This Broadway Season In The Context Of Our Times

You can view a movie whenever you want, but it exists in a past that you cannot alter. Live theatre may be evanescent, but it is always of the moment; it routinely brings the past into the present, and it can be altered from production to production. What, then, is the responsibility of theatremakers towards live shows that either were created or are set in the past?

Sotheby’s High Tech Forgery Detector

If Sotheby’s were a hospital, his department would be “the E.R. or a clinic.” One analysis is like an M.R.I., and another is like a CT scan. He described analyses as “noninvasive.” Mr. Martin tried to keep the discussion understandable to nonscientists, even comparing one device to a “Star Trek” phaser, but he also said things like: “Each one of the million pixels has its own spectrum.”

Some Of The World’s Best Art Has Been Destroyed (Here’s Why It’s Is Important)

Noah Charney’s premise is fairly uncontroversial: He argues that our understanding of art history is skewed by survivorship bias and that to understand the art we still have, it’s critical to put it in the context of what’s been lost. “Many lost works were more important and celebrated than those that have survived,” he writes.

How YouTube Has Become The New Pirate Radio

The channels occupy a precarious space between YouTube’s algorithm and its copyright policing, drawing comparisons to the unlicensed pirate radio stations of the 20th century, recreated in the digital sphere. Many of the channels blink in and out of existence within a week, but their presence has become a compelling part of the site’s musical ecosystem. And while competitors like Spotify are gaining, YouTube still dominates the streaming world, according to the latest Music Consumer Insight Report from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.

Art Museums Are Becoming Addicted To Blockbuster Shows: Felix Salmon

“Major event” exhibitions like the Yayoi Kusama Infinity Mirrors show and the traveling David Bowie Is show “achieve two important goals for any museum: They increase attendance, and they increase revenue. But … blockbusters effectively ratchet up expectations everywhere, to the point at which lower-budget affairs can no longer capture the public imagination. That’s bad for most museums, and it’s bad for the public, too, which will increasingly subsist on the cultural equivalent of junk food.”

‘New Yorker’ Writer Has To Postpone Book About Poker Because She’s Making Too Much Money Playing It

“A little more than a year ago, New Yorker writer Maria Konnikova announced that she was diving into the world of professional poker as a new player, all for the purpose of writing a book about her experiences. [Now] the actual writing of the book is on hold because Konnikova, under the guidance of pro Erik Seidel, got too good at poker. In January, Konnikova won $86,400 by beating a 240-person field at the PCA National; in her first tournament after deciding to drop blogs for cards, she won $57,000.”

Producer Of Diana Vishneva’s ‘Sleeping Beauty Dreams’ Tour Questioned In Trump-Russia Investigation

“[The retired ABT star’s] Sleeping Beauty Dreams, an avant-garde dance production about the internal world of the cursed princess during the one hundred years she was asleep, [is] premiering in Miami in December before going on to New York and then on … a 30-city tour in 2019.” Reporter Olivia Nuzzi does a profile of Michael Caputo, the show’s producer, who was interviewed by special prosecutor Robert Mueller’s office last week. Caputo is an erstwhile political operative in both the U.S. and Russia and was a senior communications adviser to the Trump campaign.

How Kyle Abraham Feels About Being NY City Ballet’s First Black Choreographer In More Than A Decade

“Not only am I a black choreographer I’m a modern choreographer. I have a fear that if this piece is seen as a failure, they will never hire another black choreographer again. … I just want to make a beautiful work in the same way the other two choreographers on that program are going into a work, but they don’t have that same weight on them.”

Top Posts From AJBlogs 05.02.18

Hearts for Hartwig: My Appreciation for Getty’s Soon-to-Retire Communications Head
It’s not like me to sing the praises of museum communications officials, even though I constantly rely on them for help (and they often are extremely helpful). As a critic and investigative journalist intent on clarifying what’s been blurred by PR spin, my relationship with spokespersons is often more adversarial than collegial. Not so with Ron Hartwig, … read more
AJBlog: CultureGrrl Published 2018-05-02

 

John Von Rhein Steps Down As Chicago Tribune Music Critic

“On a personal note, I would like to announce my upcoming retirement as classical music critic of the Chicago Tribune. When I step down July 1, I will have held this position at the paper for nearly 41 years, a record for Chicago (and perhaps U.S.) musical journalism insofar as I have been able to determine. It’s been a great ride, but the time has come to move off into other ventures and give somebody else a shot at one of the best jobs in journalism.”