“When Cooper talks about A Star Is Born being deeply personal, you can see why. It’s about art that crosses cultural lines, it’s about a love of music, and it’s about the conflict between art and fame, the way celebrity can box you in and interfere with artistic goals — like his desire to direct.” – Philadelphia Inquirer
Tag: 05.20.19
Historically, Many Civilizations Have Collapsed. This Time Might Be Different
In the past, civilization often declined gradually. Also, sometimes the decline was good for some members of society as their rulers were overthrown. But we live in a much more interconnected world, and our fates are intertwined. – Aeon
‘Out’ Magazine Has Been Stiffing Freelancers, And Its Top Editor Is Threatening To Quit
“Over the past year, the magazine has been locked in a bizarre intra-company battle between writers and photographers with a web of companies and individuals all seemingly blaming each other for the missed payments.” – The Daily Beast
Columbus Dance Theatre Has Funding Taken Away By Local Council
“Amid a year of turmoil, the Columbus Dance Theatre will enter its 2019-20 season without support from the Greater Columbus Arts Council. … Spokeswoman Jami Goldstein said of Columbus Dance Theatre that ‘the concerns included missed deadlines, a balance of payroll taxes owed dating back to 2012, increased debt, negative net assets, leadership misconduct and lack of board recruitment and oversight.'” – The Columbus Dispatch
The Louvre’s Attempts To Get Works Loaned For Its Leonardo 500 Show Aren’t Going So Well
First of all, there’s the on-again, off-again attempt by Italy’s new-ish nationalist government to make da Vinci and the Louvre show a cultural battleground. But there are also the perpetually uncertain status of loans from the Hermitage (again, politics), the fact that works on wood are too fragile to travel, and the mysteriously missing Salvator Mundi. – The Art Newspaper
Making Opera With Homeless People In England’s Rust Belt
“A charity which helps tackle homelessness and mental health issues has been hailed for changing people’s lives. Streetwise Opera runs musical groups in [the North Yorkshire city of] Middlesbrough, giving the singers confidence to move on with their lives.” (video) – BBC
Funding Cuts Force UK Theatres To Earn More Of Their Budgets
The most recent annual survey data from NPOs found they continued to make more of their own income through ticket sales and other activity in 2017/18, with earned income representing 55% of total revenue and generating £889.6 million. This represented a 4.8% increase on the previous year. – The Stage
A NY City Ballet Star Returns – Unannounced And Under A Cloud
Brian Siebert: “In short, this rushed, business-as-usual reintroduction of Amar Ramasar won’t do, though I understand the company’s desire to downplay it.” – The New York Times
Have Music Copyright Suits Gotten Out Of Hand?
There’s been a surge in copyright claims ever since Marvin Gaye’s family sued Robin Thicke over the single Blurred Lines in 2015. “The odds of getting sued in this day and age are so high, we’re going to get to a point where nobody can write anything – because everything will be derivative of something else. – BBC
Transcending The Biological: Consider The Pointe Shoe
“Pointe shoes are a strangely enduring anachronism that epitomises the enduring desire for ballerinas to embody the unnatural, to portray an illusion. And their intention as a tool to evoke ethereal beings is in direct contrast with their actual biological impact on very real humans.” – Aeon