Follow the money: “The resurgence of interest in concert films has been fuelled – in part – by streaming services’ need for content without the financial burden of drama.” The stars like the control they have over their images, too. – The Guardian (UK)
Category: AUDIENCE
Pop-Up Theatre Can Change Lives
When Fiona Shaw decided to perform excerpts from T.S. Eliot’s “The Wasteland” in (and near) an empty fountain in Central Park, she didn’t want it announced – and there was only a brief mention on social media. Then word of mouth happened. What’s next? “Taking theatre to the audience in unexpected ways can only serve to evoke interest, and may capture the imagination of those not used to planting themselves in a theatre seat.” – The Stage (UK)
Are Trigger Warnings At Theatres Useful Context Or…
As part of his PhD research on theatre spectatorship at the University of Toronto, Scott Mealey interviews many audience members and says he’s “shocked” by the level of anxiety many of them “seem to feel as they encounter theatre, especially if it seems unfamiliar in some way. The more I talk about it the more stories people offer me.” – Toronto Star
Alexa! Play HAPPY Music! (And Why That’s A Challenge)
Using your smart speaker to play music is the top use for them. But making music choices useful has been a challenge. “Using voice to sift through and access music may be a relatively new idea, but it’s brought with it an immense technological challenge that streaming companies, record labels and machine-learning start-ups are all reckoning with. Proper use of this new interface and underlying metadata can mean the difference between sinking and staying afloat on the smart speaker medium.” – BBC
Why Are Many Of Us Obsessed With Reading Books Quickly?
The point is, the act of reading is rarely a simple case of ‘finish one, start another one’—it’s an endless overlapping conversation between reader and page, an imprecise gumbo of genres and moods and facts and jokes and… cliffhangers. – Melville House
People Still Want To See Inside Fragile Historical Buildings. Now They Can… Virtually
Churches damaged by earthquakes, buildings ravaged by fire. It’s too dangerous for visitors to enter, or perhaps the site will be damaged by visits. Now a trove of 3D models has been put online so you can explore… – The Guardian
Penguin Random House Starts Airline-Style Frequent Reader Program
The PRH Reader Rewards Loyalty Program will let members enter proof-of-purchase info online; when you reach 120 points (roughly ten books, the company says), you get up to $30 credit toward ordering Penguin Random House titles. – Publishers Weekly
The Small-Town Grouch Who Declared ‘Libraries Are Communist’ Was Right, Thank Goodness
Theman who said that was in a rural hamlet in the mountains of New York state, and Sue Halpern had just been dragooned by the town board to set up a lending library with a total of $15,000. About a year on, after tremendous success, Halpern decided she agreed: “A public library is predicated on an ethos of sharing and egalitarianism. … It is defiantly, proudly, communal.” – The New York Review of Books
When Theatre Turns Audiences Into Activists
Tita Anntares writes about two recent productions — one depicting a U.S. immigrant’s deportation hearings, another the monologue of the ghost of a young Black Panther shot by Chicago police in 1969 — that actually moved their audiences to into taking actions on those issues. (Having activists on-site as the show ended helped.) – HowlRound
Game Of Thrones Premiere Shatters Ratings With 17.4M Viewers; Most-Watched Scripted Show Of The Season
GoT is the extremely rare drama that has managed to grow its audience every single season (AMC’s Breaking Bad was another). AMC’s The Walking Deadused to top Game of Thrones in the ratings, but the zombie drama has recently fallen to around 5 million weekly viewers. – Entertainment Weekly