Author: Matthew Westphal

Now You Can Listen To T.S. Eliot Read, And Talk About, His Poetry

“On December 4, 1950, two years after winning the Nobel Prize in Literature, T.S. Eliot stood behind a lectern in the Kaufmann Concert Hall at the 92nd Street Y and read some of his best work in front of hundreds of people.” The director of the Y’s Unterberg Poetry Center and the poet Billy Collins recently came across audio of that event, and they’ve offered excerpts for streaming. – The New York Times

Brain Scans Of Actors Find Different Neural Functioning When They’re In Character

“Writing in the journal Royal Society Open Science, [Canadian researchers] report how 15 method actors, mainly theatre students, were trained to take on a Shakespeare role – either Romeo or Juliet – in a theatre workshop, and were asked various questions, to which they responded in character. They were then invited into the laboratory, where their brains were scanned in a series of experiments.” – The Guardian

One Of The Most Famous Prison Museums Addresses The Mass Incarceration Crisis

The Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, built in 1829, gets hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. “Talking about the site’s history didn’t seem like enough for Sean Kelley, senior vice president and director of interpretation. Two years ago, … [he] helped rewrite the museum’s mission statement, declaring that Eastern State would no longer be neutral in recognizing mass incarceration as a crisis.” Shannon Eblen has a look at the new exhibits that have gone up in response to that change. – The New York Times

After 36 Years, Minneapolis’s Zenon Dance Company Is Closing Down

“We are being forced out because of lack of funding,” said Linda Andrews, the company’s artistic director, citing the withdrawal of crucial grants by the Jerome Foundation and the philanthropic arm of Target stores. “Things look like they are changing pretty dramatically amongst the funding community, and a lot of organizations are affected by that.” – The Star Tribune (Minneapolis)

Riccardo Muti Joins Striking Chicago Symphony Musicians On Picket Line

While music directors usually stay silent about orchestras’ labor-management disputes, Muti said to the assembled media, “I am here with my musicians. … We try to get a better situation for their life, their pension, their work. Some people, they want to read my position with the musicians as against the board. This is not true. I would just like them to listen more carefully to the musicians, who represent one of the great orchestras of the world.” – Chicago Tribune

Hirshhorn Museum Wants New Sculpture Garden To Be ‘A New Front Door On The Mall’

“Seeking to raise its visibility and welcome more visitors, the Hirshhorn Museum plans to redesign its sunken sculpture garden to create an expanded entrance on the Mall and directly connect the artsy oasis to the museum’s main plaza.” Says the board chairman, “You have 25 million people walking on the Mall every year and right now our garden is largely invisible.” – The Washington Post