The 'Ring' begins -- Pittsburgh Festival Opera opens Wagner's cycle with 'Rhinegold'

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Pittsburgh Festival Opera comes to life every summer with repertory not likely to be tackled by mainstream-oriented Pittsburgh Opera. This city’s smaller company’s ongoing projects include lesser known works by Richard Strauss – this season the Pennsylvania premiere of “Arabella” (July 20 and 22) – and the revival of its pared-down version of “The Ring of the Nibelung,” Wagner’s monumental four-opera parable depicting the rise and fall of civilization as we know it.

Knights of Illumination Past

www.livedesignonline.com: The prestigious Knight of Illumination (KOI) Awards for lighting and video design were founded in the UK in 2007. Live Design presents some of the outstanding designers who have been so honorably knighted in past years.

Polish Theatre at the Edinburgh Fringe 2018

The Theatre Times: The multi-award-winning Teatr Biuro Podróży comes to Edinburgh with two shows. The multi-awarded Carmen Funebre, performed at the Fringe twenty-three years ago, focuses on the impact of the war in the context of the Bosnian conflict. Teatr Biuro Podróży will show it only for four days (August 16-19).

Daniella Greenbaum’s gender stereotyping tantrum over Scarlett Johansson’s trans role is a con.

slate.com: Daniella Greenbaum must think we’re pretty stupid. She’s the author, for example, of “Women Do Not Need the Equal Rights Amendment,” an essay that appeared in Business Insider in June and includes the sentence “It might not be woke to acknowledge that there are differences between men and women, but this is fact of life.” She’s also having a highly public tantrum as the intellect behind a nasty, disingenuous little column that BI published and then removed from its site on July 6, which defended the right of Scarlett Johansson to play transgender brothel-owner Dante “Tex” Gill in a forthcoming project and casts everyone who has objected to this casting as “the social justice warrior mob.” (Johansson withdrew from the project entirely Friday afternoon.)

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.”

NFTRW Weekly Top Five

Here are the top five comment generating posts of the past week:

6 Times When Procrastination Pays Off

Church Production Magazine: We’ve all experienced times when procrastinating on a task came back to bite us. (That term paper back in the day comes to mind.) Scrambling to make a deadline causes us to berate ourselves with recriminations. Everyone knows we shouldn’t procrastinate. Right?

Posted by David at 7/12/2018 11:53:00 AM

‘Chicago’ cast member’s suicide probed after backstage bullying allegations

Page Six: Broadway musical “Chicago” has launched an investigation after friends of a cast member claimed he killed himself because he was “bullied” by the show’s directors.

Posted by David at 7/09/2018 12:22:00 PM

National Geographic Encounter Creates A Virtual Ocean Odyssey With Rosco Lighting Effects

Rosco Spectrum: Developed and produced by the creative minds at SPE Partners, with a team of Academy Award®, and Emmy® and GRAMMY® Award-winning artists, National Geographic Encounter: Ocean Odyssey is a fully immersive entertainment experience that enables its visitors to dive deep into the ocean – in the heart of Times Square – without getting wet!

Posted by David at 7/13/2018 07:56:00 AM

A Role By Any Other Name: Gender in Shakespeare and Making Room for Women

www.broadwayworld.com: Earlier this week news broke that Glenda Jackson, fresh from her triumphant, Tony-winning run in Three Tall Women, will next don the crown as Shakespeare's tragic monarch King Lear. Broadway is making much ado about something and understandably so. New York stages haven't seen much gender-swapped or gender-blind casting of Shakespeare, but take a peek across the pond to find a revolution of sorts in the interpretation of the Bard's work.

Posted by David at 7/09/2018 12:24:00 PM

Step by Step Guide to Writing a Business Plan for Creatives

mymodernmet.com: If you think you don't need a business plan because you work in a creative field, think again. Business plans aren't only for multimillion dollar corporations or startups seeking investors. They also offer great ways to have a handle on your business, whether you are selling goods online, starting your photography studio, or working as a fine artist.

Posted by David at 7/13/2018 08:03:00 AM

Step by Step Guide to Writing a Business Plan for Creatives

mymodernmet.com: If you think you don't need a business plan because you work in a creative field, think again. Business plans aren't only for multimillion dollar corporations or startups seeking investors. They also offer great ways to have a handle on your business, whether you are selling goods online, starting your photography studio, or working as a fine artist.

The Theatricality of “Sideways”: An Interview with Rex Pickett

Breaking Character: In honor of the 15th anniversary of the film Sideways (coming up in 2019), we sat down with Rex Pickett, author of the novel on which the screenplay was based. Rex Pickett’s stage adaptation of the cult classic premiered at the Ruskin Group Theatre in Santa Monica, and had several subsequent productions, including a run at La Jolla Playhouse that set box office records for sales of a non-musical.

Doing The Lambeth Walk: 5 Things I Learned From Producing “Me And My Girl”

Breaking Character: “Doing The Lambeth Walk”…what comes next? Well, as it happens, everybody knows what comes next. In the thirty-odd years that I have been producing and licensing Me and My Girl around the world I have seen many productions, from mighty Broadway and the West End of London to village halls and community centres.

West Side Story Is Returning to Broadway

themuse.jezebel.com: Hello, Broadway producer, I’m so glad you brought this to my attention—I’m delighted to hear about West Side Story returning to the Great White Way, and I will certainly pay big Broadway money to sit front row and scream-sing the lyrics to “I Feel Pretty,” thank you!!!!

How an Impact Driver Works: Training the Apprentice

Pro Tool Reviews: Impact drivers are an essential tool for any Pro. They give you the ability to apply more forceful power than a drill. Used in tandem, a cordless drill will handle hole making and an impact driver will set the fasteners. For basic screwdriving, an impact driver is the only tool you need.

T SHAKI's portable nightclub transforms lebanese landmark into party destination

www.designboom.com: T SHAKI adds an additional layer on beirut‘s sporting club beach with the design of a mountable and dismountable structure, which can transform the coastal landmark into an open air nightclub in just a few hours. central to the design is a large floating ring that flashes different light patterns and colors according to the beat of the music.

National Geographic Encounter Creates A Virtual Ocean Odyssey With Rosco Lighting Effects

Rosco Spectrum: Developed and produced by the creative minds at SPE Partners, with a team of Academy Award®, and Emmy® and GRAMMY® Award-winning artists, National Geographic Encounter: Ocean Odyssey is a fully immersive entertainment experience that enables its visitors to dive deep into the ocean – in the heart of Times Square – without getting wet!

Court Won't Rehear Blurred Lines Case, Bad News For Music Creativity

Techdirt: Back in March we wrote about the terrible decision by the 9th Circuit to uphold the also awful lower court ruling that the Pharrell/Robin Thicke song "Blurred Lines" infringed on Marvin Gaye's song "Got To Give It Up." If they had actually copied any of the copyright-protected elements of the original, this case wouldn't be a big deal.

Two River Theater expanding its footprint and booking as it turns 25

Theater Cues: Two River Theater Company, a regional non-profit theater in New Jersey with a national reputation for staging excellent productions, appears to be expanding its offerings with booking a comic and a film festival in the “off-season.”

New ‘West Side Story’ From Ivo van Hove and Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker

The New York Times: Two Belgians want to be in America. Ivo van Hove, the experimental director, and Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, the rigorously avant-garde choreographer, will take on “West Side Story” for a Broadway production that will begin previews in December 2019, and open on Feb. 6, 2020, at an as-yet-unnamed theater, the producer Scott Rudin announced on Thursday.

Christina Watanabe: Finding Your Light

Stage Directions: After hearing about Lighting Designer, Christina Watanabe for years, I was pleased to meet her in person at a USA829 Diversity Committee Meet-up. Christina is a New York City based designer for theatre, dance, music, and events. Her designs have been seen at Lincoln Center, Primary Stages/Cherry Lane, 59E59, HERE Arts Center, The New Ohio, Urban Stages, Gelsey Kirkland Ballet, Penguin Rep, The Public Theatre, Intar, The Bushwick Starr, and Theatre for the New City to name a few.

6 Times When Procrastination Pays Off

Church Production Magazine: We’ve all experienced times when procrastinating on a task came back to bite us. (That term paper back in the day comes to mind.) Scrambling to make a deadline causes us to berate ourselves with recriminations. Everyone knows we shouldn’t procrastinate. Right?

Your first look inside Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi - in pictures

The National: It would be easy to be cynical about Warner Bros World, the new indoor amusement park on Yas Island due to open on July 25, at a cost of $1 billion (Dh3.67bn). It is, after all, a commercial enterprise promoting one of the world’s biggest entertainment companies.

How Broadway Got the Beat: The Go-Go’s in 5 Songs

The New York Times: Since bursting onto the Los Angeles scene in 1978, the Go-Go’s have gone through the highs and lows common to rock bands: No. 1 hits and undervalued deep cuts, hard partying and rehab, splits and reunions. No wonder the all-female new wave group’s members have long fielded, and rejected, offers to dramatize their story.

A First Look at the Set of Moulin Rouge! The Musical

Stage Directions: The pre-Broadway engagement of Moulin Rouge! The Musical began performances, Tuesday, July 10, 2018 at the Emerson Colonial Theatre in Boston, MA. The productions runs through August 19. Here’s a first look at the set as designed by Derek McLane. In addition to Tony Award® winner McLane, the design team for Moulin Rouge! The Musical includes Tony Award® winner Catherine Zuber (costumes), two-time Tony Award® nominee Justin Townsend (lighting), Tony Award® winner Peter Hylenski (sound) and Drama Desk Award winner David Brian Brown (wig and hair design).

Capturing Sound for Reality TV Shows ‘Amazing Race,’ ‘Deadliest Catch’

Variety: The familiar phrase “We can fix it in post” covers a multitude of headaches that might arise during production. But reality-TV series like Discovery’s “Deadliest Catch” and CBS’ “The Amazing Race” don’t have that luxury, particularly when dealing with sound recording. As “Deadliest Catch” exec producer R. Decker Watson says, “We need to capture what’s going on when it happens — or else we’re in big trouble.”

Appeals Court Won't Rehear "Blurred Lines" Case

Hollywood Reporter: In what very well could be the end of the line for Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has voted to deny a rehearing of the controversial "Blurred Lines" case. As a result, a jury's 2015 verdict that found the popular song was an infringement of Marvin Gaye's "Got to Give It Up" stands.

GREEN ACRES Musical Officially Takes Aim for Broadway

www.broadwayworld.com: Producers Pam Laudenslager and Colleen Lober have just announced the launch of Center Stage Capital, Inc., a new entertainment company that will present a portfolio of productions including the world premiere of Green Acres the Musical; Mother Eve's Secret Garden of Sensual Sisterhood; Empyrea and In the Room.

Turn Off the News, Tune In to a Socially Conscious Arts Festival

Theatre Development Fund – TDF: "This is the most important moment for art that we've had in the last 50 years," says Shaun Peknic, the newly minted artistic director of Planet Connections Theatre Festivity (PCTF). Fittingly, the 10th edition of this summer festival features 50 offerings that touch on a wide variety of timely topics.

Bag&Baggage Productions Projects into the Future

Stage Directions: As its name implies, Bag&Baggage Productions (B&B) is a malleable theater company. What was started as a touring company in 2005 with nothing more than just a van, simple sets, and a handful of actors, the Hillsboro, OR-based troupe quickly become known for its artistic quality, affordability, and a unique, provocative sense of humor.

August Wilson House among African-American historic sites to receive preservation grants

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: The childhood home of playwright August Wilson is one of several historic sites being tapped to receive a grant from the African-American Cultural Heritage Action Fund.

Column That Defended Scarlett Johansson's Trans Casting Taken Down

The Mary Sue: An article about Johansson’s controversial casting by a conservative writer published on Business Insider was deleted—but the Internet never forgets.

Scarlett Johansson sparked a firestorm of criticism for taking the role of Dante “Tex” Gill, a trans man, in the upcoming film Rub & Tug. Fuel was added to this representational fire when Johansson’s response to the outcry, via her rep, was mind-bogglingly out-of-touch and dismissive, telling her critics that “they can be directed to Jeffrey Tambor, Jared Leto, and Felicity Huffman’s reps for comment.” Yikes, to put it in a nutshell.

Who Will Play You In The Opera?

Butts In the Seats: I frequently write about how people often don’t feel arts and cultural events are for them is because they aren’t seeing themselves and their stories portrayed. So it was with some interest that I read about Opera Philadelphia’s effort to provide a free high definition broadcast of their 2017 opera, We Shall Not Be Moved, which uses the 1985 bombing of the MOVE compound by the city of Philadelphia as a starting point.

Theatre Royal Bath blasted for all-white season brochure

News | The Stage: Theatre Royal Bath has been slammed for “whitewashing” and “wilful arrogance” after hailing a brochure featuring all-white actors as its “greatest line-up ever”.

The front cover of the brochure, for the theatre’s 2018-19 season, shows photos of 16 actors, including David Suchet, Elizabeth McGovern and Robert Lindsay.

20 people hospitalized for heat-related illnesses at Warped Tour stop

www.usatoday.com: At least 20 people have been transported to nearby hospitals and at least 200 have been treated for heat-related illnesses at the Warped Tour concert at the Nashville Fairgrounds, authorities said.

The Full Monty pops in Pittsburgh

Theater Reviews + Features | Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh City Paper: If there was ever the wrong man at the wrong time, it’s composer/lyricist David Yazbek. He hit Broadway in 2001 with his adaption of The Full Monty. Reviews and business were great and a lot of Tony awards seemed in the offing. But then Mel Brooks opened The Producers …

Constructing A Building-Sized Draw Bot

makezine.com: If you are looking for a quick way to paint your house or a make a retina-resolution-reprint of your favourite artwork, you probably have to skip this post. The machine we built is large, low-res and veeerrrrryyyy slow. It is also big, bad-ass, cheap and out of control, something that can be built in a couple of afternoons, has an almost mesmerising and meditative tranquility while seen in action – and (re)produces great (ok, read: “makes unique”) works of art.

Brian Clowdus and Serenbe Playhouse raise the stakes with epic “Titanic: The Musical”

ArtsATL: When Brian Clowdus sits down to offer a preview of Titanic: The Musical at Serenbe Playhouse (July 11–August 12), his body language mirrors the action measure for measure. Demonstrative by nature, his eyes widen and narrow at turns. The pitch and volume of his voice fluctuate to either heighten the drama or drive home the pain. He will lean in and rear back in his seat for emphasis. His voice breaks on occasion. And he speaks not only with his hands — but with his arms. His shoulders. His entire being.

How Do You Say ‘Tradition’ in Yiddish?

The New York Times: Yiddish was the language spoken by Tevye the milk peddler and the other shtetl characters depicted in the stories that inspired “Fiddler on the Roof,” yet in this country the landmark musical has never been performed professionally in that savory and supple tongue. Until now.

Irwin teen channels her inner Judy Garland for Stage Right's 'Wizard of Oz'

TribLIVE: Grace Rusnica is channeling the late, great Judy Garland for her starring role as Dorothy Gale in “The Wizard of Oz,” a stage production that pays tribute to the classic 1939 MGM movie.

Three performances co-produced by Stage Right and Kelly Simon Event Management will be presented July 13-15 at Greensburg's The Palace Theatre.

U.S. Court of Appeals Rules WHO'S HOLIDAY as Parody; Broadway Run Planned for 2018!

www.broadwayworld.com: A U.S. Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of playwright Matthew Lombardo last Friday, affirming that his play WHO'S HOLIDAY! is indeed a parody, transformative in nature, and therefore considered fair use.

Women Set London’s Stages Ablaze

The New York Times: The schoolteacher’s choice of color is a promise and a warning. Portrayed with a vitality that sears and illuminates by a truly incandescent Lia Williams, the title character of the Donmar Warehouse production of “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie” is first seen amid a world of subdued grays in an alarmingly red dress.

The Bachelorette Filming Cost In Virginia: Must-See Deails

collegecandy.com: Last week’s episode of The Bachelorette we watched Becca Kufrin and her gaggle of boys leave Las Vegas and head to Richmond, Virginia. When it was announced that the show would be heading to Virginia myself and other fans were so confused. Usually, the show heads to lavish rich white people vacation spots, which typically doesn’t include Richmond, Virginia.

Are TV Dramas Too Quiet?

www.vulture.com: The first episode of Sharp Objects is beautifully confident. It moves between different timelines in a way that’s moody and meaningful, its performances are persuasive and mysterious, and the atmosphere is somehow both otherworldly and absolutely real.

But also, I couldn’t hear all of the dialogue.

I Shouldn't Judge a Play About Antonin Scalia Until I See It, Right?

www.clydefitchreport.com: Let me start with the premise that ethics still mean something in America. You may wish to sit for the rest of this read, or else, if you can manage not to collapse, please stay with me.

Plan Your Next Summer Getaway Around a Show

Theatre Development Fund – TDF: While there are still plenty of productions to see in New York over the summer, this is the season when regional theatre really heats up. The Northeast proves to be a mecca for talented artists to revive old chestnuts and debut new works. So peg your next sojourn to one of these worthy shows.

Stage review: Pittsburgh CLO's 'The Full Monty' has got the goods

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: As much fun as “The Full Monty” is — and the musical is a rollicking good time — it’s also a lens into what brought us to this moment.

There Is Creative Conflict And Then There Is Creating Conflict

Butts In the Seats: Last Monday I wrote about how intrinsic motivation can often be more effective than external motivators like rewards and punishments, but suggested non-profit workers not allow people to use that finding to insist they will be more productive if they are poorly paid.

TV Musicians Resume Negotiations Over Payment for Online Shows

Variety: Union musicians working on late-night, award, and other live television shows have resumed negotiations with the networks over the issue of paying band members when they appear on YouTube and network websites.

A ‘Fiddler’ In Yiddish — The Way It Ought To Be

The Forward: Barely two years after Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” made its groundbreaking 1949 debut, a Yiddish production starring — and translated by — Joseph Buloff opened in Brooklyn, with Miller’s blessing. The title of a review by George Ross in Commentary described it as “‘Death of a Salesman’ in the Original,” and the witty proposition, along with the debate over its aptness, has stuck with the play ever since, (and was tested beautifully in a Yiddish-language production in New York in 2015.)

Trans Actors Protesting Scarlett Johansson's Trans Role Are Told They're Jealous, Unskilled Whiners

themuse.jezebel.com: Scarlett Johansson, who has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and whose resumé lists all of these awards, who infamously donned black hair and dark eyes for her role as a Japanese cyborg in 2017 for Ghost in the Shell, remains immune to criticism of for taking a rare role of trans man for a mainstream movie, Rub & Tug. Trans actors are asking why, of all roles, she would choose what, for a trans man, would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

A Role By Any Other Name: Gender in Shakespeare and Making Room for Women

www.broadwayworld.com: Earlier this week news broke that Glenda Jackson, fresh from her triumphant, Tony-winning run in Three Tall Women, will next don the crown as Shakespeare's tragic monarch King Lear. Broadway is making much ado about something and understandably so. New York stages haven't seen much gender-swapped or gender-blind casting of Shakespeare, but take a peek across the pond to find a revolution of sorts in the interpretation of the Bard's work.

‘Chicago’ cast member’s suicide probed after backstage bullying allegations

Page Six: Broadway musical “Chicago” has launched an investigation after friends of a cast member claimed he killed himself because he was “bullied” by the show’s directors.