Alejandro Triana Prevez, 30, has confessed to stabbing Sikkema to death in his Rio apartment, but Prevez's attorney has called the murder a "crime of command," alleging that Sikkema's estranged husband had befriended and groomed Prevez. Brazilian police, however, believe for now that the motive was robbery. - ARTnews
"Joan Lader has never advertised, never solicited clients. But for two generations of Broadway stars, as well as dozens of opera singers and pop and rock luminaries, she remains an indispensable vocal therapist and vocal coach." Patti LuPone says flat-out, "She saved my career." - The New York Times
"Kwei-Armah, who started out as an actor and has been greatly acclaimed as a playwright and director, ran Baltimore’s Center Stage theatre from 2011 to 2017 before returning to Britain." He ends his highly-lauded tenure as artistic director this fall. - The Guardian
American Ballet Theatre's dancers and stage managers, members of AGMA, have been working without a contract since September as negotiations drag on. The vote to authorize a work stoppage, which could begin at any time, was over 95% in favor. - American Guild of Musical Artists
"Trellis Art Fund, a new private family foundation dedicated to funding artists’ practices, … will provide 12 recipients with $100,000 spread across two years. … Nominated by an anonymous board-selected group of 75 academics, artists, and curators based across the United States, the initial grant recipients will be announced in mid-July." - ARTnews
"Timms, who guided Lincoln Center through the turmoil of the pandemic and helped complete the $550 million renovation of David Geffen Hall, will step down as its leader this summer after five years, … (and) will become chief executive of the Brunswick Group, a global public relations firm." - The New York Times
The U.S. studios are aware of the dangers behind “making a wholesale shift to AI,” according to the CEO of a leading artificial intelligence dubbing outfit that says its content has been viewed by more than 1 billion people in the past year. - Deadline
The internet has made it so that no matter who you are or what you do — from nine-to-five middle managers to astronauts to house cleaners — you cannot escape the tyranny of the personal brand. - Vox
The platform will include games from the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, WNBA, NASCAR and college sports, including the men’s and women’s NCAA Tournament, as well as golf, tennis and the FIFA World Cup. - AP
“I think what people are interested in is passion,” Mr. Woolfe said. “Even if you didn’t understand every word, my goal is for you to be drawn into my pieces because you can tell that I really care about what I’m writing about.” - The New York Times
"I called a friend with kids and said, 'Have you heard of an author named Raina Telgemeier?' 'Of course,' she said, sounding bemused, as if I’d asked whether she was familiar with the automobile." As one school librarian said, "Children reread those books over and over and over." - The Atlantic (MSN)
Trained on human-generated data, large language models are very adept at noticing patterns in that data. But learning from existing written material – even massive quantities of it – might not be enough for AI to come up with solutions to problems that they’ve never encountered before, something that children can do. - Psyche
"The takeover of state-owned public media companies Educ.Ar, Télam, Radio y Televisión Argentina (RTA), and Contenidos Públicos for one year ... was made official on Monday via a decree signed by President Javier Milei and Interior Minister Guillermo Francos." - Buenos Aires Herald
