“Despite the economic downturn that has left many states with staggering deficits, the across-the-country rollback in state tax incentives that some anticipated has yet to occur. Although some states have reduced or even suspended their programs, others, such as Florida, have greatly expanded their programs.”
Author: Laura Collins Hughes
Craig Kauffman, Artist Of Luminous Wall Reliefs, Dies At 78
“An independent thinker whose work is often described in terms of voluptuous curves and sensuous surfaces, Kauffman worked in a self-styled aesthetic territory that has been called a seductive strain of Minimalism or an abstract version of Pop art.”
Glee Creator Wants Newsweek Boycott Over ‘Bigoted Piece’
Ryan Murphy calls an online piece about gay actors playing straight characters “as misguided as it is shocking and hurtful,” partly because the author “is himself gay. But what is the most shocking of all is that Newsweek went ahead and published such a blatantly homophobic article in the first place…and has remained silent in the face of ongoing (and justified) criticism.”
Competing To Busk In NYC Subway, With Official Approval
“More than 60 musicians tried out for the chance to sing, play or shout–legally–in the city’s most sought-after locations underground. That field was narrowed from about 300 who applied for audition spots. By the end, about 20 or 25 make the cut–an acceptance rate that puts the program on par with some of the nation’s most selective universities.”
Helen Hayes Awards Now ‘Recommend’ Shows, Too
“In this economy, [the head of the awards organization] says, theaters need ‘immediate help.’ She calls ‘Helen Hayes Recommended’ a marketing tool ‘to assist theaters with promoting their productions while a show is running.’ … [T]he same judges who vote on the awards also vote on whether to recommend a show to audiences while it’s still running — and on the same ballot.”
Seattle Rep Chooses Artistic Director From Its Own Ranks
“The new honcho will be Jerry Manning, a respected staffer at the Tony Award-winning Seattle company since 2001. For the past two seasons, Manning has run the company’s creative operations on an interim basis as producing artistic director.”
It’s Time To Remove Canada’s Book-Import Barrier
“The near-parity of the Canadian and American dollars has heightened attention to this particular instance of cultural protectionism – notably among readers who can compare U.S. and Canadian prices, often printed on book covers. Some publishers have taken to showing only the Canadian price on covers, to prevent comparisons.”
Pompidou Outpost Opens In A Steel-Belt Town
“Like the Bilbao Guggenheim, the Centre Pompidou-Metz has been given a spectacular and unconventional building. It resembles a white Teletubby house; or a collapsed parasol; or a giant stingray. But unlike its celebrated parent, the Pompidou Centre in Paris, built in 1977, the Metz Pompidou does not flaunt its innards to the world.”
Slide Show: Centre Pompidou-Metz
A look inside and outside this very strange fish.
When Flight Of The Conchords Plays To An Actual Crowd
“Two seasons of their New York sitcom have made stars of Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie,” not that the New Zealanders let on in their stage show. “‘If you need to go,’ the bearded, slight McKenzie says lightly near the end of their two-hour set, ‘if you’ve got something else on, just shoot off.'”