The Philadelphians got some heavy criticism earlier this year when it came out that they hadn’t programmed a single piece of music written by a woman for the coming season. So they quickly added a couple of short pieces to the schedule and then planned a reading session of scores by emerging women. Now, reports Peter Dobrin, the orchestra is taking serious steps to address the issue in the next two seasons.
Blog
Dallas Prepares New Citywide Cultural Plan
Says the director of the city’s Office of Cultural Affairs, “We don’t live in a Camelot world any more. It’s all about Hamilton. … Our children today take it for granted that culture includes this richer, more exciting, more diverse offering. And if you don’t embrace it, you get left in the dust.”
Actor Burt Reynolds Dead At 82
Known for a wry, self-mocking persona and for doing his own stunts (and, offscreen, for a quick temper, hard living, and a tempestuous love life), Reynolds appeared in dozens and dozens of films and TV shows (and directed more than a few) over the decades; from 1978 to 1982, he was the number-one box-office draw. He was most popular in action films and romantic comedies, but he won greatest critical acclaim for performances in Deliverance and Boogie Nights.
Washington National Opera’s New General Director Settles In
Timothy O’Leary comes to the company from a very successful decade running the Opera Theater of St. Louis, writes Anne Midgette. “The companies in St. Louis and Washington are very different animals. St. Louis is a festival, where an intense five- or six-week season, attended by audiences from around the world, is followed by a whole year of planning and gestation. Washington, by contrast, has a year-round season but plays more to local audiences. … When the season is longer, carving out time to be creative, to come up with new ideas and initiatives, is a challenge.”
Four Texas NPR Stations To Launch First Regional Journalism Hub This Fall
“KUT in Austin, Texas Public Radio in San Antonio, KERA in Dallas and Houston Public Media have been in talks for about a year with conference calls on a near-weekly basis. … The journalism hubs are intended to increase regional coverage for both NPR and the stations participating in each collaboration.”
1968 Was A Fateful Year. How We Think About It 50 Years On
Revisiting the Sixties leads to a sobering conclusion: everything has changed, and nothing has changed.
Controversial Previously-Cancelled Robert Lepage Work Will Be Produced In Paris
A controversial play about the relationship between whites and Indigenous peoples will finally be presented after previously being cancelled following criticism of content judged culturally insensitive. The Paris-based Theatre du Soleil says in a statement it will put on Quebec playwright Robert Lepage’s Kanata this December.
A Shocking Decline In UK Arts Teachers (And Arts Education)
Current debates about social class in the arts miss a vital point. How are working class young people going to access the arts if they don’t experience them in school?
Why Do We Assume Unhappiness Is Toxic?
Self-help—the enemy of the uncalm—is, unsurprisingly, an American phenomenon. It evinces a sensibility well suited to a country where the self has always been the most relevant unit.
A Major Donation Of Art Elevates The Hirshhorn Collection
The Washington couple has decided to donate its Duchamp art to the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, where the works will raise the profile of the Smithsonian modern art museum. “This is the art world equivalent of the Wizards getting LeBron James,” said Hirshhorn board chairman Daniel Sallick. “Any museum in the world would want this collection.”