Stories

How Many Broadway Shows Can Follow Hamilton And Hadestown To Success At The Movie Theatre?

“I want to see the eyes of the actors, I want to get closer to the emotion - which is what theatre can’t give you. It’s a different thing,” says the Hadestown pro-shot director. - NPR

Britain Claims That Banksy Is Expensive For The British Public

"The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) says it has spent £50,000 trying to remove paint from the wall of the Grade II-listed building in Carey Street.” Er … a solution presents itself. - BBC

The Young Artist Making The Last Of The Dummies

“To some people, these are just puppets. … To me, there’s so much to them. It’s sculpture, casting, painting, sewing, mechanics, history, research, performance design — all at once. They are like kinetic art objects.” - The New York Times

The Music Of New York’s Subway Trains

No, not the clanking of the wheels or that metallic screech, but the jazz of the interplay of 400+ trains running at the same time. - NPR

Let’s Talk More About How Jellicle Ball Could Fill Every Seat And Still Have To Close

“There are countless reasons behind the demise of any Broadway show, each of which is essentially a start-up business taking its chances in a volatile market.” - The New York Times

Abbe Lane, Broadway Dancer Turned Star Vocalist, Has Died At 94

Lane, who didn’t speak Spanish when this part of her career began, "exuded a sultry Latin air as the star vocalist for the bandleader Xavier Cugat in the 1950s and ’60s, and in a successful solo career afterward.” - The New York Times

Not Only Is Poetry Still Alive, But It’s Having A Hell Of A Moment

No, not just The Odyssey. “A new audience is finding poetry, particularly (though not exclusively) through social media: a new generation of poets, particularly but not exclusively performance poets, have come to prominence through Instagram, TikTok, and other short-form video formats.” - The Guardian (UK)

For Actors, The Weird Calculus Of Choosing Which Series Episode To Submit To The Emmys

“The fact that acting nominees only submit one episode per performance feels very high stakes: One episode must make the best possible case that you deserve to win.” - Vulture

New Theatrical Work Desperately Needs New Audiences

"It’s a distinct privilege to witness something being born. It’s exciting.” But developmental opportunities are disappearing from the United States theatre scene at an alarming rate. - American Theatre

When Did It Become OK To Stop Reading A Book In The Middle?

Wasn’t there a compact, for a while, that if you started a book, you’d damn well finish it? “Even lifelong DNFers often feel bad about closing the book — that it’s a sign of a quitter, or that they’re too stupid.” - The New York Times

The Los Angeles Jazz Festival Was Going To Be Huge, With Stars Like John Legend And Janelle Monae

And then … it was canceled just before the 16-day fest was set to begin. "By Friday, the LA Jazz Fest website had been scrubbed, with only a cryptic message that said, ‘August 22-23. Updated event info coming soon.’” - Variety

The Painter Who Uses Medieval Style And Techniques To Address The 21st Century

“Today (Malo Chapuy) paints religious scenes, altarpieces, and early Renaissance-style portraits that look like museum artifacts save for the proliferation of wind turbines, water towers, astronauts, and spaceships.” - Art in America

Prediction Markets Are Wrecking Civil Society

Monetizing the full gamut of reality, platforms have opened Pandora’s box. Basic tenets of liberal society—democratic integrity and respect for human life—are being corroded. Regulators need to step in. - The Walrus

As AI Overwhelms The Web: What Was The Internet?

Despite valiant efforts by activists and reformers, it’s been the dystopians’ world—or at least the realists’—for some time now: an age of techno-feudalism, digital colonialism, the new Jim Code. - Boston Review

Missy Mazzoli’s New Opera Is A Tragicomedy About The Opioid Crisis (And Singing Sheep)

Why the comedy part? “New opera is sometimes boring because we’ve forgotten that our job is to entertain people. … During all my time in the American development system, no one ever told me that my job as a composer was to be a dramatist.” - The Guardian

Our Free Newsletter

Join our 30,000 subscribers

Latest

Don't Miss