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A Choreographer Adapts Flamenco For Ice Dancing

Antonio Najarro, former director of the Ballet Nacional de España and choreographer of several medal-winning routines in ice dancing: “It seemed very difficult to me. Flamenco is so rooted in the earth that doing it on ice felt almost crazy. But curiosity got the better of me.” - El País in English (Spain)

Permission To Star(e)

Depending on where you stand, the human face has become either a digital ­playground or digital battleground. Your Instagram feed can now produce a diaspora of thousands of faces that uncannily resemble but are not quite Kim Kardashian, a “cyborgian” look best achieved through plastic surgery and Facetune. - The Walrus

Playwright Tracy Letts On Why He Wrote “Bug” (And Why Now’s A Good Time For Reviving It)

“I was studying this issue of conspiracy theories and what makes people susceptible to a conspiracy theory. There’s a real terror of (not conforming) in our culture, and we will gladly believe somebody else’s nonsense if it means we don’t stick out from the group.” - WBEZ (Chicago)

Study: Using AI Doesn’t Reduce Work, It Intensifies It

In an eight-month study of how generative AI changed work habits at a U.S.-based technology company with about 200 employees, we found that employees worked at a faster pace, took on a broader scope of tasks, and extended work into more hours of the day, often without being asked to do so. - Harvard Business Review

France’s “Inalienable” Problem In Repatriating Museum Art

The principle is currently set out in two French legal codes, including the Heritage Code, which applies to public museum collections. Under the principle, nothing can be permanently removed from these collections without a special law passed by the French parliament in each case, a cumbersome and time-consuming process. - The Art Newspaper

How Sundance’s Move To Boulder Could Reinvent The Festival

Sundance’s move to Boulder is coinciding with a fortuitous moment in the specialty film space, with an uptick in post-pandemic interest from younger moviegoers. - The Hollywood Reporter

You’re About To Release A Novel, And Suddenly A News Event Comes Too Close To Your Plot For Comfort. What Do You Do?

That’s the dilemma that faced Simon & Schuster last fall, when right-wing media star Charlie Kirk was assassinated not long before the scheduled publication of Rebecca Novack’s satirical novel Murder Bimbo. - The New York Times

Paramount Sweetens Its Offer To Buy Warner

On Tuesday, the Skydance-owned company said it would pay Warner shareholders an added “ticking fee” if its deal doesn’t go through by the end of the year — amounting to 25 cents per share, or a total of $650 million, for every quarter after Dec. 31. - AP News

Report: Trump “Obsessed” With Kennedy Center Makeover

Overhauling the Kennedy Center has become a fixation for Trump—and no detail is too small for the real-estate-developer-turned-president. - The Wall Street Journal

France’s Le Pen Planning Makeover Of French Arts Scene

Marine Le Pen’s party is concocting plans to replace a vital, vibrant arts scene with a retrograde movement that would glorify the country’s past. - The Guardian

Philippe Gaulier, Clown School Professor With A Galaxy Of Movie-Star Alumni, Is Dead At 82

“The influential founder of France’s École Philippe Gaulier … taught the art of clowning for decades and his students included Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter, Emma Thompson, Rachel Weisz and Geoffrey Rush.” - The Guardian

A New Iron Curtain Between Russian And American Dance

A new iron curtain now separates American dance and Russian dance, bringing an abrupt end to a rich dialogue that spanned centuries. Swan Lake and The Nutcracker, two crown jewels in the American repertoire, would not exist without Petipa’s original stagings; meanwhile, Russian ballet was bolstered by American influence. - The Atlantic

LACMA’s New Galleries To Open April 19

That Sunday, a ribbon-cutting ceremony will kick off two weeks of priority member access to the galleries, with general admission beginning May 4. - Los Angeles Times

How Washington National Opera Left The Kennedy Center

“It has nothing to do with the name change. It is strictly dollars and cents, and the Kennedy Center’s inability to understand the economics of how opera works.” - Washington Post

Ireland Makes Its Basic-Income-For-Artists Program Permanent

“The Basic Income for the Arts initiative will provide €325 ($386) a week to 2,000 eligible artists based in the Republic in three-year cycles. ... The (pilot) scheme recouped more than its net cost of €72 million through increases in arts-related expenditure, productivity gains and reduced reliance on other welfare payments.” - The Guardian

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