One of the first things that struck Dvořák about Iowa was its emptiness. If he had come looking for the cheerfulness of home, what he found was this expanse of prairie, this sea of grass and grain that went on forever. “It is wild here,” he said, “and sometimes very sad.” – Plough
Cinemark Aims To Reopen Movie Theatres In July
Cinemark CEO and Board Director Mark Zoradi said there will be two weeks of “showing library product, high profile library product” as the chain expects a slow flow of attendance. The big blast off anticipated here is the weekend of July 17-19 which is when Warner Bros. Christopher Nolan’s Tenet is blasting off. – Deadline
How A Public Radio Station Raised $1 Million In 13 Hours With A Pandemic Pledge Drive
“[WBUR in Boston] had planned to return to a full eight-day campaign in 2020, after doing a marathon-themed 26.2-hour version for the past few years. … Months of planning for the original drive, however, went out the window when the coronavirus [hit].” Here’s what CEO Margaret Low (who had been in the job for less than three months) and the WBUR staff did instead. – Nieman Lab
Hollywood Writes Off Making Money In 2020
“We have to write off 2020. It’s already the year that didn’t happen,” says one top agent at one of the town’s powerhouse firms who, like everyone reached by Vulture for this story, requested anonymity due to sensitivities surrounding ongoing business endeavors. “We’re not going to make any money because there are no revenues with TV and movies not getting made. – New York Magazine
Dance Is The Most Physical Of Arts. Here’s How It Changes Your Relationship With Food
Calories in, energy out, right? If only it was that simple… – LitHub
Armageddon For Print Media?
Much of what was going to happen in any case will now happen suddenly: publishing history is suddenly accelerated. The shift from print to digital at virtually all publications will be radically sped up. A lot of publishers are simply going to run out of cash. One regional publisher has being ringing up contractors asking if it can delay payments by three months at least. – BBC
So It Starts: Publications Covering Entertainment Start Laying Off Staff
Valence Media, which includes digital media brands like The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard and Vibe, is laying off 30% of its employees within its editorial division. – Axios
The Old LACMA Buildings Are Being Torn Down. But We Still Don’t Have Gallery Plans For The New Museum
“The floor plans should never have been affected by coronavirus to begin with. The museum should have released them — some semblance of them — months ago. Or how about a year ago, when a revised design was presented to the County Board of Supervisors for a crucial vote as part of the environmental impact approval process?” – Los Angeles Times
Jazz Saxophonist Lee Konitz Dead At 92
“An exemplar of modern jazz improvisation, and arguably the most influential alto saxophone soloist after bebop progenitor Charlie Parker, … Konitz was one of the last jazz musicians of his era still in active circulation: his career has hummed along, apparently impervious to popular trends or external pressure, for the last 75 years.” – WBGO (Newark, NJ)
America’s First MA Program In Community Dance
In the Ohio University School of Dance program, “students can specialize in specific populations, such as seniors or children in schools. The program aims to prepare grads for a range of career options, such as teaching artist, outreach coordinator, accessibility coordinator for a dance company or school, or work in the health-care sector or with seniors through social service organizations.” – Dance Magazine
Hollywood Begins Puzzling Out How To Restart Movie Shooting When The COVID Lockdown Ends
“Nothing will happen until jurisdictions relax regulations that currently don’t allow gatherings of 20 or more people. Anticipating that will happen in a month or two, here are some of the key issues that are being figured out right now in film and TV production,” including health testing, tool use, clothing on set, craft services, doors, and crucially, insurance. – Deadline
Post An Image You Own On Instagram And You Lose Exclusive Rights To It, Says U.S. Federal Court
The ruling, which could make a difference for websites that use material originally posted on social media such as Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube, sidesteps what has been called “the server test” and concentrates on Instagram’s Terms of Use. Timothy B. Lee explains. – Ars Technica
Margaret Atwood Has Created A Puppet Version Of Poe’s ‘The Masque Of The Red Death’
“The novelist is to be a guest on Mary Beard’s BBC Two arts show Front Row Late, hosted in lockdown from the study in Beard’s house. Atwood’s contribution is what Beard calls a ‘very surprising’ version of Poe’s horror story: a puppet show choreographed by the author and her sister Ruth, with all the characters made from household objects.” – The Guardian
Some Live Theaters Want To Reopen On May 6? Actors’ Equity Is Not Having It
Responding to “troubling reports” of some theaters’ plans, the union’s executive director said, “Any employer who wants to begin theatrical productions needs to have a comprehensive plan in place that protects not just the actors and stage managers, but ensures that everyone who works in the theater has a safe workplace. It is unclear under the current circumstances how that can happen.” – Deadline
Vancouver Symphony Rescinds Layoffs
“[The VSO’s president and board chair] said Wednesday the orchestra now expects to meet the goal of maintaining employment for musicians and staff to the end of the 2019-20 season in June.” The layoffs, a response to the COVID-19 epidemic, were announced April 1. – Vancouver Sun
Oxford English Dictionary Updates With COVID Words
The dictionary’s executive editor Bernadette Paton said that it was “a rare experience for lexicographers to observe an exponential rise in usage of a single word in a very short period of time, and for that word to come overwhelmingly to dominate global discourse, even to the exclusion of most other topics”. – The Guardian
The Natural World Is Changing Around Us As We Lock Down. It’s Pretty Great
“People are suspended between terror and wonder. They’re terrified that this is all so fragile, but they also realize there are things we have been missing — the birdsong everyone is noticing, the beautiful skies — and that those things are important.” – Los Angeles Times
Paul’s Worlds
On a hilltop miles away from the city I love, I’ve decided to look at Paul Taylor & Company — An Artist and his Work, a 1968 film directed by Ted Steeg. 1968! My choice was partly personal … – Deborah Jowitt
Introducing the Hilary Teachout Grant
To help artists who, because of the coronavirus havoc, are finding it ever harder to stay afloat, the painter Makoto Fujimura and his International Arts Movement have launched the Hilary Teachout Grant (named after my beloved wife), an emergency relief grant for performing and other artists. – Terry Teachout
Lee Konitz, 1927-2020
Using aspects of phrasing, rhythm and tonal quality adapted from the great Lester Young, Konitz in the 1940s developed into one of the most distinctive saxophonists in jazz. – Doug Ramsey
Germany Will Provide Money And Craftspeople To Rebuild Notre-Dame’s Upper Windows
“The exact scope and nature of Germany’s contribution will be determined in the coming months on the basis of studies on the ground, [a] statement said, adding that three glass workshops at German cathedrals have the extensive expertise and experience necessary to undertake the restoration of the clerestory windows.” – The Art Newspaper