It all went pretty well, as you might expect, with some twists that might be particular to Ann Patchett: “Not shopping saves an astonishing amount of time. In October, I interviewed Tom Hanks about his collection of short stories in front of 1,700 people in a Washington theater. Previously, I would have believed that such an occasion demanded a new dress and lost two days of my life looking for one. In fact, Tom Hanks had never seen any of my dresses, nor had the people in the audience.”
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An 8,000-Person Orchestra Just Performed In Seoul
That’s right, 8,000 mostly amateur church musicians tried to break (and perhaps succeeded in breaking) the world record. “The giant orchestra … played a medley of Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance Marches, the South Korean national anthem and two hymns for seven minutes in total.”
The (Kinda Racist) Secret Identity Of A Comics Book Editor
Turns out the (actual!) white guy who kept getting promoted was also the (not actual!) Japanese guy writing some comics. Marvel’s response is troubling to many comic and graphic novel fans: “Cebulski’s deception calls to mind a longer, more pernicious tradition of white writers posing as people of color for cultural cache. Often, these individuals have adopted Asian identities.”
The Christmas Carol Composer
Does John Rutter care that people know him mostly through his carols? “‘I used to think that was a problem,’ Mr. Rutter said, surveying from his kitchen window the absurdly perfect village he calls ‘idyllic, if a bit Miss Marple.’ He worried that people wouldn’t take his other music seriously. ‘But I’m not unhappy to be associated with Christmas: better than famine, flood or war,’ he said.”
The Hottest New Art Site In Antwerp Is – Of Course – A 19th Century Distillery
It’s not just a museum or gallery – it’s much, much bigger than that. “The site now features 98 apartments, 30 offices, a restaurant, a bakery, an auditorium, studios, workshops, and extensive exhibition spaces for both the Vervoordt art dealership and for the nonprofit Axel & May Vervoordt Foundation. Among the foundation’s current exhibits are three large-scale ‘Warrior’ paintings from the 1960s, painted (with those feet) by the now-coveted Gutai School artist Kazuo Shiraga.”
The Cleveland Orchestra’s Principal Trombonist Files A Lawsuit Against ‘Detractors’ Online
The lawsuit is against two other people for posts alleging that the trombonist, Massimo La Rosa,”had engaged in a pattern of professional misconduct, criminal wrongdoing and morally repugnant behavior.”
So The Royal Court Cancelled A Play Because Of Sexual Harassment Claims But Reinstated It Because Of Censorship Claims, But It’s Complicated
Let’s follow the story:
A. First, the Royal Court Theatre cancelled a production of Rita, Sue, and Bob Too after the co-director stepped down in a flurry of “misconduct” allegations. (Here’s that story.)
B. Then a lot of people are upset that a play by a woman was cancelled because of the bad behavior of a man (Here’s that story) and/or because of the idea of censorship (here’s one of those opinion pieces).
C. Now the play has been restored after artistic director Vicky Featherstone said she had “been rocked to the core by accusations of censorship and the banning of a working-class female voice.”
This Year May Go Down As Revealing How Terrible The Film Industry Is For Women – And Also The Year Of The Complex Mother Onscreen
Things might be a fire dump of terrible for women in Hollywood, as revealed by all too many #metoo stories (and oh yes, there are many more to come), but at least a few roles weren’t too bad this year: “Movie mothers tend to be monsters (Mommie Dearest, Carrie, Precious, Animal Kingdom), angels (Bambi, The Grapes of Wrath) or just a bit nothing-y (pretty much everything else). That, however, could be changing. While 2017 has been an awful year for women in film in most respects, it has thrown up a riot – or whatever the collective noun for mums ought to be – of complex on-screen mothers.”
Anita Hill Will Lead A Commission On Sexual Assault In Hollywood
Whoa: “Called the Commission on Sexual Harassment and Advancing Equality in the Workplace, the initiative was spearheaded by Kathleen Kennedy, the president of Lucasfilm; Maria Eitel, the co-chair of the Nike Foundation; the powerhouse attorney Nina Shaw; and Freada Kapor Klein, the venture capitalist who helped pioneer surveys on sexual harassment decades ago.”
What’s Going On With The Royal New Zealand Ballet?
Well, for one thing, some investigations – and a call for the government to dissolve and recreate the board. Here’s a tidbit: “On Friday, the RNZB announced former deputy State Services Commissioner Doug Craig would lead an independent inquiry into allegations of workplace bullying and reports that the Ballet favours overseas dancers over New Zealanders.”