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A Brief History Of This Weekend’s Actual Big Event: The Super Bowl Halftime Show

"In the 1990s, the halftime show started to draw more viewers than the game itself by featuring performances from the biggest pop artists in the world. … But it’s a short, high-risk, unpaid gig that offers little chance to demonstrate musicianship, while opening performers up to jokes, gaffes, and political approbation." - Quartz

How A Dancer Who Made History Ended Up Dealing Blackjack In Vegas

“So many years I haven’t done ballet. And then suddenly Jennifer comes and tries to bring everything up. To me, it was like a shock.” - The New York Times

Method Acting Can Actually Empower Women Actors (Despite What Natalie Portman Says)

Portman, who plays a method actress in May December, called method acting "a luxury women cannot afford." But acting professor Evi Stamatiou points out that "most accounts of the method style focus on male actors misbehaving under the guise of the character" and there are much better approaches. - The Conversation (ArtsHub)

The Staffing System That Cripples Italian Museums

The effect of the national concorso system is that successful applicants may be placed somewhere geographically inconvenient or at odds with their own expertise. ‘You may have a collection of Renaissance art and you are sent a curator that specialises in performance art from the 1960s." - Apollo

Syracuse City Ballet Accuses Dancers It Fired Of “Misinformation Campaign”

"SCB’s Board of Directors released a statement sharing the news that the allegations eight of its former dancers made against artistic director Caroline Sheridan were deemed unfounded by an independent HR company" (one presumably paid by SCB). Those dancers have since formed a new company. - CNY Central (Syracuse)

Defending “Rhapsody in Blue”

Of course, it is important to acknowledge that the rhapsody was, by our modern standards, cultural appropriation. - The New York Times

The Little Schoolhouse On The US-Canada Border That’s Keeping The Mohawk Language Alive

The Akwesasne Freedom School, on the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation, on the St. Lawrence River where New York, Ontario and Quebec meet, teaches K-8 classes entirely in Mohawk. The school, run by a nonprofit, has both American and Canadian students but accepts no money from either government. - The Christian Science Monitor

Three Principles For Achieving Greatness

Whether you want to write a book, run a marathon, or play a Beethoven sonata, here are three rules that can supercharge your effort—inspired by the 19th-century philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer and backed up by modern social science. - The Atlantic (MSN)

“A Sense Of Relief” In Poland’s Arts Community As The New Government Undoes Politicization By The Right

"The moves indicate a desire on the part of the new government to restore international credibility after years of culture wars, but they also reflect pressure from sections of Poland’s arts community to reverse the interventions of the previous right-wing PiS (Law and Justice party) regime." - The Art Newspaper

Italy Gives Iraq Replica Of Ancient Bull Of Nimrud Destroyed By ISIS

"Italy has donated a reconstructed Assyrian statue to Iraq in what (was) described as a 'miracle of Italian cultural diplomacy'. Constructed in the ninth century BC, the 5-meter-tall Bull of Nimrud was destroyed by ISIS fighters in 2015; Italian artisans made a copy of the monument using 3D-printing technology." - The Art Newspaper

Academy Introduces First New Oscar Category In 20 Years: Best Casting

"Not counting the short-lived 'popular film Oscar' which never came to be, this is the first time the Academy has added a category since Best Animated Feature Film was established in 2001. … The first statuette (for casting) will be presented starting with the 98th Academy Awards in 2026." - AP

Former Host Sues Miami’s Public Radio Station, Saying They Canceled His Show And Fired Him Out Of Anti-Hispanic Prejudice

"Cuban-American journalist and former Sundial host (Carlos Frías) filed a federal discrimination complaint Tuesday asserting that he and his staff experienced discrimination at the station, including being told by an editor that the show was 'sounding very Latino.'" The daily show was abruptly canceled last Friday, with its producers laid off. - Axios

Warner Music Just Had The Most Lucrative Quarter In Its History — And It’s Laying Off 600 People

CEO Robert Kyncl wrote in an internal memo, "We’re in a position of strength, and that’s the smart time to change, innovate, and lead. … Today, we’re announcing a plan to free up more funds to ... accelerate our growth for the next decade. … Our plan includes reducing our workforce by approximately 10%." - Billboard

It Took Three Years, But Faculty At Philadelphia’s University Of The Arts Finally Have A Union Contract Deal

"This would be the first contract passed since UArts faculty unionized in November 2020. The union has been fighting for such issues as job security, wages, and healthcare. Previously, there were also wage disparities. ... They have held multiple actions, demonstrations, and picket lines, with contract negotiations beginning in March 2021." - ARTnews

Conductor Seiji Ozawa, 88

"The shaggy-haired, high-voltage maestro who served as music director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra for almost 30 years, … was widely considered the first Asian conductor to win world renown leading a (symphony) orchestra." - The Washington Post (MSN)

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