“As artistic neighbors go, Howard Shalwitz and Michael Kahn appear to be miles apart. Shalwitz runs the new-plays troupe Woolly Mammoth Theatre; Kahn heads the classical Shakespeare Theatre Company. Woolly seats 265; the STC’s two stages combined hold more than 1,200. … Swinging up and down Seventh Street between the Lansburgh and Woolly from morning till night, these are glimpses of a day in the life as Shalwitz and Kahn gear up for their latest shows and power down their leadership roles.”
Author: Matthew Westphal
Atlanta’s New Contemporary Ballet Troupe Makes Its Debut
After Atlanta Ballet’s new artistic director, Gennadi Nedvigin, took over last year, five of the company’s dancers (including one who had applied for Nedvigin’s position) decided to split off and form Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre, which gives its first performances this month. “While American ballet tends to emphasize youth and athleticism, [John] Welker and the rest of the Terminus five envisioned a company that would showcase more mature dancers as artists capable of creating nuanced and poignant moments on stage.”
‘The Star-Spangled Banner’: A Radical History
“Last weekend’s NFL drama touched on many issues, including police brutality, racism, and free speech. For many who opposed the protests, however, it all came down to one thing: respecting the flag and our country’s national anthem. But while critics claim that the anthem is above politics, radical uses and re-writings of ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ are, in fact, older than the song as we know it.” (audio)
Hugh Hefner: A Progressive Force For Good? A New York Times Discussion
“Jesse Jackson hailed him as a strong supporter of the civil rights movement, while Larry King called him ‘a GIANT’ of free speech. Others noted that while Hefner loved to excoriate feminists in the pages of Playboy, he was a supporter of some of their causes, including abortion rights and the Equal Rights Amendment. … But how well does the idea of Hef the liberator of women really hold up? The New York Times Culture writers Amanda Hess, Wesley Morris and Taffy Brodesser-Akner joined [Jennifer Schuessler] in a discussion of Hefner’s social and cultural legacy.”
‘It’s Over. I Pleaded Guilty’: In Rare Interview, Roman Polanski Discusses Rape Case
Still a fugitive in the case of the 1977 drugging and rape of a 13-year-old girl (Polanski pled guilty and served 42 days, but fled the U.S. when told the judge was going to disregard his plea deal), the filmmaker said, “As you know, [victim] Samantha Geimer has been asking for over 30 years for this thing to end. But, I’m sorry the judges who dealt with it the last 40 years were corrupted, one covering for the other. So I don’t maybe one of them will [eventually] stop doing it.”
Music, Dance, And Drama Can All Help People With Dementia: Study
“More than 200 residents at the [involved] care homes benefited from the study, which integrated creative workshops into its dementia care for a six-month trial period. All participating homes have since introduced the workshops to the list of activities full time. The benefits included a positive impact on mental health, improved self-esteem and self-confidence, as well as improved cognitive ability and memory recall from the musical activities.”
Louvre Bars ‘Sexually Explicit’ Architectural Sculpture From Tuileries Gardens
“The work by the Dutch art and design collective Atelier Van Lieshout, entitled Domestikator, was due to go on show later this month as part of the Hors les Murs public art programme organised by representatives of the Fiac contemporary art fair (19-22 October).” The director of the Louvre argues that “this work has a brutal aspect; it risks being misunderstood by visitors to the gardens,” and that it would have been near a playground.
45-Foot Nude Sculpture From Burning Man May Be Coming To DC’s National Mall
“The sculpture” – titled R-Evolition – “was created by artist Marco Cochrane as part of [his] The Bliss Project. He said the sculpture was meant to combat a culture that increasingly dehumanizes women and sexualizes the female form. … The sculpture is being brought to Washington, D.C. by the organizers of Catharsis on the Mall, an annual three-day event that features 24-hour activities, music and an effigy burn. “
The Second Brand-New Festival In A Month – This One For Alt-Classical And Jazz – Debuts In Philadelphia
About ten days after Opera Philadelphia’s successful O17 festival wrapped up, the October Revolution of Jazz and Contemporary Music begins, with artists ranging from John Luther Adams (with a piece for 24 horns), Claire Chase, and So Percussion to the Art Ensemble of Chicago, saxophonist Anthony Braxton, and the inimitable Sun Ra Arkestra.
Dealer Sues Matisse’s Heirs Over Stolen $4.5M Cut-Outs (What’s French For ‘Chutzpah’?)
The case concerns two works, White Palm on Red and Green Snail on Blue, that were among hundreds stolen from a cache of works belonging to one of Matisse’s sons stored at a Paris warehouse shortly after that son died in 1989. Many of those works were recovered; these two turned up at Sotheby’s Paris in 2008 with no line of provenance submitted, and without authentication, the house wouldn’t sell them. So the consignor is suing the Matisse family.