Author: Matthew Westphal

Nigeria Develops A New National Language

“In Nigeria’s megacity of Lagos, where the country’s 500 languages come together in a chaotic medley, the rapid-fire rhythm of pidgin is the symphony of the streets. … Officially known as Naija, Nigerian pidgin is spoken by tens of millions across the country. Current affairs, English and local languages are brewed together to dish up playful imagery at breakneck speed.”

Miami City Ballet Begins Comeback After Villella’s Dismissal

“After a tough year, Miami City Ballet is suddenly coming back strong. First, the troupe announced $3 million in new donations, a lifesaving influx of nearly a quarter of its $13 million budget. And Tuesday, MCB announced the hiring of a top fundraiser at the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington as executive director” – 40-year-old Daniel Hagerty.

Are Spain’s Futuristic New Arts Centers Turning Into White Elephants?

“Chief among these is Santiago Calatrava and Felix Candela’s City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia, completed in 2005 to widespread praise. Costing €1.1 billion, it nonetheless failed to provide a massive compensatory visitor influx for its price, even while beaches nearby heave with pasty North European bodies. … Meanwhile, in Galicia, Santiago de Compostela’s City of Culture, which opened last year, has also signaled an end to the era of look-at-me public projects.”

Why Is British TV Producing So Many Period Dramas?

“With a period piece, the only likely controversies are anachronism of language or possibly an objection that there was too much nudity or sex … In present-day fiction, however, the plot is likely to throw up issues of sexuality, prejudice, violence, addiction, swearing and political balance of the sort that risk dividing audiences and shortening [producers’] careers.”

How India’s Middle Class Revived Its Classical Music

“The relationship the middle class had with north Indian classical music from the mid-19th century onward was hardly lacking in ambivalence. It was identified with the prostitutes’ quarters, and with the bazaar, where its most accomplished practitioners were reportedly found. … By the time the middle class began to show a grudging but genuine curiosity, it had become, by the new standards of 19th-century India, disreputable, and had to, in a sense, be Vedantaised.”

Truth Decay: The Half-Life Of Facts

“Science has always been about getting closer to the truth, and anybody who understands it knows that a continual transformation of accepted knowledge along the way is how it works. However, sometimes it can feel random and unsettling. Smoking has gone from doctor-recommended to deadly. Eating meat used to be good for you, then bad, then good again.”