In written English right now, there’s little consensus on this question. National publications have not settled on a regular style. The Atlantic, for instance, used both (emoji, emojis) in the last quarter of 2015. – The Atlantic
Blog
Wole Soyinka Tells Henry Louis Gates What’s What
The Nobel laureate talks about politics, law, race/ethnic relations, and corruption in both his erstwhile adopted country (the U.S.) and his native land (Nigeria); about what went wrong in South Africa and which sub-Saharan countries are doing well; and about the time he personally desegregated a hotel pool in Atlanta. – New York Review of Books
Cold Turkey Press: ‘Ikkyū Sojun — Nine Poems’
The Rinzai Zen master Ikkyū Sojun (1394-1481) was a poet, musician, artist, and rebel. He led a life of whoring and drinking. His poems — “often erotic, argumentative, contradictory, judgmental, self-doubting, and occasionally shaded with guilt” — are still as startling as the day they were written. – Jan Herman
Recent Listening: Chucho Valdés
Chucho Valdés, Jazz Batá 2 (Mack Avenue)
Valdés’s Jazz Batá was considered a departure into the avant-garde when he made it in 1972. Nearly half a century later, the follow-up finds him as adventurous as ever, heading a quartet that concentrates on mastery of the batá tradition of West Africa. – Doug Ramsey
Hirshhorn Proposes New Entrance Garden To National Mall
“The plan recognizes the shifts in art-making in the 40-odd years since we were founded,” said Hirshhorn Director Melissa Chiu. “Many artists create work on a larger scale, and we want to create a space for performance and other interactive work.” – Washington Post
‘I’m Not A Gay Writer, I’m A Monster. Gay Writers Are Too Conservative.’ Are American Readers Finally Ready For James Purdy?
“Despite praise in his lifetime from Langston Hughes, Susan Sontag, Edward Albee, Gore Vidal, as well as – in later years – John Waters and Jonathan Franzen, Purdy … cast out by the US literary establishment,” which wasn’t ready for either his experimental style or his outré subject matter. (Nelson Algren called one of Purdy’s books “a fifth-rate avant-garde soap opera [about] prayer and faggotry.”) And Purdy’s delight in burning bridges didn’t help. – The Guardian
Report: Rural Communities Do Better When They Develop Creative Industries
Rural counties that are home to performing arts organizations experienced population growth three times faster and higher household incomes (up to $6,000 higher) than rural counties lacking performing arts organizations. – Medium
What Stage Dancers Doing On-Camera Work Need To Know
“For dancers with a strictly concert background, making the transition into TV and film can feel like stepping into the unknown. The heightened speed of the rehearsals, ever-changing structure of the sets and somewhat alien nature of the cameras is enough to make even the most seasoned professional a little apprehensive. But dancers can apply the savvy they’ve learned on concert stages to on-camera opportunities.” – Dance Magazine
Orchestra Proposes New Hall In City Park. Community Protests Loss Of Said Park
“They’re moving us to a swamp, with no opportunity to grow our vision,” said Sami Scott, who helped organize a petition drive against the orchestra’s proposal. That petition has accumulated 300-plus signatures. – Sarasota Herald Tribune
Why The Cis Director Of The Trans-Themed Film ‘Girl’ Says He Has The Right To Tell This Story
Last year, Lukas Dhont’s debut feature won four prizes at Cannes and a Golden Globe nomination for best foreign film; Netflix bought the US rights. Then came the backlash — not only were a cis director and actor appropriating the story, but the film focused too much on the character’s body — and the US release was postponed. And then the woman on whose story the film is based spoke up — for Dhont. – The Guardian