“After hearing about this, I couldn’t stay silent. I wrote an op-ed for our regional paper, The Berkshire Eagle, describing how Jacob’s Pillow, like many cultural institutions, is working to create a climate of inclusiveness. ‘We can diversify the artists … we celebrate onstage, the dancers we teach in our school, and the representation of people of color on our board and staff,’ I wrote. ‘What can we do to evolve our audiences so that our institution is truly inclusive?” I invited readers to share their thoughts.” Pamela Tatge writes about what has happened as a result. – Dance Magazine
Category: AUDIENCE
How Reading Has Changed In The 2010s
“For a while we were told that books were going to be a thing of the past. A new century had dawned, our lives were being digitised and surely there was no longer any reason to lug the pressed pulp of dead trees around. And yet, over the past decade, it seems clear that the death of the book has been greatly exaggerated.” – BBC
What Classical And Jazz Concerts Offer That We Need So Badly These Days
Howard Reich: “Step into Orchestra Hall or the Jazz Showcase in Chicago, Carnegie Hall or the Village Vanguard in Manhattan, Palais Garnier or Duc des Lombard in Paris, and you are entering sacred spaces where listeners seek something other than noise and sensation. … This means everyone in the audience must do something that increasingly is becoming a rarity: keep quiet and listen. Our individual voices, our opinions, our fervently held beliefs, our prejudices are not to be voiced here, at least not until concert’s end.” – Chicago Tribune
Netflix Says 26 Million Watched “The Irishman” In Its First Week
“The Irishman,” released on Netflix on Nov. 27, is expected to be watched by about 40 million Netflix households in its first month, Sarandos said. That would be well below other Netflix hits, such as the science-fiction thriller “Bird Box,” that drew 80 million households during its first four weeks. – Los Angeles Times
St. Petersburg Museums Struggle With Surge Of Chinese Tourists
Visits by Chinese citizens to Russia have been growing by 20% a year, and that rate will likely increase in 2020, when electronic visas become available. The extra crowds have caused particular problems at the Hermitage and, especially, at the Catherine Palace in nearby Tsarskoe Selo, where there are wait times of up to four hours as Chinese groups flock to see the famous Amber Room. – The Art Newspaper
Women Keep Novels, And Reading In General, Alive
Who buys 80 percent – that’s a super, super, super majority – of novels? You knew it: Women. But our love for novels, as the narrator in Anna Burns’ The Milkman experiences, seems to be a challenge for some other humans. “William Thackeray called fiction ‘sweets’ – to ensure a balanced diet, he also recommended ‘roast,’ by which he meant nonfiction. It’s surprising how enduring these puritanical associations have proved; fiction is still seen as ‘a slippery slope to idle self-indulgence,’ as Taylor has it. One of her correspondents wrote: ‘having an affair is dangerous, masturbation requires solitude and privacy. Reading a book offers both without anyone noticing.'” – The Observer (UK)
Following New York’s Lead (Gingerly), Philadelphia Gives Library Card Holders Free Access To Cultural Institutions
Like NYC’s Culture Pass, the new Experience Pass will let Free Library of Philadelphia cardholders reserve one free entry per year at some of the city’s cultural institutions. But the famous ones aren’t taking part (yet): the best-known of the 11 participating institutions are the Museum of the American Revolution and the Magic Gardens on South Street — along with the Mayor’s Box at the Wells Fargo Center, which means users could see 76ers and Flyers games. – Philadelphia Magazine
Galleries And Museums Are So Crowded Now The Experience Is… Not Artistic
Venture to many blockbuster exhibitions, particularly on a weekend, and you’ll often be met with overwhelming crowds. Is there a surfeit of public interest in art? Are galleries packing in the crowds to maximise profit? And how best to meet the growing demand for public art without turning museums into amusement parks, complete with heavily managed queues? – The Guardian
So How Has Tumblr Survived Its First Year Without Porn?
Better than many people had predicted, actually. Yes, reports Kaitlyn Tiffany, traffic took a very big hit. Even so, “without porn, Tumblr still has plenty: photography, studying, The Sims, cats, dogs, reptiles, ‘fitness’ … [The site remains] a vibrant tangle of memes and mini-communities.” – The Atlantic
Tommasini: Upgrade Of NY Philharmonic’s Theatre Experience Could Be Transformative
” ‘Amenities’ seems inadequate to describe how transformative the improvements could be for performers and audiences. I’d argue that the physical details of a concert hall are crucially important for classical music, more so than for other performing arts. With theater and dance, there’s much to watch and stories to follow. Opera is in this category. But an orchestra doesn’t offer the same kind of visual stimulation.” – The New York Times