ArtsJournal: Arts, Culture, Ideas

THEATRE

The Most Talked-About Director In British Theatre

“Theatre is controversial again and it’s happened, surprisingly, in an Andrew Lloyd Webber revival” — the Evita in which Eva Perón sings to the crowd on the street — “at the London Palladium. ... And those buzzy shows that you heard about were probably directed by the same guy as this one: Jamie Lloyd.” - GQ

It Might Be Time To Revive This Forgotten Pulitzer Prize-Winner’s Plays

“Gale didn’t coin the term ‘think global, act local,’ but that’s what Sodality does: Gale’s stories imagine an anti-capitalist vision of ‘sodality’ that could extend across the world, if only women were in charge.” - LitHub

Can The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center Survive?

The venerated, invaluable theatre incubator is facing, like so many performance-related sites, money trouble. - The New York Times

The Avignon Festival Copes With Ever-Increasing Temperatures

Days over 100°F are no longer rare, with serious effects on audiences and workers. … Recent changes include eliminating performances between 2:00 and 5:00 p.m., the hottest hours, … (and) a new rule for international artists: If you’re coming from overseas, you must have other touring dates in Europe. - The New York Times

Bay Area Theatres Are Folding. The Theatre Landscape Is Collapsing

"We, in the nonprofit theater world, rely on a model that is really not working for anybody. It wasn’t working before the pandemic. The warning signs were there. Nonprofit theater relies on subscribers and grants to invest in a season before it opens." - KQED

Oscar Wilde’s Forgotten Play About Russian Revolutionaries

The 1879 play Vera; or, The Nihilists is about a young woman and her band of radicals who plan to kill the tsar. Its 1881 London premiere was cancelled after Tsar Alexander II was actually assassinated, and the play has been neglected ever since. - The Guardian

Abrupt Leadership Change At Minneapolis’ History Museum

Richard Thompson, who joined the playhouse in January 2023, has been a mainstay of Twin Cities theater for decades, including directing shows at the Children’s Theatre Company and Penumbra Theatre. - The Star-Tribune (MSN)

Disgraced Producer Scott Rudin’s Return To Broadway Is Set

Four years after he “stepped back” from “active participation” in theater following media articles detailing his long history of abusing his staff, Rudin is producing (with Barry Diller) this fall’s Broadway transfer of Samuel D. Hunter's Little Bear Ridge Road, directed by Joe Mantello and starring Laurie Metcalf. - The Hollywood Reporter

Denver’s Theatre By And For Disabled Actors Is Hit Hard By GOP Cuts

“I know some arts organizations and some nonprofits are taking their DEI statements off their websites because they're afraid. And if we do, then it's our entire mission.” - NPR

What Theatre Tickets Cost In 2025 London

Overall average cheapest ticket to a show in London’s Theatreland district now costs £30.55, up 24.29% from the year prior. In comparison, the overall average bottom price in 2024 was just £24.58. Meanwhile, the average most expensive ticket across West End shows in 2025 cost £162.61 – 5.2% up from the 2024 figure of £154.56. - The Stage

In Defense Of Rachel Zegler’s Balcony Scene In The New West End “Evita”

Many people who paid exorbitant prices to see the show in person are miffed that they’re watching “Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina” on a screen as Zegler sings it to crowds on the street. Writer Ellise Shafer argues that “this divisiveness is exactly the point (director Jamie) Lloyd is trying to make.” - Variety

Report: Stressed UK Theatres Are Increasingly Playing It Safer

Local theatres are increasingly “playing safe” with their programming, resulting in more one-night events, fewer week-long runs and a significant drop in opera, ballet and contemporary dance, the findings of a new report reveal. - Arts Professional

Average Ticket Price In London’s West End Up By Nearly One-Quarter

What’s more, the difference between the shows with the highest and lowest average ticket prices is narrower than one year ago. - The Stage

In Wartime Ukraine, Shakespeare Is Booming

“A King Lear and two Othellos are in repertoire in major Kyiv theatres; there is also A Midsummer Night’s Dream in the capital, a Hamlet, a Macbeth and a Romeo and Juliet.” And there’s the Ukrainian Shakespeare Festival in Ivano-Frankivsk, which Guardian chief culture writer Charlotte Higgins went to visit. - The Guardian

Life In A Contemporary Touring Circus

“It has traditional skills and tricks and excitement, but instead of being a traditional succession of acts it’s a completely theatrical experience: a rollercoaster of a show.” Then there are the foxes that sneak in at night and steal costumes. - Irish Times

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