might say, “$130, that’s incredible!” But this includes hundreds of hours of preparation, grading, and writing recommendations. - Van

Revisiting The History-Making Obscenity Trial Of “Lady Chatterley’s Lover”

D. H. Lawrence's novel had been banned in Britain since it was first printed privately in 1928, but in 1960, Penguin UK published the first uncensored edition — and was promptly prosecuted under the Obscene Publications Act of 1959.  Perhaps no other trial in modern British history had such impact. - Esquire

Adrienne Kennedy Is A Revered Playwright.  She’s 91.  Why Is She Only Now Being Produced On Broadway?

Her theory: "It's because I'm a Black woman." But there's more than that: her plays are more avant-garde than those of Lynn Nottage or Katori Hall, let alone Lorraine Hansberry or Anna Deavere Smith.  Better to ask how the mainstream finally found Kennedy. - T — The New York Times Style Magazine

With Its Leading Arts Philanthropists Leaving The Scene, Can Boston’s Arts Ecosystem Keep Thriving?

Many of the wealthy individual donors whose regular gifts have kept the region's institutions running are passing away, and their heirs may not have similar priorities.  As elsewhere, many corporations are shifting their philanthropy from the arts to health and social justice.  What happens now? - Boston Magazine

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