Hollywood Workers Increasingly White-Collar, College-Educated

www.hollywoodreporter.com: As the entertainment industry has transformed amid the streaming era, so too has its workforce, which is increasingly white-collar and college-educated.

'Jim Henson: Idea Man' Traces the Remarkable Life and Work of the Visionary Puppeteer

Colossal: Few artists—or animators or Hollywood stars, for that matter—can claim to have had as profound an influence on the hearts and minds of numerous generations as Jim Henson. From television sensations like Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, and The Muppets to silver-screen cult classics like The Dark Crystal (1982) and Labyrinth (1986), Henson took the art of puppeteering to unprecedented heights and built incredible worlds for viewers to escape to.

Disguise announces next generation of EX media servers

InPark Magazine: Disguise has announced the next evolution of its hardware solutions with the launch of the new generation of EX media servers, following the recently launched RX III real-time render node.

Claypaky lights up Eurovision Song Contest’s new stage

TPi: The set was a 360-degree experience placed in the middle of the audience and shaped like an equilateral cross with movable LED cubes, LED floors, lighting, video and stage technology creating an array of visual variations for the artists. The centrepiece of the design was a video and light installation suspended above the stage embracing the artists and their performances.

World premiere of Minecraft’s first touring interactive experience set to open in Dallas on September 20, 2024

Amusement Today: Block your calendars! For the first time ever, the Minecraft community will have their chance to experience a real-world, immersive, interactive Minecraft adventure. To celebrate Minecraft’s 15th anniversary, Experience MOD and Mojang Studios announced Minecraft Experience: Villager Rescue, which is set to debut in Dallas on September 20, 2024, giving longtime Minecrafters, players and non-players alike, and families of all ages their first chance to be heroes in a real-life, in-person Minecraft quest. Dallas is just the first stop; Minecraft Experience: Villager Rescue will tour to additional cities around the world to be announced at a later date.

Researchers create AI headphones that let you hear a single person in noisy crowds

Boing Boing: Imagine you're at a noisy party, straining to hear your friend's story over the din of chatter and music. What if you could simply look at them for a few seconds, and suddenly their voice was crystal clear while everything else faded into the background?

All Digital Signage, Some Snark

Sixteen:Nine: The team behind last week’s Digital Signage Summit event in Munich have pushed out a summary that says it pulled 450 attendees – mainly from Europe but several from much further afield.

How's Jenny Nicholson Four-Hour Star Wars Hotel Video Went Viral

www.rollingstone.com: With her video essay “The Spectacular Failure of the Star Wars Hotel,” however, YouTuber Jenny Nicholson has managed to achieve the impossible. The scathing video, which spans a whopping 245 minutes, documents in extreme detail the story behind the failure of Disney‘s Galactic Starcruiser hotel, a Star Wars–themed roleplay experience in the Walt Disney World resort that opened in March 2022.

How PBS Captures Broadway Shows for Great Performances

Playbill: You’d think filming a live theatrical performance for PBS would be a pretty straightforward job: show up, set up the cameras, film the show. But for Great Performances Executive Producer David Horn, you also have to think on your feet because anything can happen.

Cast & Crew Service on Loan Outs: 'There's Very Severe Stakes Here'

variety.com: It began as a routine audit at Cast & Crew, one of several payroll companies that service the entertainment industry. But that audit — typically handled in secret — has now raised alarms across Hollywood.

Pittsburgh CAPA, Avonworth and Thomas Jefferson High Schools Lead the Way at 2024 Gene Kelly Awards

onstagepittsburgh.com: Pittsburgh CLO’s 33rd annual Gene Kelly Awards for Excellence in High School Musical Theater was a night to celebrate arts education, feel school and community pride, experience cheering loud enough to rock a stadium and revel in the talent that flows throughout Allegheny County.

Dora Awards 2024: Our theatre critics’ predictions

www.thestar.com: Toronto’s 2023-24 theatre season was a jam-packed affair, with a plethora of new plays, musicals and revivals playing at venues across the city. Mid-May typically marks the end of one theatre season and the beginning of another. Ahead of awards season in June, theatre critics Joshua Chong and Glenn Sumi sat down to discuss their predictions and top picks for the Dora Awards, Toronto theatre’s top performing arts prize.

Project Profile: Center for STEAM Education, University of St. Thomas

Wenger | J.R. Clancy: “The Transform banners help provide flexible acoustics in both our new performance hall and rehearsal space so we can better accommodate groups of various sizes,” says Doug Orzolek, Professor of Music and Director of Graduate Programs in Music Education at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN.

New Theater Books to Read in Summer 2024

New York Theater: Below is a manageable list of 13 theater books — recently published or soon to be– that look to be good summer reads: six memoirs or biographies, four books of history, recent scripts of three acclaimed playwrights. Plus a bonus theater-adjacent book (because it’s written by a theater critic)

Behind the quick changes at Stratford’s ‘Something Rotten!’

www.thestar.com: There are more costume changes in the Stratford Festival’s production of “Something Rotten!” than there are minutes in the musical comedy’s run time of just over two-and-a-half hours. In all, the 25 performers in the onstage company have a staggering 275 costume changes, involving some 190 wardrobe pieces. Of those, 161 are considered quick changes, executed in three minutes or less.

The American Theatre Wing to Relaunch National Theatre Company Grants Program

www.broadwayworld.com: The American Theatre Wing will relaunch of ATW’s National Theatre Company Grants program. In recognition of the critical importance regional theatres play in the American theatre ecology, and how the work of American playwrights advances the artform and culture, five grants of $100,000 will be awarded annually to regional theatre companies innovating new strategies to successfully present the work of American playwrights.

TAPA announces 2024 Dora Award nominees

Intermission Magazine: This morning, the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA) announced the nominees for the 44th annual Dora Awards, taking place at the historic Elgin and Winter Garden Theatre Centre on Monday, June 24. Ryan G. Hinds will host the ceremony, which will feature musical guests and surprise presenters.

Collaborating and Confronting the Able-Bodied Gaze in Herein Lies the Truth

HowlRound Theatre Commons: The worlds of stand-up, monologue, and theatre have been circling and overlapping for a good while now, from Brother Theodore’s “stand-up tragedy” in the 1960s to Spalding Gray’s academic personal monologues to successful on and off-Broadway runs of pieces by standup comics Alex Edelman, Hannah Gadsby, and Ikechukwu Ufomadu. These pieces take the notion of theatre as a mode for intimate storytelling seriously, incorporating full design elements and honing the story via dramaturgical contributions and theatrical direction. However, these performances are frequently static affairs, with performers seated at desks and tables or in a setting serving as a simulacrum of a comedy club, with a stool and a microphone stand.

Edinburgh international children’s festival review – sensory magic and complex ideas made fun

The Guardian: Not too long ago, theatre for babies sounded like a crazy indulgence. Now, the Edinburgh international children’s festival says it could sell out its shows for the under-twos several times over. Watching a performance such as Univers, you can see why. It is not only the babies who are mesmerised, it is the toddlers and adults, too.

Why Financial Transparency is Vital for the Dance Field's Health

Dance Magazine: Information is the most powerful currency in the modern age. Yet, with the dance world struggling to recover cultural relevance and fiscal health post-pandemic shutdowns, most dance workers, critics, and donors have little concrete knowledge of overall economic conditions.

LEGO's Space Sets Inspire Imagination and a Spacetacular Drone Show

Nerdist: It’s no secret that we at Nerdist are huge fans of LEGOOpens in a new tab. Not only does LEGO allow builders of all ages to bring to life fantastical scenesOpens in a new tab, but the ingenuity that goes into every set design is not only inspiring, but spectacular. Some might say, spacetacular. LEGO’s latest frontier involves a slew of space sets designed to take astronauts of all kinds on new adventures. To celebrate their space-inspired collection, LEGO brought to life spaceship designs from children around the world in both LEGO and drone form. And the results were out of this world.

Prolight + Sound Guangzhou 2024 opens today with its largest ever exhibition space spanning across 21 halls

LightSoundJournal.com: China’s largest pro audio and lighting trade fair, Prolight + Sound Guangzhou is set to take place in Areas A and B of the China Import and Export Fair Complex from 23 – 26 May 2024. The 22nd edition will feature 2,136 exhibitors and brands across 21 thematic halls, offering a dynamic platform for manufacturers, integrators, distributors, end-users and industry enthusiasts to engage in a comprehensive showcase of cutting-edge products and solutions.

Hollywood Commission Launches Harassment Online Reporting Tool

variety.com: Since the #MeToo movement began gained momentum in Hollywood back in 2017, entertainment workers have voiced concerns about how to safely report harassment, bullying and workplace abuse.

‘Fallout’ Took Inspiration For the Power Armor Suits From This Ridley Scott Classic

collider.com: In a fun conversation at a For Your Consideration (FYC) event for the Prime Video adaptation of the iconic video game series Fallout, attended by Collider's Therese Lacson, executive producer Jonathan Nolan unveiled some intriguing behind-the-scenes secrets. Joined by his brother Christopher Nolan, Jonathan let fans into into the creative process behind the show's stunning visual elements, particularly the Power Armor suits that have captivated fans.

If Live Nation and Ticketmaster Break Up, Will It Be Better for Fans?

variety.com: While it was hardly unexpected, the Justice Department’s lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster is thorough and damning — all 124 pages of it — and lays out in compelling detail how and why the company, which is the world’s largest live-entertainment business and owns the largest ticket seller and distributor, may well be what this country legally considers a monopoly.

Photos: Inside the Renovated, and 29 Feet Higher, Palace Theatre on Broadway

Playbill: One of Broadway's most historic theatres—the Palace, smack dab in the middle of Times Square—has been out of commission since 2018. After SpongeBob SquarePants finished up its run, the theatre went dark so that the entire structure could be hoisted intact 29 feet in the air, creating new street-level retail space in the process.

How AI may push the boundaries of creativity in Saudi film industry

www.arabnews.com: When William “Wink” Winkler of Samford University landed in Saudi Arabia earlier this month for the 10th edition of the Saudi Film Festival, held in Dhahran, he felt he had discovered a new frontier in cinema and technology.

Here’s a running list of clashes between Ticketmaster, fans and artists

PBS NewsHour: The Justice Department filed a sweeping antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and parent company Live Nation Entertainment on Thursday, accusing them of running an illegal monopoly over live events in America — squelching competition and driving up prices for fans.

103 Years Later, Celebrate the Anniversary of Iconic Early Broadway Musical Shuffle Along

Playbill: May 23 marks the 103rd anniversary of Shuffle Along's premiere on Broadway, which changed the Main Stem forever. The musical revue broke ground as the first all-Black musical hit on Broadway, and helped to usher in the Harlem Renaissance, kickstarting the careers of a wide range of Black artists.

Loulou Bontemps (‘The Gentlmen’ costume designer) video interview

GoldDerby: “That was a whole journey, that costume, from start to finish,” says “The Gentlemen” costume designer Loulou Bontemps while discussing Freddy’s chicken suit in the Netflix comedy series. “Whenever I get a new script, I’ll go through it again and again and again, and I’ll pick things out that really jump out at me.

21 Disney Topiaries Taking Art Form to the Next Level

Disney Parks Blog: Throughout this year’s EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival, we’ve shared several “how’d they do that?” stories about our Disney topiaries but nothing like today’s update. We’re taking a special look back at this unique art form (and Disney tradition) with some vintage photos from the past and 21 top photos of 2024’s most detailed and elaborate topiaries that’ll make you say, “Ooh.”

Hell's Kitchen, Water for Elephants, More Win 2024 Chita Rivera Awards

Playbill: Winners of the 2024 Chita Rivera Awards were named in a ceremony at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts May 20 hosted by Jared Grimes (Funny Girl). Broadway's Hell's Kitchen and Water for Elephants tied for Outstanding Choreography in a Broadway Show (for Camille A. Brown and the team of Jesse Robb and Shana Carroll, respectively).

TT+ Audio GTX Makes Waves At JEEP BEACH 2024 In Florida

ProSoundWeb: JEEP BEACH 2024, which recently transformed the Daytona International Speedway in Florida into a sonic haven for Jeep enthusiasts and music lovers on hand for live performances by headliner Lee Brice as well as Craig Morgan and more, was supported by a main sound reinforcement system headed up by TT+ Audio GTX line arrays and supporting components.

What People Say Helps Them Feel Welcome

Butts In the Seats: Among the most encouraging findings of recent research is that people have noticed and appreciated efforts over the last two years by arts and cultural organizations to be more welcoming to a broader range of their communities. Over 70% of those identifying as BIPOC say they have felt more welcome. Over 50% of those identifying as non-Hispanic whites say they also have felt more welcome.

Tye Sheridan's Wonder Dynamics Acquired by Autodesk

variety.com: Autodesk has acquired Wonder Dynamics, a developer of cloud-based 3D animation and VFX tools co-founded by actor and producer Tye Sheridan. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Investors in Wonder Dynamics included Epic Games and Samsung Next, with an advisory board that included Steven Spielberg and director-producer Joe Russo.

Jeremy O. Harris to Head Williamstown’s New Creative Collective

AMERICAN THEATRE: Williamstown Theatre Festival’s managing director, strategy & transformation, Raphael Picciarelli, announced that playwright-producer-performer Jeremy O. Harris will be the inaugural creative director of the festival’s Creative Collective, a new artistic leadership model designed to do boundary-breaking and diverse programming, create new opportunities for emerging artists, and foster shared ownership of the creative vision for the festival. In his term, Harris will oversee the creative direction of the festival, programming key events and facilitating exciting and unique collaborations with artists spanning multiple disciplines.

Learning from the Pandemic to Build a Resilient US Theatre

HowlRound Theatre Commons: What can theatre and the performing arts learn from the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, and how might those lessons help make the sector more resilient in the future? These are some of the key questions animating the recent Pandemic Preparedness Performing Arts research project, conducted by an international team of scholars and funded by the British Academy. It asks what worked, where, and why, in order to recommend new measures that might pave the way to long-term stability and resilience within the sector.

How do Shakespeare’s characters react when they lose family or love?

Folger Shakespeare Library: What happens when you lose your first chance at happiness, when something goes so wrong in life that recovery might seem impossible? In this excerpt from Second Chances: Shakespeare and Freud, Stephen Greenblatt writes about how Shakespeare’s characters respond in these circumstances, particularly in the comedies and romances.

Bramble Theatre Company’s Lofty Ambitions

AMERICAN THEATRE: Nestled in the culturally diverse and queer-friendly Andersonville neighborhood, Chicago’s brand-new Bramble Arts Loft is a flexible, creative playground for local theatremakers. Neighbor to the Understudy, the building features historic scaffolding mixed with modern design by Avram Lothan, sun-flirting windowed ceilings in the spacious lobby, and an intangible but unmistakably welcoming air. Amid a troubling number of company closures, both locally and across the U.S., Bramble Theatre Company, founded in 2021, has managed to acquire a permanent home with an expansive layout to match its community-centered mission.

The Other Side is the world’s first nightclub to adopt L-ISA spatial audio

LightSoundJournal.com: Located in a former bicycle workshop that’s been transformed into a nightclub as well as a record label and agency representing DJs and producers, The Other Side has put itself squarely at the forefront of European nightlife with its new L‑ISA spatial audio system. The world’s first nightclub to offer an L-ISA immersive experience,

A Times Reporter Visits the Latest Broadway Shows

The New York Times: I’m the theater reporter at The New York Times, which means I see a lot of plays and musicals — about 100 a year. But I don’t often go to opening nights. Those evenings are celebratory, and audiences are filled with the productions’ friends and supporters. The press is generally invited to attend performances on the nights just before (those are called previews) or after the openings.

Avett Brothers musical ‘Swept Away’ will arrive on Broadway this fall

www.broadwaynews.com: “Swept Away” debuted at Berkeley Repertory Theatre in 2022 prior to a run at Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., in 2023. The musical tells the story of the crew of a whaling ship doing all they can to survive a shipwreck. The show is inspired by the real-life 1884 shipwreck of a British yacht known as the Mignonette; a 2004 album by the Avett Brothers named “Mignonette” was also inspired by the wreck.

Elation TruTone Technology a pioneering advancement in lighting fidelity

LightSoundJournal.com: Achieving that perfect balance between brightness and color accuracy is an issue that has persisted in the entertainment lighting industry for years and holds significance for lighting designers and rental houses alike. Traditional LED engines, with their fixed CRI values, have fallen short in delivering a comprehensive spectrum, leaving designers and gear providers with inflexible options.

Review: Pittsburgh CLO's Transcendent 'Lady Day' Delivers a Star Turn as Billie Holiday

onstagepittsburgh.com: Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill, the musical play that opens Pittsburgh CLO’s 78th year, is about the dimming of a bright light in the worlds of music and social activism, while the production illuminates the talents of a performer new to Pittsburgh, in Gabrielle Lee‘s star turn as Billie “Lady Day” Holiday.

Broadway at the National announces finalists and host for third annual Brandon Victor Dixon Awards

DC Theater Arts: The Brandon Victor Dixon Awards highlights excellence in high school musical theater and is a proud Regional Awards Program of the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (NHSMTA), also known as The Jimmy Awards. The regional awards program is named in honor of Brandon Victor Dixon, a Tony, Emmy, and Grammy Award nominee originally from Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Guthrie Theatre Reports $3.8 Million Deficit in 2023

www.broadwayworld.com: The Guthrie Theater has announced a financial loss of $3.8 million for its most recent season, attributing the deficit to increased expenses and the ongoing challenges stemming from the pandemic

'Enigmatist' creator combines puzzlemaking and magic for immersive evening of theater

Chicago Sun-Times: David Kwong’s fascination with magic and puzzles was ignited at the age of 7 during a family visit to a pumpkin patch where he was introduced to what would become a lifelong passion.

IATSE Negotiations: Talks Paused for West Coast Locals Without Deal

www.hollywoodreporter.com: Though IATSE had initially planned to conclude its general negotiations for West Coast Locals on Thursday, the day came and went without a deal, the union announced on Friday.

Non-Euclidean Doom, where the value of pi is not 3.14159

Boing Boing: Welcome to "Non-Euclidean Doom," where circles aren't anymore. Jump to 7:33 in the video embedded below for the action. With pi equalling 3, "the walls are a little off, and things are not moving as you might expect." Then pi is set to e, and "things are a little more interesting." Pi at 0.0001? Not exactly as easy as pie.

Jeremy Renner Fell Asleep Filming 'Mayor of Kingstown' After Accident

variety.com: Renner told the L.A. Times that during his first week back on the job, he would sometimes fall asleep while filming a scene: “They go, ‘And action!’ And I was out. We realized they worked me too hard, too many hours, too many days in a row,” he said. “What I’m willing to do is everything, but what I’m able to do is a different thing.”

Six Carnegie Mellon Alumni Nominated for 11 Tony Awards

Carnegie Mellon University: The spotlight will shine brightly on several Carnegie Mellon University alumni at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York at The 77th Annual Tony Awards® on Sunday, June 16.

The Chuck E. Cheese Animatronic Band Is Breaking Up

gizmodo.com: Chuck E. Cheese is pulling the plug on Munch’s Make Believe Band, the animatronic robots that terrified children and their begrudging parents with musical performances for decades. The New York Times reports that the arcade-pizzeria franchise will soon power down the bands at all but two of the chain’s more than 400 locations in the United States.

'Go into every experience with joy and excitement': Victoria Gomez on performing at the Helen Hayes Awards

DC Theater Arts: On a quiet Monday morning, I spoke with Victoria Gomez about finishing up her last semester at college while attending back-to-back rehearsals and performing in Little Shop of Horrors at Ford’s Theatre, one of America’s leading stages. As a newly minted college graduate from Catholic University with a Bachelor of Music in Musical Theatre, the joyful soprano chatted via video call about her professional career, so far, in Washington, DC.

Sen. Chuck Schumer’s new AI roadmap gets panned by watchdogs

Fast Company: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer released on Wednesday a long-anticipated road map for governing artificial intelligence, which called for some $32 billion in annual spending for AI research and development by 2026. The bipartisan proposal, which is meant as a guide for the Senate’s legislative efforts on AI, grew out of a yearlong series of “insight forums,” which included a stacked list of more than 150 experts—from tech leaders like Mark Zuckerberg, Sam Altman, and Satya Nadella—to academics and civil rights leaders.

Hallmark to present inaugural Christmas experience in Kansas City

InPark Magazine: Right outside the heart of Hallmark headquarters, the inaugural Hallmark Christmas Experience will celebrate the joy of the season at Kansas City’s Crown Center every weekend beginning November 29 through December 23, 2024.

Disney Tinkerbell: Why Is Tinkerbell Problematic?

The Mary Sue: In February, PlanDisney.com answered a question from a park goer: Why was Tinker Bell, the iconic green-clad fairy first introduced in 1953’s Peter Pan, no longer available to meet and interact with park visitors?

Review: 'Fiddler on the Roof' at Mon River Arts

onstagepittsburgh.com: Mon River Arts takes on a classic musical filled with tradition in their current Fiddler on the Roof production. It’s easy to understand why this show is considered timeless with its themes of family, love, and courage in times of uncertainty. Mon River Arts’s production of this golden age musical is an enjoyable night of theater with stunning performances from the cast.

Disney Springs show will have 200 more drones than Universal

attractionsmagazine.com: The show — the official name of which is “Disney Dreams That Soar presented by AT&T” — will perform May 24 – Sept. 2, 2024 at Walt Disney World Resort’s shopping and dining district near Orlando, Fla. The production spotlights characters and moments from Disney stories inspired by flight.

"Public technology sculpture" The Portal shut down after poor behaviour

www.dezeen.com: An interactive video installation connecting Dublin and New York City that was set to form part of NYCxDesign programming was temporarily shut down for poor behaviour from both cities.

The New Google Gemini Update Can Write Screenplay Coverage

No Film School: I've gone back and forth on whether or not we should be covering these giant leaps in AI, but as they become so accessible that you can use them at home, I think we have an obligation to talk about them.

'9-1-1' crewmember dies in crash after 14-hour shift, IATSE says

ktla.com/news: A man working on an episodic television series died in a car crash on the 57 Freeway after working a 14-hour overnight shift, according to the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. The victim was involved in a crash on the northbound side of the freeway in San Dimas around 4:30 a.m. Saturday, California Highway Patrol confirmed.

AppleTV+ Wants to Pay Actors Based on How Many People Watch Their Movies

gizmodo.com: Apple and other streaming companies are interested in shaking up the entertainment industry’s compensation model. Under the newly proposed system (which is really only an idea, at this point), talent—like actors and other production staff—would reportedly be paid based, at least partially, on how well the movie performs on the company’s platform. If a lot of people watch a movie, the creators would get big bonuses. If not, the payment wouldn’t be so hefty.

Rock Lititz expanding locally, as well as in Nashville

ABC27: Rock Lititz is not only expanding in Nashville. They are also expanding their local facility. President and CEO Andrea Shirk tells abc27 News that the Nashville location makes sense because 85 Nashville singers have come to Lititz to rehearse.

Google’s invisible AI watermark will help identify generative text and video

The Verge: Among Google’s swath of new AI models and tools announced today, the company is also expanding its AI content watermarking and detection technology to work across two new mediums.

Pittsburgh's new Sudden Little Thrills Music Festival suddenly canceled; tickets to be refunded

CBS Pittsburgh: A new music festival in the works for Pittsburgh later this year has suddenly been canceled. Organizers of the Sudden Little Thrills Music Fest posted a message to their website on Tuesday morning, saying the show, set to take place in early September, would not go on.

I Hate It When That Happens: Misadventures In The Glamorous World Of Corporate Audio

ProSoundWeb: I like sharing stories about my successes with corporate audio, but in the spirit of Jim Yakabuski’s article “Lessons Learned From Crashes And Burns” that I recently read on ProSoundWeb, I’ll share one of my not-so-successful events.

What is Ethical AI in Film and TV?

No Film School: People keep sending me their AI companies and telling me they're ethical. It's the fun new thing they put in their bios. "We're an ethical AI company." But the thing is, it seems like there's actually no official definition for that term. It would be like OJ calling himself an ethical running back -- you can say it, but it just doesn't mean it's true. The only truth is that artificial intelligence has the power to reshape the entertainment industry.

From Playbill’s CEO: This Spring Is the Best That Broadway’s Ever Had

Playbill: Three years ago, on April 14, my father, Arthur T. Birsh, died. As the longtime publisher of Playbill, my father had dedicated his life to the theatre community and Playbill. Even during his final days, he cared so deeply for the community and its future. This was in 2021, a year into the COVID-19 pandemic that shut down the industry we both loved. No one knew then when theatre was going to come back. In his final day, my father asked me, worried (one of the rare times I’ve seen him so scared), if we would ever be in a theatre again, if Playbill could survive if there was no theatre. Holding his hand, I reassured him that Broadway would be back and I promised that we would be there with it.

Eurovision 2024: How to Watch and What to Know

The New York Times: Since 1956, Eurovision has been pitting countries against each other in a fierce battle of over-the-top pop music, outlandish costumes and go-for-broke stagings. Fans of minimalism should abstain, because at Eurovision, even a modest ballad can be performed with wind machines, fur-lined capes or musicians playing upside down in a gigantic hamster wheel.

Pro Skateboarders Shred Abandon Airport Like Tony Hawk Game

brobible.com: 11 teams of professional skateboarders recently traveled down to The Big Easy and teamed up with Red Bull to takeover an abandoned airport terminal. It is as if Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater came to exist in real life, which is epic.

Review: 'The Kite Runner' at the Benedum

onstagepittsburgh.com: This week, I had the opportunity to experience a play with which I had only ever been familiar by the title. The Kite Runner, based on the best-selling novel of the same name, is a beautiful story about friendship, family, guilt, and redemption. I found the show to be profoundly moving, and I know it will leave an imprint on every audience member who encounters it.

Carrie Furnace site receives $2.3M grant for development to bring more film, TV projects to area

WPXI: A dream more than 10 years in the making is now closer to becoming a reality thanks to a $2.3 million state grant to the RIDC Southwestern Pennsylvania Growth Fund. “We want to make it the entertainment center for southwestern Pennsylvania. That’s the goal,” said Dawn Keezer, Executive Director of the Pittsburgh Film Office.

Art Directors Guild Suspends Production Design Initiative Program

www.indiewire.com: Art Directors Guild is suspending its Production Design Initiative program, designed to give hands-on training and job placement opportunities to those seeking a career in the field, according to an email sent to prospective applicants and acquired by IndieWire.

‘Sally & Tom’ Frees Sally Hemings From Being a Mere Footnote

The New York Times: Sally Hemings might be a household name these days, but we still know so little about the relationship between Hemings and Thomas Jefferson. Yet, Hemings endures as a figure of endless fascination: American writers aspire to tell her story, and there remains a yearning for a deeper understanding of the enslaved woman who left no firsthand accounts of her inner thoughts.

A Song Heard ’Round the World, and the Unsung Fiddler Who Set It in Motion

AMERICAN THEATRE: Quetzal Guerrero stepped onstage as Juventino Rosas and started playing a familiar tune on the violin, swaying with the melody and easing into a waltz with his feet. Other characters around him called the tune a “happy sad” song, and undeniably Mexican.

Jack O'Brien & George C. Wolfe Will Each Receive the 2024 Special Tony Award

www.broadwayworld.com: “Honoring these two gentlemen for their outstanding achievements and contributions to theatre is not only a recognition of their innate talent and dedication, but to a lifetime of brilliant work. With credits such as ‘Hairspray’ and ‘The Invention of Love,’ Jack O’Brien has showcased astounding diversity, skill and passion throughout his esteemed career,”

Beyond Aesthetics: How Tech is Redefining Interior Design

Architect Magazine: From architects and designers to engineers and contractors, digital technology is driving a drastic transformation in our approach to creating physical environments. The field is experiencing a widespread shift, with an expectation to integrate cutting-edge technologies into traditional design practices.

THE OUTSIDERS, ILLINOISE & More to Host Performances Benefitting The Entertainment Community Fund

www.broadwayworld.com: The Outsiders, Patriots, Illinoise, An Enemy of the People and The Who’s Tommy will all host performances with blocks of tickets dedicated to supporting The Entertainment Community Fund as part of their Benefit Performance program, Producer’s Picks.

Andrew Durand, Kecia Lewis, Marin Ireland, More Named Winners of Actors' Equity Foundation Awards

Playbill: The Actors’ Equity Foundation has announced the recipients of its 2024 awards for actors who gave outstanding performances during the past season. Winners will be honored at a June 24 ceremony in Manhattan.

The play that changed my life: Jim Cartwright’s ‘rude, raucous and deadly serious’ Road

Theatre | The Guardian: I must have been about 14. Our English teacher had taken us to a library and set us a task. We were to choose any book from the shelves and start reading. I wandered around, went to the toilet a few times, pretended to look for a book. Eventually, my teacher caught me. He glared: why don’t you have a book in your hand like everybody else? I turned to my right and spotted a small section of books that looked much thinner than the rest. Jackpot.

33rd Gene Kelly Awards Names 2024 Nominees, Representing 33 Allegheny County High Schools

onStage Pittsburgh: The 33rd annual Gene Kelly Awards for Excellence in High School Musical Theater has announced the nominees who will take the stage for the ceremony and musical extravaganza on Saturday, May 25, 2024, at the Benedum Center.

What It's Like to Choreograph for Eurovision

Dance Magazine: The first time she boarded a plane for Greece, dancer and choreographer Chali Jennings barely knew where she was going. Some friends from the Los Angeles commercial dance scene had booked a three-month gig in Athens and invited her to join. “I was like, ‘Sure. Why not? YOLO,’ ” Jennings recalls thinking.

Panther in the Sky tackles gun violence

Chicago Reader: Chicago Danztheatre Ensemble and CIRCA-Pintig’s collaborative piece, Panther in the Sky, written by Lani T. Montreal and directed by Mignon McPherson Stewart, tackles difficult subject matter. Through its one-hour production, Panther grapples with gun violence, its victims, and the families (specifically the mothers) they leave behind, from the perspective of BIPOC moms and their sons.

Sowing Futures at the Latinx Theatre Commons Tenth Anniversary Convening

HowlRound Theatre Commons: Every time. Every single time I am tasked with writing a haiku, whether it be in the form of a writing prompt, or—as in the case of the Latinx Theatre Commons (LTC) Tenth Anniversary Convening in Boston this past March—as collectively written tableaux vivants, I become crushingly anxious.

Production designer Chloe Arbiture (‘Manhunt’) video interview

GoldDerby: “Something that we were all really drawn to is the ornamentation of the Victorian era,” explains “Manhunt” production designer Chloe Arbiture about taking a bolder approach to designing over 200 sets for what a well-known period in history: the aftermath of the assassination of the 16th U.S. President.

CMU Alumna Selected for Schwarzman Scholarship

News - Carnegie Mellon University: Joyce (Xinyi) Wang, who graduated from Carnegie Mellon University's BXA Intercollege Degree Programs, was selected in December 2023 as a recipient of the Schwarzman Scholarship. The prestigious award allows for a fully-funded year of study at Tsinghua University in Beijing for the pursuit of a master's degree.

OpenAI's new tool can detect images created by DALL-E 3

Fast Company: OpenAI is launching a tool that can detect images created by its text-to-image generator DALL-E 3, the Microsoft-backed startup said on Tuesday amid rising worries about the influence of AI-generated content in this year’s global elections.

Schmigdoon Will Become a Stage Musical, Premiere at Kennedy Center

www.indiewire.com: For a certain sector of TV watchers, “Schmigadoon!” was a glorious gift from heaven, an homage to and sly sendup of musicals from Broadway’s golden age in Season 1 and musicals from the darker and seedier ’70s and ’80s in Season 2. Then, Apple TV+ canceled the comedy, and TV got a little less weird and fun.

Impressive Final Cut Pro Updates Are Here To Compete With Premiere

No Film School: The 2024 Apple Event is taking the tech and filmmaking world by storm with impressive updates from for popular hardware like the new iPad Pro, a fancy brand new Pencil Pro, and updates to their audio software Logic Pro.

Future Swiss Army Knives Won't Have Blades, Maker Victorinox Says

gizmodo.com: The Swiss Army Knife has become such a shorthand for multifunctionality that companies producing does-a-lot-of-stuff wares will often say that their goods are the “Swiss Army Knife” of whatever category they’re a part of. You can use the tool to cut stuff, snip stuff, uncork stuff, file stuff, in some cases download stuff.

Singer's Stage Dive Leads to Severe Spinal Injuries for Fan

consequence.net: A 24-year-old concertgoer by the name of Bird Piché suffered “catastrophic spinal injuries” after Trophy Eyes singer John Floreani dove into the crowd during the Australian punk band’s show at Mohawk Place in Buffalo, New York, on Tuesday (April 30th).

Student Blog: The Springtime Burnout

www.broadwayworld.com: As you’ve read from my previous blogs, it has been a hectic semester, and I have reached that point of the semester where the burnout is blazing. There is much to be said in this blog for the singular month of April, both highs and lows, but this is truly the peak of my 2nd year university life.

Immersive Titan Meow Wolf Sets Its Sights on Los Angeles

news.artnet.com: Meow Wolf, the company that has cornered the immersive field with its surreal artist-made environments, is growing westward. Its sights are set on Los Angeles for its sixth permanent exhibition space, which is slated to open in 2026.

The Purple Party: POWER's 2nd Annual Sober Celebration

Made In PGH: This year’s The Purple Party theme is “Purple Dream,” a whimsical take on purple. It represents the hopes and dreams of those in recovery. The second annual event is taking place to raise funds and support POWER’s (Pennsylvania Organization for Women in Early Recovery) work in recovery.

Artists Tease Out the Many Meanings of Hair in a New Exhibition

news.artnet.com: The rich topic of human hair and all its meanings in contemporary art comes in for curatorial consideration in “Hair Pieces,” an upcoming exhibition at the Heide Museum of Modern Art in Melbourne, Australia.

‘The Fall Guy’ Stars Explain Why Stunts at the Oscars Should Matter to You

collider.com: David Leitch's latest, The Fall Guy, is resonating across Hollywood. Aside from starring two Oscar nominees, Ryan Gosling (Barbie) and Emily Blunt (Oppenheimer), the former stuntman's feature is bringing some serious behind-the-scenes topics to the forefront in regard to stunt performers and the integral work they do on movie sets.

'Some Assembly Required' opens, closes, and is reborn at Attack Theatre

onstagepittsburgh.com: Possibilities thrive when ideas can both flow and have a place to land. Attack Theatre again offers a series of experiences called Some Assembly Required. It’s truly something for everyone, but it is mainly a treat for adults who may need respite from their world of work through creative exploration.

SUFFS—Suffragists, Fighting for Voting Rights Regardless of Sex—Brings History to Broadway

www.broadwayworld.com: “A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down,” according to Disney’s “Mary Poppins.” The same thing seems to go for politics and the arts, if you look at vehicles like the new musical SUFFS, which is being given a bang-up production these days at the Music Box theatre on West 45 off Broadway about the fight by suffragists for the right to vote, regardless of sex.

3D Printing In Custom PLA With A TPU Core

Hackaday: [Stefan] from CNC Kitchen explored an unusual approach to a multi-material print by making custom PLA filament with a TPU core to make it super-tough. TPU is a flexible filament whereas PLA is hard almost to the point of being brittle. The combo results in a filament with some unusual properties, inviting some thoughts about what else is possible.

Study: Arts and Culture Nonprofits 'Punch Above Their Weight' for Allegheny County's Economy

onstagepittsburgh.com: The contributions of a thriving arts scene to the economy and vitality of Allegheny County are undeniable and measurable, to a degree, with the help of the Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 report, detailing the economic and social impact of the county’s nonprofit arts and culture organizations.

Alex Edelman and more named recipients of special 2024 Tony Awards

www.broadwaynews.com: The Tony Awards has announced its 2024 slate of non-competitive honorees. Wendall K. Harrington, Colleen Jennings-Roggensack, Judith O. Rubin, the Dramatists Guild Foundation and the Friedman Health Center will receive Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre. Alex Edelman, Abe Jacob and Nikiya Mathis will be honored with Special Awards.

Artistry in Action: Behind Eddie Yang's Mask Design for 'Monkey Man'

The Art of Costume: In the realm of filmmaking, behind every captivating character lies a team of creative minds, meticulously crafting every detail to bring them to life on the silver screen. Among these heroes is Monkey Man mask designer, Eddie Yang, a jack-of-all-trades in the world of specialty costume design, prosthetics, and special effects.

Six Carnegie Mellon Alumni Nominated for 11 Tony Awards

News - Carnegie Mellon University: Carnegie Mellon Alumna and Tony Award Winner Renée Elise Goldsberry (BFA, 1993) and Tony Award Winner Jesse Tyler Ferguson announced the 2024 Tony Award nominations on “CBS Mornings” on April 30. Goldsberry also will receive an Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree at CMU's 126th Commencement on May 12.

Lauro Chartrand-DelValle (‘Shōgun’ stunt coordinator) video interview

GoldDerby: Lauro Chartrand-DelValle wanted the stunts on the FX limited series “Shōgun” to look real. To achieve that look, the veteran stunt coordinator and performer — who also served as a second unit director on the show — had one firm rule: no BS.

Bridget Leak Named Know Theatre of Cincinnati Producing Artistic Director

AMERICAN THEATRE: Know Theatre of Cincinnati has named Bridget Leak their new producing artistic director. She assumed her role this week, succeeding previous producing artistic director Andrew Hungerford.

Artists of color say Pittsburgh has "perfected racism." What would real progress look like?

Visual Art | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh City Paper: On paper, Pittsburgh looks like a vibrant arts city. It also looks like a city with serious racial inequities. Artists of color say it's both. They likewise say this doesn't need to be the case. The city's institutions adopted sweeping diversity, equity, and inclusion policies following the 2018 killing of Antwon Rose Jr., a scathing 2019 report detailing a deadly gulf in pre- and postnatal health outcomes for Pittsburgh's Black women, and the 2020 murder of George Floyd.

This Berkeley native just got nominated for a Tony Award

Datebook: In early April, Manhattan Theatre Club announced it would produce “Eureka Day,” marking the Broadway debut of Oakland playwright Jonathan Spector. Then on Tuesday, April 30, when the 2024 Tony Award nominations were announced amid a packed season on Broadway, Berkeley native Shana Carroll was among the honorees, for co-choreographing, with Jesse Robb, “Water for Elephants,” a musical about a Depression-era circus.

On WGA Strike Anniversary, Higher Pay but Fewer Jobs

variety.com: The Writers Guild of America called a strike one year ago today, declaring that the streaming boom had created an existential crisis for writers. The WGA got most of what it wanted from the strike, though it took almost five months for the studios and streamers to come around. But as the boom has gone bust, writers now face a different kind of crisis. For most, it’s harder to find work.

The Life and Death of Hollywood, by Daniel Bessner

harpers.org: In 2012, at the age of thirty-two, the writer Alena Smith went West to Hollywood, like many before her. She arrived to a small apartment in Silver Lake, one block from the Vista Theatre—a single-screen Spanish Colonial Revival building that had opened in 1923, four years before the advent of sound in film.

City Theatre Stirs Things Up to Completes 50th Anniversary Season Lineup

onStage Pittsburgh: City Theatre kicked off the month of May by completing the lineup for 2024-25, the South Side company’s 50th anniversary season. Added to the five-play subscription series is DNAWORKS’ production of The Real James Bond … Was Dominican, to be performed in the Lillie Theatre in January and February 2025.

FilmLA Solution Services Team Committed to Outreach

FilmLA: FilmLA’s investment in proactive community relations takes many forms. Our robust Notification and Monitoring programs aim at keeping communities informed and supported before and during production. Since 2013, we’ve also maintained a dedicated team of outreach liaisons, who work in collaborative fashion to share expert knowledge and build positive connections across all constituencies served by our organization.

Aunt Marge flies for Return to Azkaban at Warner Bros. Studio Tour

attractionsmagazine.com: Muggles in London got a glimpse of wizarding world magic as Harry Potter’s Aunt Marge floated across the sky to mark a new Return to Azkaban feature beginning on May 1, 2024, at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter.

Tony Nominations: ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ and ‘Stereophonic’ Tie for Most

The New York Times: A semi-autobiographical Alicia Keys musical and a play about a group of musicians struggling to record an album each got 13 Tony nominations on Tuesday, tying for the most nods in a packed Broadway season when shows need all the help they can get.

Rock Lititz and Al. Neyer Announce Rock Nashville Campus Development, a New Home for the Live Entertainment Industry

PLSN: The team behind Rock Lititz, the premier production campus and rehearsal venue based out of Lititz, PA, and Al. Neyer, a leading commercial real estate developer and design-builder, announced on April 30, 2024, the development of Rock Nashville, a premier destination entertainment rehearsal and production campus anticipated to open in 2025.

Alicia Keys on Nabbing 13 Tony Nominations for ‘Hell’s Kitchen’

The New York Times: In an interview shortly after the nominations were announced, Keys was clearly heartened by the news. The show, featuring her songs and a book by Kristoffer Diaz, is personal for Keys. The show is about a 17-year-old girl whose life circumstances have enormous echoes of Keys’s own upbringing — the single mother, the hunger for independence, the passion for piano, even the same subsidized housing development.