Two Big Music Festival Failures Have Some Wondering If The Indie Festival Boom Has Peaked

“According to bankruptcy filings, the Pemberton festival lost money for three years, and sold 18,000 tickets in 2017, down from 38,000 last year. Event planners say it typically takes several years for a festival to become profitable – a threshold many cannot reach given the proliferation of rival events and the repetition of headliner acts.”

How Toronto Quickly Built A $2 Billion Movie Industry

“In 2008, when Pinewood first opened, production in the city descended to an ominous low of $499 million. Contrast that to 2016 when film and television production soared to a remarkable $2.01 billion. It is the third record-setting year in a row, up from $1.5 billion in 2015. And this year, based on interviews with producers, studio owners, unions and the city, that figure is on track to be eclipsed.”

Ten Reasons Why Your Kid Should Get A Music Degree Rather Than Something More “Practical”

Gradually I learned the truth about the working world: except in a few narrow areas of expertise, your undergraduate college major has very little influence on your career path — or your success. On the other hand, a kid with the strong muscles every young musician grows will be able to prosper in life. Following the tough road of a music major will make your daughter more sturdy and flexible than kids who drift through “safe” degree programs.

Two Billionaires Battle Over Proposed Performance Space Floating In Hudson River

Barry Diller – backed by pretty much every politician with jurisdiction over the spot – wants to replace, at his own expense, a crumbling pier at 13th St. in Manhattan with “an undulating platform featuring pathways, lush lawns and three venues for dance, theater and musical performances.” Real-estate mogul Douglas Durst is leading the (seemingly rather small) opposition to the project.

What The Philadelphia Orchestra Got Up To In Mongolia

Okay, it ended up not being the full orchestra, and “plans changed almost by the hour,” as David Patrick Stearns reports. But there was a performance and workshop for kids in the impoverished ger district, a master class for the national military band, an unannounced visit by the entire Mongolian State Philharmonic Orchestra to a rehearsal, a read-through of a Mongolian ballet score, and an outdoor concert by the brass players in (yes) Beatles Square.

Markus Lüpertz: Why The Public Doesn’t Get What Artists Do

“In this moment—if everyone painted, and if everyone was more intelligent—we could all paint the greatest pictures, because we have unparalleled freedom. But nobody accepts it. Only us old sacks of shit live with it. But the youth isn’t interested. They’d rather save the world from extinction, or stop the poles from melting—that’s all nonsense.”

Why Not An Arts Think Tank? There Have Been Models

“While a University affiliated Think Tank, with research fellows and a management staff, has to have income and a budget, it may be possible with today’s technology to run a tighter ship with more volunteer input.  It may not be necessary for a bricks and mortar home base, but rather operate as a virtual entity, and it may not have to re-invent the wheel of all the activity already going on.  Whereas the model for an Arts Think Tank has changed, so too has the model for its funding.”

Robert Schenkkan’s Anti-Trump Play Found An Audience Around America. In New York Not So Much. Why?

“Schenkkan’s purpose seems to have been understood and appreciated as Building the Wall was produced around the country over the past few months, first as a National New Play Network rolling world premiere by Fountain Theatre in California; Curious Theatre Company in Colorado’ Forum Theatre in DC; Borderlands Theater in Arizona; and City Theatre in Florida. But some prominent voices reacted differently when the play opened recently at New York’s New World Stages, in a production directed by Ari Edelson and starring Tamara Tunie and James Badge Dale. And the mixed reviews surely helped end the run of the New York production prematurely. It is closing Sunday, June 4, about a month earlier than the play’s intended run.”