Xi’s use of history projects the message that the struggles of the first century of Communist Party rule have been buried by the need to cohere around Xi’s pursuit of strength, dignity, and obedience—what he calls “the great rejuvenation” of China. - The New Yorker
A longread on how the Metropolitan Opera's general manager is handling the company's reopening and its long-term problems, what people inside and outside of the Met think of him, and what he thinks of what they think of him. (He's fairer than you might expect.) - New York Magazine
Representation absolutely matters. But ever since Broadway announced that so many Black plays would reopen its season, there has been a feeling of dread that if these plays don’t do well, there may not be opportunities for future artists. That pressure is unfair. - American Theatre
In fact, there have been composers in China writing for European instruments for over a century. Since the end of the Cultural Revolution, though, the country has produced several generations of accomplished composers — and developed an audience eager to hear new scores. - Prospect
Previously philosophy was a kind of luxury: You can indulge in it or not. Now you really need to answer crucial philosophical questions about what humanity is or the nature of the good in order to decide what to do with, for example, new biotechnologies. - The New York Times
A survey of top execs at 64 companies in 25 states found that, following an initial flurry of interest in the spring of 2020, the vast majority of theaters had disappointing viewership and revenue from their online presentations. Many think it was worthwhile nevertheless. - American Theatre
We are at a critical juncture: a relatively long period of stability in mainstream thinking about economic globalisation has given way to a situation of dramatic flux. - Aeon
The anecdotal evidence, gleaned from social media and private conversations with industry leaders, suggests a variety of challenges — lingering fears of the coronavirus, the disinclination by some patrons to wear masks and resistance to high ticket prices. - Washington Post
His international career was hobbled over and over again by a breathtaking series of mishaps, comebacks, and more mishaps that ultimately left him unable to play at all. Then an industrial designer saw Martins on TV and had an idea … - GQ
Her Trouble in Mind treats a touchy subject, even now: it's about an interracial cast rehearsing an anti-lynching play written and directed by whites. In 1955, the Off-Broadway producers made her tack on a happy ending; in 2021, it's playing as she intended. - The New York Times
"Not so long ago, Christian Rosa was a buzzy young artist on the rise. Now he's facing a series of charges related to alleged forgeries and on the run from the FBI. How did it come to this?" - Vanity Fair
“(The movement is) confront(ing) conditions that workers — from archivists and curators to those selling T-shirts — say are untenable: minimal wage increases, draining resources, lack of transparency from top administrators, and mass layoffs and furloughs resulting from the coronavirus pandemic." - The Washington Post
Once streaming services like Netflix tore down geographical barriers, the creators say, the country transformed from a consumer of Western culture into an entertainment juggernaut and major cultural exporter in its own right. - The New York Times
Booker judges pronounced Damon Galgut the winner, praising his novel for its “unusual narrative style that balances Faulknerian exuberance with Nabokovian precision, pushes boundaries, and is a testament to the flourishing of the novel in the 21st century.” - The New York Times
The famed architect Frank Gehry came on to draft the set designs, and the director Lileana Blain-Cruz came aboard to bring the story onstage. They named the company Real Magic. - The New York Times
Henry Grabar lays out the web of dysfunction, failure, and perverse incentives that leads to a respected state university accepting, with no changes, a design by a billionaire who's never studied architecture for a 4,500-student dorm building whose bedrooms have no windows. - Slate
The common theme in all these accounts is that the public are not to be trusted – they do not understand, or care; they are too selfish, or too shortsighted. Better to let the experts decide. - The Guardian
“There’s a whole new picture of the human past and human possibility that seems to be coming into view. And it really doesn’t resemble in the slightest these very entrenched stories going around and around.” - The New York Times
Mubi, which caters to cinephiles seeking an eclectic mix of films, has begun offering a membership program: A well-stocked streaming service that movie lovers can flip on from home, bundled with a weekly ticket they can use to go see a handpicked film at their favorite theater. - The New York Times
As an interpretation not only of the founding moment but of the whole of U.S. history the project involved major scholarship. Yet it didn’t emerge from the usual processes for developing historical interpretations. It wasn’t slow, careful, academically curated, peer-reviewed, and opaque to public scrutiny. - Slate
