The auditorium, carved out of a hillside in Syracuse on Sicily's southeastern coast, "seats 5,000. The stage is 27 metres wide and 44 deep; acting, direction and design are correspondingly epic. Yet ... psychological detail is still achievable even in this vast arena." - The Guardian
With a roster of 124 active shows, PRX has been a steady, albeit low-key, podcast publisher. It had nearly 6.6 million unique U.S. listeners to its podcasts during April with more than 58 million downloads, according to Podtrac. - Inside Radio
The great French actress wasn't the first to be famous solely for being famous (that phenomenon came later), but she was the first to consciously use the media to gain worldwide fame and the first to use that fame to get rich from ancillary self-branded business ventures. - Smithsonian Magazine
If a computer system can write code—as ChatGPT already can—then it might eventually learn to improve itself over and over again until computing technology reaches what’s known as “the singularity”: a point at which it escapes our control. - The New Yorker
"Next summer, the best 16 B-boys and 16 B-girls from around the world will face off in solo battles soundtracked by a live DJ on the Place de la Concorde, ... (and) there is a hope that breaking will bring the jolt of a new audience." - The Observer (UK)
As long as objects have been plundered, countries have called for their repatriation. Yet western popular culture has muted these voices, sometimes expressing anxiety over colonial plunder but ultimately reaffirming British and American supremacy. - The Conversation
"Despite protests from station owners, listeners, first-responders and politicians from both major parties, automakers … are removing AM radios from new electric vehicles because electric engines can interfere with the sound of AM stations. And Ford (is) eliminating AM from all of its vehicles, electric or gas-operated." - MSN (The Washington Post)
In the 20th century, Western philosophy split into two discourses, each with its own canon and jargon, usually referred to as ‘analytic’ and ‘continental’. Mastering them simultaneously was a very intimidating prospect, and few had the motivation. - Aeon
"Jen Cousins and Stephana Ferrell track school board votes and the fates of books across Florida's 67 districts. They file public records requests, appear before the Legislature, enlist volunteers and try to find wins in a state firmly in the hands of a conservative Republican Party." - Yahoo! (Los Angeles Times)
The stage and film director, former head of the National Theatre in London, argues for two different (and, of course, generously financed) government funding bodies along the lines of those already in place for sports: one for elite/Olympic-level performance and one for community activities. - The Guardian
Antonio Pappano, Isata Kanneh-Mason, Sarah Connolly, Edward Gardner, and others offer suggestions from turning off the cell phones to incentivizing philanthropy to restoring music education to increasing support for local community ensembles. - The Guardian
"As they prepared for the leadership transition, (outgoing artistic director Virginia) Johnson and (successor Robert) Garland spoke with Dance Magazine about their deep, shared history with DTH, their commitment to continuing the work of Arthur Mitchell, and their hopes for the future of DTH's company and school." - Dance Magazine
"NYSE notified the company that it is not in compliance with its continued listing standards" because of its low share price (down 13% to nine cents). "As a result, the exchange suspended trading in the stock and will initiate a proceeding to delist it from the exchange." - Inside Radio
"Books about the Tiananmen Square massacre, Hong Kong protest movements, and other subjects deemed politically sensitive by Beijing have been removed from the former British colony's public libraries in the lead-up to the 34th anniversary of the killings." - The Guardian
"(In) the biggest art heist in modern history, the thieves made off with a haul worth more than €113 million ($123 million) from the Green Vault museum in 2019. Some, but not all, of the loot was recovered in exchange for four of the defendants confessing in court." - Yahoo! (AFP)
