We have more than 600 employees, produce between 11 and 14 productions across four stages from April to October—plus two holiday shows—and host upwards of 325,000 attendees a year. This summer, however, the political tension in the air threatens to destabilize things again. - Maclean's
Also unsurprisingly, the humor tends to be much darker than before 2022. And there’s a sense of purpose: “We get a lot of feedback, like, ‘You saved me from my mental problems,” says one comedian. “Now we have a mission. It’s to stop people from going crazy.” - The Guardian
Paolo Santalucia, 35 and a native Torontonian, is a director, playwright, and actor known for both stage and television work. A co-founder of Toronto’s Howland Theatre Company and a graduate of the Soulpepper Academy (the company’s training program for young professionals), he’s currently associate artistic director of Crow’s Theatre in Toronto. - Ludwig Van
“The report shows 44% of freelancers earn less than the UK National Living Wage, up from 34% last year. ... The survey reveals high levels of unpaid work, rising expenses and falling incomes, with 32% of respondents saying over half of their working hours are unpaid and 75% reporting higher work-related costs.” - WhatsOnStage (UK)
The low representational numbers for women are difficult to square. By various measures (including the numbers of women graduating from degree programs in the arts), roughly two-thirds of the field’s writers are women—there is not, as artistic directors once argued, a pipeline issue. - The New Yorker
“Among them are hundreds of music and lyric sketches of Sondheim’s well-known works as well as drafts of songs that were cut from shows or never made it to a production’s first rehearsal. Dozens of scrapbooks hold theatre programmes, clippings and opening night telegrams.” - The Guardian
St. George’s Guildhall, located in the Norfolk town of King’s Lynn and dating from 1445, and the surrounding buildings and courtyards are to undergo a £30.5 million restoration and development. The venue’s original stage floor, on which Shakespeare is believed to have once performed, was uncovered earlier this year. - BBC (MSN)
Diversity matters. So does excellence. And the future of theatre criticism at the Times should reflect both. So what kind of critic do we need now? - Onstage Blog
The company says it plans a wide-ranging slate of programming, prioritizing theater — Cherry Lane describes itself as the birthplace of the Off Broadway movement — but also featuring comedy, music and film. - The New York Times
“The three-hour performance (at the Avignon Festival) has been created by Milo Rau, the Swiss director and playwright acclaimed for his theatre interpretations of court proceedings, including the Moscow trial of the Russian punks Pussy Riot and the trial of the Romanian despot Nicolae Ceaușescu.” - The Guardian
The revival, which was nominated for five Tony Awards but won none, had been expected to run until at least Oct. 5; it will now close on Aug. 17. - The Hollywood Reporter
“This summer, the ... latest leadership team has opted for a radically new and risky reboot: Instead of a summer-long season with two shows at a time, the company is leaning into the ‘festival’ part of its name, offering eight shows simultaneously, but only for three long weekends.” - The New York Times
“Theatre is controversial again and it’s happened, surprisingly, in an Andrew Lloyd Webber revival” — the Evita in which Eva Perón sings to the crowd on the street — “at the London Palladium. ... And those buzzy shows that you heard about were probably directed by the same guy as this one: Jamie Lloyd.” - GQ
“Gale didn’t coin the term ‘think global, act local,’ but that’s what Sodality does: Gale’s stories imagine an anti-capitalist vision of ‘sodality’ that could extend across the world, if only women were in charge.” - LitHub
