“Before the 80s art was not a job. If you wanted to be an artist you would have to do a lot of side jobs to make a living. People became artists out of necessity. Now one wants to be an artist to travel, go to parties, and it’s really cool to be an artist. Of course, this tendency is not very good, but I think time will be the final judge of this.”
If West End Theatres Aren’t Fit For Purpose, Knock ‘Em Down
Or at least hollow them out and do a complete rebuild, argues Lyn Gardner. “Unlike some, I certainly don’t believe that all theatre buildings must be saved for posterity. The Victorians and Edwardians who built many of our West End theatre barns would have laughed at that notion.”
That Tony You Just Won For Producing A Show? That’ll Be $2,500, Please
“Individuals who receive top billing above a show’s title are eligible to purchase awards; consortia of investors can purchase up to four Tonys. The purchasing program usually yields $250,000 or more each year to help finance the Tonys ceremony.”
The Downside Of A “Culture Of Excellence”
The legacy of the “culture of poverty” has made a generation of Americans shy away from difficult questions around culture and achievement. The best way to repent is not to continue ignoring these questions, but to insist upon a more rigorous and detailed examination of them—more than the Tiger Mom herself can provide.
Top Theatre Ticket Prices In London’s West End Triple In Ten Years
“This is more than triple the amount it cost to buy a top-price seat in the West End only 10 years ago, when a record high was reached with a £49 ticket to see The Producers in 2004. Over the same period, house prices in London have increased by around 90%.”
Massive Redo Of Miami Beach Convention Center Will Impact Art Basel
“The forthcoming redevelopment programme for the Miami Beach Convention Center is likely to have an impact not only on Art Basel in Miami Beach itself, but also on the fair’s closest neighbour, Design Miami, and the city’s satellite fairs.”
NY City Ballet’s Saratoga Season Is Finally Growing, Not Shrinking
“The New York City Ballet, which was forced by financial pressure to limit its Saratoga Performing Arts Center residency to one week last summer and this year, will return for two weeks in 2015, SPAC management announced Tuesday.”
More Evidence Of Why Musical Training Is Great For Kids’ Brains
“Precisely why learning an instrument would have a positive impact on academic achievement has never been clear. A new study from Boston Children’s Hospital provides a possible answer. It reports musical training may promote the development and maintenance of a key set of mental skills.”
The Strange Case Of China’s Half-Built ‘Ancient’ City
“In the last few years, Datong has made a massive push to draw those tourist groups to its inner city, a place that was first settled in the Han dynasty around 200 BC. It’s all part of an ambitious plan to raze the old city and replace it with a new ‘ancient’ Tang-style city.” Naturally there are complaints that the new “historic” buildings are ersatz; worse is what happened after the mayor left town.
John Lithgow’s ‘King Lear’ Rehearsal Diary, Part One
“This is not going to be easy. … And since late February I have foregone shaving.”
Jay Leno To Receive Mark Twain Prize For Humor
The sometime standup comedian and retired host of NBC’s Tonight Show said in a statement “What an honor! I’m a big fan of Mark Twain’s. In fact, A Tale of Two Cities is one of my favorite books!”
Top Posts From AJBlogs 06.18.14
The Young and the Restless: Taking the Right Career Path
AJBlog: Field Notes | Published 2014-06-18
Earmarked taxes for the arts
AJBlog: For What it’s Worth | Published 2014-06-18
Damning DAM: AAMD Sanctimoniously Sanctions the Delaware Art Museum
AJBlog: CultureGrrl | Published 2014-06-18
Public Art: The Video And The Cathedral
AJBlog: Real Clear Arts | Published 2014-06-19
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Where’s The Real Anti-Semitism Around ‘The Death Of Klinghoffer’?
Mark Swed: “But in fact, the only anti-Semitism this work – which delves deep into the idealistic roots but inevitably evil practices of terrorism – has ever engendered has been because of often successful pressure from Jewish groups to ban performances of Klinghoffer rather than incorporate poetic tragedy into the peace process.”
Delaware Art Museum Loses Accreditation For Selling Its Art
Following the sale of William Holman Hunt’s Isabella and the Pot of Basil to pay down debt, the American Alliance of Museums revoked DAM’s accreditation and the Association of Art Museum Directors put DAM on a blacklist for receiving loans from or collaborating on shows with other museums. All this for the sake of a painting that sold for less than half Christie’s lower pre-sale estimate.
Jazzman Horace Silver, Creator of ‘Hard Bop’, Dead At 85
“Through classic compositions such as ‘Song for My Father,’ ‘Nica’s Dream’ and ‘Señor Blues’,” [the pianist and founder of the Jazz Messengers “influenced generations of musicians with a style that encompassed all his musical loves: gospel, blues, Latin rhythm. It was music that, in Silver’s words, ‘cooked’ and ‘burned’.”
The Met Opera’s Decision To Cancel Klinghoffer Moviecast: Illogical And Contradictory
If you think the piece is not antisemitic (and I, along with the vast majority who have seen the Met’s production – directed by Tom Morris, it was first seen at English National Opera in 2012 – agree with him) then you cannot also hold the position that the opera would exacerbate “rising antisemitism, particularly in Europe”.
Worried That Neuroscience Will Demystify Creativity And Art?
“No profound understanding of the workings of the brain is likely to compromise our appreciation of art, any more than our understanding of how the visual brain functions is likely to compromise the sense of vision.”
Daniel Keyes, 86, Author Of ‘Flowers For Algernon’
Having won awards in both short story and novel form, “Flowers for Algernon went on to sell more than five million copies and to become a staple of English classes. It inspired television adaptations, one of which also starred [Cliff] Robertson” – who won an Oscar for the film version, titled Charley – “and stage productions, including a musical and a play in Korean.”