“The comedians behind some thoughtful shows (this year) are exploring the vexed problem with a mixture of droll wit and intuitive wisdom." One of them created an AI replica of himself and interacts with it onstage; another recounts how he became convinced AI software was deliberately sabotaging his career. - The New York Times
This past season saw only six new musicals, the fewest in 25 years; the coming season will have at least eight, roughly the post-COVID normal. The shows have eight-figure budgets, and some have music by superstars (Lin-Manuel Miranda, Dolly Parton, Prince), while others have familiar IP (Paddington, Benjamin Button, Black Swan.) - Broadway Journal
The Strawberry Music Festival, held in the Sierra foothills near Nevada City in October, features American roots music of many types, including performances by major country stars. Co-founder Charlie Cran died suddenly in November, and his heirs, now the event’s owners, aren’t yet ready to present the festival properly. - San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)
“The San Diego Museum of Art laid off nearly a dozen employees Wednesday in what it described as an effort to stay sustainable as it contends with rising operating costs and an uncertain funding future.” - The San Diego Union-Tribune (MSN)
“When a show becomes a meme, the meme becomes the story, eclipsing the show itself. This phenomenon is here to stay. Thankfully, we’ll always have satire.” - The New York Times
Most discussions of AI and consciousness ask whether machines can experience anything. But maybe the real mystery is: If consciousness is not fundamentally related to higher cognition, then what kind of phenomenon is it? - Noema
The Royal Theatre of Rabat, which includes an 1,800-seat main auditorium, a 520-seat performance space, and a 7,000-seat outdoor amphitheater, was largely completed in 2021 but only opened this year. It’s planned as an international platform for Moroccan, Arabic and African music, dance and theater — and Western pop. - The New York Times
Looking at trends in the trade category, which includes religion books, sale rose 2.7% overall to $21.7 billion. The increase was led by religious presses, whose sales rose 9.3%, to $2.2 billion. Adult fiction sales had the second biggest sales increase, with revenue up 3.9%, to $7.1 billion. - Publishers Weekly
The renowned actor has played piano his whole life, and formally written music for at least 30 years, but it might still surprise many to learn that later this month Hopkins will release his debut album, "Life Is a Dream," on Decca Classics. - Los Angeles Times (Yahoo)
It’s a vital, creative and adaptive evolution, a way of preserving an important cultural heritage in a world of cheap noise where the piano recital might otherwise fade from view or become hopelessly marginalized. - 3 Quarks Daily
“(For) this year’s NOW evening of world premieres at Vail Dance Festival, tap dancer/choreographer Michelle Dorrance … is creating a work with … Chelsea Hoy, co-artistic director of Chicago’s Trinity Irish Dance Company, for a cast that includes top New York City Ballet dancers” — who, says Dorrance, “are blowing everyone’s minds.” - Dance Magazine
In popular culture and pop psychology, crowds are often associated with strong emotions, excessive emotional expression and the uncritical spread of emotions. Commentators often link that crowd emotion in turn with uncontrolled behaviour and, in some cases, mindless violence. - Psyche
If the art of filmmaking is inseparable from that of adaptation, it’s because almost all feature films are made by way of a fundamental form of adaptation: that of a script. - The New Yorker
Complaints about StubHub to the Better Business Bureau rose 47% from 2024 to 2025, and climbed 63% in the eight months leading up to the company’s September 2025 initial public offering. - The Wall Street Journal
“Choreographing a sea-witch straddling a man’s face until he suffocates (Widow’s Bay) is different from dramatizing the intimate moments of the 1990s’ most recognized celebrity couple (Love Story); both of those differ from creating the physical storytelling for almost every lead character across multiple sex scenes (Your Friends & Neighbors).” - Los Angeles Times (MSN)
