“George C. Wolfe and Joe Mantello go back to the 1990s, when Mantello, as a young actor, starred as Louis in Wolfe’s Broadway production of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America. In the years that followed, Mantello found himself acting less and directing more. Now, they’re formidable colleagues in their prime, as well as great friends, to boot. In the latest edition of TheaterMania‘s Artist to Artist series, Wolfe and Mantello discuss what their successes and failures mean to them, how they approach actors in the rehearsal room, and what it takes to maintain a level of joy that carries them through adversity.”
Tag: 12.18.17
The *Other* Issue ‘Call Me By Your Name’ Looks At: Americanness
Alyssa Rosenberg: “From the moment he arrives at the villa where he’s to spend the summer, Oliver feels almost shockingly American … [The film] felt like a gently twisty examination of what’s appealing and disappointing about Americanness, as seen from an outsider to it.”
De Sade’s ‘120 Days Of Sodom’ Declared National Treasure By France
“Officials ordered that the 18th-century erotic masterpiece be withdrawn from sale, along with André Breton’s Surrealist Manifestos, banning their export from France, the Aguttes auction house said.”
New York Gets New Unit To Prosecute Antiquities Trafficking
“Manhattan district attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. has formed a dedicated antiquities trafficking unit to deal with the increasing number of illicit antiquities cases in New York City. … [Vance’s] office says that the dedicated unit is a logical step given that New York is a major marketplace for art and antiquities – both legitimate and illicit.”
Belfast Arts Centre Says It Needs Extra £300K Or It Will Shut Down
The Metropolitan Arts Centre received £40,000 in unannounced emergency funding in October from Belfast City Council “to keep the doors open”; the venue now says it needs an additional £300,000 by March and a further £270,000 for the 2018-19 season.
Here’s How Challenging It Is To Try To Fund The Arts Equitably
“How can philanthropy be a place where we redesign the way our culture engages the capitalist classes in order to build a system of wealth redistribution that has a goal of justice, rather than the unjust goals we have now?”
Annette Page, Star Of Britain’s Royal Ballet, Dead At 84
“A dark-haired beauty with a pure classical technique, … [she] was one of a golden generation of ballerinas who made the Royal Ballet into a global phenomenon in the mid-20th century.”
The Leaders Who Create The Future (“When Is The Last Time You Did Something For The First Time?)
One of the great satisfactions of being a leader is that you get to be a teacher, sharing the wisdom you’ve acquired over the course of a career with young colleagues hungry for time-tested advice. But when it comes to inventing the future, the most effective leaders are the most insatiable learners. Creative leaders are always asking themselves, “Am I learning as fast as the world is changing?”
The Contemporary Drag Queen: Social Media Versus The Live Personna
“On one level, social media has created a new point of entry to the global drag scene, opening doors for a broad spectrum of talented visual artists who might otherwise be excluded—queens isolated in small towns, barred from clubs because of their age, or too shy or unwilling to navigate the jungle of nightlife. But for some, the growing presence of Instagram queens seems to be skewing public expectations for drag toward looks and fashion, and away from rich traditions of performance (including lip-synching, stand-up comedy, and dance), activism, community building, and so on. And in an industry where low-pay and high-expenses renders money rarely the object, any threat to long-held tradition is deeply felt.”
How’s A Critic Supposed To Review Work By Compromised Artists?
How do we write about the work these figures create? To what degree do we acknowledge the actions of the creator, and what bearing should that have on how we consume, experience, dissect, and analyze art? The questions cut across all disciplines.