The latest analysis is computer-aided quantitative analysis of the texts. It’s revelatory (in a way), and it adds something to our understanding. But it doesn’t replace our previous close contextual study. – Times Literary Supplement
Balcony Tenor Maurizio Marchini Took Time Off When He Saw Army Trucks Taking Away Bodies
After the Italian shutdown, Marchini immediately “went viral” (but in a good, pre-Covid-19 way) when he performed from his balcony on March 13. He didn’t even know it because, he says, “I’m not a social guy.” Then things got grim, and he took time off out of respect to the families. Now he’s back on his balcony singing arias. – Vice
Theatremakers Who Can’t Do Theatre Right Now Are Volunteering For Britain’s National Health Service
Turns out that many actors, writers, and producers were already in theatre – and that balancing the arts and sciences came naturally. Now that it’s all science, and all terrifying, they’re stepping up. One playwright who’s part of a critical care team for those with Covid-19: “I do think that theatre helps you make sense of things, because you can feel very small. … I have just been writing about what it looks like. I’m so overwhelmed; you just have so much emotion at the end of each day, so I’ve been trying to make sense of it.” – The Stage (UK)
The Apocalypse Tapestry May Be Perfect For Our Current Lives
The tapestry, which depicts in 100 medieval panels the Book of Revelations, is a vivid glimpse into how people lived through plague and war. And: “It is remarkable that the tapestry still exists, given that during the French Revolution it was looted, cut into pieces and used as floor mats and blankets for horses.” – The Guardian (UK)
When Will Blockbusters Return To Movie Theatres?
It’s going to be quite some time. Why? “‘New York and Los Angeles are going to take a lot more time [to reopen] than Montana,’ predicts Jeff Bock, a box office analyst with Exhibitor Relations. ‘Nobody is going to open Mulan or Tenet if it’s just submarkets.'” (Sorry, Montana.) – Variety
The 700 (Formerly) Hidden Paintings Of An Inventive Chef
Ficre Ghebreyesus, a chef who combined Eritrean and Ethiopian food, kept a studio where he painted, but didn’t exhibit his work. His widow: “The thing that was cool about Ficre as a chef is that to him it was making art. It’s like the dreaminess of the paintings. There’s something remembered and something invented.” – The New York Times
Live Nation – That Is, Ticketmaster – Is Reconsidering The Policy That Had Everyone Furious
In other words, they weren’t going to issue refunds – but the “everyone” who was furious started to include lawmakers, things changed (to be clear, the company claims the change had been in the work for weeks before a request to the New York attorney general to look into Live Nation’s business practices). Suddenly, refunds will be available for canceled shows, and exchanges for rescheduled shows. – The New York Times
The Halt Of Everything May Speed Up Writers Union Negotiations With Studios
This is not a great time for writers (or anyone else, of course). Before this plot twist, “many were predicting writers would stage their first walkout since 2007, but WGA leaders recently told members they would not seek a strike vote during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has had a devastating effect on Hollywood.” – Los Angeles Times
Climate Change Has Revealed An Ancient Norwegian Mountain Pass, And All Its Artifacts
Mountains were long thought to be impermeable barriers between ancient communities – but this one, with finds ranging from horseshoes and sleds to wool tunics and mittens, is one of many passes revealed by climate change to have been major thoroughfares to other lands. – Vice
When Did Classical Music Get So Darn Loud?
The world got louder, and so did the orchestra. After all, “before the Industrial Revolution, the principal sources of noise were thunder, church bells and cannon fire.” – The New York Times
American Girls ‘Glengarry Glen Ross’ Is The Best Theatre You’ll See All Week
It’s hard to describe this, but basically, actress Kathryn Hahn and her family are staging Glengarry Glen Ross with American Girls dolls, filming the results, and uploading them to YouTube. Please, just go watch. – Vulture
Speculation: Independent UK Museums Likely Won’t Survive Virus
Independent institutions that usually depend on entrance fees and are not backed by regular grants or funding are thought to be most at risk. London’s Florence Nightingale Museum and Charles Dickens Museum are among those who have appealed for more help. – BBC
There’s Boredom And Then There’s Boredom As A Punishment
For people whose “confinement” looks more like days on end in pajama bottoms, media outlets scramble to provide useful tips for combatting quarantine-induced boredom. Users’ social-media feeds are flooded with content that makes light of how people are responding to the drudgery and how hilariously creative they can be in their attempts to break up monotony. Yes, the boredom of sheltering in place can be stressful, but for incarcerated people, that stress can be deadly. – The Atlantic
Indie Musicians Take To Social Media To Replace Live Gig Income
“Sales do not drive a career the way they used to, so it’s more imperative than ever for artists to stay out on the road. And right now we’re not talking about a diminishment of income, we’re talking about a cessation of it. It’s done. And no one can tell us for how long.” – Washington Post
We’ll Need A New Model For The Arts. The Question Is What
Stephen Hetherington: “I think it unfortunate that the rise in state support has produced its own ideological and political adherents, creating for some a mythological differentiation between art and entertainment, and between the supposed coarseness of commercial motivation and a sacralised, Kantian notion of L’art pour l’art – “without purpose, for all purpose perverts art”. The evidence is quite different: artistic creations move freely between the subsidised and the commercial (but not necessarily profitable) sectors, while neither has a monopoly on quality.” – Arts Professional
Connecting Online: Our Culture Is Moving Online – But Seniors Struggle
Only 26% of internet users 65 years and older said they feel “very confident” when using computers, smartphones or other electronics to do what they need to do online, according to a 2015 study from Pew Research. – CNN
New York’s Public Theater Cancels Shakespeare In The Park, Faces $10-20 Million Shortfall — But Still Has New Work Coming
Artistic director Oskar Eustis said that “there’s no way we can responsibly prepare, build and rehearse to get shows open in a timing that might match the quarantine’s timing.” 70% of full-time staff will be furloughed through the summer, with the rest taking pay cuts. Even so, the Public is now producing a videoconferencing play that Eustis calls “the best thing about how we live now in quarantine that I’ve read in any medium.” – The New York Times