The Rare Conductor: Anthony Pappano
Pappano, 65, is a rarity in classical music: a maestro who never went to a music school. Born in England to Italian immigrant parents, then...
Twin Actors Who Ran Underground Theater In Syria Return Home After 14-Year Exile
Hidden from the Assad regime’s secret police, Mohamad and Ahmad Malas performed over 200 plays in their apartment — until they were arrested during...
Self-Publishing Is Having A Moment
"They want to do things in a time frame that suits them, rather than hope that they will find an agent, and that the...
How Have Film Academy Voters Changed What’s Being Voted On For Oscars?
If the old Academy had a terror of making odd choices, the new Academy seems to be looking for ways to be odd. Its...
How Will We Market The Arts In A Post-Social Media World?
Are we past the point where social media almost entirely drives arts marketing? While it’s unlikely social media platforms will all collapse in 2025,...
Viennese Institutions Compete To Celebrate Bicentennial Of “Waltz King” Johann Strauss II
There’s an entire new immersive exhibition dedicated to the composer, another show at the Theatermuseum, the city’s 30+ dance schools, and the venue that...
What Do We Actually Mean By “Free” Speech?
The problem is that the definition of “free speech” has strayed far from its origins in the rights of ordinary folk to speak without...
Spotify Defends Itself: We’ve Helped Make The Music Business Healthy!
"It’s a misconception that Spotify ‘doesn’t pay well’ – as we’ve proved time and time again. The $10B we paid out in 2024 and...
Bollywood’s Leading Composer Plans Infrastructure In India For Broadway-Style Musicals
A.R. Rahman (Oscar winner for Slumdog Millionaire, which he’s adapting for the stage) is starting with a 3,000-seat theater in his hometown, Chennai, and...
Remembering The CIA’s Elaborate World War II Book Smuggling Operation
What some in the east suspected, but very few knew for sure, was that the uncensored literature flooding the country wasn’t reaching Poles by...
Missing Pages Of “The Last Great Yiddish Novel” Come To Light
Chaim Grade was considered one of the greatest novelists in the language, and his last work. Sons and Daughters, was serialized in Yiddish newspapers...
The Science Of Optimism? How, In A Frightening World?
Optimism is, after all, by its nature delusional; ‘realism’ or outright pessimism might seem more justifiable given the troubles of the present and the...
Universal Studios Is Expanding Like Crazy
When it opens on May 22, Epic Universe will become Florida’s first major new park in a generation — and, Universal hopes, a property...
Longtime, Familiar Anchors Are Leaving TV Newscasts. Their Timing Is Not Good.
Lester Holt (NBC Nightly News), Chuck Todd (Meet the Press), Hoda Kotb (The Today Show), Norah O’Donnell (CBS Evening News), Joy Reid and Alex...
Vertical Choreography, Now On Broadway
“Using ... harnesses, ropes and belay devices, (the Oakland-based company) Bandaloop can take dance’s soaring, ethereal qualities to extremes and bring them to unlikely...
Cultural Life Is Returning To Damascus, And The New Islamist Government Is Supportive
“An exhibition by a prominent artist reopened last month at the National Museum, including a large painting with images of bare skin. At the...
Taliban Allow Afghan Women’s Radio Station Back On The Air
“Radio Begum launched on International Women’s Day in March 2021, five months before the Taliban seized power amid the chaotic withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops. … The...
More Legal Trouble For Gérard Depardieu: An Investigation For Tax Fraud
“The 76-year-old (French) actor, already accused in a string of sexual assault and rape cases, is suspected of falsely declaring his tax residency to...
Those Little Free Libraries Are Actually Doing Some Good: Study
“According to this study, 92% of (disadvantaged) students had greater access to books because of Little Free Library boxes, 49% read more frequently (an...
Three Suspects On Trial For Theft Of Maurizio Cattelan’s Golden Toilet
“The satirical work, titled ‘America’ ..., poked fun at excessive wealth. It weighed just over 215 pounds (98 kilograms) and was insured for £4.8...
Reimagining How To Program Traditional Concert Halls
“I think of it as inviting this so-called ‘main stage’ to go outdoors and inviting the education programming to be ‘main stage’ in the...
The Crushing Cost Of Trying To Be Special
The effort spent trying to impress others; the dazzling meals I was too tired to cook but cook I did; the Guardian column that...
Michael Tilson Thomas Says His Final Concerts Will Be In April
“A coda is a musical element at the end of a composition that brings the whole piece to a conclusion. A coda can vary...
Our Escapist TV Reality Shows Are Losing The Plot
Escapism is more tempting than ever in the digital age and is often associated with guilt or laziness. But some are unlearning those narratives,...
As AI Gets Better At Influencing Us, Our Decision-Making Will Change
As conversational AI agents become more interactive and personalized, they will surpass human influencers in their ability to shape our decisions without us realizing...
