“It may not be realistic to expect lockstep agreement with Guillermo del Toro’s perspective that he would ‘rather die’ than use AI on his films. … But it does prompt questions about determining the right amount of support (or at least agnosticism) that anti-AI advocates can tolerate in their creative heroes.” - The Guardian
The arrangement of Price’s Rainbow Waltz the Vienna Philharmonic played at its New Year’s concert in January has been criticized for bearing almost no resemblance to the original. Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin says he commissioned an arrangement from composer Valerie Coleman; the Viennese rejected it as unsuitable. - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)
After 42 years, Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater (WHAT) is suspending its operations as of June 1. The director cited “steadily rising costs in an increasingly challenging philanthropic environment” since the company’s post-COVID reopening in 2021. - TheaterMania
Construction on the Tennessee Performing Arts Center, in the redeveloping East Bank neighborhood, begins next year; opening is expected in 2030. The complex, with Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) as lead designer, will include a 2,600-seat hall for touring Broadway shows, a 650-seat dance/opera hall, a black-box theater and a cabaret space. - WPLN (Nashville)
“(The donor is) Mitchell Rales, the 69-year-old billionaire art collector and co-founder of health care company Danaher. The contribution is the largest programming-related donation in the NGA’s history and will serve to indefinitely fund the museum’s Across the Nation program, which loans artwork to partner museums.” - The Washington Post (Yahoo!)
Over 60 years he wrote or co-wrote more than 50 books and fronted several hundred hours of television, starting in 1956 with the British children’s series Zoo Time. … He was an acknowledged authority on mammal behavior, including that of humans, and maintained a separate career as a surrealist painter. - The Guardian
Lynda Roscoe Hartigan, who begins her term after Labor Day and who is currently CEO of the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, in fact began her career at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, where she spent two decades and eventually rose to become chief curator. - ARTnews
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
