Report: Live Nation Could Face DOJ Antitrust Lawsuit This Year

www.ticketnews.com: Live Nation Entertainment and Ticketmaster could be facing an anti-trust lawsuit before the end of the year, according to a report this week by Politico. The entertainment giant, which controls a huge percentage of venues, promotions, and ticketing for North America as well as worldwide, has been regularly accused of anti-competitive practices fueled by its overwhelming market share, but consistently defends itself against any wrongdoing.

Bastille Day 2023: 5 Lawo mc² consoles to mix the Concert de Paris

LightSoundJournal.com: The commemoration of the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789, which marked the beginning of the French Revolution, is the occasion for numerous events throughout the country. For this 11th edition of the giant classical music concert at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, Lawo once again met the live sound and live broadcast requirements of the French public broadcasters and Eurovision network.

In A Barbie World

seamracer.wordpress.com: I always loved how Barbie doll advertisements always showed all the proper matching accessories for every outfit. When I set to making my own version of a Barbie inspired outfit, it’s no wonder I felt the need to be in an equal measure of flawless co-ordination. Yet, I have a rocky relationship with gingham and was justifiably wary of making myself a completely matching set for my Barbie dress

Enjoy free admission to three Pittsburgh museums all through August

Pittsburgh City Paper: Three of the most popular museums in Pittsburgh are free for visitors all through the month of August, offering a way for individuals and families to escape the heat while taking advantage of fun activities, educational opportunities, art and cultural exhibitions, and more.

‘Josephine’s Feast’ is about a fed-up Black mother, and its star and director can relate

Datebook: Three decades ago, Margo Hall walked into an audition for the part of Anita Hill. The play was “Unquestioned Integrity” by Mame Hunt, being directed at Magic Theatre by Ellen Sebastian Chang, the company’s first director of color. Hall — who’s now one of the most sought-after actors in the region, with a recurring role on “Blindspotting” — was unknown then. It had been a year and a half since she’d moved to the Bay Area from New York, and she hadn’t booked a gig yet.

Consumer Groups Slam Striking Key Disclosures from TICKET Act

www.ticketnews.com: A consortium of consumer ticket advocacy groups issued a statement Thursday slamming changes to the proposed TICKET Act in the U.S. Senate, after the federal legislation saw key disclosure requirements struck during a procedural “markup” meeting in Washington. The bill, proposed by Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA), initially contained measures requiring disclosure on ticket prices and fees, plus requirements that sellers listing tickets for sale that they do not yet own – so-called “speculative” tickets – disclose the nature of those listings.

A Guide to Summer Theater Festivals in New York and the Berkshires

The New York Times: In summertime, a lot of stage talent heads for the Hudson River Valley and western Massachusetts, where curious audiences follow. Here is some of what theaters there have on tap this year.

Prison, hospital, burger joint, cathedral: Does…

Broad Street Review: In West Philadelphia, at the corner of 38th and Ludlow Streets, on the perimeter of Penn Campus, is the Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral. From the outside it appears as any other large urban church—steepled and red brick, snug between the corner of Ludlow Street and an attached large modern office building. But I am surprised on entering. The cathedral’s interior expanse leaves urban spatial constraints at the door.

Workers at William F. Whites to Join the Ranks of the IATSE

IATSE: Yesterday, workers at William F. White International Inc., a division of Sunbelt Rentals of Canada, Inc., voted overwhelmingly in favour of joining the IATSE. Concerns over job security, wages and a changing work culture inspired these workers to come together to improve their working conditions by forming a union.

WGA East Looks to Add Animation Writers to the Union After the Strike

collider.com: As the studios refuse to budge and give into the very understandable demands of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA, the unions continue to brave the summer temperatures and take to the picket lines. The latest update in the fight for fairness comes with animation writers hoping that this already historic strike will prove to be doubly so as they seek to be added under WGA protection in the future.

OAKLEY® DESIGNS GROUNDBREAKING SOLUTIONS TO IMPOSSIBLE CHALLENGES

oakley-media-hub.prezly.com: Defying limitations. Creating extraordinary moments. Reshaping the culture. It’s how many would describe the legendary role of Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt in the upcoming Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One. It’s also how you could tell the story of Oakley® becoming the world’s premiere choice for performance eyewear.

‘Her spirit’s in you’: ‘Tina’ actors on inhabiting and mourning Tina Turner

Datebook: For decades, Tina Turner has been not just the Queen of Rock & Roll but a symbol of survival, at once the pinnacle of artistic achievement and an icon of clawing your way back from the bottom. So when the superstar died in May, at 83, her significance entered a new chapter for all of us — though perhaps especially for Naomi Rodgers and Zurin Villanueva, who alternate in the title role of “Tina — The Tina Turner Musical.”

‘Will we be blindfolded and led to a shallow grave?’: Alter by Kamchàtka takes immersive theatre to next level

Theatre | The Guardian: We have been instructed to turn up at a Milton Keynes car park at dusk and wait to board a bus that will take us to an undisclosed location. The scenario feels quite crime noir – will we be blindfolded and led to a shallow grave? But actually, this is next-level, site-specific theatre that unfolds over 90 minutes in gathering darkness. The audience around me exudes nervous excitement as the bus stops and we are directed to a dirt track leading into woodland.

The cast of ‘Here Lies Love’ open up about what it’s like to perform Filipino history on Broadway

www.broadwaynews.com: After more than a decade of development, “Here Lies Love” has made it to Broadway. The original musical opened July 20 at the Broadway Theatre; it tells the story of the rise and fall of Filipina First Lady Imelda Marcos and the People Power Revolution.

IATSE Reckons With AI: Members React to Core Principles Guide

The Hollywood Reporter: On July  5, the major crew union IATSE, which reps 160,000-plus entertainment workers from grips to animation to makeup artists, unveiled a set of “core principles” for applications of artificial intelligence and machine learning in its members’ work ahead of its 2024 contract talks with studios. The list set off a debate among union members as the sprawling crew union scrutinizes how its workers are already encountering AI in their day-to-day work — and what to do about it in the future.

At Two Summer Theater Festivals, Reassuring Signs of Life

The New York Times: Suddenly, out of the darkness, came one of the most thrilling sounds an audience can make: a collective gasp. This is how you know that the crowd is rapt, that the storytelling has taken hold. And so it had the other night during a performance of “Blues for an Alabama Sky” at Barrington Stage Company, where a different plot twist elicited another welcome noise: a mid-scene eruption of delighted applause. Humans can be a lot of fun to see a show with.

5,000 Unionizing Commercial Production Workers Have Certified Majority, Will Win Voluntary Recognition

IATSE: Freelance workers in production departments for TV commercials across the United States are set to win voluntary recognition of their union after a neutral third party confirmed a majority of these workers signed cards indicating they wish to unionize with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE).

How ‘Barbie’ Set Designers Brought Those Dreamhouses to Life

The New York Times: While working on films like “Atonement,” “Anna Karenina” and “Darkest Hour,” the production designer Sarah Greenwood and the set decorator Katie Spencer, both Oscar nominees many times over, had to turn soundstages into period-accurate sets, using their extraordinary attention to detail to embroider these spaces with texture and soul.

Seattle Rep Names Dámaso Rodríguez Its New Artistic Director

AMERICAN THEATRE: Seattle Rep, the city’s 60-year-old flagship resident theatre company, has appointed Dámaso Rodríguez to be its new artistic director, starting on July 31. Rodríguez succeeds Braden Abraham, who left the Rep last winter after 10 years in the post to lead Chicago’s Writers Theatre.

Can Bay Area theaters make subscriptions sexy again?

Datebook: The audiences for live theater simply aren’t back, the conventional wisdom goes. Same for season subscriptions, on which the industry has long depended. They’d already been waning for decades, and then the pandemic sent them plummeting.

Jujamcyn Theaters Finalizes Deal to Merge with Ambassador Theater Group

www.broadwayworld.com: Jordan Roth, President of Jujamcyn Theaters, has sold a 93 percent stake in five Broadway theaters, finalizing a previously announced deal to merge with UK theatre company Ambassador Theatre Group.

Review Roundup: THE COTTAGE Opens On Broadway With An All-Star Cast!

www.broadwayworld.com: Set in the bucolic English countryside in 1923, The Cottage is a rollicking tale of sex, betrayal and love which explodes when one woman decides to be wildly indiscreet about her indiscretions and expose her latest affair to both her husband - and to her lover's wife. The true meaning of fate, identity and marriage are called into question as an unpredictable and hilarious web of secrets begins to unravel.

DiGiCo keeps control steady for Maroon 5 on tour and in residency

LightSoundJournal.com: Three-time Grammy Award winners Maroon 5 took off on a concise but intense tour this year. UK + Europe 2023 was the 15th concert tour by the band, who have also won eight Billboard Music Awards and all 27 of their BMI Pop Awards nominations, in support of their seventh studio album, 2021’s Jordi. The tour began on June 13 in Lisbon, Portugal and traveled through Spain, Italy, Czech Republic, Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, and France before concluding on July 4, 2023, in Birmingham, England.

More Funding, But For Status Quo Or Difficult Change?

Butts In the Seats: There was a lot of chatter on the Twittersphere last week (which I guess is the X Corp-sphere now?) over a NY Times editorial that Isaac Butler wrote advocating for the federal government to do a big bail out of theater in the face of so many theater organizations failing.

Why Musicians Aren't Striking

consequence.net: Esteemed colleagues, it’s time for another Consequence Chat — because as I’m sure you’re aware, it’s been a wild time here in Hollywoodland, as major film releases happen to coincide with the shutdown of all of entertainment production. The WGA and SAG are now on strike — in fact, recently our own Maura Fallon and I spent some time on the picket line talking to some of the actors and writers currently protesting major studios about why things have reached this point.

Writers Strike Diary: SAG Glams Up the Picket Line

The Hollywood Reporter: I showed up last Friday to Disney and it was (cue the music): “A whole new world!” The Actors have joined us …and taken all our signs. Which is fine! They need us and we need them! It’s reinvigorated the picket lines and upgraded the tents. Day one/seventy-three the check-in tent at Disney looked like a French pharmacy; La Roche Posey sunscreen in every SPF and a variety of lip balm!

Disney CEO's Strike Comments Draw Backlash Over His Pay Package

www.businessinsider.com: Disney CEO Bob Iger, who came out of retirement for his reinstatement to the position last November, has drawn criticism and scrutiny around his pay package following his recent comments on the Hollywood writers and actors strike.

Pittsburgh Shakespeare In The Parks 19th Season Continues with an All-Female 'Cleopatra & Antony'

onstagepittsburgh.com: Founding Artistic Director Jennifer Tober takes a twist on Shakespeare’s classic, examining and highlighting the strength and passion of the female characters—putting Cleopatra first. Tober stages PSiP’s first production of the history play in four different City of Pittsburgh parks and at The Frick’s Clayton Mansion grounds.

That Ultra-White Paint That Helps Cool Surfaces? Make Your Own!

Hackaday: It started with [KB9ENS] looking into paints or coatings for passive or radiative cooling, and in the process he decided to DIY his own. Not only is it perfectly accessible to a home experimenter, his initial results look like they have some promise, as well.

Why the SAG Strike Could Help Filmmakers Make Better Movies

IndieWire: This week, lost in the chaos of the SAG-AFTRA strike and its impact on the fall movie season, the Canadian investment studio BRON struck through the news cycle with a major update: They’re going bankrupt.

The Hollywood Labor Strikes; Plus, the Latest on Current Labor Disputes in America

Houston Public Media: On July 14, 2023, the labor union SAG-AFTRA began a strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), joining the Writers Guild of America (WGA). This marks the second time since the 1960s that two Hollywood labor unions are striking simultaneously.

Union for Broadway Crew Members Reaches Tentative Deal, Averting Strike

The New York Times: The union representing a segment of Broadway crew members reached a tentative agreement for a new contract with theater owners just as its members were voting on whether to authorize a potential strike, the organizations announced Thursday.

Live Nation Gets Fresh Scrutiny at Vertical Merger Senate Hearing

www.ticketnews.com: The market dominance of Live Nation and its ticketing subsidiary Ticketmaster got a fresh round of scrutiny at the highest levels of government this week, during a hearing of the Senate Judiciary’s Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights. Wednesday’s hearing, which took a look at “Trends in Vertical Merger Enforcement,” was led by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Mike Lee (R-UT), who also led the January senate hearing on the company’s enormous market power and whether or not it’s harmful to consumers and in need of structural remedy.

Update: IATSE Strike Averted With Tentative Agreement; Broadway and National Tours to Continue as Scheduled

Playbill: IATSE and The Broadway League have revealed in a joint statement that a tentative agreement has been reached between the League (and Disney Theatrical) and the backstage union on the latter's Pink Contract. Details of the agreement will be released to IATSE members in the coming days, after which union members will vote on ratifying the new contract.

Lin-Manuel Miranda Reveals a Spanish-Language Translation of HAMILTON is in the Works

www.broadwayworld.com: The worldwide phenomenon Hamilton has played around the world, notably with multile runs in Puerto Rico, most recently this June to benefit the Hispanic Federation and the Flamboyan Arts Fund. However, the show's creator Lin-Manuel Miranda has revealed that the next time the musical is performed in Puerto Rico, he wants it to be in Spanish.

IATSE Calls Strike Authorization Vote, Could Halt Broadway and Touring Shows as Soon as Friday

Playbill: The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) has called a strike authorization vote following protracted, unsuccessful negotiations with The Broadway League and Disney Theatrical, collectively representing Broadway and national tour producers. Members have until 2 AM ET July 21 to vote, which could result in a strike being called as early as Friday morning, according to IATSE representatives.

10 Tips On How To Sew Handwoven Fabric

Sew Historically: In fact, handwoven fabric doesn’t fray more than for example store-bought velvet fabric or loosely woven wool fabric. However, don’t handle handwoven fabric unnecessarily after cutting and before sewing. Because then handwoven fabric might fray – like any other fabric actually! 😉

Attack Theatre to present 'Blurred Bodies A concert for the voice and the body' on August 4

onstagepittsburgh.com: Blurred Bodies brings Grammy®-winning vocal band Roomful of Teeth and Pittsburgh’s Attack Theatre dance company together at Carnegie Mellon University’s Chosky Theater for an evening that expands the expressive potential of vocal music and dance.

LA Film production plummets to pandemic numbers

Reel 360 News: We’ve been here and before and didn’t like it then either. The film production industry in the Greater Los Angeles area experienced a significant decline in the second quarter of 2023, according to an update from FilmLA, the partner film office for the City and County of Los Angeles and other local jurisdictions.

Choreographer-Educator Kiesha Lalama Named to Lead Point Park's Pittsburgh Playhouse

onstagepittsburgh.com: Point Park University Professor of dance and accomplished choreographer Kiesha Lalama has been appointed Managing and Artistic Director of the Pittsburgh Playhouse, the school’s 5-year-old performance and instructional hub.

TikTok: Opportunity and Risk

AMT Lab @ CMU: The latest controversies surrounding TikTok are no secret: biased algorithms, censored content, & intensive personal data collection, to name just a few. But how exactly are these controversies posing risks for arts organizations and users? Why should the arts industry care? Buckle in (especially YOU, arts marketers) because the impacts may change the future of social media and marketing moving forward.

Can ‘Miss Saigon’ Be Saved? Two British Shows Disagree.

The New York Times: Claude-Michel Schönberg’s musical melodrama about an ill-fated romance between a Vietnamese sex worker and an American G.I. during the Vietnam War has polarized opinion ever since it was first staged in 1989. In that original West End run, Jonathan Pryce donned yellowface to play a mixed-race pimp, and the show’s critics have continued to raise concerns about its portrayal of East Asian people, particularly its tawdry sexualization of Vietnamese women.

Almost 300 Robe moving lights for spectacular Nick & Simon finale concerts at Ahoy Arena

LightSoundJournal.com: Phenomenally successful Dutch singer-songwriter duo Nick & Simon (Nick Schilder & Simon Keizer) played 6 sold-out nights at Rotterdam’s famous Ahoy Arena in The Netherlands, the culmination of their “Nu of Ooit” (Now or Someday) tour which also was the last time they will appear in this format, as after 17 years of performing together, both artists now intend to pursue solo careers.

Wild Adventures expands Great Pumpkin LumiNights

Amusement Today: On Tuesday, Wild Adventures Theme Park in Valdosta, Ga. announced major additions to the park’s Great Pumpkin LumiNights event, including a pumpkin carving gallery and a new area with activities for kids.

Inside the immersive United Airlines Airshop innovation lab

www.avinteractive.com: United Airlines has opened an Airshop innovation centre that showcases the future of aviation with 270° immersive projection mapping and interactive content. The airline worked with the Next/Now experiential agency at the venue in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Here’s what venues can do to become fat-friendly spaces – and spare a lot of pain

Stage | The Guardian: I have to call places before I visit them. I never know if I should say “I’m fat” (a term I embrace, as it’s technically correct and not a derogatory word) or if I should go for something less tension-provoking like “larger person” or “plus-sized”.

'Here Lies Love': Immerse yourself — literally — in this Broadway show

NPR: On Thursday, a new $22 million musical opens on Broadway and it may be a bigger risk than most. Here Lies Love, with a score by David Byrne and Fatboy Slim, literally turns the Broadway Theatre into a disco, with many members of the audience on the dance floor, surrounded by the actors. It tells the story of Imelda and Ferdinand Marcos' rise and fall in the Philippines. At a time when Broadway ticket sales are down, is an immersive new musical a way to bring audiences back?

Patrick Marber to direct Nachtland, a play about Hitler’s art and ‘rise of the new right’

Theatre | The Guardian: Patrick Marber is to direct a new play at London’s Young Vic theatre in which a family argue over what to do with a piece of art that may have been painted by Adolf Hitler.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago Returns to Stability—And Its Roots

www.dancemagazine.com: Hubbard Street Dance Chicago performed to sold-out crowds in New York City last February. Audiences similarly flocked to the Museum of Contemporary Art a month later for their packed spring series at home. The resounding message, across the country, was that Hubbard Street is back.

Set and Story: April Bartlett and The Art of Scenic Design

Pace University New York: For 15 years, April Bartlett was the art director overseeing the production design team that made sure The Today Show went on air, and looked good, every single day.

Is Broadway affected by the SAG strike?

The Independent: The film and TV industry was rocked last week by the news that the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) is going on strike. The strike comes amid an ongoing Hollywood writers’ strike, with issues of pay, streaming residuals, and regulation around the use of AI (artificial intelligence) proving key factors in both instances.

Update: Benedum Center Marquee, Greer Cabaret Are Closing In on Openings

onstagepittsburgh.com: It won’t be long before one of the busiest corners of the Pittsburgh Cultural District is fully illuminated again, with present technology lighting the way to the past. Planned to be ready for the next Broadway in Pittsburgh season in September, the scaffolding and banners will come down and the new Benedum Center for the Performing Arts marquees will once more light the way on Seventh Street and Penn Avenue.

Vari-Lite VL3600s treat Morgan Wallen fans to ‘sensory experience’ on stadium tour

LightSoundJournal.com: Chart-topping Country singer Morgan Wallen has set off on a career-defining tour of arenas, stadiums, and amphitheaters across North America. At the heart of the design for the shows are an army of VL3600 Profile IP fixtures from Vari-Lite, the originators of the modern moving head and a Signify (Euronext: LIGHT) entertainment lighting brand, which are rigged center stage and creating an array of high intensity effects and rich colors.

Six winning plays about ending gun violence to premiere at Kennedy Center - DC Theater Arts

Six winning plays about ending gun violence to premiere at Kennedy Center - DC Theater Arts: These six plays will debut on November 6, 2023, in Washington, DC, at The Kennedy Center’s Theater Lab as the cornerstone event to a larger series of readings staged coast-to-coast on the same evening. This collaborative effort between Kennedy Center Social Impact, Kennedy Center Education, and led by Event Producer Shanara Gabrielle, will feature a coalition of professional theaters, including Signature Theatre, Arena Stage, Round House Theatre, Imagination Stage, Olney Theatre Center, 1st Stage, The Theatre Lab, and Mosaic Theater.

Armando Iannucci to adapt Stanley Kubrick’s film Dr Strangelove for stage

Dr Strangelove | The Guardian: Stanley Kubrick’s classic film Dr Strangelove is to be adapted for the stage for the first time. The 1964 apocalyptic comedy, about a rogue US general who triggers a nuclear crisis and puts the world on the verge of catastrophe when he orders an attack on the Soviet Union, will be adapted by Armando Iannucci, the writer and broadcaster known for political satires including the TV series The Thick of It and the film In the Loop, and the Olivier award-winning actor Sean Foley. Foley will also direct.

Writers Strike Diary: How the “AMPTP F***ed Up” as Actors Join Fight

The Hollywood Reporter: But thank you, whoever you are. Because those quotes turbocharged us. They reminded every writer why we’re doing this. Why we can’t give up — and now, you better believe there is not a single writer who doubts this is possibly the most important strike in the history of our craft and our industry. Nothing unifies like a Big Bad. Nothing makes heroes like an unrelenting villain.

SAG Votes to Strike After Negotiations Fail, Joining WGA

collider.com: The movement has been hinted at for the last few weeks but now it's official: Actors are joining writers on a nationwide strike this Thursday July 13, effective at midnight. The announcement was made this afternoon via press conference at the SAG-AFTRA Plaza in Los Angeles, which was held immediately after the guild's National Board vote.

'Gladiator 2' Set Accident Leaves Several Crew Members Injured

Variety: Several crew members were injured on the Morocco set of the sequel to “Gladiator” on June 7 while filming a stunt sequence for the action film. “While filming a planned stunt sequence on the set of the ‘Gladiator’ sequel, an accident occurred during which several crew members experienced non-life-threatening injuries,”

New York’s Public Theater Lays Off 19 Percent of Its Staff

The New York Times: The Public Theater, one of the nation’s most prestigious and successful nonprofit theaters, laid off 19 percent of its staff on Thursday as a financial crisis sweeps across the field. The move, which cost about 50 people their jobs, followed a 13 percent layoff at the Brooklyn Academy of Music and a 10 percent layoff at the Center Theater Group in Los Angeles.

Extended cut: Incoming OSF artistic director aims to build bridges, strengthen bonds

Ashland News - Independent, Nonprofit, Community News: William Shakespeare asked, “What’s in a name?” For incoming Oregon Shakespeare Festival Artistic Director Tim Bond, apparently a lot. “Everywhere I’ve been, I’ve built bridges and tried to find that interconnectivity between the theater and the community wherever it is, but also just between people,” Bond said in a Zoom interview with Ashland.news on July 6. “It’s built into my name — Bond,” he added warmly.

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES Producers Reach Confidential Settlement

www.broadwayworld.com: The two musicals: ANNE OF GREEN GABLES - THE MUSICAL, featuring a book by Donald Harron and music by Norman Campbell, originally produced in 1965 on Prince Edward Island; and ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: A NEW MUSICAL, book and lyrics by Matte O'Brien and music by Matt Vinson, which ran at Goodspeed in 2022, have been in a legal battle over the use of the words ANNE OF GREEN GABLES in the new musical's title.

AI and Virtual Production: The Past Meets the Future

AMT Lab @ CMU: Technology has influenced the film industry since its inception, as advances in the film industry are always closely related to technological advances and how they can be applied in the filmmaking process. Technology has had a deep impact on revolutionizing every aspect of filmmaking, from pre-production to post-production, from digital cameras, editing software, sound and music, distribution, and exhibition, to special effects. Almost every aspect of filmmaking, if not all, has undergone major changes and has evolved over the last 50 years.

Public Theater BIPOC Critics Lab Welcomes 12 New Journalists

AMERICAN THEATRE: The Public Theater has selected 12 future arts journalists for the 2023-24 cohort of Jose Solís’ BIPOC Critics Lab. The selected participants are Maria Paz Alegre, Zuhdi Boueri, Cynthia L. Dorsey, Jhaunay-Amanie Hernandez, Zoë Kim, Strella Leal, Francisco Morandi Zerpa, Noran Morsi, Alex Paredes-Ruiz, Nina Slowinski, Eliseo Valerio, and Octavia Washington. Find out more about the new cohort members here.

How To Make The Most Of The 2023 Picklesburgh Festival

Pittsburgh Magazine: The No. 1 specialty food festival in America is taking over Pittsburgh with a week of pickle-themed programming leading up to the Picklesburgh festival on July 21-23. The festival’s new location on the Boulevard of the Allies is larger than past years’ spaces and will host live entertainment, more than 50 food vendors and not one, but two, giant Heinz pickle balloons. Picklesburgh will open at noon daily, rain or shine.

Disney CEO Bob Iger: Writers, Actors Not Being 'Realistic' With Strike

Variety: During an appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Thursday morning, Disney CEO Bob Iger said that the writers and actors unions going on strike in Hollywood are not being “realistic” with their expectations. Speaking to CNBC’s David Faber from the Sun Valley Conference in Idaho, Iger commented on the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike and imminent decision for SAG-AFTRA to join them.

Twins’ summer concert series keeps Stagehands out in cold

Union Advocate: Beyonce’s concert next Thursday at the University of Minnesota football stadium will create jobs for about 300 union stagehands – or about 300 more than will be working the Twins’ two-day rock festival at Target Field this weekend.

Hollywood Studios Anticipate Writers Strike Lasting Until October

Deadline: Regardless of whether SAG-AFTRA goes on strike this week, the studios have no intention of sitting down with the Writers Guild for several more months. “I think we’re in for a long strike, and they’re going to let it bleed out,” said one industry veteran intimate with the POV of studio CEOs.

Sarah Silverman is suing OpenAI and Meta for copyright infringement

Salon.com: Comedian and author Sarah Silverman is one of the three lead plaintiffs filing class-action lawsuits against OpenAI and Meta each over dual claims of copyright infringement. Alongside Silverman are authors Christopher Golden and Richard Kadrey, who all allege that OpenAI's ChatGPT and Meta's LLaMA illegally obtained text from their literary works — namely Silverman's 2010 best­selling memoir "The Bedwetter: Stories of Courage, Redemption and Pee," Golden's book "Ararat" and Kadrey's book "Sandman Slim" — using "shadow library" websites (like Bibliotik, Library Genesis, Z-Library, and more) without the consent of — or compensation to — the authors.

How Do You Sustain the Theatregoing Habit? (It’s Complicated…)

brianeugenioherrera.substack.com: The last few weeks have amplified the rising thrum of precarity within the theatre industry — what with another legacy institution closing or pausing or canceling every week or so — all while some sectors of the broader entertainment industry are on strike (or might soon be), while others are under attack by policymakers or local scolds, and while corporate media mega-mergers indulge in a spree of platform-killing and content-dumping, suggesting that the streaming bubble might have actually burst.

Signature Reduces Programming As Hundreds of Non-Profit Theaters Scale Back or Worse

www.broadwayworld.com: Last month, Signature Theatre announced three pretty exciting offerings for its 2023-2024 season. What slipped a little under the radar was that it was a complete season announcement—the off-Broadway company will only be producing three shows this season. That is down from four last season and at least six productions per season prior to the pandemic. The constriction is another sign of a theater world in crisis. If we don’t turn the tide, millions will miss out on the joy of live theater.

One 3D Printer Filament, Various Levels Of Squish

Make:: When you’ve been using a 3D Printer for a little while, you start to really get curious about printing things that aren’t just your standard hard plastic. There are many options out there, but one I find particularly fascinating are flexible or soft filaments.

How Choreographer and Artistic Director Dana Tai Soon Burgess Uses Dance to Move Between Cultural Worlds

Dance Magazine: For me, dance is a universal language through which I can communicate my inner landscape. All of human­ity danced before we had written or even spoken language. We inherently understand the postures, gestures, and rhythms of the body. These can express happiness, sadness, and even resilience of the spirit.

Award-Winning ‘Cabaret’ Revival Plans Spring Broadway Bow

The New York Times: Willkommen, bienvenue, Broadway! “Cabaret,” the ever-popular (and portentous) musical set in a Berlin nightclub on the eve of the Nazis’ rise to power, will return to Broadway in the spring in a new production that has already won raves in London.

2023-2024 Tonys nominating committee members announced

www.broadwaynews.com: The Tony Awards administration committee has announced the 2023-2024 Broadway season’s nominating committee. The 60-member group attends all productions during the Main Stem season and meets to determine Tony nominees by voting. Members serve a three-year term.

Producer Garth Drabinsky Appeals Antitrust Lawsuit Against Actors' Equity Association

www.broadwayworld.com: As previously reported, Drabinsky's original $50 million lawsuit against Actors' Equity Association for defamation, and later, anti-trust, came after Actors' Equity had placed the Paradise Square producer on the company's Do Not Work list due to "outstanding payments and benefits, and a continued pattern of abuse and neglect that created an unsafe and toxic work environment."

Manchester international festival theatre roundup – carnival, canals and the Milky Way

Theatre | The Guardian: Some cities provide decorative backdrops for festivals. Manchester seems to vibrate with the work itself. The opening of Aviva Studios, MIF’s new permanent home, adds to the architectural jostle of new and renovated buildings in the centre. The programming jostles too: thank goodness, there is no dominant theme or style; it just pushes vibrantly on through different events.

'Love and Vinyl' spins a fascinating and funny story in a real record shop

DC Theater Arts: Once upon a time, predict-y sorts of folk predicted that ebooks would replace physical books. Bibliophiles dictated otherwise. Likewise, CDs, MP3s, and direct digital downloads threatened to make bulky, delicate, warpable, scratchable vinyl records as dead as dinosaurs. Even Napster, Spotify, and Pandora, however, have failed to make vinyl obsolete. Here’s where our story begins.

RealTime Arts Illuminates a Braddock Community Star in 'The Constellationist'

onstagepittsburgh.com: RealTime Arts – the former RealTime Interventions – is back with a “community based” performance, premiering PEOPLE OF PITTSBURGH II: The Constellationist at Attack Theater Studios in Lawrenceville July 12-16. The show is described as “a live audio/theatrical experience illustrating the life of Mary Carey, “a living ray of light and a cornerstone of the community of Braddock.”

Site-specific meta-theatrical look at the struggles of our new nation in ‘The Democracy Project’ at NYC’s historic Federal Hall

DC Theater Arts: For the month surrounding this year’s 4th of July celebration, visitors to NYC’s historic Federal Hall, facing Wall Street and Pine Street in the downtown Financial District, not only have the opportunity to enjoy the classic Greek Revival architecture and the educational exhibitions inside, but also a new site-specific free performance of The Democracy Project, commissioned by The Federal Hall Conservancy as part of its vision to promote American democracy through the arts, and developed over a six-year period of collaboration by a diverse team of acclaimed playwrights.

11 Tips On How To Dress Vintage & Historical Without Looking Too Costumey

Sew Historically: Do you want to wear your beautiful vintage and historical dresses in your everyday life? But you don’t want to look too costumey or old-fashioned? Below I share 11 tips on how to incorporate your vintage and historical clothing into your everyday wardrobe and how to style them to look modern!

Mermaids and dugongs: The Costume Connection helps celebrate marine life at SeaWorld Yas Island

InPark Magazine: The mermaid needed to look perfect underwater and swim with a functional tail. And so, celebrated costume designer Bonnie Sinclair found herself doing something she’d never done before in her decades of experience: An underwater fitting.

Writers Strike: L.A. Aid Requests Triple, Charity Finds

The Hollywood Reporter: The Entertainment Community Fund, the nonprofit founded in 1882 that was formerly known as The Actors Fund, fielded around 629 calls for assistance in L.A. in May 2023 after the Writers Guild of America strike began May 2, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. That’s up from an average of around 200 calls per month in the period that preceded the work stoppage, which has not only halted union writing industrywide but also shut down a significant amount of physical production as it has stretched into its 10th week.

Florida Studio Theatre Announces Public Works Sarasota Program

AMERICAN THEATRE: Florida Studio Theatre (FST) has announced their new community engagement program, Public Works Sarasota. FST will bring a series of workshops and performances to the CreArte Latino Cultural Center, the Desoto Boys & Girls Club, Girls Inc. of Sarasota County, and the Haven.

Kelly Clarkson, Grammys CEO on Fans Throwing Objects at Live Shows

The Hollywood Reporter: Kelly Clarkson remembers singing with her eyes closed when a fan rushed onstage to embrace her. “I don’t know to this day how security [didn’t catch this person],” Clarkson tells The Hollywood Reporter. “They were a sweet fan who wanted to hug me and just chose poorly how to do it.”

Original 'Wilhelm Scream' found in discarded tapes

Boing Boing: The Wilhelm Scream, a classic sound effect, has been in hundreds of movies, from Raiders of the Lost Ark to Star Wars to Toy Story. It's a sort of audio signature, a hidden gem in plain hearing, that has become a beloved inside joke in the industry.

Brooklyn Academy of Music Lays Off 13 Percent of Its Staff

The New York Times: The Brooklyn Academy of Music, one of the most important cultural organizations in New York, has laid off 13 percent of its staff members and reduced its programming as it seeks to plug a “sizable structural deficit” during a challenging time for the arts, officials confirmed on Monday.

Hollywood Movie Costumes and Props: Screen-worn movie costumes from Thor: Love and Thunder on display... Original film costumes and props on display

hollywoodmoviecostumesandprops.blogspot.com: As it's almost been a year since Thor: Love and Thunder opened in cinemas, here's a look at some of the movie sequel's most prominent costumes worn by the cast. In the film directed by Taika Waitita, Natalie Portman reprises her role as astrophysicist 'Dr. Jane Foster' who is not only battling cancer but who has also claimed the power of 'Mighty Thor' by wielding the reassembled Mjolnir hammer.

Watch this massive LED sphere in Las Vegas light up for the first time

The Verge: The Sphere, aka the 366-foot-tall orb situated in the heart of Las Vegas, demonstrated what 1.2 million lit-up LEDs look like. During its first display on Tuesday night, animations showing fireworks, the American flag, the Moon, and even a giant blinking eyeball emanated from the 580,000-square-foot panel.

IATSE Says AI Must Be Used as a Tool and Cannot Replace its Members

IndieWire: IATSE, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, laid out its “core principles” around the use of AI in entertainment, the arts, and media, drawing a line in the sand that AI must be used as a tool and not as a means to replace workers or circumvent their rights.

8 Must-know AutoCAD Viewport Tips & Tricks - How to Create, Scale, and Master Viewports! Examples

CAD Intentions: By following these steps and using the commands and tips in the video, you’ll be able to easily create multiple viewports, understand the locking and unlocking of views, how to cycle between them, what to do if you get stuck in a viewport, and much more!

Maybe the Mime Troupe isn’t political satire after all?

Datebook: If you never took a theater history class or haven’t dusted off your college textbooks in a while, here’s a quick primer. This art form, popular for centuries, shares many characteristics with the Mime Troupe’s mode. Both are defined by Manichaean good vs. evil, either God and virtue vs. the devil and sin or, in the Mime Troupe’s case, socialism and progressivism vs. capitalism and conservatism.

Lighting Careers: Getting Started in Lighting

LightFair Blog: No two individuals’ career paths seem to be the same. With so many developments and innovations taking place in different areas of the industry from research and engineering to sourcing, design, manufacturing, positioning, distribution, sales, marketing, specification, installation, government liaison, policy making, municipal planning and beyond, we were curious to find out some of the ways in which professionals landed up in the lighting industry. We want to bring you the lessons and takeaways they shared, and any advice and recommendations they wanted to offer to students and new professionals considering a career in lighting.

FOCUS ON: Elation Proteus Rayzor Blade, the all-in-one fixture, with three sources, tilt and motorised zoom

LightSoundJournal.com: We recently visited the showroom of PRASE, the distributer of Elation products in Italy, to see and touch the brand new Proteus Rayzor Blade series of automated LED bars, in 1m L and 0.5m S versions, both with IP65 rating.

Don’t Close Your Eyes: A Few Words on Physical Theater Festival Chicago

Newcity Stage: Ten years ago, Alice da Cunha and Marc Frost created a small festival for theater artists whose preferred method of storytelling is beyond words. Now, Physical Theater Festival Chicago, running July 8-16 at three venues, works with almost a dozen partners here and abroad to bring companies from around the world with performances that must be seen to be understood.

Rate the Dress: 20s crepe chiffon and bows

The Dreamstress: It’s been 11 months since I’ve done a Rate the Dress post. It’s just been an incredibly rubbish couple of years for me, and I haven’t had the mental focus needed to produce two well thought-out blog posts every week, which is what’s required for a consistent Rate the Dress + this not being an only Rate the Dress blog .

Where Do Clothes on Dating Shows Like ‘Temptation Island’ Come From?

IndieWire: Part of the appeal of watching reality dating shows like “The Big D,” “Love Island USA,” and “Temptation Island” is the ability to watch gorgeous singles creating drama in exotic tropical locales like Costa Rica, Fiji, and Maui. Given that the contestants are essentially sequestered for weeks or months at a time yet seem to have an endless array of outfits, a question arises: Where are these clothes all coming from?

Charm and Darkness: Costume Designer Audrey Fisher Talks Love & Death Costumes

The Art of Costume: In an exclusive interview, costume designer Audrey Fisher opens up about her immersive journey in creating the captivating costumes for the gripping series Love & Death featuring Elizabeth Olsen. Audrey shares her initial reaction upon delving into the true story behind the Candy Montgomery case, a tale that encompasses charm, darkness and fascination. From meticulous research to collaborating with lead actress Elizabeth Olsen, Audrey reveals the intricacies of her process in designing the Love & Death costumes, her inspirations from the late ’70s and early ’80s, and the evolution of costumes reflecting the complex character of Candy Montgomery.

AGMA Ratifies 3-Year Agreement with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre

American Guild of Musical Artists: The new collective bargaining agreement between AGMA and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre was approved by AGMA leadership, after being overwhelmingly ratified by the shop.

Video: How Jeanine Tesori Became the Most-Awarded Female Composer in Broadway History

Playbill: Born and raised on Long Island, Tesori began playing piano at the age of 3, one of four artistically inclined sisters. While the Broadway music industry had been something of a boys’ club throughout the 20th century (only four women had ever been Tony nominated for composition prior to The Secret Garden), Tesori’s parents had raised her to stand tall in the face of anyone who doubted her talent and work ethic. Her career on Broadway didn't actually start as a composer; Tesori began on the margins in her early days, working as a sub pianist and occasional arranger—often going uncredited as she learned on the job.

untitled f*ck m*ss s**gon play review – ferociously funny satire calls out centuries of colonialist dramas

Stage | The Guardian: Imagine if Caryl Churchill had written Noises Off. Like Michael Frayn’s play, which shows the same creaky farce three times from different angles, Kimber Lee’s furious and funny untitled f*ck m*ss s**gon play loops through the same story over and again. And like something by Churchill, it cracks open the conventions of naturalistic theatre to engage in a brittle argument with itself. It is punky, polemical and stingingly fresh.

Video: Creative Team of ROGERS: THE MUSICAL on Bringing the Show to Disneyland

www.broadwayworld.com: As part of the Disney100 celebration, Disneyland Resort presents “Rogers: The Musical” – an all-new, one-act musical theater production – at the Hyperion Theater in Disney California Adventure Park for a limited time through Aug. 31, 2023.

All folks are created equal in '1776' without white men at Kennedy Center

DC Theater Arts: As an exercise in congressional sausage-making, the enduring musical 1776 has few peers. It’s a witty take on the sinuous maneuvering, outright bullying, and hard-fought dealmaking that, miraculously, birthed the Declaration of Independence during a sweat-drenched summer in Philadelphia.

TDF Names Deeksha Gaur its New Executive Director

The BroadwayBlog: The Board of Trustees of TDF, one of the country’s foremost not-for-profit service organizations for the performing arts, today named Deeksha Gaur to the post of Executive Director. Ms. Gaur is a co-founder and the current General Manager of Show-Score, a theatre reviews platform. She will assume her duties at TDF on August 7.

Begin Again: When and Why Should We Join the Union?

Dance Magazine: I’m a nonunion musical theater performer, and I recently attended my first in-person Equity chorus call (ECC) for the Broadway show Wicked. (Ever heard of it?) I found out about the audition late the day of. So by the time I got to Open Jar Studios in midtown Manhattan, I was number 80 on the nonunion list—a paper that dancers who are not members of the Actors’ Equity Association wake up at 4 am to write their names on, in case casting chooses to see nonunion artists after they finish with Equity performers.