Tag Archive | New York Times
Burst My Bubble: Race in the Theatre
I live in the bubble. Boston University provides me with a beautiful bubble, safely padded with educated liberals who are all just as fired up about social injustices as I am. The bubble is a wonderful place where my beliefs and ideals are strengthened, confirmed, validated. The bubble is a place where I am allowed […]
#BLM, Jews, and the Theatre that Betrayed Them Both
Let’s set the scene. Feinstein’s/54 Below had a concert scheduled for Sept. 11, 2016 to benefit Black Lives Matter. Then, the week of, ticket holders were abruptly emailed that the show had been cancelled. A more detailed email to performers indicated that the cancellation was due to the venue owners’ and management’s desire to appear unaffiliated with […]
The Playwright, or, Who is Edward Albee?
Just a few short days ago, one of the most prolific and profoundly affecting playwrights of our time passed away. I could say that he was my favorite playwright, I could tell you about the time I saw Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? on Broadway in 2013, when I left the theatre weeping and confused […]
A Woman’s Voice Being Heard
Yesterday in the New York Times, a title caught my eye… “The Media Has A Woman Problem“. Now usually I would scrim the article but I had seen this particular one pop up on social media a few times so I decided to actually sit and read it. Liza Mundy starts off […]
Target Demographic
How on earth is my demographic (18-34 year-old, male, (and, let’s be honest, straight and white), or possibly 18-49, etc.) still the most coveted in terms of sales, advertising, and apparently Broadway? I really want to know, because I find it a bit baffling. It can’t be because there are more of us. Data indicates […]
The Transformative Power of Theatre
I am a true believer in the power of theatre to transform communities. This is why I work with Arts After Hours in Lynn, MA. Arts After Hours is dedicated to revitalizing and changing the economy of Lynn–a city mired in years of economic stagnation. Another theatre company, New Brooklyn Theater, that also believes in […]
Trumbull High School Production of RENT Back On! (Sort of)
Recently, administrators Trumbull High School in Connecticut have found their decision to cancel a student production of RENT: School Edition facing a large amount of public scrutiny. As the Hartford Courant reports, “Student representatives from Trumbull High’s theater department were told last Monday that the show they planned to perform next spring covered topics too “sensitive” […]
New York, I Love You, But You’re Bringing Me Down
It’s been said time and time again, over and over, like a broken record. New York is over. New York is dead—you know, because Hip Hop is dead and Punk is dead and Times Square has been fully Disney-fied since a thorough clean-up effort began in 1980. New York is no longer the cultural capital […]
Wanna Try Out Some Hamlet?
Calling all actors! In a recent Arts Beat post, I learned that the New York Times is inviting high school and college student actors to upload their interpretative performances of lines from Hamlet using Instagram. Due to several recent productions by Shakespeare (and Hamlet in particular), the Times is interested in seeing how emerging artists are interpreting lines from […]
A laughing matter: the funnier side of theatre
As I read through the New York Times this morning there was an article that caught my eye. This Guy’s No Puppy Hugger talks about comedian Bill Burr. I originally had no plans to comment or discuss the article; I was merely reading it because I was curious. I find standup comedians fascinating and the […]
STRIKE, STRIKE!
Unions. They are something that we are bound to encounter at one point or another regardless of what role we play in the theatre. For actors, there are options but Actors Equity (AE) seems to be the most popular; for opera, musicians, and dancers there is AGMA; for stage managers it can vary depending on what types of […]
TRUTH
Synonyms: ACCURACY. AUTHENTICITY. CERTAINTY. FACT. LEGITIMACY. And what is it exactly? Mike Daisey often takes a moment to acknowledge those of us “listening through the ghostly means of the internet.” He calls those of us listening to his words through headphones or computer speakers “ghosts” time and again. He’s laying out a relatively new phenomenon […]
Technology & the Arts: A Balancing Act
Today as I was scrolling through Twitter I stumbled upon a conversation about a New York Times article that declared that the number of theatergoers has dropped significantly in the past four years. It did not take long to find said article, and once I did, I did not know how to feel. Part of […]
The Issue with Isherwood
New York Times recently sent an e-blast with a Theatre Update to their subscribers about ‘Maximum Shakespeare.’ Evidently, there are a lot of Shakespeare productions in New York this season. One of the Times’ staff theatre critics, Charles Isherwood, wrote a piece entitled, “Too Much Shakespeare? Be Not Cowed.” Besides the forced title (which I […]
Don’t Please Everyone
The other night I googled “Sopranos” and “risk.” My thinking was this–what made cable TV decide to go from bland, crowd-pleasers to some of the best television writing and art direction I’ve ever seen (think how The Sopranos has led to The Wire and AMC’s Mad Med & Breaking Bad). David Carr neatly summarizes HBO’s move in his New […]
“Arguendo” by the Elevator Repair Service
The Elevator Repair Service, a New York City based theatre ensemble founded by John Collins, has been consistently producing an output of new and challenging work since their founding in 1991. They are probably best known for their 2010 seven hour long reimagining of the Great Gatsby, entitled “Gatz.” After seeing the piece, Ben […]
Broadway & the American Audience
I adore theatre as much as the next School of Theatre student; however, attending theatre school has made me really bitter because it has made me incredibly aware of how shallow the American audience can be. I think this resentful attitude took shape when I started the final project for my Dramatic Literature (1950-1990) class. […]
Drama Lit Blog 2.0: BU School of Theatre 