“Pushes for greater diversity onscreen have been mirrored in some Hollywood corridors of power with varying degrees of effort and success. But the number of partners and department heads of color at talent agencies, those hypercompetitive firms where careers traditionally start in mailrooms or assistants’ pools, remains vanishingly low. … Here, seven black agents — six with major agencies, one who runs her own boutique company — speak candidly about the barriers they have faced, the isolation they have felt, and the changes they are beginning to see.” – The New York Times
Tag: sj
This Writer Asked New York Film Academy To Pay Her What Men Were Getting Paid. They Kicked Her Off The Project.
Last summer, Krista Knight signed on to write the script for a 20-minute movie musical for NYFA. At the time, she agreed that she’d be paid only with in-kind services. Then she found out that the composer and lyricist were each receiving a $150 honorarium … – Hyperallergic
What Are Museums To Do About The Sackler Name They Have Everywhere?
The Sackler family has been giving millions to art institutions for half a century. Now they, and the recipients of their generosity, are coming under heavy pressure from activists protesting the opioid crisis, because the Sacklers own Purdue Pharma, which has made and marketed OxyContin for 23 years. Thing is, many different Sacklers have been donors, and not all of them have had any involvement with OxyContin. Reporter Peggy McGlone looks into the issue. – The Washington Post
How Did The Shed Raise Nearly Half A Billion Dollars For A Building That Has Never Been Done Before?
The takeaway? Raising money in an arts philanthropy climate focused on issues like equity and access is not a zero-sum game. You can build a modern and expensive new building and roll out programming aligned with the pressing issues of the day. – Inside Philanthropy
The Video Game That Lets You Fight Back Against Jim Crow And The KKK
“[Video game company] Rockstar’s version of American history is not for the fainthearted. The developer took pains to make Red Dead Redemption 2 as historically accurate as possible. Someone at Rockstar was clearly paying attention in history class, because Red Dead Redemption 2 unflinchingly confronts America’s ugly racial history throughout the game.” – Slate
Play Under Attack For Using Puppet To Play Autistic Child
In All In A Row by Alex Oates, “a puppet portrays the character of Laurence, who is described as ‘autistic, non-verbal and occasionally violent’. … The play has faced a backlash online since a production video previewing it was released.” Critics say that the casting “fed into ‘a negative narrative of dehumanising’. A spokesman for the play said it was ‘untenable’ to get autistic performers to play the part.” – London Evening Standard
English Arts Orgs Are Becoming A Bit More Diverse, But Too Slowly: Report
“An annual statistical report, published on Tuesday by Arts Council England (ACE), showed slow progress in representation of people from a black and minority ethnic (BME) background, and barely any progress in the area of disabled employees.” – The Guardian
Hollywood’s History Of Blackface
Most Americans today are so removed from the heyday of blackface, when an entertainer like Al Jolson could cement their iconic status with it, that, like the Confederate flag, it is embraced by some as a triumphant act of transgressive rebellion and/or willful ignorance, a thumb in the eye of the politically correct. – The Daily Beast
How To Create A Theatre Culture That’s Both Mainstream And Genuinely Queer?
Ezra Brain: “Even as representation increases, there doesn’t seem to be much evidence of a truly and uniquely queer theatrical culture — which, for this argument, I am defining as a unique set of practices, aesthetics, and philosophies that are recognizable to an average audience member. … To [create such a culture], we must first decide what makes a play queer.” — HowlRound
Reimagining Shakespeare’s ‘Dark Lady’ For Ballet
First, who was the Dark Lady? Most likely, it was a black brothel owner in London known as Lucy Negro — whom actress and poet Caroline Randall Williams took as the inspiration for her 2015 book Lucy Negro, Redux. That book in turn inspired choreographer Paul Vasterling’s new work, Attitude: Lucy Negro Redux, which he created for dancer Kayla Rowser and Nashville Ballet, with music by MacArthur fellow Rhiannon Giddens and text from the book performed by Williams herself. — Dance Magazine