The Arts Fuse Newsletter, March 6
A Big Name Lineup: Allen Ginsberg & Bob Dylan, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Keith Haring, and Abdullah Ibrahim. And March Short Fuse Madness!
From The Editor's Desk:
The snapshot above is of the bottom of the program for the American Repertory Theater’s production of Becoming a Man. It would be tantalizing to speculate why a philanthropic organization like the Barr Foundation would be called on to fund (in part) a talkback at the end of the show. But the move is business as usual for A.R.T. artistic director/ ace entrepreneur Diane Paulus, who is brilliant at finding ways to dovetail branding opportunities and theatrical virtue signaling. No, it is the “Media Support is provided by WBUR” I would like to scrutinize. In the A.R.T. program, the arrangement with the radio station is clear. But WBUR’s review of Becoming a Man doesn’t state that connection. And that matters.
Critic Jacquinn Sinclair has every right to be very positive about the production. But the critique of show (as of this writing) does not inform readers that the NPR outlet is supplying the A.R.T. with “Media Support,” which is defined as those media being “used to reinforce messages sent to target markets through other more ‘dominant’ and/or more traditional media.” It is a matter of editorial honesty. The station should be upfront with readers: it has some sort of marketing agreement with the A.R.T.
The issue is about maintaining precious credibility. Polls suggests that the public has become skeptical of mainstream journalism, increasingly suspicious of its claims of independence and fairness. I would posit the media is not only cutting on back its arts coverage, but treating what it does provide as publicity. NPR has a reputation for integrity — its branding ‘halo’ — and that is undercut by the implication, in this case, that its arts criticism may be a means to serve up “reinforcing messages to target markets.” Letting readers know that there is a mutually supportive set-up with the A.R.T. — so they can make up their own minds — addresses the issue. Transparency is key.
—Bill Marx, Editor-in-Chief
Book Review: The Life and Times of Keith Haring, An Iconic Artist
By John Killacky
This robust biography is a compendium of vivid, first-person narratives that provide an engaging insider’s perspective on the artist’s life.
Jazz Album Review: Abdullah Ibrahim’s “3” – Meditations on a Legacy
By Steve Elman
A new release from South African pianist and composer Abdullah Ibrahim adds almost 100 minutes to a legacy of paramount importance to jazz, to world music, and to our understanding of a life lived in art.
Theater Review: “Thirst” — In the Shadow of Greatness
By David Greenham
The weight of the masterpiece on the other side of the kitchen door is ever-present, and it casts a smothering shadow on this lighter drama.
Book Reviews: Allen Ginsberg and Bob Dylan — Together Again
By David Daniel
Because they were masters of performance, metamorphosis, and movement -- of “containing multitudes” -- Allen Ginsberg and Bob Dylan are the closest peers to Whitman America has yet produced.
Book Review: “Glad to the Brink of Fear: A Portrait of Ralph Waldo Emerson” — Generous and Eloquent
By Peter Behrens
This arch-New Englander, descendant of Puritans, is also “the American who resists branding, who will not be commodified.”
March Short Fuses — Materia Critica
Compiled by Arts Fuse Editor
March Short Fuse Madness! Critical salvos from Bill Marx, Tess Lewis, Peter Keough, Peter Walsh, Susan Miron, Peg Aloi, Mark Favermann, Ralph Locke, Helen Epstein, and John Killacky.
Book Review: “How to Build a Boat” — A Novel That Breaks and Lifts the Heart
By Roberta Silman
This splendid book should be read by every child and adult who is convinced he doesn’t “fit in.”
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Editor-in-Chief
Bill Marx
wmarx103@gmail.com
