Homeland Security has circulated a “be on the lookout” alert to law enforcement nationwide for a comedian whose satire of immigration enforcement went viral (The Guardian). File it next to the universities quietly disinviting commencement speakers who might say something challenging (The Conversation), and the plan to build a 250-foot triumphal arch on the strength of a permission slip Congress signed 101 years ago (The Washington Post). Three different mechanisms — a watchlist, a heckler’s veto and a century-old loophole — are all determining who or what gets to occupy public space and what doesn’t. Turbulent times, my friends, turbulent times…

Elsewhere the question is gentler: not who gets silenced, but who is paying to keep culture alive. New Zealand is handing most of its arts-funding decisions to as many as 16 regional bodies (The Big Idea), a Finnish museum is covering four artists’ salaries and health insurance outright (The Art Newspaper) in a radical rethink of how to support artists (remember yesterday’s story about music venues in the UK allowing touring bands a place to sleep after their gigs), and Canada’s culture regulator just told streamers they will have to spend 15 percent of their revenue on Canadian content (AP) if they want to operate in the Great White North. Three countries, three evolving notions of where cultural support should come from.

And in a file marked the audience always finds a way: Seattle Opera held its first official Furry Night, led by the baritone singing Escamillo — better known to the fandom as Chester the Geroo (The Stranger).

All of our stories below. Have a great Memorial Day weekend.

Doug

Yes, this is a thing. – The San Francisco Standard

We no longer argue about whether art as such is a matter of life and death—we assume that it’s not. Consequently, critics aren’t prompted to ask about the political valence of their own activity: Is criticism itself a moral good? – Artforum

In 2019, Howard Reich, longtime jazz critic of the Chicago Tribune, published The Art of Inventing Hope, based on conversations with Elie Wiesel and Reich’s mother’s experiences in WWII Poland. He has now adapted that book into an opera libretto, The Dialogue of Memories, with music by Tom Cipullo. – WTTW (Chicago)

An indicative ballot held by the performing arts union, Equity, was overwhelmingly backed by its membership: 98% voted yes to potential strikes. The result means the union now has the right to have a statutory ballot on taking industrial action. – The Guardian

Daniel Weiss took over as director and CEO in December after the dismissal of former leader Sasha Suda. He has rolled back some of the decisions made during her tenure, including the brief renaming of the museum as the “Philadelphia Art Museum,” or PhAM. And now new leaders in finance and human resources. – Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)

The national government’s arts agency, Creative New Zealand, plans to have most funding decisions (excepting international projects and national companies such as the NZ Symphony and Royal NZ Ballet) made by up to 16 independent regional organizations. – The Big Idea (New Zealand)

His return became one of the most remarkable late-career success stories in American opera. As his voice matured into a true dramatic tenor, Pulliam emerged as a sought-after interpreter of Verdi and other heavyweight repertoire. – Moto Perpetuo

In 2022, Vermont Public Radio merged with Vermont Public Television to form a new entity titled simply Vermont Public. The marriage pulled together 57 employees from the radio network and 42 from the TV side and total assets valued at $90 million. It thus became the state’s largest news organization by far. – Valley News (Vermont)

Large online streaming services must contribute 15% of their Canadian revenues to Canadian content, the country’s federal broadcast regulator said Thursday. That figure is three times the 5% initial contribution requirement the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission, CRTC, set out in 2024. – AP News

The evening was championed by baritone Christian Pursell, better known in the fandom as Chester the Geroo, who plays Escamillo in Carmen. As far as anyone can tell, this was the first official Furry Night at the opera in history, a genuinely historic moment for the fandom and the city of Seattle. – The Stranger

“Over the years with the RSC, the English Shakespeare Company” — which he co-founded — “and beyond, Pennington played most of the leading roles in the canon; … his stage career looked like ‘he drew up a list of the juiciest roles in the classical repertoire and methodically set about ticking them off’.” – The Times (UK)

Some students only want people who hold similar views to address them at their graduation. They exercise what free speech law experts call a “heckler’s veto,” meaning when an audience’s reaction, or anticipated response, stops someone from speaking. – The Conversation

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has circulated a “Be on the Lookout” alert to law enforcement nationwide, targeting a comedian whose satire of US immigration enforcement went viral. – The Guardian

The museum has committed to supporting four artists over the next several years—P. Staff, Tarik Kiswanson, Jenna Sutela and Eglė Budvytytė—in four distinct ways: acquiring their work throughout the period; financially supporting external production; providing a part-time stipend for a year to alleviate financial pressure; and covering health insurance for a year. – The Art Newspaper

“The owner of the Peanuts television and film music catalog is suing multiple entities over the alleged unlawful use of jazz artist Vince Guaraldi’s famous tracks from the “Charlie Brown” franchise. Lee Mendelson Film Productions filed four federal copyright lawsuits, … (one of them against) the U.S. Department of the Interior.” – USA Today

The Tribune, owned by finance firm Alden Global Capital, landed the deal to purchase the employee-owned Herald (based in northwestern suburb Arlington Heights) after several full-page ads, an 11th-hour bid and (probably) a premium price. – Chicago Tribune (Yahoo!)

Joshua Kosman: “In appointing Elim Chan as its next music director, the San Francisco Symphony has tapped the most inexperienced, unproven new artistic leader the organization has had in more than 40 years. The choice could not have been wiser or more opportune.” – San Francisco Chronicle (MSN)

“The Trump administration does not plan to seek approval from Congress for President Donald Trump’s planned 250-foot arch, arguing that they do not need it because lawmakers a century ago authorized a somewhat similar project that was never built.” – The Washington Post

“A decision to go ahead with a sale of ATG Entertainment, previously known as Ambassador Theatre Group, … could value the business at more than £4 billion ($5.38 billion). … ATG Entertainment ​owns and ⁠operates more than 70 venues across the UK, the United States, Germany and Spain.” – Reuters (MSN)

WEIU, licensed to and based at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, has halted over-the-air broadcasting and become an online-streaming-only station. Now-discontinued federal grants had made up 80% of its budget. – Jacksonville (Illinois) Journal-Courier

American Players Theatre, located in Spring Green, Wisconsin — a town 40 miles west of Madison, home to roughly 1,500 people and Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin — presents nine productions each year in its 1,075-seat amphitheater and 200-seat indoor space. APT’s repertory focuses on “timeless, challenging, poetic texts,” particularly Shakespeare. – Wisconsin Public Radio

The San Francisco Symphony finally named a music director — Elim Chan — after the bruising Salonen departure left what once was one of America’s most ambitious orchestras adrift (KQED). Set it in the context of Laurence Vittes’ new report card arguing the field is changing shape, not just shrinking its budgets (Strings).

The day’s other thread is about authenticity. An AI cleared a Turing test for the first time, fooling the judges more often than the real humans did (Neuroscience News). Then it was revealed that a Commonwealth-prize-winning short story is now suspected of being AI-written (The Guardian). Also: AI-voiced pirated audiobooks are flooding YouTube faster than anyone can pull them (The New York Times). The capability isn’t the crisis, the missing chain of attribution is.

A useful counter-fact amid the gloom: adjusted for inflation, West End ticket prices have fallen below 2019 levels (WhatsOnStage). And as machines learn to pass for us, neuroscientists are wiring people up to find where beauty actually lives in the brain (Smithsonian).

See you tomorrow.

Doug