“Lin-Manuel Miranda’s retelling of America’s revolutionary history allows for young Black, Latinx, and Asian-American students to see themselves in the figures responsible for our country’s birth.”
Archives for October 2016
Who Won BAFTA’s Britannia Awards?
“Ewan McGregor, who received the Britannia for his philanthropy, said, ‘This really should go to the volunteers of Unicef, not me.’ He started working with Unicef after seeing the work the organization did during a motorcycle trip across Asia. There is a great need with so many displaced in the Syrian civil war, he said, and urged attendees to support a charity.”
The Story Of A Sidekick, Or, The Actress Who Has To Play The BFF On ‘Crazy Ex-Girlfriend’
“I couldn’t believe it when I first read for Paula, because I had never seen a breakdown of a character that described me so well, physically, for television and film. It just doesn’t happen. The casting directors sent me the audition scripts, and I remember saying to my husband while reading them, I feel these people have bugged my apartment.”
A Perfect Place To Rent Halloween Costumes: The Theatre
Think about the National Theatre in London, for instance: “If you fancy a bit of high Gothic horror, you too could wear Benedict Cumberbatch’s Frankenstein costume – or indeed a whole host of others worn by the stars.”
A Dispute Over Attribution Lands Broadway Producers In Court
“The leaders of Ars Nova, a small nonprofit that has never before seen a show it developed transfer to Broadway, have accused Howard Kagan, the lead commercial producer, of violating a signed agreement to describe the musical in the Playbill as ‘The Ars Nova production of’ the show.”
The Dickensian Story Of The Man Who Just Gave LACMA $25 Million
“Eric Smidt was a peddler’s son, rattling through the morning light in his father’s van, hawking jewelry, tape and electrical cords in the San Fernando Valley. He endured a troubled home life and spent two years in an orphanage. But a restless need for the flash of a deal made him a rich man.”
Indigenous Movie Monsters Represent Payback
“In a series of fictional movie posters showing at Toronto’s A Space Gallery … Soule (a.k.a. Chippewar) imagines indigenous horror flicks such as Bride of Frankensioux starring Raven Bravehorse and Honey Featherheart or Tribe of Dracula starring Max Thunderbird.”
Why Is Everyone (Including The UK And President Obama) Making Fun Of Art History While Venerating Art And Artists?
“Where this will lead the art world, art history, the art market and — most important of all — art itself, is anyone’s guess. The formal study of the history of art, with its generally impecunious career prospects, may well remain a niche subject. But the digitalization of art means a lot more people across the world are looking at the stuff.”
When An Injury Ends A Dancing Career, A Photographer Of Dancers Is Born
“The NYC Dance Project was born — ‘out of love’ — and the couple started posting their images to social media. They would treat each dancer like a celebrity, doing an interview in addition to the photo session.”
Will Yet Another Symphony Strike This Fall? Ask Pacific Symphony Musicians
“The terms proposed by the orchestra’s management are punitive, Neeley argued. To play the minimum number of guaranteed services in their contract, symphony musicians are required to turn down other jobs when they are “on call” for some services, Neeley said. In other words, they might not be used for certain events but must keep those dates open nonetheless.”
Dance Lessons For Writers
Zadie Smith: “What can an art of words take from the art that needs none? Yet I often think I’ve learned as much from watching dancers as I have from reading. Dance lessons for writers: lessons of position, attitude, rhythm and style, some of them obvious, some indirect.”
Anger And Confusion In Cairo As Film Fest Abruptly Disinvites A Film (And Filmmaker)
“Filmed amid and set before, during, and after the revolution and the ravages of post-Mubarak Egypt, the piece is of intense interest to its local audience, particularly the independent cultural scene of Downtown Cairo, of which El Said is a member.”
A Conversation With Toni Morrison About Reality TV And Black Lives Matter (And Everything Else)
“Everything’s crashed. It’s like somebody put this great cage of idiocy over the whole country. …I have to deal with it the only way I can. I’m very happy, very enthusiastic, and very focused only on the work and, of course, friends and people.”
What Should Britain Do With Its Crumbling Seaside Entertainment Hubs?
“Both councils and private operators, faced with falling audiences and government funding cuts, have struggled to resist the lure of developers seeking new retail, leisure and residential opportunities.”
How To Have Your Novel Win Over All Of China: Don’t Publish It
Actually, don’t publish it *in print.* Media execs “are mining a once-secluded corner of the internet that has become a booming billion-dollar business: a flourishing online literary world that bypasses ink and paper entirely to grab readers by their smartphones, with subjects like tomb raiding, science fiction, fantasy, romance and martial arts.”
A Forced Resignation, Accusations Of Sexual Misconduct – And A Celebrated Writing Program Utterly Derailed In Canada
“The scandal – with gaping holes in official information and the resulting speculation and innuendo – has devastated the vaunted writing program, which was established more than 50 years ago by Canadian poet Earle Birney and whose graduates include award-winning authors Lynn Coady, Charlotte Gill and Lee Henderson, as well as Ms. Thien. It has also inflamed Canada’s tight-knit literary community and irrevocably altered many lives.”
In St. Paul, A Theatre Known For Its ‘Radical Engagement With The Community’ Will Shutter Its Doors
“I feel good about the vision that we have shared with the Twin Cities and nationally for 25 years. … I feel like it has inspired a lot and I feel hopeful that some of the principles of Bedlam—radical community engagement and making theatregoing fun—that those things continue to impact.”
The Artists Who Will Live In The Unfinished Museum In Downtown L.A.
“In the piece, Lacy, who is known for her work in performance and social practice, will teach Bowers, an artist whose politically minded practice is rooted firmly in drawing, how to be a performance artist. They will also live in the museum — in a pair of newly painted offices spaces that overlook the lobby.”
Yes, Some People *Are* Wired Better For Learning Languages
“Analysis of the brain scans revealed that differences in improvement of each behaviour were related to pre-existing differences in brain connectivity. In short, the flow of oxygen in the participants’ brains while at rest predicted how much specific aspects of speech or language skills would improve.”
The Met Cancels An Opera Mid-Performance After A Patron Scatters Powdery Substance Into The Pit
“The man told other patrons he was there specifically to sprinkle the ashes during the performance, the police said. Mr. Miller said the act may have been a violation of the city’s health code but that there was no criminal intent.”
More Concerns About Artists And Brexit
“British artists may have to spend more time and money on items like visas for tours if freedom of movement rules are tightened. The federation also raised fears about areas like funding and copyright.”
Sure Artificially Intelligent Machines Will Learn. But How Will We Make Them Accountable?
The opacity of machine learning isn’t just an academic problem. More and more places use the technology for everything from image recognition to medical diagnoses. All that decisionmaking is, by definition, unknowable—and that makes people uneasy. My friend Zeynep Tufekci, a sociologist, warns about “Moore’s law plus inscrutability.” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says we need “algorithmic accountability.”
Jaap van Zweden’s Global Dance
The conductor leads two orchestras on different sides of the world, and the disconnects aren’t just geographic. “The New York and Hong Kong orchestras are not just distant geographically — they are also at very different phases of their development, requiring different types of effort from their shared music director.”
Toronto’s Debt-Free Orchestra Makes It 16 Years In A Row
“Announced yesterday at Tafelmusik’s 2016 annual general meeting, they achieved an impressive 16-year balanced budget streak with an operating surplus of $107,017 on a budget of $5.4 mil. Ticket sales rose by $5,501 from last year’s $1.7 million.”
Report Tries To Tally Cultural Industries Impact Of Brexit
The UK cultural sector’s ties in the EU are financial and artistic. So what are the costs for artists in Britain’s decision to leave?