“Though there are things people in the entertainment business do miss about Finke — her ability to uncover stories the industry doesn’t want broken; her in-depth box office analysis; her unique, roaring writer’s voice; and the fact that her mere existence kept her competitors on their toes — the list of what they don’t miss is longer.”
Reviving The Mandolin Orchestra
“It is hard to say what is more surprising: that such a thing as a mandolin orchestra exists in New York City in 2014 — or that mandolin orchestras were once everywhere.”
What Are The Best Seats From Which To Watch Movies?
“Why would Cineplex want to draw any kind of comparison with airlines, where seats are always either too jammed or too expensive? And will moviegoers happily accept a two-class system for what has long been egalitarian first-come, first-served cinema seating?”
How Do You Design A New Bookstore For The 21st Century?
“Design on its own will not save the bookshop. If you leave the model as it is and redecorate, nothing’s going to change. The solution needs to be much more fundamental: informed, strategic and daring.”
Texas Loses A Dance Icon
“On and off for nearly 20 years, Bruce Wood was our most important figure in contemporary dance. He brought cutting-edge clarity, style and humor to North Texas dance. He choreographed ambitious works to Maurice Ravel and Philip Glass but also tongue-in-cheek dances to Lyle Lovett songs. Wood toured his Texas dancers to acclaim in LA and New York.”
Marina Abramović Accused Of Plagiarism Over ‘Nothing’
“A prestigious group of curators and art historians have written to the gallery questioning why Abramović’s latest performance piece – about which she has repeatedly emphasised the importance of “nothing” – fails to acknowledge the influence of another contemporary artist who has also made ‘nothing’ central to her work.”
‘This American Life’ Picks Its Next Distributor: Its Home Station
Chicago Public Media (a/k/a WBEZ), which produces the radio hit, will distribute the program itself via the Public Radio Exchange (PRX), followingr Public Radio International’s decision earlier this year to drop the show.
The Iranian Kerouac: Ali Eskandarian And The Great Punk Beat Novel
“Singer Ali Eskandarian was gunned down in New York last year with members of punk band the Yellow Dogs. He had just written Golden Years, an On-the-Road style novel that’s now being hailed as a cult classic.”
Another Appraisal Of Detroit Institute Of Arts Collection
“Officials handling Detroit’s federal bankruptcy proceedings, who have been accused by creditors in recent months of underestimating the value of works held by the city-owned Detroit Institute of Arts, told a judge on Wednesday that a comprehensive appraisal of the value of the collection is now underway.”
Hitting The High Notes At The Colorado Symphony’s First ‘Classically Cannabis’ Concert
“‘I am watching history being made!’ exclaimed a gray-haired woman … as she sat on the patio packing an ample amount of ‘Flo’ into her glass pipe. … In a corner near the front entrance, the dispensaries that, along with a soil company and Leafly, a Yelp-like site for marijuana strains, together shelled out $30,000 in event sponsorships manned schwag tables offering up promotional rolling papers, lighters, and glass storage jars.”
L.A. MoCA, In Rebuilding Mode, Names New Chief Curator
“The Museum of Contemporary Art took the next step in rebuilding its staff and programming, appointing Helen Molesworth of the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston as its new chief curator.”
‘Avatar’, Live, Courtesy Of Cirque Du Soleil
Director/producer James Cameron is working with Cirque to developing the arena show, which is scheduled to open late next year, before the first of the three planned Avatar sequels hits screens.
Watch Dick Cavett’s Worst Show Ever
September 18, 1970. The guests were John Cassavetes, Peter Falk, and Ben Gazzara. “They were on hand to promote their new movie, but for thirty-five minutes they smoked, flopped around on the floor, and generally tormented Cavett, whose questions they’d planned to ignore.” (They were long since drunk, of course.) (includes full video and new comments by Cavett)
Top Posts From AJBlogs 05.29.14
North Miami MoCA: Where Are The Grown-Ups?
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts | Published 2014-05-30
Street Artists and Airplanes
AJBlog: Aesthetic Grounds | Published 2014-05-29
Yale Center Scores With “Of Green Leaf…”
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts | Published 2014-05-29
Exploring Arts Entrepreneurship
AJBlog: The Artful Manager | Published 2014-05-29
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Discounted Registration Ends Friday
The Americans for the Arts Annual Convention in Nashville this June 13-15 is your opportunity to learn from and network with more than 1,000 arts professionals from across the country.
Miami’s Museum Of Contemporary Art Rejects Director Candidate Because Of… His Social Security Number?
“Despite multiple notifications, Mr. M’Bow did not comply with the background check and is therefore no longer under consideration for the position. The board is disappointed that Mr. M’Bow chose not to take part in the evaluation process.”
A Self-Publishing Revolution? Please!
“Unfortunately, self-publishing is neither radical nor liberating. And, as revolutions go, it is rather short on revolutionaries. It is actually reactionary, a contracted version of the traditional publishing model in which companies, who produce for a wide range of tastes and preferences, are replaced by individual producers each catering to very narrow range.”
Arts Council England Spends £14 Million Bailing Out 55 Arts Groups
To receive financial intervention, the criteria say venues will be “assessed as high risk” and “at immediate and serious financial risk”. The Arts Council steps in where it believes an organisation is “irreplaceable”, where other forms of support have failed and where it is confident the cash injection will turn the situation around.
More Than A Memorial: The Problem At Ground Zero
Michael Kimmelman: “The site of the Sept. 11 memorial is not singularly devoted to those who died. It also serves as the forecourt for an office development and as public space for Lower Manhattan. The neighborhood was a casualty, too, along with the rest of New York. In the tortuous planning process, victims’ families and real estate interests needed to be reconciled with the interests of everyone else in the city, including those who live and work downtown. So far, I’m not sure it’s working.”
The Resurrection Of Stefan Zweig
“In the decades between the two world wars, no writer was more widely translated or read than the Austrian novelist Stefan Zweig, and in the years after, few writers fell more precipitously into obscurity, at least in the English-speaking world. But now Zweig, prolific storyteller and embodiment of a vanished Mitteleuropa, seems to be back, and in a big way” – new editions of his books, movie adaptations, new biographies, even a novel about him.
Paris Opera Moves (Carefully) Into Cinemacasts
“For the Opéra de Paris, whose two stages are typically sold out, the screening in local movie theaters – even in Paris – is not seen as a threat but as an opportunity to widen the tent and bring in audiences who, as French taxpayers, support 50 percent of its annual costs. That is one of the reasons why the Opéra de Paris is pleased with distribution in smaller towns and has encouraged [local cinema managers] to turn the screenings into festive occasions.”