Ballet BC is an impressive troupe, but it has long specialized in contemporary work; it’s been more than a decade since there was a resident company focused on classical and neoclassical style. That’s why choreographer Joshua Beamish founded Ballet Vancouver, which debuts this week. - The Georgia Straight (Vancouver)
Last summer, Prof. Aono, who had meticulously updated the record year after year, died after a battle with cancer. That prompted supporters of his work to start looking for a worthy successor. - The New York Times
This is happening through the city’s Office to Residential Conversion Program, which allows developers to take empty commercial buildings and turn them into living spaces. The program gives developers a tax deferral as long as 10% of the units in the building are sold or rented below market value. - KNKX
“A wave of leadership changes is widely expected across major museums and cultural bodies, which could lead to the return of (figures) who were previously sidelined. There is, however, reason for caution. Magyar is himself a former Fidesz party member and a conservative politician, and some analysts warn against expecting rapid transformation.” - Ocula
Claims have been filed for 91% of the more than 480,000 works covered by the settlement, according to a court filing, opens new tab in the case on Thursday. - Reuters
While the V&A complies with all legal minimum-wage requirements, with some workers paid a living wage or above, campaigners say some of the lowest-paid contractors in London are not in receipt of the living wage. The UK minimum wage is £12.71 an hour and the living wage in London is £14.80 an hour. - The Guardian
“The stimulus, cognition, response model of the brain is wrong. The brain prepares for a response and then perceives a stimulus. A brain is not reactive. It’s predictive. Action planning comes first. Perception comes second, as a function of the action plan.” - Picower Institute
“A previously unknown verse attributed to Federico García Lorca has been discovered 93 years after the celebrated Spanish poet and playwright is believed to have jotted it on the back of one of his manuscripts.” - The Guardian
Using artificial intelligence, researchers analyzed The Baptism of Christ at the microscopic level, looking for trends in the texture of the paint at the resolution of a single paintbrush bristle. The results suggest El Greco painted the majority of The Baptism himself—but some experts caution more research is needed. - Scientific American
More than a century ago the rise of the player piano prompted strikingly similar debates about automation, artistry and fair compensation. Of all the technologies that have reshaped music, it is the closest historical parallel to AI. - Scientific American
“Porchlight Music Theatre, an Equity-affiliated, nonprofit Chicago company founded in 1994, will stage its full upcoming 2026-27 season at the Victory Gardens Biograph Theatre, a historic venue in Lincoln Park that has been mostly dark since the pandemic.” - Chicago Tribune (Yahoo!)
The exhibitions showcase both the traditional and the unexpected, from portraiture to multimedia installations, from founding documents to found objects. Across the country, the joy, sorrow and humor of the nation’s history are on display. - The New York Times
Research suggests uncertainty can be more distressing than negative certainty. In one study, people were calmer when they knew they would receive an electric shock than when there was only a 50% chance of one. - The Guardian
