Last week, someone brought forward two now-embarrassing songs about black people that Smith recorded in the 1930s (we’ll spare you the titles), and teams in New York and Philadelphia that had been playing her version of the Irving Berlin anthem at games promptly dropped her. Anne Midgette wondered if this was an overreaction — until she talked to two black opera stars who’ve done a lot of singing at sports events themselves. – The Washington Post
Tag: 04.25.19
Filmmaker John Singleton In Coma Following Stroke
“The 51-year-old director behind films including Boyz n the Hood, Poetic Justice and 2 Fast 2 Furious was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. last week after falling ill after a trip to Costa Rica. While under medical care, he suffered a stroke, which had been described as ‘mild,’ but it apparently wasn’t.” – Yahoo!
Organist Marilyn Mason Dead At 93
“She commissioned more than 70 works from composers, including William Bolcom and Jean Langlais … and shaped generations of organists over a record-breaking 67 years on the faculty at the University of Michigan.” – The New York Times
Bill Frisell And Thomas Morgan: “Epistrophy”
Guitarist Frisell and bassist Morgan are captivating in their exploration of pieces whose variety extends from the harmonic challenges of Thelonious Monk to the deceptive simplicity of “Red River Valley.” – Doug Ramsey
Meet Four Black Playwrights Who Are Challenging American Theater
“They are the talk of the theater world: a generation of black playwrights whose fiercely political and formally inventive works are challenging audiences, critics and the culture at large to think about race, and racism, in new ways.” A conversation with Jackie Sibblies Drury, Jeremy O. Harris, Antoinette Nwandu and Jordan E. Cooper. – The New York Times
‘The Most Powerful And Relevant Theater Being Written Today’ — Ben Brantley On New Plays By Black Writers
“I can’t remember a more electrifying run of new, innovative plays during my 25-year tenure as a New York theater critic than the heady spate of works by African-American playwrights that have opened Off Broadway during the past two seasons.” – The New York Times
10 Works Over 5 Years by Black Playwrights, All Intended to Challenge
“Oftentimes, the most outrageous of plot twists are what make that happen,” say Ben Brantley and Jesse Green. – The New York Times
China’s Biggest Movie Star Makes First Public Appearance In Over A Year
“Megastar Fan Bingbing has appeared in public for the first time in almost a year, after a mysterious disappearance from the public eye believed to be linked to charges of tax evasion. [She] appeared at a Beijing gala on Monday night in honour of iQiyi, a popular video-streaming platform.” – The Guardian
Guggenheim Abu Dhabi Has A(nother) Tentative Opening Date
According to director Richard Armstrong, the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, part of the emirate’s Saadiyat Island complex of museums, is expected to open in 2022. “The Frank Gehry-designed museum, which would be the Guggenheim’s biggest space at around 320,000 sq. ft, was initially due to open in 2012 and then in 2017.” – The Art Newspaper