“The biggest change in this new [version] would be the central character of Bobby. Whereas he has always been a straight man struggling with commitment issues and multiple girlfriends, he has been reconceived … as a gay man with commitment issues and multiple boyfriends.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Dallas Cowboys’ Stadium Gets An Anish Kapoor Sculpture
Sky Mirror, a 35-foot concave stainless steel dish on a black granite pedestal, “reflects the eastern sky on its concave side and on the stadium side, the crowds.” (But is it incinerating any nearby gardens?)
Google And Moral Philosophy – What Does “Don’t Be Evil” Really Mean?
“Understanding what evil means to Google might be central to grasping its role in contemporary culture. … If Google has made a contribution to moral philosophy, it amounts to a devout faith in its own ability to preside over virtue and vice through engineering.”
Ballet’s Problem Is That It’s Becoming A Sport
Alice Robb: “Despite its physical similarities to gymnastics, ice-skating and ballroom dance, most ballet dancers would bristle at the suggestion that it’s a sport – and yet, many ballet teachers and directors have embraced Olympic-style competitions in which aspiring dancers compete for gold, silver and bronze medals, scholarships, contracts and even cash.”
Nederlands Dans Theater, Post-Kylian
“For more than two decades, the Nederlands Dans Theater’s international profile was defined by longtime artistic director Jiri Kylian. Since [he] stepped down, the company has begun to show the world the face it always presented at home in the Hague: that of a consistently creative troupe with a repertory showcasing a variety of choreographers, many of them current or former company members.”
Russian Court Bans New Translation Of Quran
“This version, the work of an Azeri theologian named Elmir Kuliyev, was declared illegal for promoting extremism through ‘statements about the superiority of Muslims over non-Muslims’; ‘negative evaluation of persons who have nothing to do with the Muslim religion’ … and also, it was argued, inciting violence.”
Will Computers Kill Urdu Script? Or Save It?
“Can Microsoft and Twitter save the dying Urdu nastaliq script from the hegemony of the Western alphabet and an overbearing Arab cousin?”
DePauw University Overhauls Music School Curriculum To Teach Entrepreneurship
“A $15 million gift from alumni Judson and Joyce Green … will be used to transform the private university’s School of Music to better meet the needs of students entering a rapidly changing music industry. It establishes the 21st Century Musician Initiative, called 21CM.”
Meet The Man Who Wrote Norman Mailer A Fan Letter And Ended Up Editing His Work
A Q&A with J. Michael Lennon, whose 1972 mash note to the author led to a long friendship and professional relationship, culminating in Lennon’s becoming Mailer’s authorized biographer.
This Has Gotta Be The World’s Most Phallic Skyscraper
“Although neither the architect nor the city government has admitted it, the new People’s Daily building looks exactly like a penis. And, as could be expected, the building’s unveiling has elicited no small amount of sniggering among the Chinese public.”