“Democratic People’s Republic of Korea commands you to know that the capitalistic pigs at Moneyhorse LLC, are developing Glorious Leader!” In the guise of Kim III, players can shoot down US paratroopers, face down an American tank in front of the Juche Monument, ride a narwhal through a mined harbor, and meet Dennis Rodman on a basketball court. (includes trailer)
The Two Things Most Of Us Don’t Understand About Puppetry
Eric Bass says that they are “the myth that the puppeteer controls the puppet” and “the myth that we manipulate the puppet with our hands”.
The First Children’s Picture Book
“Originally published in 1658 in Latin and German,” Orbis Sensualium Pictus – or The World of Things Obvious to the Senses drawn in Pictures, as it was rendered in English – “with its 150 pictures showing everyday activities like brewing beer, tending gardens, and slaughtering animals, is immediately familiar as an ancestor of today’s children’s literature.”
If We Talked About Architecture Like We Talk About Writing
“I have a building idea for you; it’s totally fully formed in my mind already, but I just don’t have the time to build it myself. Can I tell you about it for your next building?”
How Smartphones Are Leading People Back To The ‘Great Books’
For a start, War and Peace isn’t as heavy to schlep around on an iPhone. But there’s also the growing phenomenon of “interstitial reading”.
The Genesis Of ‘Dr. Strangelove’
“It may be hard to believe now, but Kubrick’s original intention was to do a straight, serious movie. … As he began working on the screenplay with Peter George, however, he gagged on the idea of a straight version of the material.”
Here’s How The Conventions Of Traditional TV Are About To Change
“The half-hour sitcom? The hour-long drama? These are conventions that came into existence for reasons that don’t matter anymore. Soon, the conventions themselves won’t matter anymore, either. Welcome to the real new golden age of television — television without limits.”
The Robots That Are Teaching Language To Young Kids
“Unlike educational TV shows, say, the robots are physically present and have some of the same social skills as humans. That gives them the potential to tap into a child’s appetite for one-to-one communication and help kids learn in many of the same ways a human teacher does. This is especially important when it comes to language skills.”
Private Pot: Colorado Symphony Makes Its Cannabis Concerts Into Fundraisers
“The Colorado Symphony has removed public information about Classically Cannabis from its website and agreed to refund all ticket purchases through May 12, 2014. Classically Cannabis will now be available by invitation only.”
Australia Slashes Arts Funding By $110M
“More than $28 million will be cut from the Australia Council [for the Arts], $33.8m from arts programs ran by the Attorney-General’s department, $25.1m from Screen Australia and $9.4m from the indigenous languages support program.”
Roadside Poem Combats Pollution – Literally
“‘Poetry makes nothing happen,’ William Butler Yeats once wrote. But then he never got a chance to read ‘In Praise of Air,’ a poem by Simon Armitage just installed on a building along a busy road at the University of Sheffield, England, and billed as the world’s first bit of air-cleansing verse.”
Cameron Mackintosh Aims London Revival Of ‘Miss Saigon’ For Broadway
And the Engineer will be played by an Asian actor this time around.
Warhol Paintings Pull In $103.9M At Blockbuster Christie’s Auction
Race Riot sold for $62.9 million and White Marilyn drew $41 million – and there were works by Newman, Rothko and Bacon that went for even more in an evening that brought in a total of $744.9 million.
Philadelphia’s Newest Art Venue Is A Railroad Corridor
A very heavily traveled corridor, too: the track between North Philadelphia and 30th Street Station. Big swathes of the blighted landscape that commuters usually see out their windows are now covered with washes and patterns of hot pink, brilliant orange and white or neon green.
L.A. Master Chorale Gives Grant Gershon New Title, Five More Years
“Conductor Grant Gershon is extending his tenure with the Los Angeles Master Chorale by five years through the end of the 2019-20 season, company leaders announced on Wednesday. Gershon, who joined the choral group in 2001, will take on the title of artistic director starting in July.”
London Theatre Finally Begins Looking Toward Europe’s Vanguard
A clutch of successful productions are – in outlook, approaches to staging, and sometimes even choice of directors – finally bringing serious theatre in the British capital toward dialogue with its counterparts on the Continent. Yet, argues Andrew Haydon, there’s still some distance to go, especially in presenting new European plays in translation.
The ‘West Side Story’ Of Avian Mating Dances
It’s “a drama of conflict, comedy and sex” that plays out in the American West every April, as groups of male sage grouse strut, fan their tail feathers, and puff the twin yellow sacs on their chests as they try to impress the hens. (includes video)
Top Posts From AJBlogs 05.14.14
Two Steps Forward, A Half-One Back, In Detroit
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts | Published 2014-05-14
Plan B
AJBlog: Engaging Matters | Published 2014-05-14
Laughter in the dark
AJBlog: Performance Monkey | Published 2014-05-14
Walk, Do Not Dance!
AJBlog: Dancebeat | Published 2014-05-14
Artist-Activist Daniel Beaty
AJBlog: CultureCrash | Published 2014-05-14
Remembering Joe Wilder
AJBlog: RiffTides | Published 2014-05-14
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LA Public Radio Station KPCC To Launch Major New Arts Coverage
Veteran LA Times entertainment industry reporter John Horn will anchor a five-person team that KPCC calls “our most ambitious programming effort since the launch of Take Two in 2012.”
Dreams Of (And An Architect For) A New $300 Million Museum In Vancouver. But…
“The contempt with which the Conservatives hold the cultural community in the city is palpable. You get no sense when talking to top-ranking Tories that they believe Vancouver is a metropolis deserving of a world-class museum; more so is the belief the city needs to grow up a bit first, become a little more worldly and sophisticated.”
France Fires President Of Picasso Museum
“The French government dismissed the embattled president of the Musée Picasso on Tuesday amid an employee revolt and a bitter debate over delays in reopening the museum, which has been closed for renovation for almost five years.”