“Arizona Opera this week is unveiling a daring new programming model that puts the company’s focus squarely on modern works. Meanwhile, and not coincidentally, the Herberger Theater Center in Phoenix is announcing that it will welcome three new resident companies for the 2018-19 season, doubling the current number.”
Category: issues
College Adjuncts Are Poor. It’s Crippling The System
“Academic precarity is the year-to-year or class-to-class, contingent, underpaid and labor-intensive employment status most Ph.D.s now have to navigate while seeking a protected tenure-track position. After, say, eight years of graduate school, this tacks on another two to four to ten years at a $20-$40,000/year salary. We have crossed over into our thirties and forties in sustained poverty, now separated from our graduate communities and parceled into departments and towns in which we have no belonging or protection.”
Ford Foundation President Darren Walker On The Power Of Art, Inequality, And Detroit
Hrag Vartanian: “Our conversation took place soon after the organization announced plans to open an office in Detroit, a city it had left in 1953. We spoke about the public’s interest in scrutinizing institutional authority, Walker’s own love of art, and the renovations at the Foundation’s building, and also discussed Agnes Gund’s new Art for Justice fund, the role of the arts for marginalized communities, and the importance of public education.” (podcast)
Australian Actor Rebel Wilson Says She, Too, Has Been Sexually Harassed
Wow. “After she managed to escape from the situation she worked with her lawyer and her agent to complain about the allegations to studio bosses and demanded producers include a clause in her contract protecting her from the star’s aggression. But Wilson added that after taking steps to stop the alleged harassment she was threatened by her colleague’s representatives and told she had to ‘be nice’ and ‘support’ the actor.”
DC Comics Kept On Promoting And Rewarding An Editor Accused Of Sexual Harassment
The editor – who was suspended from DC on Saturday after this story dropped – was reported by several women. “Among the women who reported Berganza to human resources, none still work for DC. None are even working at mainstream comics publishers anymore; they’ve largely put superheroes behind them.”
Louis CK And Hollywood’s Canon Of Creepy Men
Manohla Dargis, as she discusses the Louis CK movie I Love You, Daddy that will now not be released: “Soon after Harvey Weinstein was first outed as a sexual predator, I created a document titled ‘Creeps’ in which I tried to list every man who had sexually harassed or assaulted me. It’s a companion to the running inventory that I keep in my head of the male filmmakers, in Hollywood and out, whose work degrades or disdains women.”
The Myth Of The (Male) Artistic Genius
Ugh: “A proclivity for reprehensible acts is built right into the mythos of the artistic genius — a designation rarely extended to women. This is what the historian Martin Jay calls ‘the aesthetic alibi’: The art excuses the crime. Mr. Jay writes that in the 19th century, artistic genius ‘was often construed as unbound by nonaesthetic considerations — cognitive, ethical, or whatever.’ And often the ethical lapses afforded to artists have concerned the mistreatment of women.”
Why Did Crime Decrease In America’s Cities? The Rise Of Nonprofits, Arts, Research…
“Nonprofits were more likely to form in the communities with the gravest problems. But they also sprang up for reasons that had little to do with local crime trends, such as an expansion in philanthropic funding. A spike in nonprofits addressing subjects like the arts and medical research occurred in this same era. Comparing the growth of other kinds of nonprofits, the researchers believe they were able to identify the causal effect of these community groups: Every 10 additional organizations in a city with 100,000 residents, they estimate, led to a 9 percent drop in the murder rate and a 6 percent drop in violent crime.”
Does Interactive Art Make For A Richer Experience?
“Poor interactive shows come across like a desperate plea for attention from Generation iPad. But this doesn’t have to be the case. We’re just scratching the surface of the technological possibilities. And as for the interactivity haters there will always be shows hat expect you to sit down and shut up rather than asking if you want Hamlet to a) be or b) not be.”
Museum Director Doubles Attendance, Events, And Donations Within A Year – And Board Fires Her
Tiffany Wai-Ying Beres took over the San Diego Chinese Historical Museum from its founder last year and racked up success after success. Then she was sacked by the board, whose attorney says, “She was fired because she was a destructive, uncaring insensitive employee who has retaliated with false allegations against the longtime management of the museum.” Beres maintains that she was fired for blowing the whistle on several unethical practices by the board, and she’s suing.