Aleshea Harris: "It felt natural and inevitable because I am a very particular playwright. … I already have strong ideas and impulses about not just writing the thing, but helping people to understand.” - The New York Times
Basically? It can’t take the heat: “In theory, attending Cannes should be a no-brainer for major U.S. studios. Talent loves it because of the glamour and global exposure. … This year, however, multiple high level sources said the conglomerates are particularly thin-skinned about the scathing Cannes critics.” - Variety
“That sprint of a succession of high notes in such a short time is legendary, which adds a layer of difficulty not only to singing the role but finding a reliable queen.” - The New York Times
“Ballet can be a pretty conservative artform, with many companies trundling out Swan Lakes, Nutcrackers, and Cinderellas year after year. Every now and again, though, someone like Rojo comes along and truly shakes things up – even if that has meant ruffling tutus in the process.” - NPR
“If a paper has ‘incontrovertible evidence that the authors did not check the results of LLM generation,’ such as hallucinated references or “meta-comments” left by an LLM, authors will be banned from ArXiv for a year.” The responses have been … er, interesting. - The Verge
Wait, Lupita Nyong’o is not beautiful enough for some? Sounds like a them problem. Or, as Claire Willett said on Bluesky, “Woman: *Minds her own business while being beautiful* The worst men in the world: This is an attack on me personally. Summon the fleet.” - Salon
“The second century of European public media looks less certain than its first as its original competition – from private broadcasters – is eclipsed by heated rivalry from deep-pocketed streaming platforms.” - Irish Times
The Twomblys’ granddaughter, Maia, discovered the negatives - and she has a new appreciation of the photographer: “I remember her now not as an 80-year-old woman, but as a 30-year-old. It’s like she is no longer my grandmother but my friend.” - The New York Times
Why? For one thing, “conservation specialists ... have been navigating the practical challenge of safely transporting the works across the globe.” - The Guardian (UK)
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
“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)
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
“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
