Howard Sherman: “To start at the end, or at least where we are today: Michele Roberge, executive director of the Carpenter Performing Arts Center on the campus of California State University, has resigned, effective yesterday. Why? Because the school’s president, Jane Close Conoley, insisted upon the cancelation of Roberge’s booking of the comedy :N*gger Wetb*ck Ch*nk, a show that has toured extensively for more than a decade to performing arts centers on and off college campuses. In fact, it played to a sold out house of more than 1,000 seats last year at the Carpenter Center.”
Category: issues
Scotland’s Performing Arts Companies Pledge Gender Balanced Boards By 2020
The National Theatre of Scotland, Scottish Ballet, Scottish Opera, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra have all signed up to the Scottish government’s “50/50 by 2020” campaign. They join 180 other companies from across the public, private and third sectors, who have signed up to the Scottish Government’s Partnership for Change campaign launched last year.
What The Smithsonian’s African-American Museum Means For African-American Washington, D.C.
“‘All cultures need places where their things can land and be celebrated,’ [Theaster] Gates says. ‘For D.C., locals now have the bragging rights of having a home for reflection on black lives and black trauma. They get to share this amazing museum with the world.'”
Redeveloping Chicago’s South Side With Art
“It roots itself in unlikely places like a once-dilapidated bank that hadn’t been active in more than 30 years, a recently shuttered currency exchange office, a retired beer warehouse, and a housing complex that had been shuttered after the city couldn’t find a way to stymie the violence that had permeated the site. This constellation of projects is the brainchild of Theaster Gates.”
Why The New National African American Museum Won’t Have Any Martin Luther King Artifacts
“I could not be more cynical, more jaded on this subject,” said historian David J. Garrow, who won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for his book “Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.” “Given the family’s behavior this last 20 years, they’re unlikely to have any interest in sharing without a large upfront payment.”
Movie Star David Oyelowo Has Had It With Sexism In The Industry
“I just feel like if God, in his divine plan, made it that pretty much the population is 50/50 of men and women, why it should be below 10% of women behind the screen, when we have this cultural medium that is so influential, so impacting, so educational, so inspiring.”
Accusations Against Cosby Are Part Of The Story In New African American Museum
“The museum, opening Sept. 24, came under fire last spring for its decision to include Cosby in its entertainment exhibition without noting that more than 50 women have accused him of rape, sexual assault or sexual harassment.”
As Audience Numbers Rise, Donations To Arts Orgs Drop, Says Study
“A new study of arts and cultural nonprofit organizations from the University of Missouri suggests that there is no evidence that donors are influenced by high attendance numbers; in fact, it may be just the opposite, since higher attendance is linked to higher earned revenue.”
Why Banks Like Wells Fargo (And Politicians, Too) Keep Slamming The Arts
“Wells Fargo’s misbegotten ad campaign was merely the latest salvo in the ongoing disparagement of the arts and humanities as academic concentrations and career destinations, a refrain that is almost always paired with cheers for ostensibly more lucrative fields. … And it reflects a particular American tendency: to place the blame for massive social problems on the individual.”
Performing Arts Orgs Say UK’s Tax Relief Program Has Made A Huge Difference
“Producers have hailed the government’s theatre tax relief as ‘game changing’ and ‘essential’ two years after it was introduced. Both commercial and subsidised producers have praised the scheme, with claims it had allowed companies to stage and commission more shows, and create ‘more ambitious’ work.”