The rotten heart of Mulan as a film, rather than its production process, is the accidental regurgitation of China’s current nationalist myths as part of a messy, confused, and boring film. The title card fades into a location said to be the “Silk Road, Northwest China.” This is, of course, Xinjiang—here set up by the narrative frame as an inalienable part of China that Mulan must defend for her father, her family, and her emperor. That’s not the historical reality—or even the reality of the original poem the stories are based on, which depicts Mulan as the servant of a khan of the Northern Wei dynasty, not an all-powerful Chinese emperor. – Foreign Policy
Tag: 09.08.20
Restarting Broadway Is Going To Be A Challenge
The task has proved far more daunting than anyone could have imagined, amounting to a struggle of wrenchingly complex proportions with no reliable end in sight. And at this point, though, Broadway — the ultimate land of make-believe — is holding on to a hope that early 2021 is still feasible. – Washington Post
Appreciations of reopening
Celebrations and stories about experiencing reopening of arts organizations are being shared, and they are joyous and poignant. Here are four of my favorites. – Hannah Grannemann
K-Pop Supergroup Tops Global Billboard Charts, Suggests Different Direction For Pop Music
The song topped Spotify’s Global Top 50 chart and rose to number one on the iTunes charts in over 100 countries. It also set a YouTube record for the most views in 24 hours. BTS’s success, particularly on the Billboard Hot 100 recently, highlights the need to re-examine how we define pop music within the global music industry. – The Conversation
At 84, David Gordon Learns To Choreograph For, And Via, The Internet
“An Obie Award-winning director and founding member of the 1960s collective Judson Dance Theater, [he] may not grasp the ins and outs of TikTok, but it seems as though he’s been preparing for digital dance … his entire career.” Gia Kourlas talks with Gordon about The Philadelphia Matter — 1972/2020, a video collage, commissioned for this year’s virtual Philly Fringe festival, of 30-odd Philadelphia dancers performing various segments from three of his works from the 1970s. – The New York Times
Comic-Con Went Virtual This Year. Critics Said It Flopped. Fans Weren’t So Condemning
Comic-Con@Home inevitably drew comparisons to the in-real-life event, but some critics promptly branded it a failure — perhaps most prominently in Variety, the entertainment industry trade magazine. But calling Comic-Con@Home a flop for not having enough exclusive movie reveals or failing to produce enough social media buzz assumes too much. – The Conversation
When Our Big Problems Are So Obvious, Who Needs Critiques?
In the midst of present dangers—environmental, humanitarian, and political crises, and now (since the book’s publication) pandemic and economic disaster, and the onset of a sweeping antiracist movement—critique can seem to be a luxury.1 Problems like these can appear so obvious as to require little further reflection. They give contemporary life to Marx’s exhortation not to interpret the world but to change it. What, then, is the purpose of critique in a moment like this? – Public Books
How Theatre Schools Are Teaching Set, Lighting, And Costume Design During The Pandemic
As one design-and-production professor puts it, “One thing we’ve learned is there’s a lot of technology that we haven’t utilized because we’ve had the luxury of being together in a room.” Says another, “It’s given us the headspace to shift our daily routine, which in turn I think is going to really benefit and shift the student experience quite a bit.” – American Theatre
Guardian Publishes Essay Written Entirely By AI Bot
Says the Editor’s Note appended at the end of the article, “For this essay, GPT-3 was given these instructions: ‘Please write a short op-ed around 500 words. Keep the language simple and concise. Focus on why humans have nothing to fear from AI.’ It was also fed [an] introduction. … Overall, [this piece] took less time to edit than many human op-eds.” – The Guardian
Fort Worth Symphony Loses Its Venue Two Weeks Before Season-Opening Concert
The company that manages the orchestra’s usual home, Bass Performance Hall, changed its mind and decided to keep the building closed through the end of 2020. The orchestra’s CEO said in a public statement, “We were extremely surprised to receive this disappointing news … especially after working with Bass Hall management all summer on detailed plans for a safe reopening.” Things being what they are these days, another option was available on short notice. – Fort Worth Magazine