Harvey Weinstein Says He Was Misquoted in ‘Roles for Sex’ Interview

Variety: Harvey Weinstein’s attorney said Friday that his client was misquoted in an interview published Friday, and that he did not admit to trading movie roles for sex.

Weinstein was quoted by Taki Theodoracopulos, a columnist for the Spectator, as saying “Yes, I did offer them acting jobs in exchange for sex, but so did and still does everyone. But I never, ever forced myself on a single woman.”

‘Awakening: After Parkland’ Interview

www.vulture.com: Three months after the Valentine’s Day massacre at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, Sawyer Garrity and five of her peers performed in a local production of Spring Awakening — a show they started rehearsing before the mass shooting that claimed 17 of their schoolmates. Their rehearsals and performances were chronicled in Awakening: After Parkland, a short documentary that premiered Monday on Topic.

Why I Am Boycotting Writers Theatre in Chicago

www.clydefitchreport.com: The controversy at Writers, a widely respected company located near Chicago, is a few months old, so I’ll quickly recap. Last fall, CFR broke a story that former Writers intern Tom Robson accused longtime Artistic Director Michael Halberstam of sexually harassing him both verbally and physically in 2003. The story spread to other outlets; soon, the trade publication PerformInk released a more detailed account of how widespread Halberstam’s harassment had been, reporting that “what happened to Robson has happened to others,” and that schools were even warning students about auditioning for the company.

How to Laugh in the #MeToo Era

Chicago magazine | April 2018: The comedy world has had its share of #MeToo moments. Louis C.K. admitted to being a predatory exhibitionist, of course. Among incidents closer to home, SketchFest organizer Brian Posen resigned from Stage 773, the theater he founded, after he was accused of making inappropriate remarks to students. What does all this mean for the local scene? What’s still funny in this climate?

Cirque du Soleil, former ‘Le Reve’ artist dies in stage fall in Florida

Las Vegas Review-Journal: A Cirque du Soleil aerial straps artist who had performed in “Le Reve” at Wynn Las Vegas fell to his death Saturday night during a performance of the touring show “Volta” in Tampa, Florida.

Veteran performer Yann Arnaud, 38, fell to the stage during a show at the Tampa Greyhound Track and was taken to a hospital, where he died, according to statement issued Sunday morning by Cirque.

IATSE New Mexico Boss Facing New Harassment Allegations; 2nd Woman Comes Forward

Deadline: A second woman has come forward with allegations that Jon Hendry, the boss of IATSE Local 480 in Santa Fe, NM, sexually harassed her. Hendry, who until recently was one of the most powerful labor leaders in the state, was ousted as president of the New Mexico Federation of Labor AFL-CIO on Monday after Christa Valdez, the local’s former outside public relations rep, sued him last week for sexual harassment.

The Case for the (Non-Harassing, Actually Brilliant) Genius

www.vulture.com: Celebrity architects and conductors fascinate for similar reasons. Both rely on institutionalized ventriloquism, where the master’s ideas are expressed by minions. They are solo figures in collaborative worlds, embracing complexity, managing teams, and taking credit for others’ work. And in both professions, the priestly nimbus has lately been besmirched.

Farnam Jahanian Named President of Carnegie Mellon University

www.cmu.edu/news: Farnam Jahanian, the nationally recognized computer scientist, successful entrepreneur, senior public servant and respected leader in higher education, has been appointed as the 10th president of Carnegie Mellon University. The appointment is effective immediately, with a formal inauguration scheduled for fall 2018.

Love-struck hero or creepy harasser? Suddenly we’re seeing our favorite rom-coms in a new light.

The Washington Post: Two years ago, film critic Sara Stewart sat down to re-watch “Sixteen Candles,” one of her favorite 1980s John Hughes comedies. She was mortified. One scene, played for laughs — the ostensible hero gifting his drunk girlfriend to another boy — seemed like a manual for rape. Stewart wrote a column about the offensive aspects of the movie, and was met with vitriol. Readers accused her of being humorless, of ruining something beloved.

“But if I wrote that column now,” she speculates, “I feel like people might be in agreement with me.”

The Spring Awakening of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Theatre Kids

The New Yorker: They are young. They are bold and self-confident. They are articulate. They are passionate. They are leading a national movement. And they are theatre kids. A fiercely dedicated band of teen survivors of the horrific shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, this week are earning international attention through social media for speaking out on gun control in a movement they call Never Again.

Database Shows Time to Diversify Theater Leadership is Now

Art Wire | KQED Arts: The U.S. theater world is seeing widespread changes in leadership, and Bay Area theater professionals tracking the development say it’s an opportune time for theater companies to diversify.

CBS Launches Eye Speak Empowerment Initiative for Women

Variety: CBS has unveiled a corporate initiative dubbed Eye Speak designed to advance the careers of female CBS employees and open doors for talent across the industry.

Eye Speak is spearheaded by Jo Ann Ross, president and chief advertising revenue officer for CBS Corp.

Broadway’s 2018 Word of the Year: Complicit

OnStage Blog: “Complicit” was Dictionary.com’s 2017 Word of the Year – and if the 2018-19 musical lineup continues as planned, it may define Broadway’s upcoming season as well. It’s a trifecta of shows featuring so much gaslighting, outdated gender norms, and straight up domestic abuse that it feels like a season straight out of 1960, at best.

SAG-AFTRA Releases Sexual Harassment Code of Conduct

AFL-CIO: SAG-AFTRA recently released a code of conduct on sexual harassment as part of a broader program to protect its members, confront harassment and advance equity in the workplace.

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This Week’s Rundown:

1.       The Most Insanely Complex Stunts from Science Fiction and Fantasy Films
2.       Life-size Titanic replica planned for Chinese theme park
3.       LitePads Center (and Back) Stage
4.       You’re Reading Romeo & Juliet Wrong. You’re Supposed to Hate Romeo
5.       'Back to the Future' Musical Planned for London Opening
6.       Ideas abound at public meeting held to save August Wilson Center
7.       Broadway Expands Its Green Practices to Theaters Across the U.S.
8.       After Complaints, 'Millie' Gets Thoroughly Modern Makeover for Dalton School
9.       FENCES
10.   Don’t Get Screwed: The Contract Provisions Every Creative Needs to Know