For the Love of Arts Criticism

Arts Fuse in Boston presented For the Love of Arts Criticism archived on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Monday 26 February at 7 p.m. EST (Boston) / 6 p.m. CST (Chicago) / 4 p.m. PST (San Francisco). Writers interested in contributing reviews or commentaries to The Arts Fuse should e-mail editor Bill Marx at [email protected].

An Arts Fuse rally for more arts criticism! "For the Love of Arts Criticism" was the first in a proposed series of free discussions on the fragile state of theatre and arts criticism in the city's mainstream media. Testaments to the value of reviews to artists and others were followed by an exploration of how to turn the situation around. Help ensure the future of an indispensable but endangered part of the cultural ecology!

The evening was made up of three parts. First there was a discussion of the history of arts criticism in Boston (it has not always been so grim) and then an inspiring vision of what criticism does, at its best, concluding with a rousing case for why we need more (and better) critics to cover Boston's rapidly expanding cultural scene.

If the city’s companies, performers, and critics got together to protest the phasing out of arts criticism, it would make cultural history. There have been few occasions in the past when reviewers and the arts community collaborated for the purpose of fighting for the existence of arts criticism. There’s been agitation aimed at removing objectionable reviewers from their jobs — but few collective demands that critics be put back in their places. Let’s turn hundreds (thousands?) of years of acrimony topsy-turvy and work together for a worthy cause: the betterment of the local arts scene by demanding more (and better) criticism.

About HowlRound TV
HowlRound TV is a global, commons-based peer produced, open access livestreaming and video archive project stewarded by the nonprofit HowlRound. HowlRound TV is a free and shared resource for live conversations and performances relevant to the world's performing arts and cultural fields. Its mission is to break geographic isolation, promote resource sharing, and to develop our knowledge commons collectively. Participate in a community of peer organizations revolutionizing the flow of information, knowledge, and access in our field by becoming a producer and co-producing with us. Learn more by going to our participate page. For any other queries, email [email protected], or call Vijay Mathew at +1 917.686.3185 Signal/WhatsApp. View the video archive of past events.