Author: Douglas McLennan

HISTORY OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN DANCE

“The origins of much American entertainment – jazz, blues and rock-and-roll, social dancing from the Twist to the Hustle to college-fraternity stepping, as well as hip-hop culture, just to give a few examples — go back to the African slave trade. Those whose lives were uprooted and stamped with foreign ways in turn left an indelible mark on the art of their adoptive land.” – Washington Post

SELLING ART

Our cultural institutions have been pushed to attract ever greater audiences to justify their success. “It’s a difficult moment because, on some level, not-for-profits are being asked to be very entrepreneurial. At the same time, there’s a growing awareness that if this is pushed too far, then the issue of cultural and artistic integrity can be compromised.” – Los Angeles Times 12/24/00

DARING ART THEFT

Thieves have stolen three of Sweden’s most prized paintings – by Rembrandt and Renoir. “An armed gang entered the museum on Stockholm’s waterfront just before it closed on Friday. One of them, brandishing a submachine-gun in the museum lobby, threatened staff and visitors, while another two, also armed, ran upstairs and snatched the small paintings, valued by police at about £25 million.” – Scotland on Sunday

RETURNING ART

“The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, was signed by President George Bush in November 1990 after years of discussion among scientists, museum curators and Indian groups. It seeks to reconcile two profoundly different value systems, one based on the primacy of reason and science and the other revolving around spiritual and religious values. In the decade since the law was passed, it has had a profound effect on museums and the philosophy on which they are based.” – New York Times

IN BARS WITH GUITARS

For its current exhibition on guitars, Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts has been advertising in non-traditional places – like bars and the sides of buses. “We’re seeing a lot of college students who, for the most part, don’t come to the museum that often. We really have seen an expanded audience, a lot of people who say that other than a fifth-grade field trip, this is their first time here.” – Boston Herald

UNREST BACKSTAGE

The backstage staff of London’s Royal Shakespeare Company is taking a strike vote. “The union is angry over the RSC’s interpretation of a 1998 agreement over the time-off owed to staff who break European rules on taking at least 11 hours rest between shifts.” – BBC

THE AGE OF THE DIRECTOR

The last 40 years have seen a rise in the stature of the stage director. “Today’s director is most often a catalyst, visibly channeling theatrical elements and placing a recognizable stamp on the practice.” And he’s sometimes placed alongside or above the contributions of the playwright and actors. – Backstage

COME CLOSER, MY PRETTY…

The BBC’s Tony Hall is about to become the new head of London’s Royal Opera House. But “with three changes of ROH director in as many years, Hall will need to be motivated by something more than his love of opera if he is to take on what some see as the art world’s poisoned chalice. What can he be thinking of?” – The Guardian

A RUTTER CHRISTMAS

“As composer, arranger and conductor, John Rutter has become the musical equivalent of Dickens, synonymous with the season. But it is as a writer of carols that he has really made his mark. He has written around two dozen. At this time of year, it is hard to escape his hummable, jolly, accessible songs.” – The Guardian