Category Archives: smARTy

Art, theatre, music, and other spasms of the soul.

Mysticism in Theatre and in Life

We revisited this post from 2017 the day after the 2020 elections and found it to be every bit as relevant now, as this quote from the linked article suggests: “As we head into a more difficult and divisive period in American political and social history, a reinvigoration of these ideas represents a much-needed remedy. Read More

Politics in Theatre

Intelligence is the third in Arena Stage’s Power Plays initiative—a ten-year plan to commission twenty-five plays, one for each decade of American history, about power and politics. Deputy Artistic Director Seema Sueko told me that the initiative was the result of Artistic Director Molly Smith “having her ears, eyes, and heart open to the heartbeat of Read More

Hippie Recall Dims

Groove not approved: permit denied for Summer of Love 50th anniversary party Plans to celebrate a pivotal moment in San Francisco’s hippie history have been quashed after city cited safety concerns – and people says it’s not cool, man. Hippies dance at a psychedelic rock concert at the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco, California, in Read More

Arts in the Time of Trump

Whither the arts under our current Administration? Harvey Young in HowlRound argues that the outlook may not be as bad as we might fear, and concludes with this statement: “In this Age of Trump, my hope is that we collectively can lobby for continued (and, perhaps, increased) arts funding, advocate for the creation of socially Read More