Where would British theatre be without him? Quite possibly in a more interesting place. Of course, we are blessed to have all those wonderful plays, but the success of Shakespeare has created a gold standard by which all British theatre is calibrated. He set us on a path of literary theatre that still dominates today. A little less Shakespeare production might allow a bit more room for new plays and the devised, visual and physical work that often gets too little space on our stages.
Blog
We’re Watching The Death Of The Professional Songwriter
“One thread to keep in mind again is songwriters used to be able to rely on a steady stream of sheet music sales, and then it was album sales, and then it was download sales. As those have dried up, there is more interest by songwriters to make sure that the value of what’s contributed to the services is captured in the remaining rights that are invoked.”
Hollywood Studios, Amazon, Netflix, Sue Streaming Service For Piracy
Amazon, Netflix and multiple Hollywood studios (including Disney, Fox, Sony, Universal and Warner Bros.) have sued SET Broadcast over allegations its SET TV service is used expressly for piracy. While there is a dedicated set-top box, the centerpiece is a $20 per month subscription service that offers access to over 500 live TV channels and “thousands” of on-demand shows, including Netflix shows and movies that are still officially limited to theaters.
For Centuries, Humans Have Been Fighting A Battle Against Noise
“In the 1660s, the French philosopher Blaise Pascal speculated, ‘the sole cause of man’s unhappiness is that he does not know how to stay quietly in his room.’ Pascal surely knew it was harder than it sounds. But in modern times, the problem seems to have gotten exponentially worse.” What’s more, writes professor Matthew Jordan, “legislating against noisemakers rarely satisfied our growing desire for quietness, so products and technologies emerged to meet the demand of increasingly sensitive consumers.”
Augmented Reality Is Transforming The Museum Experience
Museums have long dealt with unauthorized augmentations of their exhibitions, such as unofficial tours, but technology has opened up new possibilities for activists and art enthusiasts eager to have a part in shaping the museum-going experience.
Why Is Marvel Ending The Most Lucrative Movie Franchise In History?
With the Avengers movies, “the studio has breathed lucrative new life into its decades-old comic-book properties, and built a ravenous fan base for each new character it introduces at the multiplex. Now Marvel says it wants to clear the table it has spent the last 10 years arranging and make way for something new. … Audiences are about to find out what finality looks like for a motion-picture money-minting machine: Will the story actually come to a conclusion? Will characters die, and will actors leave the series?”
For The First Time In Years A Trove Of Books, Music, Films Will Enter Public Domain
It’s the first time since 1998 for a mass shift to the public domain of material protected under copyright. It’s also the beginning of a new annual tradition: For several decades from 2019 onward, each New Year’s Day will unleash a full year’s worth of works published 95 years earlier.
A Visit To The Most Turbulent Newsroom In America
“Newish LA Weekly editor Darrick Rainey and publisher Brian Calle run what is perhaps the most on-edge paper at this moment in American journalism. In December of last year, Calle – formerly the head of the libertarian op-ed pages for the Orange County Register – and a group of investors under the name Semanal Media bought the august alt-weekly, then axed 9 of 13 staff writers and editors … The layoffs prompted a furious counterattack by former staffers and freelancers, who alleged Calle heads a conservative conspiracy to turn the historically progressive LA Weekly into an alt-right rag.”
A New Streaming Platform For Theatre To Launch This Summer
A producer and former performer will lead the launch of a new streaming network devoted to theater and theater-related content this summer, bowing a free version before a subscription tier that comes online in the fall.
One Of New York Theater’s Oldest Institutions – Playbill – Adapts To The Digital Era
“Over the course of a few weeks, we got a backstage look into the making of Playbill – the unmistakable, yellow-bannered magazine for theatergoers – and the transition of the 134-year-old New York institution to the mobile-first, social media-obsessed age.”
