“Harsh words from critics, now and forever a click away on the Internet, can harrow. This seems pretty plain, I know. But, amazingly, I had never really given this much thought until one day last spring when I wanted to put my head in the oven and kill myself because of a wretched review. … What had become of my poise?”
Category: issues
Understanding The Critical Mind — Or Trying To
“Dancers and choreographers often love to hate critics, especially when they’ve been subjected to a direct hit. Whether it’s the print or web equivalent of a spitball or a spear toss, the sting tends to linger, as does the resentment at being publicly humiliated. … A dancer who has been so stung might well ask, ‘Why are they so mean?'” Well, why are they?
Cinderella And Psychosis
Cinderella was ahead of her time by giving her name to a fairy tale about the contemporary issue of “reconstituted families”. Cinderella’s “issues” are our “issues”.
Philadelphia’s New “Arts Czar” Faces Challenges
“I was told clearly from the beginning that if you expect a big staff and a functioning office, this is not the job for you,”
Durham, NC Opens New Performing Arts Center
“The 2,800-seat, $44-million DPAC is expected to add from $7 million to $11 million annually to Durham’s economy. Its Broadway touring shows and top-tier entertainers are expected to attract ticket-buyers from a 100-mile radius that includes not just our Triangle neighbors in Raleigh, Cary and Chapel Hill, but much of the North Carolina’s bustling Piedmont.”
A French Art Oasis In The Midst of Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia’s ruling family keeps a fairly tight grip on society, and one result is a chilling effect on artistic freedoms in a country that holds to strict Sharia law. Things have been improving for artists, though, and the French Embassy in Riyadh has become an important site for art shows that might not pass muster on Saudi soil.
Small Donors Can Help In Arts As Well As Politics
“In tough times like these, the arts should be a source of inspiration, but they can hardly lift our spirits if they’re struggling as well. To paraphrase a recent political aphorism, philanthropy can trickle up from the bottom, too. … [I]sn’t it just possible that, when it comes to the arts, we can be the ones we’ve been waiting for?”
The Holocaust, Coming To A Theater/Bookstore/TV Near You This Christmas
“The number of Holocaust-related memoirs, novels, documentaries and feature films in the past decade or so seems to defy quantification, and their proliferation raises some uncomfortable questions. Why are there so many? Why now? And more queasily, could there be too many?” (Hint: It’s not just that Holocaust books and movies win awards.)
Busting Taboos, Four Saudi Students Form Kingdom’s First Girl Group
The rock band The Accolade can’t perform in public or even rehearse openly, but their song “Pinocchio” has been downloaded by hundreds of young Saudis and they’re looking to start playing private gigs (the only kind in Saudi Arabia).
Preservation At A Snail’s Pace
The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission is a well-intentioned group, to be sure. But efficient? Not so much. “A six-month examination of the commission’s operations… reveals an overtaxed agency that has taken years to act on some proposed designations, even as soaring development pressures put historic buildings at risk.”