Candombe — not to be confused with candomblé, the syncretic religion created by Afro-Brazilians — was once confined to poor black neighborhoods in Montevideo. Now it has many thousands of practitioners and fans throughout the country. - The Guardian
Rather than sticking our heads in the sand—and hoping that belief, alone, will be the source of motivation we need to succeed—what if we focused on doing what it takes to play the game for as long as possible? - 3 Quarks Daily
“Though Christianity’s relationship with dance remains tangled, the full-bodied nature of Shaker devotion, revolutionary in the 18th century, is now an ideal for some Christians — and some dance artists.” - The New York Times
“The role of the state is not to filter works in the name of good taste,” Thill said, adding that art should challenge audiences rather than simply please them. He said the public debate surrounding the project proves that it is doing its job. - ARTnews
Even if a new mug – or a clone – is identical to the original in every visible way, the fact that it is not the same alters the directionality of love: the fact that it is not the same has an impact on what we are affectively able to do. - Psyche
"The portrait, painted around 1598 and attributed to Caravaggio in 1963, depicts Maffeo Barberini, a nobleman who later became Pope Urban VIII. The painting was acquired from a private collection by the Italian state after over a year of negotiations and will now enter Rome’s Palazzo Barberini permanent collection." - AP
Identity, even when mobilized as a force for visibility and justice, can shield art from critique—transforming dissent into offense and rendering criticism suspect. Questioning the work risks being seen as questioning the identity. - LA Review of Books
The ambition to explore every facet of the present was quickly replaced by a devout commitment to questions of equity and accountability. There was a new answer to the question of what art should do: it should amplify the voices of the historically marginalized. What it shouldn’t do, it seemed, is be inventive or interesting. -...
The literary breaches, while trivial, highlight a reality that has become all too clear: There’s an inverse correlation between power and proper punctuation. - The Wall Street Journal
If your experience of Marseille is limited to certain multicultural central neighbourhoods then it might be easy to assume that this is – and always will be – a leftwing city, an outlier in the far-right bastion that is the wider south of France. But Marseille’s politics have always been contested. - The Guardian
“(He) achieved international renown with the 1970 publication of A World for Julius, ... portraying the life of Lima's elite through the eyes of a sensitive and lucid child. The book continues to be studied in universities around the world and marked a before and after in Peruvian literature.” - Euronews
Spotify said artists from 75 different countries had generated at least $500,000 in streaming royalties last year, compared to 66 the year prior, with about half of an average artist’s streams now coming from outside their home country. - The Hollywood Reporter
Sitting in front of the singers, without the distraction of the sets or even an orchestra, I found myself face to face with Mozart’s sublime interwoven vocal lines and the unadulterated beauty and power of the human instrument. It reminded me of why I keep turning up to opera in the first place. - The...
“As their profession is thrust into the spotlight with a new Oscar for their work being awarded on Sunday, the casting directors I spoke with acknowledged that the digital migration of their process has in some ways globalized the experience, … but they also acknowledge that sometimes a human touch is lost.” - The New York Times
“This decision by the Fondazione Biennale is not compatible with the EU’s collective response to Russia’s brutal aggression,” said the EU commissioners for technology and culture. “Should the Fondazione Biennale ... allow Russia’s participation, we will examine further action, including the suspension or termination of an ongoing EU grant to the Biennale Foundation.” - ARTnews
The government of Oregon’s largest city has $8.5 million in money from its (unpopular) Art Tax that has never been spent; this was reported shortly after the city cut arts grants by nearly half. - Oregon ArtsWatch
“Venezi, the daughter of a far-right militant and known for tossing her blonde mane in a popular shampoo ad, is seen as part of the (current) government's declared aim of ending alleged left-wing cultural hegemony in Italy. … Critics say her conducting record is too slim for a post like La Fenice's.” - ANSA (Italy)
Chilean conductor Paolo Bortolameolli, who was associate conductor under Gustavo Dudamel at the Los Angeles Philharmonic through 2023, begins his term in Phoenix with the 2027-28 season. He will maintain his other current position, music director of the Teatro Municipal de Santiago, Chile’s national opera house, and the Filarmonica de Santiago. - Arizona Republic
The annual Theatre in the UK report from the Society of London Theatre and UK Theatre says that, despite soaring attendance, many theatres in Britain are expecting to post operating deficits — because, as costs have risen, ticket prices have not been raised so as not to drive away audiences. - The Stage
The 85-year-old former CBS anchorman has been judge and scorekeeper on the public radio comedy-quiz show for 12 years. His last show will air on May 23. - Inside Radio
Rather than sticking our heads in the sand—and hoping that belief, alone, will be the source of motivation we need to succeed—what if we focused on doing what it takes to play the game for as long as possible? - 3 Quarks Daily
Even if a new mug – or a clone – is identical to the original in every visible way, the fact that it is not the same alters the directionality of love: the fact that it is not the same has an impact on what we are affectively able to do. - Psyche
Identity, even when mobilized as a force for visibility and justice, can shield art from critique—transforming dissent into offense and rendering criticism suspect. Questioning the work risks being seen as questioning the identity. - LA Review of Books
"What I find moving in these discussions is the intense yearning for a world that is more alive than secular scientists might think it is, a kind of seeking for a god that one suspects these scientists do not, at the same time, believe to exist." - The American Scholar
Roblox burgeoned during the COVID-19 pandemic; many of my students told me that their most cherished remote-learning memories were actually ditching Zoom classes to play Roblox together. - Psyche
GH Hardy believed there should be a strong aesthetic judgment in mathematics, drawing parallels with poetry, and argued that beauty is the first test of good mathematics. He went as far as to say that there is no permanent place in the world for ugly mathematics. - Aeon
If your experience of Marseille is limited to certain multicultural central neighbourhoods then it might be easy to assume that this is – and always will be – a leftwing city, an outlier in the far-right bastion that is the wider south of France. But Marseille’s politics have always been contested. - The Guardian
The government of Oregon’s largest city has $8.5 million in money from its (unpopular) Art Tax that has never been spent; this was reported shortly after the city cut arts grants by nearly half. - Oregon ArtsWatch
For many loyal patrons, the question has become how to fill the void left by the cancellations and the impending two-year closing. - The New York Times
Regulars who feel that the complex has been politicized and are now staying away miss what the Kennedy Center offered. But they’re not all staying home, and other performing arts institutions in and around D.C. are benefiting. - The New York Times
“All these Palestinians told us that they thought the BBC would never run our film, and we really had to try and persuade them to talk to us because they didn’t and don’t trust the BBC.” The journalists were shocked to learn that the sources were correct. - Reveal
So says a new report, which “criticises the industry for failing to consider how it might adapt to better accommodate parents, with the result that many, in particular women, drop out.” - The Guardian (UK)
Candombe — not to be confused with candomblé, the syncretic religion created by Afro-Brazilians — was once confined to poor black neighborhoods in Montevideo. Now it has many thousands of practitioners and fans throughout the country. - The Guardian
Spotify said artists from 75 different countries had generated at least $500,000 in streaming royalties last year, compared to 66 the year prior, with about half of an average artist’s streams now coming from outside their home country. - The Hollywood Reporter
Sitting in front of the singers, without the distraction of the sets or even an orchestra, I found myself face to face with Mozart’s sublime interwoven vocal lines and the unadulterated beauty and power of the human instrument. It reminded me of why I keep turning up to opera in the first place....
“Venezi, the daughter of a far-right militant and known for tossing her blonde mane in a popular shampoo ad, is seen as part of the (current) government's declared aim of ending alleged left-wing cultural hegemony in Italy. … Critics say her conducting record is too slim for a post like La Fenice's.” - ANSA...
Chilean conductor Paolo Bortolameolli, who was associate conductor under Gustavo Dudamel at the Los Angeles Philharmonic through 2023, begins his term in Phoenix with the 2027-28 season. He will maintain his other current position, music director of the Teatro Municipal de Santiago, Chile’s national opera house, and the Filarmonica de Santiago. - Arizona Republic
With a fine equivalent to a few days’ revenue and some marginal changes to its business practices, Live Nation will, more or less, plow ahead as the dominant force in live music. - The Los Angeles Times
“The role of the state is not to filter works in the name of good taste,” Thill said, adding that art should challenge audiences rather than simply please them. He said the public debate surrounding the project proves that it is doing its job. - ARTnews
"The portrait, painted around 1598 and attributed to Caravaggio in 1963, depicts Maffeo Barberini, a nobleman who later became Pope Urban VIII. The painting was acquired from a private collection by the Italian state after over a year of negotiations and will now enter Rome’s Palazzo Barberini permanent collection." - AP
The ambition to explore every facet of the present was quickly replaced by a devout commitment to questions of equity and accountability. There was a new answer to the question of what art should do: it should amplify the voices of the historically marginalized. What it shouldn’t do, it seemed, is be inventive or...
“This decision by the Fondazione Biennale is not compatible with the EU’s collective response to Russia’s brutal aggression,” said the EU commissioners for technology and culture. “Should the Fondazione Biennale ... allow Russia’s participation, we will examine further action, including the suspension or termination of an ongoing EU grant to the Biennale Foundation.” -...
The fire will have obvious economic consequences for the city, particularly through the loss of businesses caught in and close to the fire. But the emotional effect of the fire will be felt by the city’s residents and visitors, particularly if the building lies in ruins indefinitely. - The Conversation
Art Gallery of Ontario deputy director and chief curator Julian Cox will leave his post this April after eight years in the role, marking the latest departure at the Toronto museum since it became embroiled in a controversy over a failed plan to acquire a work by Nan Goldin. - ARTnews
The literary breaches, while trivial, highlight a reality that has become all too clear: There’s an inverse correlation between power and proper punctuation. - The Wall Street Journal
The choice of Greg Greeley marks the first time in memory that Simon & Schuster had hired a CEO from outside the company. The 62-year-old Greeley succeeds Jonathan Karp, who announced last year that he was stepping down to found his own imprint. - AP
Independent bookshops are dangerous because they interrupt us. They do not optimise our curiosity. They derail it. Is that the reason why Germany’s culture commissioner, Wolfram Weimer, is now consulting the domestic intelligence agency before approving funds to bookshops? - The Guardian
Sales of nonfiction books in the UK and Ireland in 2025 were down 6% from the previous year, with revenue at its lowest since 2014. For quiz books, however, it was the best year since recordkeeping began in 1998; sales in 2025 were up by almost a quarter from 2024. - The Guardian
The SLF has been sharply critical of Amazon, arguing that it destabilises the book trade. In a statement reported by the Bookseller, it accused the company of seeking “to flood the market with fake AI-generated books, promoted by fake reviews, written by fake readers to the top of fake rankings”. - The Guardian
“As their profession is thrust into the spotlight with a new Oscar for their work being awarded on Sunday, the casting directors I spoke with acknowledged that the digital migration of their process has in some ways globalized the experience, … but they also acknowledge that sometimes a human touch is lost.” - The New York...
The 85-year-old former CBS anchorman has been judge and scorekeeper on the public radio comedy-quiz show for 12 years. His last show will air on May 23. - Inside Radio
Whatever happens on Oscar Sunday, I suspect that the two front-runners will share the spotlight in a spirit as companionable as it is competitive. - The New Yorker
“The White House’s social media feed has issued a series of pumped-up videos that mix real Iran war explosions with movie action heroes, gaming footage and bone-crunching football tackles, leading critics like a top cleric of the U.S. Catholic Church to condemn a trivialization of deadly real-life conflict.” - AP
“The medium is facing a host of issues informed by global technological shifts and the financial dynamics of mounting a production anywhere. But let’s keep it focused. Hollywood — and, yes, American independent cinema — is staring down the barrel of a loaded gun.” - Vulture (MSN)
An emerging trend skews more classic Hollywood—directors, particularly those who might be considered auteurs for their well-defined aesthetic and storytelling style, have begun to matter just as much as the actors attached to them. - The Atlantic
“Though Christianity’s relationship with dance remains tangled, the full-bodied nature of Shaker devotion, revolutionary in the 18th century, is now an ideal for some Christians — and some dance artists.” - The New York Times
“Among the largest 150companies, … in all leadership categories except music directors/principal conductors, women comprised between 59% and 85% of artistic and administrative roles.” - Dance Data Project
“When the tanks entered Ukraine, Ratmansky gathered his artistic team and left for New York, severing ties with the Bolshoi and with Russia.” - New York Review of Books
“This is the frustration of working in the fine arts. The people who care about ballet, for example, care deeply. And most of those who don’t care think of ballet through stereotypes or quick hits of dancers on TikTok.” - The New York Times
“I feel as if I’m stretched a bit too far, but somehow in that stretch there’s a spark of creativity. There’s a place for outrage — sometimes outrage may be the most appropriate response to something happening in our world. But it’s more generative to approach these questions with curiosity and love.” - The Guardian
“Things gotta change, 100 percent,” Liu says. “I think the whole system’s got to scrap it and start over. The competition system and the setup just isn’t fit for consumption, honestly.” - The New York Times
The annual Theatre in the UK report from the Society of London Theatre and UK Theatre says that, despite soaring attendance, many theatres in Britain are expecting to post operating deficits — because, as costs have risen, ticket prices have not been raised so as not to drive away audiences. - The Stage
“The message I’m getting,” says the chief at one respected theatre in the British capital, “is that to come to London, hire a theater like ours, pay for the flights and accommodations for the U.S. creatives and casts, it still works out cheaper.” - The New York Times
The stranger-than-fiction truth is that Tarantino has written an original, old-fashioned British farce, in the door-slamming, trouser-dropping, mistaken identity vein of Brian Rix or Ray Cooney. - Daily Mail
So what’s an NYT theatre critic to do? “There are so many things beyond our control ... but somewhere amid all the hubbub, someone is making something, and you need to pay attention.” - The New York Times
“To me, a great protagonist for a musical is somebody who wants something so desperately, who is going to be relentless to the point of recklessness. … Alice lived until 1977. She was the author of the Equal Rights Amendment. She never stopped.” - Boston Globe
“Nearly 20% of Broadway theater tickets are now being purchased by solo attendees — double the rate from just a couple of years ago, according to audience data for the 2024-25 season from the Broadway League.” And one theater owner, ATG Entertainment, is tapping into that crowd with a “Solo Seats” initiative. - NPR
“(He) achieved international renown with the 1970 publication of A World for Julius, ... portraying the life of Lima's elite through the eyes of a sensitive and lucid child. The book continues to be studied in universities around the world and marked a before and after in Peruvian literature.” - Euronews
“His working approach was that a literary agent should be a creative and business partner for writers — a relatively novel idea at the time that he launched the agency, in 1973. Writers House now has over 20 agents and 50 employees and represents hundreds of authors,” many of them very prominent indeed. -...
He started making videos of himself performing robust opera arias while standing outside on a car lot, wearing his name tag. He composed lyrics to describe the cars he was selling and put the videos on TikTok and Instagram. - Seattle Times
The self-taught Mosley's works “show as much concern for pure form as any modernist’s, and reflect the influence of Constantin Brancusi and Isamu Noguchi, two particular heroes, as well as that of pre-modern African tribal sculpture.” - The New York Times
“Anyone who laid eyes on a DC Comics cover from 1973 to 1983 was likely seeing an example of Ms. Wood’s work. She colored nearly every cover for the company, whether the image was for a horror title, a war comic or a superhero adventure.” - The New York Times
“A trained psychiatrist, Lobo Antunes wrote, … in an elaborate, metaphorical style that he called 'controlled delirium,' … more than 30 novels dealing with topics ranging from Portugal's battles in its former colonies to the dictatorship that ran the country and social ills such as drug addiction.” - AFP (Yahoo!)
March 19–21: Ukrainian Contemporary Music Festival returns to DiMenna Center for Classical Music to celebrate the rich diversity of Ukraine's peoples, places, and musical practices
“All these Palestinians told us that they thought the BBC would never run our film, and we really had to try and persuade them to talk to us because they didn’t and don’t trust the BBC.” The journalists were shocked to learn that the sources were correct. - Reveal
DOGE employees used ChatGPT to make their choices. “The prompt was simple: ‘Does the following relate at all to D.E.I.? Respond factually in less than 120 characters. Begin with ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’’ The results were sweeping, and sometimes bizarre.” - The New York Times
“‘For McAllen, mariachi is like the Friday Night Lights of high school,’ said Anthony Medrano, a prominent San Antonio mariachi musician. ‘There’s pride in it.’” - The New York Times
Many - most, even - of France's booksellers pulled out of . Then the organizers got Amazon to “mutually agree” to end its sponsorship. Who thought this was a good idea in the first place? - The Guardian (UK)
“The core problem has been ticket revenues, which were weakening even before the coronavirus pandemic shuttered its theater with a devastating financial impact. Box-office receipts last year were down $20 million from a decade earlier.” - The New York Times
“Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers returned her trophy, the president resigned and 16 members have quit — with more considering their position.” - The Hollywood Reporter
“Nelsons, 47, has become one of the most unfortunate symbols of all that is irresponsible about the overstretched, overtired, overindulged modern music director. It has been not only deeply frustrating, but genuinely sad, to witness his trajectory.” - The New York Times
Oh: “The push into artificial intelligence by Oracle creates a thirst for more insight into how people view news and entertainment and what products they buy online. The streaming channels and social media giant both offer greater and more granular information." - NPR
That is to say, people’s sweat had gotten all over Michelangelo’s masterpiece, and now it’s being cleaned off while the sweat accumulates on a screen. - Associated Press
“Construction is expected to continue for a decade or so, but The Guardian called it ‘nevertheless a day full of emotion for a city that has lived with Gaudí’s unfinished work for generations.’” - ART News
Wesley Morris: “Why wouldn’t I have wanted this? A six-episode show that’s exemplary as romance, as physical intimacy, as banter, as athlete psychology, as conversation, confession and comedy, as just good television that involves a few of my favorite things: sex, sports, men, ... So why? Let’s start with wariness.” - The New York Times
The broadcaster’s decision to end its long relationship with Lebrecht — the widely-read, controversial critic and blogger who has hosted several interview programs on Radio 3 over the years — comes after Wang made public a message from Lebrecht which she described as “derogatory misogynistic bullying.” - The Guardian
