Kate Shindle on Why She’s Stepping Down as Actors’ Equity President

The New York Times: Kate Shindle, who has served as president of Actors’ Equity Association for nine years, is stepping down after a tenure dominated by the coronavirus pandemic that for a time idled all of the labor union’s members.

Make Safety a Habit: Building a Culture of Safety in Your Woodworking Shop

Woodworking Network: Every organization regardless of the industry needs to manage its health and safety aspects. Morally, over my 30 years in the field of health and safety I have never worked with or for a management team that did not care about the health and safety of their employees. The difference has been in how much they were committed to make that happen. You have probably heard of the term “walk the talk,” which represents going beyond just lip service by demonstrating commitment by taking action.

2024 Lucille Lortel Awards nominations list

GoldDerby: Nominations for the 39th Annual Lucille Lortel Awards were announced today by Amber Iman and George Abud, two stars of Broadway’s “Lempicka.” The Lortels honor outstanding achievement in Off-Broadway theater. The 2024 ceremony will take place on Sunday, May 5 at NYU Skirball Center.

Madonna Claps Back at Lawsuit Over Delayed Concert Start Times

consequence.netconsequence.net: Madonna has clapped back at the recent class action lawsuit filed on behalf of dissatisfied fans who were upset that her concerts started later than scheduled. The pop star’s lawyers filed a motion Wednesday urging the federal judge to dismiss the case, claiming that having “trouble getting a ride home” or needing “to wake up early the next day for work” are not cognizable injuries, Billboard reports.

Activity Insights and Improvements to Hatch Are Here: AutoCAD for Mac 2025

AutoCAD Blog | Autodesk: AutoCAD for Mac 2025 and AutoCAD LT for Mac 2025 are here! We’re excited to share the new enhancements and features that provide time savings, collaboration options, and efficiencies for you to get the most out of each and every session.

GHOST OF JOHN McCAIN Producers Respond to Meghan McCain's Criticism- 'We Think [She] Will Love It'

www.broadwayworld.com: Just yesterday, it was announced that Soho Playhouse will welcome a new musical this fall- Ghost of John McCain. Authored by Scott Elmegreen, with Drew Fornarola serving as composer and lyricist, Ghost of John McCain offers a unique psychological exploration of power, rivalry, and the human condition.

The Whys and Hows of Broadway Transfers

Dance Magazine: To the audience of a Broadway show, what’s being presented onstage is crisp, harmonious, and expertly crafted. But in most cases, the production has had a yearslong journey to that polished final product—a journey that often winds through one or more other theaters.

Cirque du Soleil Announces: Songblazers – A Journey Into Country Music

www.cirquefascination.com: Cirque du Soleil and Universal Music Group Nashville are excited to present Songblazers, an innovative country-themed show written and directed by Amy Tinkham. This dynamic theatrical production pays tribute to the legendary and modern trailblazers of country music. Charting the journey of two main characters as they forge their own path to country recognition, Songblazers promises an unforgettable experience for audiences. Songblazers premieres July 2024 in Nashville and, today, Cirque du Soleil announces seven additional U.S. cities.

For Len Cariou, Dying Onstage Each Night Has Been ‘Invigorating’

The New York Times: Chris Domig was ready to throw in the towel. After a year-and-a-half-long search, a church chapel in Gramercy Park was the only affordable space Domig, the artistic director of the Off Off Broadway company Sea Dog Theater, had been able to find to mount a production of “Tuesdays With Morrie.” Chairs would have to be arranged on a set of risers on the altar. The props would be a piano, a couple of chairs, a walker and a wheelchair. The company also had almost no advertising budget.

Broadway's Suffs Partners with When We All Vote

Playbill: “Voting rights are a central theme of Suffs. We are excited to partner with When We All Vote to remind audiences of their constitutional right the suffragists fought so valiantly for over a century ago,” Suffs lead producers Jill Furman and Rachel Sussman said in a statement. “In this crucial election year, citizens need to use their voices and fight for the causes they care about, and we hope Suffs inspires them to do just that.”

The Importance of Community for Playwrights

HowlRound Theatre Commons: There is no theatre without the playwright. It is our duty to confront the blank page and create the story that will be handed over the producer, director, cast, crew, and audience. With the recent strikes, closings of theatres, the resignations, the restructuring, the reorganizing, the budget cuts, the challenges of the pandemic, and all the increases in the cost of living, artists are working hard to find new processes of making and disseminating their work.

This philosophical theory can help you stop taking criticism personally

theconversation.com: Receiving criticism in the workplace, whether on written reports and projects, presentations or performance reviews, can make us doubt ourselves. It can feel impossible not to take criticism personally because many of us tend to get our self-worth from our careers.

How San Francisco prepared this actor for a career in arts and activism

Datebook: Kristina Wong has many fond memories of growing up in San Francisco’s Sunset District, but middle school is nowhere near those lovely recollections. As a young teen in the early ’90s, once her school day ended, she trudged up the massive 14th Street hill to her house, the peak of her walk offering picturesque views from the Golden Gate Bridge to Sutro Tower.

‘Peter Pan’ star Raye Zaragoza brings powerful representation to role at Nederlander Theatre

Chicago Sun-Times: "Peter Pan" is flying again in a revamped take on the Tony Award-winning show beginning March 26 at the James M. Nederlander Theatre. While the story’s lead character remains steadfast about never wanting to grow up, the team behind the stage production has found a way to beautifully evolve J.M. Barrie’s 100-year-old classic. And it’s a Neverland that we’ve never seen.

Workers at ICON Creative Studio are Fighting for Union Representation

IATSE: Animation workers at Vancouver’s ICON Creative Studio, known for such animated productions as Monsters at Work, Ariel, Charlie the Wonderdog, and The Search for Wondla, are rallying to secure union representation with IATSE Local 938, The Canadian Animation Guild.

Two Shakespearean Triumphs in Paris, or a Plague on Both Their Houses?

The New York Times: Two Paris playhouses, both alike in dignity, putting on rival new Shakespeare productions. Thus expectations were high for a springtime face-off — with contemporary stagings of “Macbeth” and “Hamlet” — between the Comédie-Française, France’s top permanent company, and the Odéon-Théâtre de l’Europe, the Left Bank’s most venerable theater.

‘Don’t come if you are worried’: former RSC boss says he hates trigger warnings for plays

Theatre | The Guardian: It is a play renowned for its extreme physical violence, with scenes featuring execution, rape and mutilation. Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus even culminates with its eponymous character, the Roman general Titus, feeding Tamora, the queen of the Goths, her own sons “baked in a pie” before slaughtering her.

How to hack the Jacksonville Jaguars’ jumbotron (and end up in jail for 220 years)

Ars Technica: Where had the command come from? An Abekas Mira video control server known as MIRA9120. The Abekas Mira was meant to help in the production and display of instant replay video to be shown in-stadium on the massive jumbotron, but this particular server had been either decommissioned or kept on hand as a spare. In any event, the team thought the server was in storage. But when they went looking, MIRA9120 turned out to be sitting in the main server room, installed on a rack just beside the active Abekas Mira servers.

Shop Saw Basics

JLC Online: Despite the practicality of a jobsite table saw, there is no related task that I wouldn’t rather perform on a cabinet-style table saw. Its solid mass (500-plus pounds is typical), along with a 3- to 5-horsepower, 220-volt motor, helps absorb vibration and deliver the smooth, stable, and precise power and performance for which these machines are prized. My Grizzly GO690, though several thousand dollars from being a top-of-the-line cabinet saw, is nonetheless an accurate and reliable machine at the center of my 222-square-foot, home-based shop.

The Association For Lighting Production & Design Announces Its 2024 Awards For Excellence

Live Design Online: The ALPD will again be awarding in three categories; Lighting Design, Production Electrics and Programming, with each of the fantastic prize bundles being tailored to the specific needs of that speciality.

In ‘Travels,’ Ars Nova Becomes a Listening Bar for a Sonic Odyssey

joeysims.substack.com: In just the last few years, a slew of “listening bars” have opened across New York City. A growing trend that finds its historic roots in the jazz kissa — Japanese cafes designed for close listening to jazz music — these bars are sophisticated, often chic spaces designed for soft-toned speaking and careful attention to music. Most have drinks, and many offer food. But the focus, above all else, is total immersion in the journey of the sounds.

Kansas Keeps the Anniversary Tour Rolling with Bandit Lites

Lighting&Sound America Online - News: Classic rock band KANSAS is extending The 50th Anniversary Tour into 2024, commemorating their first year as a band. With the release of their newest box set, Another Fork in the Road, KANSAS is bringing even more song selections to their performances, including some deep cuts fans haven't heard live in decades.

Bernadette Peters on Stephen Sondheim: 'He's Our Shakespeare'

variety.com: The Tony-winning Broadway icon Bernadette Peters has long been considered one of the foremost performers of composer Stephen Sondheim‘s work. But as Peters revealed in the latest episode of “Stagecraft,” Variety‘s theater podcast, it wasn’t quite love at first sight when she initially performed his tunes. It was more like love at second sight.

Palm Royale's Costume Designer Alix Friedberg Talks '60s Fashion

Who What Wear: Grab your lamé gown and Gucci Jackie—we're going to the Palm Royale! What's the Palm Royale, you ask? Oh, just the glitziest, most exclusive club in Palm Beach, Miami, and unlike Maxine Dellacorte Simmons, you don't need to clamour over the back wall to get in…

AFM Ratifies Deal With AI Protections and Streaming Residuals

variety.com: The American Federation of Musicians has voted to ratify its new contract with the major studios, which provides for streaming residuals and protections from artificial intelligence.

Steppenwolf retools its youth theater program

Chicago Reader: When Steppenwolf Theatre’s 2024-25 season announcement came out a couple of weeks ago, it sparked immediate concern for what wasn’t included: namely, any productions for the company’s much-lauded Steppenwolf for Young Adults (SYA) program. Things moved pretty quickly on social media from concern to outrage to mourning.

Another Cirque artist injured in ‘O’ Island act

www.cirquefascination.com: Nine months after a Cirque du Soleil artist was paralyzed in an on-stage accident during “O” at Bellagio, another cast member has been injured in the same act. The incident halted Friday’s 7 p.m. performance of Cirque’s flagship production on the Strip. The artist, who has not been identified according to the company’s medical-privacy policies, fell from another performer’s shoulders during the show’s Island scene.

Architect submits plan to transform West End theatre into first European base for Cirque du Soleil

News | Building: SPPARC has unveiled its plans to transform a grade II-listed cinema building in the heart of London’s West End into the first European base of Cirque du Soleil. Proposals submitted to Camden council for developer Yoo Capital would see the partial demolition of the Saville Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue and the addition of a six-storey roof extension.

Preview: Four works - including Two World Premieres - Take Center Stage in Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre's 2024 Edition of 'Spring Mix'

onstagepittsburgh.com: The mixed repertory program features classical and contemporary pieces – including both fresh new works and classics – accompanied by live music from the PBT Orchestra. The program includes the world premiere of When Time Stands Still by award-winning Pittsburgh-based choreographer Jae Man Joo, a world premiere by PBT Principal Artist and Choreographer-in-Residence Yoshiaki Nakano, the return of the dynamic Petal by Helen Pickett and the elegant, extraordinary Allegro Brillante from George Balanchine, known by many as the “father of 20th-century American ballet.”

Review Roundup: THE WHO'S TOMMY Returns To Broadway!

www.broadwayworld.com: The Pinball Wizard has returned to conquer Broadway! The revival of the iconic rock n'roll spectacle The Who's Tommy is opening tonight at the Nederlander Theatre in a new production from original Tony Award-winning creators Pete Townshend and Des McAnuff.

Every play is fantastic

Intermission: I will never see a bad play. I will never get bored. Every production will be excellent. Inspired. Fantastic. Garbled lines? No, that’s how it was written in the script. Missed cues? …sorry, was that supposed to be me? My bad. Wait, no, not bad. Never bad. Fantastic.

30 Years of Rock ‘n’ Robe celebrated at Prolight+Sound

LightSoundJournal.com: Czech moving and LED lighting manufacturer Robe celebrated its 30th anniversary in fantastic style in Hall 12.1 at the 2024 Prolight+Sound expo in Frankfurt and looked forward to another 30 years at the forefront of lighting innovation.

Critical Steps: Under Covered

AMERICAN THEATRE: The way critics are depicted in pop culture, you might mistake them for mortal enemies of the striving artist (or at least as the shadowy nemeses of plucky rat chefs in Paris). But the reality is that the relationship between artists and those who magnify and examine their work is much more symbiotic.

RealTime Arts and Shady Side Academy present KHŪRĀKĪ - A Celebration of Afghanistan in Pittsburgh

onstagepittsburgh.com: Experience the flavors, music, and culture of Afghanistan as you follow a group of Afghan women from their lives during Taliban rule to a new beginning in Pittsburgh.

Saudi expo pavilion set Guinness record with Absen LED

www.avinteractive.com: A Saudi exhibition pavilion has set a Guinness World Record for its use of Absen LED. The pavilion at the International Horticultural Expo in Doha, Qatar broke the record for the largest display of exterior LED screens, with an array of 435 external LED columns.

Breaking the Binary Announces Regional Theatre Partnership Program

AMERICAN THEATRE: Breaking the Binary Theatre has announced a new program called BTB Across America, in which they will partner with regional theatre companies to support local transgender, nonbinary, and Two-Spirit+ (TNB2S+) artists in those communities. Sponsored by Jody Falco and Jeffrey Steinman, the partnerships will launch at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in May and Steppenwolf Theatre in July, where the companies will produce one-week workshops of new plays by TNB2S+ artists based in Washington, D.C., or Chicago, respectively. The program will also offer open positions to other community-based TNB2S+ artists through the partnership.

Japan Has Said Goodbye to Its Life-Sized Gundam

gizmodo.com: A little over 3 years after it made its stomping debut, the mechanized, moving real-scale replica of the original legendary Gundam in Yokohama is no more. But Bandai sent out its walking, talking giant robot with a bang—and a tribute that paid homage to Gundam’s past and present.

The Great Gatsby Begins Performances on Broadway March 29

Playbill: The Broadway transfer of The Great Gatsby begins performances on Broadway March 29. The new musical, which premiered at Paper Mill Playhouse in fall 2023, officially opens April 25 at the Broadway Theatre.

2024 Non-Equity Jeff Award winners announced

Chicago Sun-Times: Refracted Theatre Company's production of "Tambo & Bones" was the big winner at Monday night's Non-Equity Jeff Awards ceremony at the Park West. "Tambo & Bones" received eight awards overall at the gala, which marked the 50th anniversary honoring excellence in Chicago's Non-Equity theater community.

Govee Just Released a New Neon Rope Light

Lifehacker: I grew up in the the '80s—the golden age of neon—so naturally I always dreamed of owning a neon sign from Hot Topic. This week, Govee, my favorite brand for LED light chaos, released its latest version of neon rope, and from all reports, it’s exactly as fun as you’d think.

What Does "Broadway Choreography" Mean Today?

Dance Magazine: Sign up for a musical theater dance class and you’ll likely see a familiar mix of isolations and high kicks, shoulder rolls and chassés. But that might not prepare you for the actual dancing showing up on today’s Broadway stages, which no longer fits into any neat Michael Bennett–or Jack Cole–inspired boxes.

“Murder most foul”: How Shakespeare connects Abraham Lincoln and John Wilkes Booth

Folger Shakespeare Library: James L. Swanson’s non-fiction bestseller, Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer, brought a page-turning energy to the facts of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the subsequent hunt for John Wilkes Booth and his accomplices. The first few episodes of Apple TV’s adaptation have just dropped, and while the simply-titled Manhunt doesn’t have the same strict adherence to the facts — nor, as I’ve argued before, is it required to — both the book and the miniseries provide an eerie reminder of the deep connections the president and his murderer share with William Shakespeare.

Outreach Is Central to Carnegie Mellon's Approach to FAFSA Changes

News - Carnegie Mellon University: Changes intended to simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) in 2024 have led to delays and confusion for students and their families across the country. The staff in Carnegie Mellon University’s Office of the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management and Dean of Admission use of data-informed, individual outreach has been crucial for returning and prospective CMU students seeking to surmount this year’s shifting FAFSA situation.

'The Price Is Right' Has Plan For Contestant Who Pee Themselves

brobible.com: The Price is Right tends to feature some of the most enthusiastic contestants you’ll ever encounter on a game show, and the program apparently has a plan in place if anyone gets excited to the point where they pee their pants.

What Was Vaudeville- A Brief History

www.broadwayworld.com: Not long ago, venues across the country were selling out houses and packing in crowds- and it wasn't for plays, musicals, or concerts as we know them today. Vaudeville, while its time in the spotlight was short, laid the groundwork for many aspects of modern entertainment and had a profound impact on live theatre today.

Meet the people in the plant in 'Little Shop of Horrors' at Ford's Theatre

DC Theater Arts: When audiences see Little Shop of Horrors at Ford’s Theatre, they probably are not thinking about the people inside the plant: not the people who are the plant’s victims, and not the stellar Tobias A. Young who voices it, but the people literally inside the plant throughout the show’s two-hour runtime.

Why 'Hester Street' matters: Sharyn Rothstein on her world premiere play with music at Theater J

DC Theater Arts: Billed as Theater J’s “largest production ever”—with a cast of nine and a trio of multifaceted musicians, some of whom double as actors—Hester Street is a passionate musical drama about immigration more than a century ago.

Dazzling circus arts, ferocious conflicts, and abiding love in ‘Water for Elephants’ at Broadway’s Imperial Theatre

DC Theater Arts: Part spectacle, part love story, part behind-the-scenes exposé, and fully captivating through it all, the new musical adaptation of Water for Elephants, now in its Broadway premiere at the Imperial Theatre, tells the story of a young man who jumps a moving train and joins a traveling circus after losing his parents and home during the Great Depression.

DAS Audio and Light Up the Night bring 360 sound to We Belong Here fest

LightSoundJournal.com: We Belong Here is an organization dedicated to building community, offering experiences in unique settings celebrating fashion, music, and entertainment in New York, Miami, and beyond. For the third year, they put on a highly anticipated electronic dance festival in Miami, Florida, bringing in headliners including GRAMMY-nominated, UK-based DJ and producer Duke Dumont, Bob Moses, Gordo, Tchami, Wax Motif, and more.

THE WHO'S TOMMY on Broadway- A Complete Guide

www.broadwayworld.com: Looking for all the latest info on one of Broadway's hottest shows? BroadwayWorld has the full scoop on everything that you need to know about The Who's Tommy on Broadway.

How Adam Jacobs Appeared In Aladdin and The Who's Tommy In One Night

Playbill: The stars aligned for actor Adam Jacobs March 28. As Broadway's original Aladdin, he naturally wanted to be involved in the production's spectacular 10th anniversary celebration. But there was one major hitch: He had to open a different Broadway show, The Who's Tommy, the very same night.

Baltimore Theatre Companies to Present Citywide August Wilson Century Cycle Celebration

Playbill: Ten Baltimore theatre companies will collaborate on an unprecedented joint celebration of August Wilson's Century Cycle over the next three years. Presenting the late playwright's 10 iconic plays in chronological order, a different Baltimore company will present one play each from the Century Cycle throughout the 2024 to 2027 seasons.

How Much Would You Pay to Make Sure You Never Sawed Off a Finger?

The New York Times: What’s it worth to you to minimize the risk of cutting off a finger? $300? $600? $1,200? Or perhaps it’s worth nothing, if you think you’re already careful enough? If you’re a woodworker willing to spend enough money, you can buy a table saw that detects fingers and stops the blade