Having presided over the company’s 40th and 50th anniversaries, he was looking ahead to the 60th anniversary and planning what he could do that would “be new and different”, he explains. “And I just sort of went — you know what? Maybe it’s actually the time for a new person to have the opportunity – a new director, new vision.” – Dance Australia
Tag: 07.01.19
Untangling Conflicting Currents Of How To Think About #MeToo
It can feel as though the public discussion around #MeToo has been designed as a training program for denial, with self-reflection rarely encouraged on any side of the issue. The appearance of perfection—which is to say, hiding and disavowal—seems to be your main aim. – The New Republic
A New Play Brings The #MeToo Discussion Forward In Singapore
“In Singapore, … many still hold to another century’s view of the roles of men and women. Victims of sexual misconduct often face shame and blame, and the global reckoning seems far away. … In May, [Ken Kwek’s] play This Is What Happens to Pretty Girls was performed to sold-out audiences, sparking a new wave of conversation.” – The New York Times
Motion Picture Academy Invites 842 New Members – Half Women
While for years the Academy made a concerted effort to limit the number of new member invitations and keep the number of voters to no more than 6,000, all the membership limits were abandoned in the wake of the 2016 #OscarsSoWhite controversy. In the aftermath of the protests that followed two consecutive years of all-white acting nominees, the Academy vowed to double the number of female and non-white members by 2020. – The Wrap
Venice’s Mayor, And The Cruise Companies That Control Its Port, Want The Monster Cruise Ships To Keep Coming
Despite concern over both the huge amount of daytripper traffic by passengers and the physical damage that the enormous ships cause to both the Venice Lagoon and the low-lying city itself, the mayor and city government favor continuing to dock cruise vessels at the terminal in the city. And they’re pushing UNESCO to accept their plans, despite the availability of other options. – The Art Newspaper
We Need “A Good Conversation”? Maybe Not So Much
Lazy rhetorical devices plague our political discourse. But there is something especially grating about a candidate calling for a “conversation” when asked about an issue. It rings with the echo of empty ideas. It emanates the stench of platitude and prudence. The abstractness of the language renders the sentiment meaningless: Who, exactly, should be having these conversations? Where should they be taking place, and on what terms? – The Atlantic
The War Breaking Out Among Medieval Scholars
“While squabbles over session approval are not uncommon at academic conferences, the conflict in medieval studies feels like a struggle for the future of the field, one that sometimes pits older scholars against a younger generation, and those with a traditional approach against those with a more activist bent. And it’s turned personal at times, even nasty and disturbing, with medievalists lobbing insults over Twitter, squaring off in blog posts, and calling for colleagues to be more or less excommunicated from the discipline.” – Chronicle of Higher Education
When Bad Things Happen At The Opera: Should We Applaud These Plotlines?
“When our society is having to confront the murder of women, how can we dare to applaud the killing of a woman?” said Cristiano Chiarot, the head of the opera house, the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. – Sydney Morning Herald
How Medieval History Is Being Used To Fuel Conspiracy Theories
“Simple stereotypes about the Middle Ages aren’t just wrong; they have become weapons for white supremacy. As the great spire of Notre Dame fell, I knew the disaster, whatever the cause turned out to be, would fuel incendiary anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish conspiracy theories based on white supremacist reconstructions of Western European history.” – Pacific Standard
Boris Johnson Or Jeremy Hunt — As UK Prime Minister, Which One Would Be Better For The Arts?
Ed Vaizey, who was Conservative PM David Cameron’s minister for culture: “Safe to say, the arts and cultural policy have not featured highly in the many debates and hustings that have taken place in the last few weeks of campaigning. Nevertheless, there is some hope for the arts, when one analyses the background of the main contenders.” (Vaizey goes on to compare Johnson to Marmite.) – The Art Newspaper