“Those who don’t know the name almost always recognize the voice: a folksy, honeyed, sometimes firm, usually schmaltzy flow that can comfort without condescension and make you want to heed even the harshest advice. That voice is the essence of the show, and during my time in the studio, caller after caller told her how its tone alone has provided comfort at some of their lowest points.”
Author: ArtsJournal2
Top Posts From AJBlogs For 02.14.16
Editors’ Choice: Some ArtsJournal Stories You Shouldn’t Miss From The Past Week
1. This week in What-Does-The-Audience-Want?Cheaper tickets, for sure. Or at least the opportunity to pay what they want. One theatre converted its season to pay-as-you-want and saw a 50% increase in audience. But perhaps it’s… … read more
AJBlog: DiacriticalPublished 2016-02-14
Coming into land
Shouldn’t ballet have previews? Wouldn’t it help dancers and choreographers alike? As with most bad things, the money says no. Ballets have short runs, so you slap ’em on stage and get reviews and… … read more
AJBlog: Performance MonkeyPublished 2016-02-14
From Palestine via Belgium
Badke, a Belgian-Palestinian dance production, comes to New York Live Arts. Badke. Maalii Maali (L) and Samer Samahnah; visible at back: Mohammed Samahnah (L) and Ameer Sabra. Photo: Yi-Chun Wu There is no light in… … read more
AJBlog: DancebeatPublished 2016-02-14
The Old Catchup Game (Part II): Geller, Magris, Washington, Diehl, Wheeler
Not to make too big a deal of it; I know I’ve mentioned it once or twice before. But it’s impossible to keep up with the torrential flow of jazz releases. All we can do… … read more
AJBlog: RiffTidesPublished 2016-02-14
Is there a Canadian cultural policy crisis?
At the Globe and Mail, Kate Taylor writes: The policy tools that have protected and nurtured Canada’s cultural industries since the 1970s are unknown to transnational distributors of foreign content – that would be… … read more
AJBlog: For What it’s WorthPublished 2016-02-13
Celebrating Bernard Herrmann
A towering figure in twentieth century American music,Bernard Herrmann (1911-1975) has long been pigeon-holed as a “Hollywood composer.” Though he is widely acknowledged the supreme American composer for film (Citizen… … read more
AJBlog: Unanswered QuestionPublished 2016-02-12
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How Did This Group Shoot A Mindbendingly Great Music Video In Zero Gravity?
“The new video is but the latest reminder that OK Go is a band, yes, but also something more. Ross says the band sees itself a kind of freewheeling creative factory, where catchy songs exist alongside viral videos, and things like collaborations with airlines and experiments like OK Go working to encode its latest album, Hungry Ghosts—from which ‘Upside Down & Inside Out’ is taken—onto strands of DNA.”
Guess What Other Film Awards Aren’t Exactly Diverse? The BAFTAs
“Ms. Berry told the Telegraph: ‘Not enough films are being made with diverse talent in front of the camera. Our industry isn’t diverse enough, so the pool of people to draw award winners from isn’t diverse enough. I want the awards to be as diverse as they possibly can be. But people can only vote on what they’ve seen.'”
The Woman Who Runs PR For Hollywood During Oscar Bait Season
“Ms. Siegal, 68, has employed sharp elbows and inexhaustible energy reservoirs to claim a unique social position in New York and the Hamptons: as a host for hire for clubby, insider-only film screenings and dinners for the influential, she stands at the crossroads of Hollywood power and New York society (or what’s left of it), functioning as a spin doctor, salonista, celebrity confidante and, occasionally, bouncer.”
The Movies Used To Be An Escape From Work, And Now They’re All About Work
“The somber message of these movies — most of them contenders for best film or acting honors in this year’s Oscar race — is that we have become our jobs. ‘I think, therefore I am’ has been updated to ‘I work, therefore I exist.’ Not only has private life been squeezed out, but personal happiness, when it is captured, is also celebrated as a boon for productivity.”
The Sanders Campaign Has A House DJ? Yes It Does
“‘The Internet went a little crazy last week,’ Mr. Sandico said, referring to the Iowa party. ‘I was just like, ‘I’m going to play Rob Base,’ and everyone was like ‘Oh, my God, I’m hearing Rob Base at a political event.’'”
What (The Hell) Went Wrong With St. Mark’s Bookshop, RIP?
“In a neighborhood that is wearily familiar with the closing of local fixtures (two recent blows were Sounds record store and De Robertis pastry shop), the demise of St. Mark’s Bookshop stands out as painfully, publicly prolonged — one former employee I spoke to compared it to ‘watching a puddle evaporate.'”
Cuba Is Getting The Full Hollywood Treatment
“‘It’s great that people from Hollywood want to come to Cuba, but it’s caught us at a bad moment,’ said Carlos Lechuga, a Cuban director. ‘We have stories to tell, and right now we don’t feel that we can do that.'”
‘The Revenant’ Sweeps The BAFTAs As We Edge Toward The Oscars
This is the list of winners, but don’t miss the rather funny Guardian liveblog as well, linked here.