All about politics, policy, society and how those things relate to culture and art.
Even in corona time, there is plenty for a culture consumer to enjoy. Take last week. On Sunday (before the big snow started), my wife and I took a walk to downtown Amersfoort. There, a stall not only sells the city's tastiest Latte, but there are also a few....
On social media, and in mainstream media for that matter, it is not helpful to be overly clever. The adage of my father, who was a journalist and taught me not to be afraid to ask stupid questions, has been elevated to a code of honour. You only have to watch 15 minutes of Op1, or WNL on Sunday, and you make...
'There is no other sector in the Netherlands that is as controlled and regulated as the cultural sector.' D66 MP Salima Belhaj sighed this towards the end of the debate organised by the assembled cultural sector lobby clubs on Monday 8 February. 'It takes an incredible amount of work, time and especially money. And the basis is distrust.' The most culture-friendly party of...
We stelden hem een aantal vragen naar zijn ervaringen en invloeden. Wat is jouw ervaring met animatie tot nu toe? ‘Als kind tekende ik graag strips. Ik maakte met een vriend de strip Kaas-Trek, een soort persiflage op Star-Trek, en die verkochten we dan aan klasgenootjes en daar kochten we snoep van. Who framed Roger Rabbit herinner ik me als…
Critics by default have a different opinion than the average audience. That, says Marijn Lems, theatre journalist at NRC and Theaterkrant, is what this research shows. Reason for us to take a closer look at this in the Culture Press Nerd podcast on the deeper details of the art journalist's profession. Another three-quarters of an hour for anecdotes and exciting revelations about the private life of the...
News arrived this week that Andreas Fleischmann, the highly esteemed director of Amsterdam's DeLaMar Theatre, has now officially become director-director of Stichting MusicalMakers, the foundation he had set up last year, a day before the deadline for grant applications for four-year state funding. And that is not allowed.
People will not be eager (in large numbers) to go to packed halls again. Many 'old' culture visitors can be considered lost. The cultural sector faces a twofold challenge: to minimise this loss and to look for new audiences even more than usual.
To get a subsidy in the Netherlands, you have to jump through a lot of hoops. Every farmer knows that, and so does every artist. In the cultural sector, for instance, it is important that you have a form of organisation that is controllable and approachable. You cannot have a profit motive either. That is why you can usually only apply for funding as a foundation, so you have statutes, a board and a...
Good news from Friesland. The five larger theatres in the Netherlands' most independent province are going to cooperate intensively to tackle the corona crisis together.
Due to the corona pandemic, 2020 was also a crisis year for the cinema industry. Attendance fell by 56% compared to 2019. But the failure of US blockbusters allowed the Dutch market share to rise.
Planning in 2021 can only be done in the very short term, or with so many fits and starts that it is actually impossible to deal with. Therefore, at Lowlands - if it goes ahead at all - we will have a lot of offerings from our own country and the very close neighbouring countries.
Germany has 80 million people, the Netherlands 17 million, so we can multiply the Dutch aid by five if we want to test the German claim. Still, we arrive at an amount three times higher.
In this podcast, I talk to Marjolein Verhallen and Paul Adriaanse from Public Administration, Nanna Verhoef from Media and Iris van der Tuin from Philosophy, and artistic directors Lars Ebert and Jente Hoogeveen about what that is: leadership. And we talk about how you can learn it.
Earlier this year, Cinekid was in danger of dropping out of the basic cultural infrastructure due to a 'no, unless' advice from the Culture Council. An updated application has now changed the Council's mind. If the minister adopts it, Cinekid can go full steam ahead for four years. An interview with Cinekid director Heleen Rouw.
When it talks about 'some adjustments', of course, you have to be careful. They know that at the province, so they don't mention details. And those details include a cut of 1.3 million from previously promised amounts.
With the saving of Frascati and at least a Chamber that does understand the importance of the sector, the most depressing event of the year - the culture budget debate - still ended with a few bright spots.
On Thursday morning 12 November, the culture spokespersons of Christen Unie, VVD, D'66 and Groen Links entered into a debate on culture. However, the debate organised by LACK (Landelijk Kennisinstituut Cultuureducatie en Amateurkunst) Kunsten '92, the Fund for Cultural Participation and the Boekman Foundation did not become scintillating for a moment.
The support cultural organisations receive from the government seems generous, but we can add some nuance to this. This is because if a local authority gives emergency support to a museum, support is then set off against the National Enterprise Scheme (NOW).
Due to the latest covid measures, November Music 2020 will be cancelled at the very last minute. The organisers had prepared some 70 different concerts with 9 of their own commissions corona-proof.
The Netherlands is not big enough for two major musical producers. That is the only conclusion that can be drawn from Albert Verlinde's departure from Stage Entertainment.
On Tuesday 3 November 2020, America will go to the polls. TivoliVredenburg in Utrecht presents a live programme around this exciting election. Current measures allow a maximum of 30 visitors in a room. Therefore, a live stream will be set up in four halls, so that as many people as possible can still enjoy it live.
Strictly speaking, prioritisation is another word for wielding a saw line, but it feels different. 'Prioritisation within the applicable criteria', as stated on the site, smacks of possible arbitrariness, as nowhere is it indicated which criteria were weighted how heavily.
Titled "Keep the theatre on the square!", PLEIN THEATER has launched a petition! And calls on culture lovers, visitors, local residents and anyone with a heart for PLEIN THEATER to sign for the survival of the theatre
Under the leadership of Viktorien van Hulst, Boulevard Theatre Festival has grown into a regionally rooted festival of national importance. Every year, Boulevard manages to strike a smart balance between entertainment with substance and joyful innovation, with a keen eye on inclusivity.
The total of eight festivals that were given a place in the Basic Cultural Infrastructure thanks to vigorous political lobbying are in the clear. They do not benefit from the extra millions released by the Cabinet on Budget Day to rescue the Performing Arts Fund, because they are not (or no longer) covered by it.
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