Matthew Westphal – Page 1813 – ArtsJournal Wayback

Six Questions About The Future Of American Culture

Scott Timberg, author of the recent book Culture Crash and of the ArtsJournal blog of the same title, lays out the half-dozen issues he’s left wondering about after writing the book and traveling to country to promote it.

Harper Lee Gives Direct Response To Journalist: “Go Away!”

“It appears that Nelle, as her friends call her, is very much with it, that she is still lucid and that her acerbic, press-averse side is fully intact.”

Neil Patrick Harris On The Difficulty Of Hosting The Oscars

“It’s so difficult for one who’s simply watching the show to realize just how much time and concession and compromise and explanation has gone into almost every single thing. Every joke. Wording of joke. Placement of joke. Canceling of joke. Embellishment for just one line.”

Kazuo Ishiguro Thinks His Fantasy Novel Is Not A Fantasy Novel – Does That Matter?

“Another day, another argument about whether a book about dragons is fantasy or not. … Well, if it walks like an orc, quacks like an orc, and generally behaves like an orc, it’s fantasy, right? The author isn’t so sure. … It is an argument that resurfaces every time an author with ‘literary chops dips a toe into the waters of SFF.”

Theatre Folk – Performers And Audiences – Should Stop Being So Uptight About Viewers Making Noise Or Moving Around

Maddy Costa: “For an art form so dedicated to thinking about human behaviour and interactions, theatre is remarkably bad at allowing its audiences to be human beings once they take their seats.”

Can Theatre Really Work As Treatment For Mental Illness?

“Theatre provides a rare stimulus for psychotic, schizophrenic and depressed patients, giving them an opportunity to communicate and interact constructively with others.” Beth McLoughlin looks at a program in Rio de Janeiro that’s giving it a serious try.

MoMA’s Björk Show Is A “Disaster”, Says Jerry Saltz

“I wanted to be surprised and proven wrong about the Björk show. Alas, I haven’t been. … It’s a discombobulated mess.”

“Little Short Of Hostile”: Roberta Smith On MoMA’s Björk Show

“She probably should have trusted her first response – No thanks – when the Museum of Modern Art came calling … not because her work isn’t museum-worthy but because, as proved here, the Modern is not up to the task..” What’s more, “given the number of Björk fans it will probably attract, the show’s future as a logistical nightmare seems clear.”

“I Always Say Bill Is Balanchine On Steroids”: Dancer Thomas McManus On William Forsythe

“We’d take his moves and deconstruct them for six hours a day … Bill’s methods were so codified he could use them on stage as improvisations. We would be real-time choreographing, making decisions about timing and phrasing and spacing. There was a lot to be aware of.”

Author: Matthew Westphal