Theatre history nerds, rejoice! “These one-sheet playbills trace the history of theater in New York. They were originally posted around Manhattan to advertise Shakespeare plays, minstrel shows, new American plays and early musicals. One showcases a performance of ‘The Black Crook,’ which opened in 1866 and is often credited as the first musical. The earliest broadside in the collection advertises the Old American Company’s performance of ‘The Merchant of Venice’ in 1785; tickets were four shillings for a gallery seat.”
Tag: 04.08.18
Up To Ninety Percent Of Art Sold As ‘Aboriginal’ In Australian Souvenir Shops Is Fake (And Imported)
That’s (obviously?) not a good thing for actual Aboriginal artists in Australia. But there’s no law against it. The chair of Western Australia’s Aboriginal Art Hub “said the current Indigenous art code, which attempts to promote ethical trading in Aboriginal art, needed to be mandatory and better resourced.”
Todd Brassner, Art Dealer Who Claimed To Have Three Million Dollars Worth Of Art In His Apartment, Dies In Trump Tower Fire
He had been trying to sell his apartment since the election, but no one would buy it. “Mr. Brassner, 67, lived alone amid a collection of about 100 vintage electric guitars, 40 guitar amplifiers dating to the 1930s, 150 ukuleles and artwork by Robert Indiana, Mati Klarwein, Jack Kerouac and others.” The damage to his collection isn’t yet known.
Britain Is In The Midst Of A Jazz ‘Explosion’
Whoa: “In the UK, a new and thrilling jazz movement has evolved. As with Lamar, Thundercat and Washington, it is born out of fresh experimentalism, is reaching far younger, more diverse audiences and doesn’t care for snootiness. Unlike in previous waves, these musicians are in their 20s and early 30s, come from diverse backgrounds and, as with grime, have created their own community outside of major labels and concert halls.”
The London Production Of ‘Hamilton’ Ties ‘Matildas’ With Seven Olivier Awards
Lin-Manuel Miranda won, and so did the show’s choreographer, the actor who plays Aaron Burr, designers, and the musical itself. Hamilton, with seven wins, did not beat (in numbers) last year’s big winner, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
Another Director Busts Through A Glass Ceiling
How did director Kay Cannon get the job of helming the new sex comedy Blockers – and making it “a harder R” than it had been in its original script? She went to a meeting. “Point Grey and Good Universe had a writer’s roundtable for Neighbors 2. They had invited a bunch of lady writers to give their lady perspective. When I come to that kind of a thing, I come prepared. I had my computer out and I was basically running my mouth and giving any ideas I had. From that, they thought I had the potential to do a nice job directing.”
Top AJBlogs Posts From The Weekend Of 04.08.18
Cecil Taylor Is Gone
Cecil Taylor, a pianist who fashioned his music from myriad styles and sources, died yesterday in New York. He was 89. From his earliest recordings in the mid-1950s with bassist Buell Nieidlinger, … read more
AJBlog: RiffTidesPublished 2018-04-06
Cecil Taylor, dead at 89, as celebrated nine years ago
Cecil Taylor in 2014, photo by Sánta István Csaba The brilliant, challenging, perplexing and incomparable pianist/improviser/composer Cecil Taylor died April 5, 2018, at age 89. Here’s what I wrote of him to celebrate his 80th … read more
AJBlog: Jazz Beyond JazzPublished 2018-04-06
Almanac: Shakespeare on the function of music
Preposterous ass, that never read so far To know the cause why music was ordain’d! Was it not to refresh the mind of man, After his studies or his usual pain? William Shakespeare, The Taming … read more
AJBlog: About Last NightPublished 2018-04-06
What’s Destroying Ballet This Week? Reality TV, Of Course
Let the handwringing begin: “Youngsters now believe that they can become an ‘overnight sensation’ by appearing on a prime time entertainment show, according to the examinations director at the Royal Academy of Dance.”
Will London’s ‘Hamilton’ Set Records In The Olivier Awards Today?
The London version of the smash hit already raked in a record-breaking 13 nominations. Can it beat last year’s Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which broke records with nine wins last year?