One can carp about the sad history of direct public arts funding in the United States and many do. But one might also argue that there were consequences far more dire for champions of the idea of government dollars for the arts. - Nightingale Sonata
"(He) was both observer and narrator during a more than seven-decade career that included books and memoirs, more than 20 years with a coveted back-page column in Time, and, later, time as a contributing writer to outlets such as The Wall Street Journal." - The Washington Post (MSN)
Today the piece is one of the most familiar sections of The Nutcracker, so it's hard for us to appreciate how unusual the music seemed at the ballet's 1892 premiere. That dance's featured instrument, the celesta, was a recent invention, and almost nobody in Russia had heard one. - The New York Times
The orchestra got itself in one legal tangle by cancelling a recital by pianist Jayson Gillham after he made comments about Gaza from the stage. Then it fired its CEO following a staff rebellion and has had to negotiate a settlement with her. This when there's little cash to spare. - ArtsHub (Australia)
"The renowned author … said Monday that at age 77, it’s time to say good-bye to three Bangor, Maine, stations that have been bleeding money. King kept the stations afloat for decades, and he said he and his wife, Tabitha, are proud to have kept them going for so long." - AP
Ashley Benefield, whose marriage to Doug Benefield disintegrated after the ballet company they attempted to launch fell apart, was acquitted of murder but convicted of manslaughter for shooting him during an altercation at her home in Florida in 2020. - CBS News
"Jasleen Kaur has won the 2024 Turner prize for her work animating everyday objects to reflect the pluralities of identity and community. The youngest artist on this year’s shortlist, (she) was nominated for her exhibition Alter Altar, at Tramway in Glasgow, which featured a range of sculptures and soundscapes." - The Guardian
Tate faces some serious decisions; unless the new government swoops in with increased funding, or visitors magically reappear, Tate will have to decide what kind of cultural institution it wants to be for the next decade. - The Spectator
Forensic linguistics, as the practice is called, has been a key tool in both identifying perpetrators (most famously, the Unabomber) and exonerating the wrongly accused. - The Dial
Any visiting alien would be confronted with the near collapse of a string of national institutions, including the National Theatre Wales, Welsh National Opera and S4C, the Welsh television channel. The Arts Council of Wales has suffered a 40% real-terms cut in funding since 2010. - The Guardian
Today that anger has festered to the point that we are losing sight of the real enemies of human vitality and imagination. Instead of satire, which aims at improvement, we have snark, derived from the old Low German word snarky, meaning bad-tempered. - Hedgehog Review
"In an industry that’s existentially threatened enough to need every theatrical hit it can get, no one in their right mind would dispute the need to make these films. … And yet ... there’s something a little skewed about this picture." Even when the sequels are better than the originals. - Variety
Data indicate "that in the US alone, vinyl sales are projected to bring in a staggering $1 billion for record labels in 2024. This means that vinyl revenues will soon surpass those of CDs, a feat that will be replicated globally." - Techspot
Even in Washington, DC, where the House and the Senate still come together in their steadfast support of the arts through their Subcommittees on the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies, we see the twinning of cultural and natural resources. - The Art Newspaper
"SNL has built a reputation as the way New York sees America, but it’s also always been the way America sees New York. … Like all of our institutions, SNL exists partly to be argued over and complained about, mirroring the love-hate relationship the rest of the country has with New York." - New York Magazine (MSN)
