We should cherish the miracles that happen on stages all over the country every night, even as we question why theatre needs miracles, when actually a very small amount of investment would enable it to produce lasting wonders, both artistically and in how it serves communities. - The Stage
That wasn’t a rule already? No, it wasn’t, except for Best Foreign-Language Film (now Best International Feature Film) and Best Documentary Feature; otherwise, things were on the honor system. The change could lead to more upsets and surprise wins, although it might also reduce the number of Oscar voters. - TheWrap
With a team that included Raj Patel, the acoustician who worked on the auditorium, Ney assembled a trio of pianos to choose from, all Model D Steinways but with distinct sounds based on when they were made and where. - The New York Times
Artists and arts organizations have a long legacy of persistence and strategic organizing during periods of political and economic upheaval. - The Conversation
NAAE Chair Dr John Nicholas Saunders said the sector was in crisis after years of cuts to arts education pathways and growing barriers to access. - Limelight
“The scale and beauty of the site still impress, although some of the showcase monuments are so badly damaged that it is hard to imagine what they had looked like.” - The New York Times
Conscious perception is the ability of human beings to become aware of the stimuli received by their senses. It is a different state from simply being awake, where sensations are processed automatically and unreflectively. Rather, conscious perception requires a detailed and voluntary analysis of external stimuli. - Wired
The company that former artistic director Li Cunxin turned into a powerhouse with an international reputation is now “beleaguered”, as one headline put it. - InDaily (Australia)
What does it mean for something to be improper if the administration’s understanding of what is acceptable excludes anything that might make white Americans feel bad? - The Atlantic
“With many opera companies in a doom loop of shrinkage caused by rising costs and stagnant (or worse) earnings, Houston has proved an exception. Driven by creative leadership and generous donors, its programming budget has risen steadily, (as has) its endowment.” - The New York Times
“Life and Trust, an immersive follow up to Sleep No More from the producing team Emursive, closed abruptly on April 19 after beginning performances in the summer of 2024. … No official reasoning was provided for the show’s sudden closure … after tickets were mysteriously refunded over the weekend.” - TheaterMania
“This month, Virginia Opera and Richmond Symphony will present the world premiere of composer Damien Geter and librettist Jessica Murphy Moo’s Loving v. Virginia, an operatic retelling of the events leading to the landmark 1967 Supreme Court decision that declared laws against interracial marriage unconstitutional.” - The Washington Post (MSN)
“(He was) known for his thick applications of paint and his furious brushstrokes … (and) an uncompromising personality; (his) paintings depicted scenes like Noah’s Ark breaking apart in a storm and a huge candy-cane-colored funnel cloud looming over a rural landscape.” - The New York Times
“Lindsey Halligan, 35, is a Trump attorney who seems to have tasked herself as a sort of commissioner — or expurgator, according to critics — of a premier cultural institution.” In fact, the executive order appears to have been her idea. - The Washington Post (MSN)
Four Democratic members of the House committee overseeing the institution wrote, “we now stand at the brink of seeing the Smithsonian at its worst: shaped solely by the views and ideology of one individual.” Trump’s executive order about the Smithsonian gives Vance the power to decide what material should be removed. - ARTnews
