‘[Her] antic performances took her from vaudeville and nightclubs to Broadway, regional theaters, and film and television roles, including as a sitcom star [of The Mothers-in-Law] and a frequent guest on talk shows.” — The Washington Post
Author: Matthew Westphal
Ten Years After Pina Bausch Died, Her Company Moves On To New Choreographers
Four of Tanztheater Wuppertal’s dancers, including veterans and new members, talk about enterting the very different artistic worlds of Dimitris Papaioannou and Alan Lucien Øyen. — The Guardian
A Professional Mercenary Explains Why ‘The More Horrors I Witness, The Deeper I Cling To Opera’
Sean McFate: “For a man in my profession, there’s much to love. Like war, things usually go horribly wrong in opera. For instance, take Verdi’s La forza del destino.” But it’s more than that: “Opera is my lodestone in the darkness. Its beauty offsets war’s ugliness, and without such balance, we slip into numbness and eventual insanity, robbed of our humanity.” — Quartz
Gay Magic-Realist Novel Banned By The Nazis Appears In English For First Time
“At the Edge of Night, by Friedo Lampe, was first published in 1933. … The [Nazi] regime objected to the novel’s inclusion of homoerotic content, and its depiction of an interracial liaison between a black man and a German woman. The book was placed on their list of ‘damaging and undesirable writings’.” Yet it was praised by no less than Hermann Hesse in 1933, and it has gained admirers since the uncensored version was published in Germany in 1999. — The Guardian
How The World’s Biggest Financial Scandal Ensnared The Art World (And Leonardo Di Caprio)
Nate Freeman recaps the story of financier Jho Low and 1MDB, the enormous Malaysian government investment fund whose billions were diverted into the personal accounts of former prime minister Najib Razak and his family and friends — and from there into extremely high-priced art. — Artsy
Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center Had A Plan To Finance Renovation Of Its Newest Theater. That Plan Has Fallen Apart
The Merriam Theater, which the Kimmel acquired in 2016, was the city’s most uncomfortable, problematic major venue, and the plan for fixing it involved partnering with a developer who’d build a skyscraper above it. But, after doing due diligence, no developer has agreed to do it. — The Philadelphia Inquirer
Broadway ‘Mockingbird’ Shoots Down British ‘Mockingbird’
“A British touring production of [the old Christopher Sergel adaptation of] To Kill a Mockingbird, which was to start next month, has been canceled after Scott Rudin’s company Atticus — the firm behind the Broadway hit [adapted by Aaron Sorkin] — threatened legal action … saying it held worldwide rights for professional stagings of the book.” — The New York Times
Oscars Hosting, Super Bowl Halftime, White House Dinner — Why Have Big-Name Entertainers Started Turning Down The Biggest Gigs?
Kevin hart blew his chance at the Oscars, and nobody wants to replace him; Rihanna and Cardi B both passed on the Super Bowl; the White House Correspondents’ Dinner has become so fraught that they’ve asked a historian to MC. These jobs have always been dangerous (look at the blowback if you say the wrong thing), but the opportunity used to be worth the risk. Here’s why that’s no longer the case. — The Guardian
Russell Baker, New York Times ‘Observer’ Columnist, Dead At 93
“Mr. Baker, along with the syndicated columnist Art Buchwald, was one of the best-known newspaper humorists of his time, and The Washington Post ranked his best-selling autobiography, Growing Up, with the most enduring recollections of American boyhood — those of James Thurber, H. L. Mencken and Mark Twain.” — The New York Times
Barnes Foundation Aims To Raise $100 Million For Endowment (And It’s Already Well On The Way)
“With its centennial year approaching in 2022, the Barnes Foundation is on a path to raise $100 million by that celebratory anniversary, its leaders said Tuesday. The campaign has quietly bubbled along for more than a year, bringing in its first donation in December 2017, and has raised $35.3 million so far in pledges and gifts.” — The Philadelphia Inquirer