Adam Kirsch: “If you Google ‘Homer’ and ‘bees,’ you get images of Homer Simpson, not quotations from the Iliad.”
James Parker: “I resent it, this mania for topicality. Update, refresh, delete cache, clear history, change your underpants.”
(But they agree that if you aim for timelessness, you’ll probably miss.)
Look, Opera Tickets Are *Not* Expensive (And Here’s Proof)
“The entry-price (i.e. the cheapest ticket available for a performance or event) for opera is more or less the lowest entry-price of anything comparable. Let’s rephrase that, for all those suffering from opera-cliché syndrome: tickets are available for operas at cheaper prices than for any major cultural, sporting or tourist activity.”
Discovering A Treasure Trove Of Paintings In The Farmhouse Attic
“What had been languishing in Ro’s attic for the best part of 50 years was a stash of more than 500 paintings and drawings. Overnight, it doubled the number of Dunbar’s known works.”
The Artist Who Just Won Canada’s Top Theatre Design Prize
“Instead of using her $75,000 to ‘pay the rent,’ La Bissonnière wants to use it for a dream project – most likely, to publish a book on her philosophy of “poetic space” that would also be an illustrated retrospective of her career.”
The God-Hates-Renoir Movement Comes To The Met – And Meets Counter-Protesters
“One man who took severe offense at RSAP’s cause approached demonstrators, shouting at them, ‘You know who else tries to ban things they don’t like? Nazis! That’s what you are! Nazis!'” Renoir defenders’ signs read “You can take our Renoir when you pry them from our cold dead hands” and “Je suis Pierre-Auguste.”
Netflix Faces Some Hurdles To The International Domination It Desires
“‘We had expectations for Netflix to be doing slightly better, but the broadcasting landscape is very locally oriented,’ David Sidebottom, an analyst at Futuresource Consultancy, said in reference to Netflix’s international reach. ‘People are also more reluctant to pay for a monthly subscription to a video service in France and Germany.'”
A Syrian Film Collective Risks Everything To Give Glimpses Of Life During This Civil War
“The idea is to present an alternative to mainstream coverage of the country’s fractured state, with its focus on conflict and destruction. ‘Our first enemy is pity,’ Charif Kiwan, the group’s spokesman and only active named member, said in an interview at the New School in Manhattan. ‘Since the beginning, we tried to say that we are fighting for freedom, for dignity.'”
Why Artists Can’t Depend Only On Ticket Sales During A Tour
“What I do is make a mish-mash tour that combines hired gigs with arts presenters and universities I’ve created relationships with, as well as some co-produced shows (although I’m backing off on those as much as possible because they are similar to self-producing) and putting together a string of house shows where the host is responsible for paying me and getting a crowd.”
Egyptian Novelist Gamal Al Chitani Dies After Being In A Coma For Months
“Acclaimed locally and internationally, Al Ghitani won many awards, the latest being the Nile Award for Literature in 2015, the highest literary honour granted by the Egyptian government.”
Imelda Staunton And ‘Gypsy’ Win UK Theatre Awards
And the writer of the best new play says, “When this recession started, we expected the big beasts of British drama to show what was happening to people. And it hasn’t happened at all. So thank God theatre is still there to shout about what is happening.”
Anonymous Investors Appear To Have Saved Edith Wharton’s Home (But It’s Not Out Of The Woods)
“Without any real funds to contribute while they were in the grips of their lenders, Wissler relied on outside organizations to help her maintain the vibrancy of the place. The Mount invited theater companies, prominent writers and intellectuals to come in and give talks to what turned out to be sold-out auditoriums of locals. ‘We see a lot of hunger, even in the off months,’ Wissler said, ‘for intellectual content.'”
Thanks, Drought: A 16th Century Church Rises From A Reservoir In Mexico
“It was a church built thinking that this could be a great population center, but it never achieved tha.”
Top Posts From AJBlogs For 10.18.15
Other Matters: Language In The Digital Age
AJBlog: JumperPublished 2015-10-18
AJBlog: Fresh PencilPublished 2015-10-16
The Separation Between Art And Life, If There Is One
“The art that Plath and Hughes made gnaws perpetually over questions of blood and power, attraction and repulsion. When they first met, she bit him on the cheek; this act, like her last, migrated into poetry and so might be thought fair game for conjecture and analysis.”
The Cost To Continue Big Ben’s Chimes At Midnight Runs To Many Millions
“The proposed £29m full refurbishment would involve the clock being stopped for four months, and each of the four faces covered in turn as work was undertaken. A visitor centre would also be constructed at the base of the 96m (315ft) tower and a lift installed as an alternative to the 334 steps.”
The New Spring Awakening Proves That The Arts Can Thrive Even More With Thoughtful Inclusivity
“The show’s critical success reflects some of the ways in which modern mainstream audiences are encountering ASL anew, but it also presents a vision of how culture can be simultaneously inclusive, revelatory, and thrilling, giving audiences a space to encounter both deaf and hearing experiences of the world.”
The Philadelphia Orchestra Is Still In Trouble
“The orchestra’s problem isn’t hard to see. It is under-capitalized. It has the quality of a top-tier ensemble, but lacks the endowment to support it. It needs more money to program and market properly, and if it were programming and marketing properly, it might attract more money. The Philadelphia Orchestra is the city’s longest-running chicken-and-egg problem.”
What Ails Theatre Criticism
“While it is sadly true that the loss of illustrious theater critics in print hasn’t been offset by the arrival of equally potent voices online, the Internet has helped make the work of critics more accessible. Yet the hue and cry and feverish haste of the Web have had a homogenizing effect. The individual voice has been drowned out in the digital din.”
Banned In Belarus, But The Shows Go On Nevertheless
“It feels appropriate that the audience members have been advised to bring their passports. Never mind that this is on the off chance – as has happened to other audiences – they might be arrested by the Belarussian K.G.B.” Ben Brantley visits Minsk to see a secret production of the Belarus Free Theater.