Stories

Like Literature: Classical Music’s Revolutionary Turn To Narrative Realism

I want to suggest some parallels between this 18th-century musical lingua franca and a familiar device from another medium: modern realist prose, which emerged through the 17th and 18th centuries – just when these musical conventions took shape. - Aeon

South Coast Repertory Theatre Chooses New Managing Director

At Vineyard Theatre, her home for the last seven years, Suzanne Appel successfully managed the theater’s finances during the pandemic, keeping the entire full-time staff employed, and she created a four-year plan to raise employees’ wages more than 30 percent by 2026. - CultureOC

Is Travel Really Worth It?

Travel is one of those things one generally doesn’t attack in polite company, the world of letters excepted. Its wholesomeness is assumed. It broadens the mind. It makes us empathetic and, by rewarding our curiosity, encourages it to develop further. Only a fool or a misanthrope would criticize travel. - Hedgehog Review

1,000-Year-Old Church In Istanbul Is Converted Into Mosque, But Byzantine Mosaics And Frescoes Are Left Intact

"When the 11th-century Chora Church was ordered to be reconverted into a mosque in 2020, many feared for the fate of its richly decorated interior, which features some of the world’s finest Late Byzantine-era mosaics and frescoes. After a tense four-year wait ..., it reopened on May 6." - Hyperallergic

“Barbie” Was Supposed To Change How Hollywood Worked. Why Didn’t It?

In the 12 months since the movie’s release, little has changed in Hollywood. Buffeted by dual labor strikes that went on for months and a general retrenchment by entertainment companies trying to navigate the economics of the streaming era, the industry has retreated to its usual ways of doing business. - The New York Times

Actors Reading Aloud To Stroke Patients

"InterAct Stroke Support operates all over the UK, … tak(ing) professional actors into hospitals to read poetry and stories to stroke survivors." Longtime Guardian theatre critic Michael Billington spends a day watching InterAct at work. - The Guardian

The World Is Changing Fast For Artists. Here Are Some Ideas To Keep Up

The very fun of being a creative is solving problems people don't even know to exist. Eventually, if you are creative and curious enough, one finding leads to another, and one way or the other, you learn more than just SEO, social media, and the thousand other things that felt overwhelming beforehand. - Creative Boom

What Yuja Wang Did During The COVID Lockdown

As little as possible, actually. "I promised myself to only practise when I wanted to, and then I didn’t want to for 15 months! I just pigged out and watched Netflix. I let my brain drift into stupid movies. ... But after six months I got sick of (it).” - The Telegraph (UK)

Why Can AI Write Poetry But Struggle With Math?

Chatbots like Open AI’s ChatGPT can write poetry, summarize books and answer questions, often with human-level fluency. These systems can do math, based on what they have learned, but the results can vary and be wrong. - The New York Times

This Year’s Venice Dance Biennale Gets Scientific

"This year’s theme is 'We Humans,' a title that might conjure fleshy bodies and emotional connection, but the opening weekend’s performances focused as much on physics, formal systems, busy brains and interactions with technology, in keeping with (artistic director Wayne) McGregor’s own preoccupations." - The Guardian

South Africa’s Film Industry, Full Of Promise, Struggles With Structural Issues

Says one key player, "If you compare South Africa to a lot of industries with similar GDPs, the difference here is the lack of intentional focus on this industry." In particular, the government rebate system on which many filmmakers rely is, says one filmmaker, "so dysfunctional as to not exist." - Variety

Hugo Award Organizers Foil Fake-Vote Scheme

"The prestigious Hugo Awards for science fiction and fantasy writing revealed that almost 400 votes – about 10% of all votes cast (this year) – were fraudulently paid for to help one finalist win." As there's no evidence that the finalist knew of the plan, ze was not disqualified. - The Guardian

This Year’s Interpol Anti-Art Trafficking Operation Recovered Over 6,400 Artworks And Artifacts

"Pandora VIII, an annual joint operation between customs and law enforcement authorities from 25 countries against international art trafficking, … involved several thousand checks at airports, ports, border crossings, auction houses, museums, and private residences." - ARTnews

Venice’s New Day-Tripper Tax Is Bringing In A Pile Of Money. That Means It’s Working, Right?

The mayor said that the €5 entrance fee was expected to bring in about €700,000 on the trial dates so far, but the total collected was €2.43 million. However, his opponents say the fee's stated goal is to reduce the number of tourists, so clearly it's too low. - The New York Times

St. Paul Chamber Orchestra Adds A New Artistic Partner, Gábor Takács-Nagy

"Consider it the orchestral equivalent of someone who's ready to give up on romance suddenly finding the perfect partner. After claiming for several seasons that it is transitioning toward becoming a conductor-less orchestra, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra has named its newest artistic partner, and he's a conductor." - The Star Tribune (Minneapolis)

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