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Voice Of America Chief Fired After Refusing Demotion

Michael Abramowitz, the director of Voice of America, has been fired after refusing to accept what he called an “illegal” reassignment to run a broadcasting station in North Carolina, according to a new court filing on Monday. - Washington Post

New AI Company Composes Music For You

Users enter a prompt in plain English, such as “create a smooth jazz song with a ‘60s vibe and powerful lyrics, but relaxing for a Friday afternoon,” and the startup’s AI model generates a tune within minutes, complete with vocals and instrumentals. - The Wall Street Journal

London’s Royal Ballet School Will End Boarding School And Full-Time Instruction For Preteens

In a statement, the school said: “(Research) has led us to conclude that, in our specific context, young dancers may benefit from more time to develop before entering full-time vocational training. Students who begin full-time training slightly later, when they are more physically and emotionally prepared, are more likely to thrive long-term.” - Bachtrack

Intoxicated Raccoons And Malaria Ponds: Actors’ Tales of Shakespeare in Central Park

“Covered in blood, soaked by rain, adorned with crowns and capes: … ‘There’s nothing more magical,’ Oscar Isaac said. We spoke to actors, directors and others about their memories of working en plein air. These interviews have been edited and condensed for clarity.” - The New York Times

Yet More Untruths Uncovered In Travel Memoir “The Salt Path”

“The bestselling memoir, recently adapted into a film, was presented as a true story by its author, Raynor Winn. But a recent investigation by The Observer, and claims from individuals connected to Winn and her husband, Timothy – known as Moth – suggest that significant details were omitted or exaggerated.” Or outright false. - The Observer (UK)

New York Post To Launch A California Counterpart

Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. plans to run the California Post as a conservative tabloid with an irreverent streak, a robust online presence and a seven-days-a-week print edition — all just like the New York Post. - AP

Studio Museum Of Harlem Sets Firm Opening Date

“After the Museum closed its doors for renovations in 2018, it would take seven years and a $300 million capital campaign that nearly doubled its original goal to finally set an opening date. With construction delays and fund-raising hurdles cleared, the museum will reopen to the public on Nov. 15.” - The New York Times

Chicago Conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya Announces That She’s Leaving The U.S.

Said the former music director of Chicago Opera Theater, “I want to be sure that my children grow up feeling like they can always express themselves freely. I want my children to live in a society that really takes care of its people, ... that really values things like the arts (and) education.” - WBEZ (Chicago)

Britain’s Royal Ballet And Opera Cancels Production Rental To Israeli Company

Following an open letter signed by nearly 200 staffers — a letter which explicitly referenced the house’s recent rental of its staging of Turandot to the same company — the Royal Ballet and Opera has cancelled the planned rental of its production of Tosca to the Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv. - The Guardian

What The Marshmallow Test Misunderstood About Children’s Development

“It wasn’t so much that we’d failed to replicate (the study’s) famous longitudinal results. It was more that our study confirmed a nagging message that the field is still resistant to accepting: there are no childhood skills that are silver bullets.” - Psyche

One Of America’s Busiest Audiobook Narrators Fights For Better Pay For Her Colleagues

Julia Whelan: “The only reason I was doing 70 books a year was because that’s how many books you have to do when you’re first starting out to keep your head above water. It would be OK if there were a kickback for success, but narrators don’t get royalties.” - AP

Remembering Peter Sellers At 100: The World’s Greatest Comic Actor?

Christopher Guest: “I can do a voice, but Sellers was embedded in those characters, and that commitment made it very different.” Michael McKean: “I remember reading Being There and then seeing the film and thinking: he gets this character better than Jerzy Kosinski did.” - The Guardian

We’re Seeing More Male-Male Love Depicted In Ballet. Why Not More Female-Female Couples?

Lily Hyde: “They have appeared in contemporary ballets, such as Christopher Wheeldon’s Corybantic Games and Wayne McGregor’s Woolf Works, but are by no means at the heart of the narrative. … I have concluded that there is not one problem responsible for this imbalance – there are several.” - Gramilano (Milan)

Ancient Gold Artifacts Stolen From Dutch Museum May Still Be Recoverable

“While the whereabouts of these gold treasures — three Dracian bracelets dating from 50 B.C.E. and the 2,500-year-old Cotofenesti helmet — remain unknown, Dutch prosecutors say that evidence gathered from wiretapped conversations suggests they have not yet been melted down.” - Artnet

A Wave Of Closures And Cutbacks At China’s Private Art Museums

“The current crisis in China is a result of corporate backers tightening their budgets, consumers curtailing their discretionary spending, and rising costs, people working at the museums tell the Post.” - South China Morning Post (Hong Kong)

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