Author: Douglas McLennan

How Instagram Is Changing Theatre

“Instagram is absolutely shaping the theatre industry,” says Jay Armstrong Johnson, who recently played Raoul in Phantom of the Opera on Broadway. Johnson notes that Instagram has become “a necessary app, a connecting device” not just for fans and those without access to the arts, but also “to other artists, which has often led to new projects and/or collaborations.” – American Theatre

Could “Parasite’s” Oscar Win Change The Way Movies Are Distributed Internationally?

International filmmakers and distributors are now eying Bong Joon Ho’s triumphs with hope and hunger: hope that Parasite‘s success will open the door to global cinema, giving other non-English-language movies shots at the world’s No. 1 film award; hunger for the sort of global box office returns that, with few exceptions, have been beyond the reach of films made outside Hollywood. – The Hollywood Reporter

Carlos Acosta’s Big Plans For Birmingham Ballet

The new artistic director says: “I want the level of the dancers to be raised dramatically, and the repertoire I’m bringing is crucial. I want a company that is strong, that is not predictable, that is energetic, that takes risks, but stays true to tradition at the highest level. I’m up for big crazy ideas. I’m never going to say no to anything that’s new and bold.” – The Guardian

What AI Will Never Be Able To Do

Will an AI system ever deliver a translation of a literary text, say, that is not only accurate but also sensitive to meaning, unless it has a genuine understanding of what the story is about? But what would such understanding amount to? AI researchers like to talk about “human-level” intelligence… Yet we don’t even know what that means unless the system is conscious of itself; certainly it won’t be attained simply by making systems excel at the imitation game. – Prospect

New Study Contests When Easter Island Collapse Happened

The research, which appears in the Journal of Archaeological Science, contests the accepted timeline that the Easter Island society was already in decline by the year 1600 and its massive stone statues left to fall into disrepair. Conducting radiocarbon dating on 11 sites on Easter Island, the authors determined the timeline of each monument’s construction. Their findings indicate that Easter Islanders were still actively building new Moai figures, and maintaining existing ones, up until at least 1750. – Artnet

Trump Administration Abruptly Closes National Archives In Seattle, Infuriating Researchers, Tribal Leaders

For the 272 federally recognized tribes in Alaska, Washington, Oregon and Idaho, the facility contains important treaty and historical documents. The tribes had never been consulted about the closure, nor had there been any sort of hearings about a facility that holds 1 million boxes of federal records generated in the Pacific Northwest. These include military, land, court, tax and census records. – Seattle Times

A History Of Poets Laureate

The poet laureate tradition is long. Poet laureates were first recognized in Italy during the fourteenth century. Ben Jonson became England’s first poet laureate in 1616, although the first “official” poet laureate, John Dryden, received his appointment in 1668. The present title in the United States, however, wasn’t authorized until an act of Congress in 1985 — prior to that they were known as “Consultants in Poetry.” – Los Angeles Times