The Zelensky “minifig,” as the figures are known, retailed for $100 each and sold out in hours, as did Molotov cocktail accessories bearing the Ukrainian flag, which sold for $20 each. All proceeds from the sales were donated to the nonprofit humanitarian organization Direct Relief. - Hyperallergic
Adding all those plays and musicals — 16 new productions plus three returning from hiatuses are opening over a five-week stretch — was always going to be a gamble, since no one knows, in this not-yet-post-pandemic era, whether there are enough tourists and theatergoing locals to sustain that many shows. - The New York Times
The Central Philharmonic marked the 150th anniversary of Beethoven’s death by performing his Fifth Symphony. The last two movements were aired across the country. Some have remarked that, for music lovers, this broadcast marked the real end of China’s decade of political turmoil. - The Observer
Of the six books now in contention for the prestigious translated fiction award, five were written by women, with three translated by women too. - The Guardian
“There is no ‘I’ in AI.” Computers can beat a grandmaster in chess, but they don’t know that chess is a game. Jeff Hawkins argues that we can’t achieve artificial general intelligence “by doing more of what we are currently doing.” - GatesNotes
On the face of it, the gamification of reality looks like fun. But when everything becomes a game, it turns out, that game ends up dissolving into its merely apparent opposite: work. - Hinternet
Today, teams of archivists and librarians are working to save Ukrainian library and museum collections. Their efforts echo the work of the Monuments Men who, during the Second World War, gave “first aid to art and books” and engaged in the recovery of cultural materials. - The Conversation
“The more successful we were in selling the pictures, the higher we set the bar and the more extra stories we came up with, because we were really enjoying this game. Sometimes we laid trails so elaborate that nobody would ever have discovered them.” - The Observer
Can you really reach a larger audience by getting on a background jazz playlist than taking home the most coveted Grammy? I hate to share the bad news, my friends, but the world has changed. - Ted Gioia
TikTok is a new frontier for investors and producers to find new works—and for creators to create and promote them—but it remains to be seen whether it can translate into a viable new model for live theater. - Fast Company
What began as a SCI-Arc panel on the professional aspects of working in architecture mushroomed into a full-blown controversy that has led to the suspension of two faculty members at L.A.'s famously avant-garde architecture school. - Los Angeles Times
The musical, a high school adaptation of the Broadway show “Be More Chill,” was scheduled to run Thursday through Sunday, according to signs posted at the school. The signs advise “mature themes - parental guidance suggested.” - Modesto Bee
While the world debates whether to cancel or to welcome artists and writers who suddenly feel like leaving Russia amidst its economic collapse, it neglects the crucial question: will Russia succeed in executing Ukrainian culture once again? - Eurozine
In an age of YouTube and Spotify, how do we know if one artist heard another artist’s song, especially if they are relatively unknown, or if they both had the same idea? - The Guardian
Freed of London, based in Hackney, has been making pointe shoes for almost a century. But while being one of the only producers of the shoes in the UK means that business is booming, the technique has been added to a red list of endangered crafts at risk of being lost. - BBC
