Not anymore. “He admits to being ‘disappointed’ about his experience in Scotland, but seems to be excited by the possibilities of being a freelance operator – his first period of professional freedom since joining the Royal Ballet in 1976 as a young dancer.”
Tag: 10.20.13
Chinese TV’s Latest Hit Is Character-Driven
“Since its debut in August on a minor TV channel dedicated to educational programming, the Chinese Characters Dictation Competition” – inspired by America’s Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee – “has exploded in popularity. … The show has touched a nerve in China, where purists complain that smartphones are eroding language skills.”
How I’d Reinvent The National Theatre
“Television and film have made realist theatre unpalatable: it’s difficult to sit in the same space as a group of actors, suspending your disbelief, when you’re used to being in thrall to the TV screen. One way round that would be to get rid of the TV news – and instead have Shakespearean actors perform a daily news update at the National, acting out world events in real time. That would be a chance to return to the empathetic, cathartic traditions of Greek tragedy: rather than watching the news as if it was an objective description of an event occurring beyond our personal reach, we’d have a true physiological response.”
America’s Rural Libraries Are Reinventing
Thousands of rural librarians are “trying to bring a sense of community, learning and connectedness to their isolated areas. The Institute of Museum and Library Services estimates that nearly half of America’s public libraries are rural, and many of those are staffed by only one or two people.”
France Cuts Tax On Importing Art From 7% to 5.5%.
“The move is a major reversal as the government initially proposed raising the import tax rate earlier this year from 7% to 10%.”
Are We Ruining Young Opera Singers?
“Today lots of young singers take roles that are far too big for their voices. Agents cheer them on, eager for their clients to enter the spotlight. Casting directors increasingly hire them, keen for comely faces. And opera houses looking to keep expenses low are grateful for the cheaper talent.”
Keeping Miami’s Answer To Lincoln Center Running
Following a very bumpy first year, “the $473 million Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts center just completed its seventh season and finished the fiscal year with its sixth consecutive balanced budget.” The Arsht’s CEO, M. John Richard, talks about programming, fundraising, operations, and adapting to the long-anticipated redevelopment of the neighborhood.
Has The Arts Innovation Industry Got It Wrong?
Requiring individual arts organizations to reframe their need for resources in terms of “innovation” is not innovative; it is really just asking them to find new language for the same requests.
13 Arts Groups Make Top Fundraisers List
“Thirteen arts and cultural institutions have made the most recent top 400 list of American charities, ranked by the donations they took in.”
Is The World Doing Better Than In 1900? Let’s Do The Data
“We should guide our future attention not on the basis of the scariest stories or loudest pressure groups, but on objective assessments of where we can do the most good.”