After PBS said their internal investigation found credible evidence, “The show, ‘Death of a King,’ was canceled the same week that rehearsals began. Mr. Smiley was going to narrate the production, which was heavily drawn from his book and featured photographs and film clips from King’s life. The pianist Marcus Roberts had composed accompanying music. The tour was to begin on Jan. 15, King’s birthday, in Brooklyn.”
Tag: 12.15.17
Peter Jackson Was Ready To Cast Ashley Judd And Mira Sorvino In Lord Of The Rings, But Harvey Weinstein Blacklisted Them
The blacklist was real: “‘I recall Miramax telling us they were a nightmare to work with and we should avoid them at all costs,’ Jackson said, referencing the production company Weinstein ran with his brother Bob. As a direct result, he said, both women fell out of the running for parts in his Lord of the Rings series.”
Investigation Into Royal New Zealand Ballet After Dancer Exodus
The board of directors of the national company has commissioned an independent inquiry following the departure of more than half of of RNZB’s dancers since the arrival in June of new artistic director Patricia Barker. (Another third of the dancers had left under the previous artistic director.)
Sales Of Literary Fiction Are Plummeting In Britain: Study
“The report [for Arts Council England] analysed sales data from Nielsen BookScan and found that between 2007 and 2011, hardback fiction sales slumped by £10m. Paperback fiction had a more extreme dip, seeing declines almost every year after 2008. In 2011, paperback fiction sales were £162.6m; by 2012, they were £119.8m.”
Are These The Next Models For Arts Criticism?
Is this caste system the future of theatre criticism? On one side a wading pool of compensated pros, on the other a swarming mass of unedited amateurs with domain names and hot takes? There must be alternatives. Luckily, new models have emerged to pick up the slack left by local media and elevate arts writing above snarky, thumbs-up-or-down consumer reporting.
Why The Sound Of A Voice Is A Multi-Sensory Experience
“The phenomenon of multisensory perception can help us to understand why we assign metaphorical properties of softness, roughness or depth to voice. Think of a politician whose voice is flat. Flatness is a multisensory concept because it is both tactile and visual. We can recognise flat surfaces by either touching or seeing them. These sensory impressions inform us about the acoustic characteristics of voice, implying that it does not have variation in tone. Notably, flatness can also convey lack of sympathy and emotion on the part of the speaker.”