“Five hundred people were asked to rank 150 city flags, and the association found that on a scale of 1 to 10, the average score was a 4.3. Three-quarters of all city flags scored below a 5.”
Can A Studio Claim Copyright Over The Entire Klingon Language?
Paramount has sued the makers of a crowdfunded Star Trek fanfic film titled Axanar, with the studio claiming intellectual property rights over (among other things) the entire Klingon language, which was created by linguist Marc Okrand for the Star Trek film series but has since caught on with tens of thousands of enthusiasts.
Report Debunks Some of The “Benefits” We Claim For The Arts
Although the report doesn’t pull its punches in exposing how few of the assumptions we make about the wider benefits of the arts are backed up by empirical evidence or the way policymakers have attempted to place a “cash value” on culture, it is far from being negative or cynical.
Paying Too Much For Hamilton Tickets
“I missed Soho Repertory Theatre’s Blasted because stuff got in the way. I missed the original production of Ruined, and Meryl Streep in Mother Courage. I meant to go. I wanted to go. They were seminal events in the history of Western theatre. But life kept me busy. I can’t recall what kept me away. Just ordinary things. I didn’t make time for the ecstatic experience of being there. There are always a million reasons not to go and to save the money for something more important.”
Britain’s National Theatre Needs To Learn Flexibility From The Temporary Space It’s About To Close
“What I hope – and all the omens are very good – is that the closure of the Temporary Space will not mark the end of something, but the start of new era at the National. … It’s a mindset which understands that the theatre must be far more progressive, diverse and porous in every way if it is to become truly national. That means in the stories it tells, the way it tells them, the audiences who come and the artists making work.”
Will The British Film & TV Awards Diversify Faster Than The Oscars?
“While diversity is not the driving motivation for BAFTA’s review of members, its review will nevertheless factor into the organization’s efforts to become a more diverse body.”
Protesters Use The Facade Of The Guggenheim Museum To Illuminate Their Protest
Projected at 12,000 lumens, phrases like “ULTRA LUXURY ART/ULTRA LOW WAGES,” “EVERY DAY IS MAY DAY,” and “1%” glowed on the museum’s walls. An eerie video loop of the faces and names of trustee members was followed by the scolding statement “YOU BROKE TRUST.”
Geena Davis: Where Are All The Female Characters?
“The world is missing female characters. A lot of times there is one female character, maybe even a cool one, maybe even an important one. But where are all the rest?”
Why Great Middlebrow Television No Longer Gets The Respect It’s Due
“Even when midbrow television is critically acclaimed and beloved by those who watch it, it still doesn’t get much in the way of award recognition or break into the larger cultural conversation. Midbrow is considered good for right now, not for posterity.”
A Fringe Circuit For Radio And Audio Drama
“A radio production company is launching the ‘audio drama equivalent of the fringe’, in a bid to widen the market beyond the BBC’s output.”
Top Posts From AJBlogs 04.28.16
Museum Admissions: Better Than Free
Over the years, so many people have advocated for free admissions to art museums that one cannot keep track. I have almost always disagreed, with an exception possibly being federally supported museums like the National Gallery … read more
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts Published 2016-04-28
Brothels & Landscapes: MoMA Mines Degas’ Monotype Monomania–Part II
While most of Degas: A Strange New Beauty at the Museum of Modern Art (to July 24) assembles the artist’s usual cast of characters—dancers and singers, acquaintances and nudes (often in … read more
AJBlog: CultureGrrl Published 2016-04-28
Take me to your leader
What does leadership look like? We’re seeing an American election which has thrown up new models of presidential presentation: female politicrat, throwback socialist, celebrity blowhard. In Toneelgroep Amsterdam’s Kings of War, we see three … read more
AJBlog: Performance Monkey Published 2016-04-28
[ssba_hide]
Dancing With The Stars (Or At Least Their Holograms)
Madame Tussaud’s in Tokyo has opened a new attraction. “Visitors can waltz and disco with Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Lady Gaga, Beyonce and Marilyn Monroe, or pirouette in a “Swan Lake” ballet with Olympics figure skating champion Yuzuru Hanyu.”
BBC Commits To 50-50 On-Screen Gender Parity Casting By 2020
The BBC said that, by 2020, 50% of on-screen and on-air roles will be filled by women, including lead roles in all genres, with a similar 15% target set for black, Asian and minority ethnic people on screen. In terms of the representation of LGBT people, the BBC has committed to an 8% target, which is also the target set for disability on screen. However, this does not include a commitment to having 8% of lead roles filled by disabled talent, with the BBC pledging “some lead roles”.
Canadian Television? What’s That? Now The Nightmare Of Needing To Figure It Out
“Changing Canadian broadcast and content regulations is a hellish task. The public feels very differently from the industry, and the creative side of the industry, especially in TV, doesn’t really want creativity – it wants jobs. It is implausible that all sides will agree on a paradigm that benefits everybody. Even more unlikely is the sudden emergence of great Canadian television.”
Chicago Symphony’s Pioneering “Beyond The Score” Project Is Canceled
“The cost of all the extra elements far outweighed the revenue from ticket sales. And the ability to attract large philanthropic funds to support the project after its third or fourth or fifth year became very difficult. For the last five years, it was losing quite a bit of money.”
This Year’s Tonys Could Be The Opposite Of #OscarsSoWhite
The slate of nominees for 2016’s Broadway awards looks likely to be the most diverse in history – and not only because of Hamilton.
Utah Symphony, Once Foundering, Is On An Upswing, Thanks In Part To Government Funding (!)
The orchestra – which has a popular and energetic music director (Thierry Fischer), big education and state touring programs, and growth in both single-ticket sales and subscriptions – gets nearly a fifth of its operating revenue from state and local governments.
Melbourne Symphony Posts Both Record Attendance And Deficit
“The $577,653 deficit, detailed in its annual report, comes after the MSO ended 2014 with more than $200,000 in surplus. The orchestra actually increased its box office takings last year ($10.2 million up from $10 million) but chairman Michael Ullman said it wasn’t enough.”
Dance World Reels From Dismissals At Pennsylvania Ballet
“Within hours of the [Inquirer] article being published, it spread like wildfire among dancers on social media. Many were outraged. Others expressed sympathy for the company members who were let go. But I’ve also seen comments from Philadelphians who are very happy with Angel’s vision and welcome the changes. It’s a big change, and one I’d say many expected.” Which makes it no easier for the now-out-of-work dancers.