“The interactive museum fills three floors of the historic Franklin School with play spaces, games and videos screens — lots of video screens — that invite visitors to think about the origins and evolution of English, to explore the unique qualities of other languages and to play with words by reading, singing and speaking. … With a decidedly middle-school-students-on-spring-break vibe (most obvious in its bathroom humor), it is a descendant of science centers rather than the Smithsonian facilities that line the Mall.” – The Washington Post
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‘Its Idealism Is As Inspiring Its Naiveté Is Disquieting’: Philip Kennicott On Planet Word
“[It] inhabits essentially the same universe as most of the museums that preceded it a century ago: It hopes to raise up the discourse, and spread the blessings of the educated and elite to those who hope to be educated and elite. … Everything is up to date in this museum of video screens and touch panels except its founding principle, which is the old noblesse oblige.” – The Washington Post
Quibi’s Founders, Jeffrey Katzenberg And Meg Whitman, Explain Why And How It’s Closing
Katzenberg: “There was no question that keeping us going was not going to have a different outcome, it was just going to spend a whole lot more money without any value to show for it.” Whitman: “Most entrepreneurs just keep on going [until] they literally run out of money and we just didn’t think that was the right thing to do.” – Deadline
Quibi Shuts Down After Six Months
“Quibi, the mobile-first streaming service to specialize in original shows with short five to 10-minute-long episodes, is shutting down its business operations and selling its assets little more than 6 months after launching. … It was an abrupt ending for a company founded by big names in entertainment and business worlds and seemed poised, at one point, to reinvent the streaming TV game.” – NPR
Arts Council England Gives Out Another £76 Million In COVID Relief
This round of money to 588 organizations, part of the government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund, “comes under a week after the council awarded £257 million ($333 million) to 1,385 organizations. … For the latest round of funding, institutions are eligible to receive up to £1 million in individual grants.” – Artnet
Munich’s Entire Ballet Company Quarantined After Six Dancers Contract Coronavirus
“As part of the testing strategy at the National Theatre, … one person from the Bavarian State Ballet initially tested positive for the coronavirus and subsequent tests showed up five further cases. A spokesperson said, ‘The artistic staff are now in quarantine until further testing in the coming days.'” – Gramilano (Milan)
Australian Universities Are Axing Their Theatre Programs
“Among the wide staff and course cuts prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic, multiple theatre and performance degrees” — among them the Centre for Theatre and Performance at Monash University in Melbourne, considered by many to be the best in the country — “have been closed or suspended indefinitely in recent months. … The peak body of arts educators has warned that this could wipe out future generations of Australian entertainers and disproportionately affect regional students.” – The Guardian
Restaurant Culture Upended – Michelin, Beard Cancel Awards
The James Beard Foundation has halted its annual restaurant awards for at least another year and is in the midst of a messy foundation-wide reckoning. The World’s 50 Best has shifted its focus from restaurant ranking to industry recovery. And Michelin, the most storied name in the restaurant-awards game, announced that it has indefinitely delayed the release of its 2021 guides in America. – Grub Street
The Google Anti-Trust Case Marks An Important Turning Point For Tech (And We Who Use It)
Today’s suit is an important rejection of the claim that the internet can only operate efficiently with monopolistic gatekeepers. Explicit in the Justice Department’s suit is that the internet is less innovative when power concentrates in a small handful of companies. – The Atlantic
Missing Jacob Lawrence Painting Found After Neighbor Visits Met Museum
“Last week a friend of mine went to the show and said, ‘There’s a blank spot on the wall and I believe that’s where your painting belongs,’ ” she continued. “I felt I owed it both to the artist and the Met to allow them to show the painting.” – The New York Times