Category Archives: Politics

Debating debates

Posted on October 9, 2020 by

Is it time to re-think debates? We have lived for quite a long time in a culture here in the western world, where the consensus is often unspoken. While there may have been something friendly & cordial in our past, … Continue reading →

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Arkady Spivak talks about TIFT Basic Income Guarantee Project

Posted on October 9, 2020 by

Arkady Spivak is the Artistic Producer of Talk is Free Theatre, a company you may recall for some remarkable shows. I remember tiny perfect shows like their adaptation of Candide, Parkdale Peter Pan or Dani Girl. I can’t forget bigger … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Interviews, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics, Press Releases and Announcements | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Yes we can

Posted on October 2, 2020 by

Is he really gone? Alexander Neef may be in Europe with the Paris Opera but it was already a promiscuous relationship, this General Directorship of the COC. Neef was working for his Toronto audience while at the same time taking … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Carefully re-opening

Posted on September 1, 2020 by

If you’re over 50 years of age, you may be wondering about the resumption of theatre & concerts. We miss them. But we also know that there’s a pandemic on, and it’s especially hazardous for those who are older. You … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics | 6 Comments

Service or Business? the election selection

Posted on August 29, 2020 by

We’re helpless in the face of a mystery virus. It seems that everywhere you turn in the media, conspiracies are all around us. The gentler word is “hoax”, that stops short of the kind of thing one sees with ideas … Continue reading →

Posted in Dance, theatre & musicals, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics, Popular music & culture | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mary Trump’s Too Much and Never Enough

Posted on July 29, 2020 by

I read Mary Trump’s book yesterday. I couldn’t put it down, and no that’s not just a figure of speech. I confess it did take me past midnight, reading 200+ pages, skipping nothing, re-reading a few key passages. We bought … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics, Psychology and perception | Tagged , | Leave a comment

The view from here: perspectives on careers in music & the arts from Margarete von Vaight

Posted on June 17, 2020 by

An interview with Margarete von Vaight Careers in the arts were always a risky proposition.  Right now as companies push the pause button on their seasons there’s extra cause for concern.  Can those organizations come back? And what happens to … Continue reading →

Posted in Interviews, Music and musicology, Opera, Politics, Popular music & culture, University life | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

“If you build it they will come” revisited, or Field of Dreams in 2020

Posted on June 3, 2020 by

I was looking for an uplifting bit of escapism. Field of Dreams is a film that I’ve always loved. It still moved me when I saw it this weekend but now in a totally new way. One of the small … Continue reading →

Posted in Books & Literature, Cinema, video & DVDs, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics, Popular music & culture, Spirituality & Religion, Sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Musical Gentrification

Posted on May 25, 2020 by

I don’t know about you, but I’ve got lots of time to think, to ponder questions old & new. One of my oldest questions is the conundrum of popularity in music. It’s a complicated phenomenon, and I’m not saying I … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Architecture & Design, Dance, theatre & musicals, Essays, Music and musicology, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Lepage’s Coriolanus: a video sandwich

Posted on May 1, 2020 by

There’s a particular magic to live theatre that you can almost glimpse in an online transmission, but it’s not really the same, not quite so magical. When I see Coriolanus get into a car onstage that seems to drive into … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Architecture & Design, Cinema, video & DVDs, Dance, theatre & musicals, Opera, Personal ruminations & essays, Politics, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment