“With 2.7 million unique monthly visitors, 1.4 million podcast downloads every four weeks and an additional 1.4 million iPhone and iPad apps in circulation, NPR Music (npr.org/music) has become a sought-after stop for both aspiring and established artists. More broadly, it has become a rising power in the music industry.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
The King Of (Clean) Comedy
“At a time when comedy is as filthy as it’s ever been – the industry euphemism is ‘edgy’ – [Jim] Gaffigan, working clean, has become one of the hottest comedians in the country.”
The School That Made Schiller Into The Man He Was
It was a military academy in Württemburg called the Hohe Carlsschule, and Gott in Himmel, was it twisted.
Man Asian Literary Prize 2012 To Malaysian Tan Twan Eng
“The Malaysian novelist Tan Twan Eng has won the 2012 Man Asian prize with his novel, The Garden of Evening Mists. His novel, which was shortlisted for last year’s Booker prize, was hailed by the chair of judges Maya Jaggi for its ‘stylistic poise and probing intelligence’.”
Family Therapy, Live On Stage
“There was a time when theatre artists who had unresolved issues with their parents would turn them into lightly fictionalized characters in a play – and then tear them apart by proxy. Now, as part of our new ‘reality culture,’ more and more performers are dragging their real-life parents up on stage to air their dirty laundry in public – and allowing the older generation to return fire.”
Save America’s Legacy Of Sound Recordings – Fix The Copyright Laws!
Terry Teachout: “I can’t imagine that anyone on Capitol Hill sees the preservation of sound recordings as a top priority. But Congress can do one important thing that will help to save our sonic history without costing a cent: We need to straighten out America’s confused copyright laws, and we need to do it now.”
As UAE Tries To Become Cultural Hub, Concerns About (Self-)Censorship
“The U.A.E. aspires to be an art and cultural center. While the federation of Gulf sheikdoms is relatively open and tolerant, its ruling establishments are concerned about the political turmoil in other Arab countries and are also wary of art containing graphic images or anything else that might offend conservative Gulf sensibilities.”
Edward Watson On Dancing The Role Of A Cockroach
“The first thing I had to do when we were creating the piece was not to think like a human. If I wanted to pick something up, I would normally do it with my hands, so I had to try to do it with my feet or teeth. It was basically tying myself in knots and then trying to move – and sometimes I tied myself up in so many knots that I actually couldn’t move.”
‘Brain Porn’ In The Media
“When writing about anything pertaining to psychology or human nature, people love nothing more than a brain image lit up like a Christmas tree. These omnipresent images have been mockingly termed ‘brain porn’, defined by journalist Alissa Quart as a ‘willingness to accept seemingly neuroscientific explanations for nearly everything'” – especially when it comes to mental health problems such as addiction and depression.
‘Processed Storytelling’ – The Problem With Pixar
Richard Brody: “The kind of recipe for success that a soft-drink company might guard with fierce vigilance, a movie company puts online for all to see. Emma Coats, a former storyboard artist at Pixar, sent out a list of the company’s ’22 Rules of Storytelling’.”