Greensboro Symphony, May 2, 2026

“We will be performing the orchestrated version by the French composer Maurice Ravel, who adds a level of color, brilliance and imagination that has truly cemented its popularity today.” — Christopher Dragon, Music Director and Conductor, Greensboro Symphony

Before the first note of the Greensboro Symphony’s season finale, the conductor offered a bit of history. Pictures at an Exhibition began as a piano suite by the Russian Modest Mussorgsky, inspired by a walk through a gallery of paintings by his late friend, Viktor Hartmann.

Mussorgsky wrote the experience of looking—the walk itself as much as the art. Fifty years later, Maurice Ravel “walked through” Mussorgsky’s score and orchestrated it.

That second act of translation is what we heard on Saturday night. And it’s one of the most vivid examples of what happens when the arts pay attention to each other.

Painting with Sound

To understand Ravel’s 1922 orchestration, you have to look at his neighborhood. Paris at the time was the most visually explosive city in the world. Ravel wasn’t just a spectator; he was in the room while Matisse was using “violent” colors to carry emotion and Picasso was fracturing reality with Cubism.

When Ravel sat down to orchestrate, he didn’t reach for a traditional 19th-century sound. He reached for color. He used woodwinds for warmth and brass for brightness. He was, in effect, painting with sound.

A Silent Dialogue

The strangest part? Mussorgsky’s original 1874 suite was already in a dialogue with a movement he likely knew nothing about. Impressionism.

1874 was the same year the French Impressionists held their first group exhibition in Paris. While Monet was learning how to paint light and atmosphere rather than just “facts,” Mussorgsky was across the world, trying to capture the feeling of a painting rather than just its surface. They were solving the same problem from opposite ends of the continent.

Ravel—steeped in the French tradition— brought those two imaginations together.

Why We Listen to Color

We tend to think of artistic disciplines as separate: music is music, painting is painting. But artists rarely experience it that way. They are constantly looking and listening across the fence. When modern musicians speak of a sound being "bright," "dark," or "warm," they are using a vocabulary that crystallized in this era.

Ravel heard a piano piece and saw what his environment had taught him to see:

• The Fauvist idea that color is feeling.

• The Cubist understanding of multiple perspectives.

• The Impressionist conviction that atmosphere is the subject.

You can hear it in the lumbering brass of “Bydlo” or the delicate, quarreling woodwinds of “Tuileries.” These aren’t just musical notes; they are images rendered by a man who learned from painters.

The Arts Are Always Talking

This is the best argument for experiencing the full range of arts in our own community. A gesture in painting ripples into music; a theatrical breakthrough reshapes how a visual artist thinks about space. A classical work echoes and sparks new fires in today’s writers.

The connections aren’t always announced, but they are always there. Whether Matisse is hiding in the brass section or Paris is present every time we walk into a local gallery, the arts are always talking to each other.

The only question is whether we are in the room where it happens.

Designing the Season Finale video, Katja Maas: “In my work as a designer, I always try to convey what it feels like to experience the performance, in this case, what it feels like to go to the Greensboro Symphony Season Finale at Tanger for Mussorgsky’s Pictures At An Exhibition.”

26/27 Season Passes are on sale now

Greensboro Symphony Season Passes for Masterworks Series and Pops Series are on sale now offering fantastic deals if you want to be in the room, next season!

GET SEASON TICKETS

Foot Notes: The Art Influences

• Impressionism — Monet, Renoir, Pissarro (1874–1886): The foundation layer. Ravel was born in 1875, just after the first Impressionist exhibition. He grew up in a city metabolizing their revolution. The core argument—that light is a condition of seeing—became the water he swam in. This is why it shows up in his orchestration as a sensibility: the shimmer of strings and the refusal to state anything too directly. Mussorgsky, in 1874, was unknowingly asking the same questions from St. Petersburg that Monet was asking from the Seine. Ravel was the one who, half a century later, absorbed both.

• Fauvism — Matisse (1905–1910): The color-as-emotion layer. By 1922, Paris had been marinating in Fauvist intensity for two decades. Matisse’s Woman with a Hat (1905) is the landmark—shocking then, normalized by the time Ravel premiered his orchestration.

• Cubism — Picasso (1910–1915): The fragmentation and simultaneity of Cubism was the dominant intellectual conversation in Ravel’s Paris. The structural deconstruction in analytic Cubism parallels what Ravel does orchestrally—breaking a piano texture into constituent timbral pieces.

• Orphism — Delaunay (1912–1914): The most musical of the visual movements. Delaunay worked with “color rhythm” and simultaneity in ways that directly parallel Ravel’s orchestral palette.

• Ballets Russes — Léon Bakst (1909–1922): Bakst’s designs are the most direct visual world Ravel inhabited. Having composed Daphnis et Chloé for Diaghilev, Ravel lived at the intersection of Russian cultural inheritance and Parisian modernism.

• Russian Symbolism — Mikhail Vrubel (c. 1900): The deeper root of the Russian imagination Mussorgsky was drawing from. Vrubel provides the emotional atmosphere of fin-de-siècle Russia that Hartmann’s paintings were part of.

• Symbolism — Odilon Redon (1905–1910): The French parallel—dream-logic and chromatic sensuousness. Redon moved in the same salon circles as Ravel and helped shape his “impressionist” sensibility.

• Viktor Hartmann — The Origin Works: The actual paintings and drawings that Mussorgsky responded to, and the memory of a lost friend he wanted to keep alive.

A call to inspire Lin-Manuel Miranda and the rights holders of Hamilton grant a special youth license — for one year — and give a generation something extraordinary.

Sign the Declaration of Generosity

Don’t throw away this shot.

A DECLARATION OF GENEROSITY

Milton Glaser was my mentor. He taught me that art has the power to make change. I am a mother, an artist, and a civilian. I am writing this because the institutions I wrote to — the government, the NEA, the rights holders, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s own team and Lin-Manuel himself — have not yet responded and I hope maybe your support will. The 250th anniversary is here. The data on youth loneliness, anxiety, depression and disconnection is escalating. I want to do something to help. So I am writing to everyone who might (if it were possible) put on a production of Hamilton this year, or would want to be in one, or would want to see their children or grandchildren or siblings and friends perform it. I'm hoping that some more support for this idea will encourage the rights holders to offer America’s young a very special license to live in a performance rather than only watch one.

The story that inspired me started in 1977... New York City was dying. Bankrupt, burning, abandoned by the federal government. Businesses fled. The middle class fled. The streets belonged to crime and despair and a municipal government that had run out of options.

Milton Glaser made what became the world’s best known logo out of three letters and a shape. And then he did something that changed everything: he gave it away. No copyright. No control. No license fee. He insisted that the state make it available to everyone with no restrictions.

What happened next is the only argument needed about the relationship between art’s generosity and cultural power. I♥NY didn’t just save a tourism campaign. It saved a city’s belief in itself. Its meaning penetrated the consciousness of the entire world — into every language, every city, every heart. Fifty years later it is still circulating, still being transformed, still generating meaning. It became infinite because he refused to fence it.

Now I know that a musical is not the same as a logo, and that it needs some protection to keep generating income and employing professional artists. But that doesn’t prohibit an act of generosity at scale when its necessary.

Generosity is the most powerful creative act. And we are at a moment in time that desperately needs it again.

✦ ✦ ✦

America turns 250 this year. A generation of children is in crisis — measurably. They came through a pandemic with their social architectures destroyed at the exact ages those architectures form. We handed them social media algorithms engineered to extract their attention at the cost of their sense of self and their mental health. And now we thrust upon them AI — more isolation, no loyalty, and disguised as friendship with none of its humanity. Each technology more frictionless. Each one more dehumanizing.

The data on youth loneliness, anxiety, and disconnection is not ambiguous. We have done serious damage and we have done nothing to reckon with it.

And while all of this has unfolded the performing arts have been losing audiences, education, and accessibility — slowly diminishing their cultural relevance. And yet they remain the single most transformative cultural infrastructure we have. You cannot stream your way to what happens when a child stands on a stage and feels a story move through them. No algorithm delivers it. No AI approximates it. Embodied experience is irreplaceable and we are letting it disappear when we need it most.

✦ ✦ ✦

Which brings me to Hamilton.

Lin-Manuel Miranda made a work that is, at its core, an argument about who gets to tell the American story. His marvelous imagination took the founding documents and released them into new bodies, new voices, new melody. The work itself is an act of radical inclusion — it says this history belongs to all of us, it always did. And yet it gated, exclusive, and largely inaccessible as a cultural experience to most of the country.

Hamilton celebrated its tenth anniversary last year. This year, the actual 250th anniversary of the nation that inspired it — there is nothing... but the opportunity to make history again.

Not as charity. As completion of the work’s own logic. And the most generous thing Miranda could do for his audience, who are the future of America.

You can set off a million fireworks. You can fund five hundred thousand initiatives. But the grass roots act of giving children the chance to embody this work — to be Hamilton, to be Eliza, to stand in front of their families and communities and sing about who America is and who it could be — and you are doing something no other anniversary gesture can do. You are giving a generation an experience of collective meaning at the exact moment they need it most and at the exact moment in time that it deserves to be given.

✦ ✦ ✦

Why should this fall to one artist? Why not? Milton Glaser didn’t wait for a movement. He made a decision to help, to make change. Artists may be the only people capable of generosity at this scale because generosity is not incidental to what they are — it is constitutive of it.

And for those with significant investment in Hamilton — this is not sacrifice. It is the strategy that big tech companies aspire to: genuine cultural embedding. Give a generation the chance to perform this work now. Let their parents and grandparents, siblings and friends watch. Let it live in school gyms and community centers, church halls, and dance on the streets across the country during America250 and watch your audience blossom and bear fruit for generations to come.

I wrote to the government. I wrote to the National Endowment for the Arts. I wrote to the rights holders. I wrote to Miranda’s team directly and DM’d Lin-Manuel himself. The anniversary is here. So far, I hear only silence.

So I am writing to you. Maybe your support will encourage others.

Art’s generosity is specific and strange. It gives without depleting.

The hand just has to open.

Sign the Declaration of Generosity

Katja Maas
Mentee and apprentice of Milton Glaser.
Designer. Writer.
Mother. Civilian.
Greensboro, NC.

There is a moment that comes when you study theater arts seriously. You stop watching passively. You start noticing.

• The blocking
• The lighting 
• The costumes 
• The choreography
• The vocals 
• The beats
• The silences
• The props 
• The sets

the devil in those details...

RAVE REVIEWS is a new section of In The Wings created for theater students who see professional productions through different eyes.

These are not reviews in the traditional sense. They don’t score shows or summarize plots. Each RAVE focuses on one standout element—an actor, a song, a dance number, a lighting effect, a set, a costume design, a special effect—something that resonated with a student of the craft.

Because when you’re learning theater firsthand, you recognize excellence differently. You see discipline, intelligence, restraint, and risk. You feel the work behind the work.

Who this is for

RAVE REVIEWS are written by students, for the professional artists who made the choices that stood out to them, and for other students and those who believe that learning new ways to ‘see’ theater means deeper understanding of the art form.

If you’re studying theater and something you saw on stage stayed with you—this is your invitation to share it.

CLICK ON BUTTON TO SUBMIT A RAVE REVIEW:

SUBMISSION FORM

P.S. We’re launching RAVE REVIEWS with a touring Broadway production season that has among it The Outsiders, Les Misearables, and Hells Kitchen. Old and new each of these shows are so layered with beauty that choosing just one thing might feel impossible! So we place no limit on how many students can RAVE about the show or if they submit more than one RAVE!

P.P.S. We’re excited to collaborate with Weaver Academy and welcome students from other theater departments at local colleges and universities and performing arts organizations to take part.

Can’t wait to read what our local performing arts students choose to RAVE about…

Writing a musical is no small feat — writing a musical comedy that audiences actually laugh at, connect with, and want to see again? That’s a rare and remarkable achievement. Even more impressive: the creative force behind Pride & Prejudice: A New Musical Comedy isn’t based in New York or LA, but right here in our own backyard. Local writer and theatre artist Tara Raczenski has spent over a decade developing this joyful, satirical adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic, and the results have been met with sold-out performances, glowing feedback, and a growing community of collaborators across the region.

Q: Can you tell us a bit about your background and how you first became involved in theatre?

A: I grew up in a musical theatre family. My parents were actors and designers, and some of my earliest and fondest memories are going to see community theatre productions and listening to vinyl records from Broadway’s “golden age” of musicals. I grew up in community theatre, received my bachelor’s degree in theatre performance, and for the next twenty-odd years after graduation, involved myself in theatrical pursuits of one kind or another.

Q: And during those years, how did your creative path evolve?

A: Within that time frame, I also got married and had three kids, whom I was blessed to be able to stay home with and raise. Finding time to express and exercise my theatrical muscles was important too, and once the kids were all in school, I turned to writing.

Q: What led you specifically to Pride & Prejudice as the story you wanted to adapt?

A: I caught “Austen Fever” in 2005 with the film production of Pride & Prejudice, and in 2010, (after devouring everything I could find on the subject) started working on my own musical adaptation. Besides being personally (and most ardently) in love with the story, I saw the rise of Austen’s popularity and marketability. Of course, lots of people saw that too—and there are many adaptations to prove it, including a number of musicals.

Q: With so many Austen adaptations out there, how did you approach yours in a way that felt fresh?

A: The obvious question to ask was, why one more? The answer was really in the novel itself, which, in my opinion, was created as a means of satire. I set out to adapt a musical that would lean more heavily into the satirical and comedic elements of the story, with the goal of using words and music to show how Austen’s book makes me feel. The result was Pride & Prejudice: A New Musical Comedy.

Q: Once you had the concept in place, what did it take to bring it to life?

A: For ten years, I had only words on a page and melodies in my head. Then, in 2022, I was fortunate to partner with Chris Tilley, a talented composer/arranger, whom I hired to put my melodies into actual songs.

Q: What was it like working with Chris on the music?

A: For a year and a half, Chris and I collaborated on creating the piano accompaniment, and in January of 2024, I was fortunate enough to be able to hold a concert staging at Well-Spring’s beautiful Virginia Sutton Theatre in Greensboro.

Q: That must have been a milestone moment. What did you learn from that first concert staging?

A: Three notable things happened as a result. First, it was a sell-out performance, which confirmed my belief in the show’s marketability. Secondly, it showed me what needed to be reworked. Thirdly, and perhaps most excitingly, were the people I met.

Q: Tell us more about those connections—how did they shape the next phase of the project?

A: As it happened, two patrons of that performance were sitting behind me and leaned over during intermission to introduce themselves. They were Julie Walters-Steele and Lora Mahaffey. These two dreamers are part of a grassroots effort to bring live theatre to the newly renovated Star Theatre in Stuart, VA, and were interested in bringing the show to the people of their community. I jumped at the chance.

Q: And that invitation led to further growth, didn’t it?

A: Another very important patron was Hope Cameron-Smith, a theatre instructor at Weaver Academy. I was thrilled to have Hope direct the ensuing theatrical staging produced at Weaver in the summer of 2024, as well as taking it on tour to Stuart, VA, in January of 2025. Hope was also instrumental in providing professional development opportunities for the two Weaver theatre arts students who were part of the cast, Olivia Gascoyne and Leila Dixon.

To date, the full-length production has had four stagings (Well-Spring, Weaver Academy, The VanDyke, The Star Theatre). A dinner theatre version was also created and has been performed twice (Robert Hall in Winston-Salem and The Finch House in Thomasville). Response from all productions has been overwhelmingly positive, and cast members have continued to reprise their roles from as far away as Raleigh, Brown Summit, and Burlington, and as close as Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point.

Q: Supporting local artists clearly plays a big role in your vision. How have you made that a reality?

A: One of my goals in producing this show has been to support and partner with local artists and arts organizations. Achieving this goal has been due in large part to finding the right partners. An initial GoFundMe campaign allowed me to pay the performers involved in the concert staging in January of 2024. The success of that show provided all the actors with an additional split of ticket sale proceeds.

Q: And have additional sponsors stepped in to help sustain that effort?

A: Other partners include Clark Oil & Gas, The Reynolds Home Foundation, and One Family Productions of Stuart, VA. Their generous financial contribution made possible a small stipend for all 22 members of the touring team, not to mention a place to perform and stay while we were there. The shows were a great success—the first live theatre to be performed at The Star. It brought in audiences from across county lines and very nearly sold out.

Q: You’ve also been able to give back, which is remarkable. Could you share a bit about that?

A: The Little Theatre of Winston-Salem has also been both a supporter and a beneficiary, with $1400 from the Weaver performance ticket sales donated back to LTWS. Other organizations and event spaces such as Robert Hall and The Finch House have believed in the project enough to produce the dinner theatre versions, productions that provided income for actors and crew. I would also like to gratefully acknowledge other partners including High Point Community Theatre for the use of rehearsal space, UPS of High Point for printing needs, advertisers such as Camel City Playhouse and Triad Pride, and of course, all the people who have paid to see the shows.

Q: So what’s next for Pride & Prejudice: A New Musical Comedy?

A: As for future collaborations, I’m excited to announce that in October, the show will be staged for a one-night-only performance to help Kernersville Little Theatre raise funds for their own theatre space.

Q: That’s exciting news. Looking ahead even further, what do you hope this show ultimately achieves?

A: Beyond all these “achievements,” it has been profoundly gratifying just to witness the camaraderie and positivity that has developed within this musical theatre family. I will cherish that memory, and I hope they will too.

Q: And your dream for the musical itself?

A: The ultimate goal is, of course, to see the show fully produced Off-Broadway and then on Broadway! That dream has been, and continues to be, a step of faith. In the meantime, the work continues. This reality is one lesson I have taken to heart. The work continues. Currently, rewrites and edits are in place. Orchestration is underway. Shameless self-promotion is ongoing…

Q: Speaking of lessons—what has this journey taught you?

A: The biggest lesson, and one which I am thankful to have learned, is that none of this can be accomplished alone. Who, in their right mind, would ever want to attempt something like this alone?

Q: For anyone inspired to support or get involved, where can they find more information?

A: Actors, investors, and potential partners looking to get involved can learn more at my website: Pride & Prejudice: A New Musical Comedy | pinwheel-productions or email me at traczenski@gmail.com and come and see our next performance!

October 18, 2025

DINNER/TICKETS

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The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has allocated approximately $207 million for fiscal year 2025. Of this, about $37 million (17.8%) funds 1,474 competitive grants supporting theater productions, museum exhibitions, and other creative projects. The remaining $170 million (82.2%) goes toward non-grant activities, including administrative operations (~62%), partnerships with state arts councils (~20%), and special initiatives such as the Sound Health Network and Poetry Out Loud.

In early May 2025, the NEA abruptly canceled 152 grants totaling $4.5 million—roughly 12% of the grants budget (2.2% of the total budget). The stated rationale was a “shift in priorities” that now include commemorating the 250th anniversary of American independence, increased funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and alignment with current federal directives—some of which appear to move away from the DEI and gender-related programming emphasized by the Biden administration.

This leaves 1,294 organizations still receiving a total of $32 million in project grants. Yet the cancellations have shaken confidence and sparked widespread discussion across the arts community about how future NEA funding decisions will be made—and what kinds of projects will be considered aligned in the years ahead.

The following chart outlines what efficiency measures the NEA might anticipate :

The Appeals Process

Organizations whose grants were rescinded can appeal by emailing grants@arts.gov within 7 days of receiving notice (e.g., by May 9 for notifications sent on May 2). Appeals must document how the project complies with the revised priorities. Additional guidance is available at arts.gov and via a recorded webinar from Americans for the Arts (May 7, 2025), accessible at americansforthearts.org.(IndieWire: If Your NEA Grant Is Terminated).

2026 Application Changes

The NEA has also updated its FY 2026 grant guidelines, canceling the Challenge America program and focusing resources on the Grants for Arts Projects category with new deadlines on March 11 and July 10, 2025. Organizations previously applying for Challenge America must reapply under these new dates, adhering to updated guidelines available since February 10, 2025, on arts.gov. LEARN MORE

The NEA is activly encouraging projects celebrating the nation’s 250th anniversary. The NEA requires applicants to have a five-year history of arts programming, allowing 2018–2019 examples if pandemic disruptions apply. How to apply and FAQs that cover these changes is available on the Grants for Arts Projects webpage, here.

America250 will officially begin on Memorial Day 2025 and culminate on July 4, 2026, with a year-long series of national events coordinated by the White House and the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission. America250

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References

• Statement by the National Endowment for the Arts on the President’s Fiscal Year 2025 Budget

• National Endowment for the Arts Supports the Arts with Nearly $36.8 Million in Funding Nationwide

• NEA Strategic Framework & Budget

• NEA FY 2018 Budget Justification

• White House 2026 Budget Proposal

• NPR: Sweeping cuts hit NEA

• The Washington Post: NEA grants canceled

• NEA FY 2026 Grant Updates

• NEA shuts down arts grant for underserved communities

• The New York Times: NEA budget cuts

Creative Economy. Imagination Economy. What are they? Are they the same? How are they different? Is one more important? Can they exist independently? Does it matter?

The difference between a Creative Economy and an Imagination Economy lies in their focus, scope, and outcomes:

Creative Economy

• Definition: The Creative Economy encompasses industries and activities that generate economic value through the creation, production, and distribution of cultural, artistic, and innovative goods and services. It focuses on tangible outputs like art, design, media, entertainment, and technology.

• Focus: Centers on creativity as a resource that drives the production of goods and services. It emphasizes the monetization of creative outputs and intellectual property.

• Scope: Often industry-specific, including advertising, fashion, film, publishing, architecture, and gaming.

• Outcome: Economic growth and innovation through the commodification of creative products and services.

• Key Drivers: Talent, technology, and cultural assets.

• Examples: The film industry creating blockbuster movies, or a design studio producing consumer products.

Imagination Economy

• Definition: The Imagination Economy refers to an emerging paradigm where value is created through the ability to envision, explore, and realize possibilities that go beyond existing frameworks. It is about fostering transformative ideas, long-term solutions, and speculative thinking that shape the future.

• Focus: Centers on imagination as a process that drives the creation of new possibilities and uncharted territories, rather than focusing solely on outputs.

• Scope: Broad and interdisciplinary, including philosophy, ethics, artificial intelligence, speculative design, sustainability, and any endeavor requiring visionary thinking.

• Outcome: Societal and cultural transformation, rather than immediate economic gain. It prioritizes exploration, innovation, and progress that may initially resist monetization.

• Key Drivers: Curiosity, interdisciplinary collaboration, and freedom to experiment without immediate constraints.

• Examples: Developing frameworks for ethical AI, exploring alternative societal structures, or creating art that deepens or elevates our perception of reality.

Time is the Differentiator

The Creative Economy is rooted in the present, capitalizing on creativity to produce measurable economic outcomes in the short-term. The Imagination Economy, however, is future-oriented, valuing the capacity to think beyond the boundaries of the known to address complex challenges and create entirely new paradigms.

Both economies are interconnected—creativity fuels imagination, and imagination, in turn, inspires creativity. But where the Creative Economy seeks measurable, near-term returns through marketable outputs, the Imagination Economy takes a more expansive view. It values long-term returns, often combined with intangible outcomes—cultural, ethical, educational, and even civilizational. Its innovations often resist immediate monetization, but their impact can be systemic, and far more enduring.

Imagination is Critical

If we hope to benefit from either (or both) a Creative Economy or Imagination Economy, we cannot ignore how imagination develops. It doesn’t develop from coloring between the lines. It doesn’t grow out of standardization or narrow curriculum. It comes from all the things that have been quietly side-lined, restricted, or underfunded—the arts, especially the performing and classical arts. These disciplines naturally create the conditions to stretch and flex our imaginations and strengthen our capabilities. Each art form is an endless resource. Yet each is all but invisible in our communities. These aren’t luxuries—they’re the fundamental frameworks through which we learn to connect, empathize, innovate and reimagine our worlds.

As AI accelerates and complexity deepens, the question isn’t whether we need imagination—it’s whether we’ll have done enough to keep it alive. Not just for us, but for the generations that follow.

This is not a lament. It’s a reminder. There is still time. And there is still hope.
(May, 2025)

This article is something of a wander. It began with the intention of exploring interpretation—specifically, what an actor brings to life through the choices they make. It started with a simple sketch I stumbled upon, where eight actors and one King playfully deliver different interpretations of the same line. One by one each actor emphasizes a different word, revealing a new layer and pushing the meaning of the sentence in a different direction.

As I searched for the sketch on YouTube, I stumbled upon an interview with its creator, who explained the process and how it came to be. After watching the sketch, I wanted more. I found myself drawn to different interpretations of the entire soliloquy. Two of these are included below.

Finally, I meandered into the last video—and a question: do we use Shakespeare in our everyday lives, perhaps without even realizing it? I was astonished to see a modern audience, suspended and holding their breath so completely that ‘you could hear a pin drop,’ as Dame Judi Dench recited a relatively unknown Shakespeare sonnet on a talk show.

All these videos follow below.

Today is January 26, 2025. Hamlet was written in 1599-1601 and first published in 1605. What is it about Shakespeare that still has the power today? or What is is about theatre that give Shakespeare power today?

To Be or Not to Be, That is The Question.

Ten words, eight actors and one King.

This is like a mini masterclass in interpretation, a reminder that every actor is also a translator, not just of words but of emotion, context, and humanity. The same text, in different hands, becomes existential, defiant, tender, or absurd. None of these interpretations are wrong. That’s the magic of performance: it’s as much about the actor’s choices as it is about the playwright’s genius.

The RSC ‘Shakespeare Live’ sketch:

Behind the scenes, the process of writing the sketch:

But beneath this comedy lies a profound truth: meaning is not fixed. Like science, where truth pursued, in Art meaning moves too. It lives and breathes, shaped by voice, timing, perspective and context. In the hands of good actors, Shakespeare’s line becomes not just a question of being, but of seeing—through their eyes, their experiences, their choices and their times.

The full soliloquy by two very different actors. (There are plenty more on Youtube.)

Paapa Essiedu:

Andrew Scott:

Perhaps that’s why we keep coming back to Shakespeare. His words are timeless, but it’s the infinite ways we bring them to life that keep them alive.

Dame Judy Dench:

Shakespeare will only become irrelevant if ...

If you ask me, my answer would be: only if we run out of imagination.

• • •

Footnote:

The cover image of two Hamlet posters illustrates imagination and interpretation of visual artists. It is from a book by Mirko Ilic and Steven Heller, old friends from my days working with Milton Glaser on 32nd Street. I have a copy if you would like to explore more.

p.s. Shakespeare and Hamlet are in my mind since Weaver Academy’s hilarious production of the musical “Something Rotten” in spring of 2024. I had never come across the musical before. It was brilliant. Very clever and very funny. I do hope to get to see it again!

At a recent performance, I was reminded of the rare thing that can happen in live performance—when the alchemy between audience and performers ignites. It’s not something you can predict or replicate; it takes you by surprise, transforming a good performance into something extraordinary, even transcendent.

We are so accustomed to sitting in front of screens that it’s easy to think of being in an audience as a passive act, as if we’re simply there to be entertained. But that view misunderstands the true nature of live performance. Every imaginative thought, clap, laugh, or held breath sends out ripples, fueling the performers in ways that are deeply felt and impossible to measure. This is not just entertainment; it’s the co-creation of a moment.

As a parent of a performing arts kid (the one on the left above :), I see nearly every performance. I’ve learned that no two shows are ever the same, nor can they be experienced in the same way twice. The energy of the audience combined with your imagination shapes the experience as much as the work unfolding on stage. And every so often, if you’re lucky, you’ll witness one of those rare moments when the whole audience brings something extra—perhaps a collective curiosity, joy, or vulnerability, perhaps combined imagination—that sparks the inexplicable. Suddenly, the performance soars, untethered. Time seems to bend.

But even when that doesn’t happen, there’s something profound at work in all live performance—something rooted in the scale of the experience. In the theater, you are surrounded by the whole: every sound, movement, light, and shadow. Compared to the smallness you experience relative to a screen, here you are immersed in a vast, voluminous space that envelops you. Unlike a screen that fragments and flattens the experience into parts dictated by another’s perspective, live performance immerses you entirely. You choose what to pay attention to. Your imagination fills in the gaps, adding layers that are entirely unique to you, shaped by your own life’s experiences and context.

The result is always something greater than the sum of its parts. Your brain doesn’t just observe—it feels, absorbs, processes and imagines. The interplay of art, energy, and your own interpretation creates something new and deeply personal. Your emotions engage and your imagination expands, irrespective of how old or young you are.

Consider what it means to leave the comfort of home, to spend money on a seat, and to sit in the dark, open and receptive. It’s no small thing to allow yourself to be moved—not just by the art, the script, or the music, but by the energy and the intangible, electrifying exchange between poeple and art, and between art and people. Showing up is an act of generosity, an expression of gratitude—to the performers, to the craft, and to the fleeting, unrepeatable moment you are about to share with everyone in the room.

“In the room where it happens” 20 secnd clip from Walt Disney Studios ©2020 film adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Broadway musical Hamilton.

When you’re in the room, you’re not just watching; you’re part of something larger. The invisible energy of several hundred people, combined with the performers’ work, creates an interconnected web that shifts and evolves in real time. You are no longer passive. You are an active participant in the whole.

This immersion is transformative—leaving you changed, even if you can’t quite articulate how. If you’re lucky, you might discover firsthand that the experience of live art transforms your experience of your own life, while screens merely let life pass you by.

This is the alchemy of live performance. It’s not just what happens on stage. It’s what happens between us, in that shared space of possibility, when we open ourselves to experience the magic of art, together—an alchemy screens can never replicate.

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At In The Wings, creativity lies at the heart of human progress and the performing arts play a vital role in nurturing it. Sir Ken Robinson’s call to reimagine education resonates deeply with our mission of supporting local performing artists through their high school and college years and beyond, for the benefit of our whole community’s future. As Robinson highlights, creativity is not just a nice-to-have; it is essential for navigating an unpredictable and dynamic future. That is certainly what we all have ahead of us.

In this article, we reflect on Robinson’s vision, its implications for the arts, children, and society as a whole and after this we look at more immediate consideration. Key points made in the video address:

What’s Gone Wrong with Education?

1. Lack of Adaptability to the Future:

   • Children starting school 2006 will retire in 2065, (in 2024 will retire in 2089) yet we cannot predict what the world will look like in five years, let alone 40. Despite this unpredictability, our education system is rigid and focused on outdated priorities.

2. Stifling Creativity:

   • Creativity, which is as important as literacy, is often neglected or undervalued in education. Schools stigmatize mistakes, yet the willingness to take risks and be wrong is fundamental to creativity. By the time children reach adulthood, many have lost this capacity due to fear of failure.

3. Hierarchies of Subjects:

   • Education systems worldwide prioritize mathematics and languages at the top, humanities in the middle, and the arts—particularly drama and dance—at the bottom. This hierarchy is rooted in the industrial revolution, designed to meet workforce needs, not human potential.

4. A Narrow View of Intelligence:

   • Academic ability has come to dominate our understanding of intelligence, sidelining other forms of intelligence such as visual, kinesthetic, and musical. Many brilliant and creative individuals are undervalued because their talents don’t align with the narrow academic framework.

5. Education Mimics Industrial Processes:

   • Schools are modeled on industrial systems, mining young minds for a narrow range of skills while neglecting their full capacities. This approach fosters conformity and stifles innovation, failing to prepare students for the rapidly evolving challenges of the future.

What Needs to Change?

1. Redefine Intelligence:

   • Intelligence is diverse, dynamic, and distinct. We think in multiple ways—visually, through sound, movement, and abstraction. Education must recognize and nurture this diversity.

2. Encourage Creativity:

   • Creativity is the process of having original ideas that have value, and it often arises from interdisciplinary thinking. Schools must foster environments where creativity can thrive, encouraging collaboration, innovation and multi-disciplinary comprehension.

3. Educate the Whole Child:

   • Education should focus on the holistic development of children, nurturing their emotional, physical, and intellectual capacities. This means valuing subjects like dance and art as much as mathematics and science.

     

4. Recognize Human Potential:

   • Every child has tremendous potential. The story of Gillian Lynne, who thrived as a dancer when her movement-oriented intelligence was recognized, illustrates the power of acknowledging individual talents instead of trying to suppress them.

5. Adopt a New Human Ecology:

   • Education should be reimagined as a system that nurtures the richness of human capacity rather than mining it for limited outcomes. This requires a shift in perspective, treating creativity and imagination as fundamental resources for solving global challenges.

An Imaginative Vision for the Future

The human imagination is a gift, and we must use it wisely to address the world’s challenges. The future demands individuals who can think creatively, adapt to change, and work collaboratively across disciplines.

Education’s task is to prepare children to navigate and shape that future, unlocking their full potential so they can contribute meaningfully to the world.

To do this, Robinson urges that we need a radical rethink of the principles underpinning education. To shift from a system focused on producing workers to one that cultivates thinkers, creators, and innovators who can face an unpredictable and dynamic world.

Highly specialized careers leave people vulnerable to disruptive technologies. Advancing technologies have resulted in greater isolation, more loneliness and less interaction with each other in the real world. Paradoxically the arts do the opposite, through their oblique worlds and abstract multi-layered languages.

The following animation of a different Ken Robinson talk is illustrative of the education dilemma facing every country globally.

What Can We Do Locally if Education Doesn’t Change in Time?

It is now decades later from the Ken Robinson TEDTALK, and it’s clear that the system isn’t changing fast enough. The good news is that we don’t have to wait. As parents, grandparents, and community members, we can take charge. We can make sure ours and our kids’ imaginations stay strong and active—by giving them plenty of chances to participate in, and experience the arts.

Here are some simple, practical ideas to get started:

Cultivating Imagination/Exercising the Imagination Muscle

Cultivating imagination is the foundation of innovation, empathy, and wonder—a vital force that keeps us engaged with the world and connected to each other in our communities.

It is worth remembering that imagination isn’t a skill reserved for the young children—it is a muscle that must be stretched and strengthened throughout our lives. Here are seven practical ways to nurture creativity, and exercise the imagination muscle for all ages.

1. The Power of Live Performances
There’s a transformative magic in live performances. All our senses are activated at a live performance. Live art invites us to step into other worlds and feel the energy of the present moment effortlessly and experience art viscerally through all senses at once. We can’t recommend it highly enough.

2. Discovery Through Art
Art is a pathway to discovery. Participate and experiment. In Greensboro, opportunities abound at Greensboro Performing Arts, CTG, Dance Project, Stagelights and more… The Arts Council of Greater Greensboro has created a calendar listing of most of what is going on at any one time. It is available here.

/////////// If you want to add an event CLICK HERE and follow the steps. ///////////

3. Create Space For Creativity
Designate a corner in your home for creativity. Stock it with paints, musical instruments, or a simple box of costumes. True creativity emerges from the chaos of messy, unstructured exploration.

4. The Power of Storytelling
Stories are the foundation of human connection in all aspects of life. Encourage storytelling in any form—written, spoken, acted, or improvised. The world expands when we learn to see it through another’s eyes. Our relationships deepen through understanding one another’s stories.

5. Delve into the Classics
The timeless works of great artists work their magic in infinite ways. Shakespeare, Beethoven, or Puccini. Classics have stood the test of time because they are seeds that grow new ideas within us. The building of imaginative capacity often comes through things you don’t understand at first and can’t be broken down into component parts. Allow understanding to grow over time through repeated experience of things that are inexplicable.

6. Local Arts Ecosystem
Support local art festivals, theater performances, and gallery exhibitions—not as spectators, but as participants in a living cultural ecosystem. Every ticket purchased or applause given helps sustain the creative heartbeat of a community and a shared sense of purpose and belonging.

7. Creativity is Lifelong
Imagination doesn’t fade with age—it evolves. Creativity is a gift that grows richer with time and life’s experience. By nurturing this spark, we enrich ourselves with an imagination that is forever curious.

It’s never too late and we don’t need to wait. Start now—right here, right now. The arts are essential for growing imaginations, building resilience, strengthening our kids’ ability to connect with the world.

The easiest way to begin is by attending LIVE performances. Let’s fortify our future with imagination—one play, one song, one dance at a time…

Thank you for reading.

In The Wings is excited to shine a spotlight on Christopher Dragon, the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra’s electrifying new Music Director. If you’ve ever wondered what it might be like to meet a real-life Rodrigo De Souza from Mozart in the Jungle, look no further—Dragon’s energy and charisma bring that same fiery spark to the podium.

Dragon’s appointment marks the end of an intensive two-year search that included interviews, auditions, and feedback from GSO musicians, staff, board members, and audience members. His selection ushers in an exciting new chapter for the GSO, with Dragon becoming the first new Music Director in over two decades.

Currently the Resident Conductor of the Colorado Symphony and Music Director of the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra, Dragon is celebrated for his dynamic leadership and innovative approach. His role in Greensboro will go far beyond conducting the Masterworks Series; this year, he will also lead several GSO POPS concerts and the GSO Education Concert Series, which brings music to 50,000 children in the Triad area annually. This emphasis on education is fitting for a conductor who cites Leonard Bernstein, famed for his Young People’s Concerts, as a profound influence.

Hailing from Perth, Australia, with Singaporean roots, Dragon has already carved an impressive path on the international stage. His career began with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, quickly earning him acclaim for his engaging performances. Since joining the Colorado Symphony in 2015, Dragon has worked with top orchestras around the globe, including the San Francisco Symphony, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. His versatility extends beyond classical repertoire, having collaborated with luminaries like Renée Fleming, Joshua Bell, and Cynthia Erivo, as well as iconic groups like the Wu-Tang Clan and Cypress Hill.

With such an inspiring array of talent and vision, Dragon’s arrival promises to inspire the GSO and the Triad community. We can’t wait to see where he takes Greensboro next!

Your next opportunity to see Christopher Dragon conduct the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra is January 2025!

Saturday, January 18, 2025 – POPS Concert 3: Aretha Franklin Tribute 
Conducted by Dragon

Saturday, February 1, 2025 – Masterworks Concert 3: Hina Khuong-Huu, Violin 
Conducted by Dragon

March 18-21, 2025 – GSO Education Concert Series 
Conducted by Dragon

Saturday, March 22, 2025 – POPS Concert 5: Cirque de la Symphonie 
Conducted by Dragon

Tickets available from Ticketmaster

For more insights about Christopher Dragon, watch this recent documentary by Wyoming PBS, The Wyoming Chronicle.

Jewel’s Journey: Lessons from the Joe Rogan Interview for Aspiring Performers

The recent Joe Rogan interview with singer-songwriter Jewel is more than a conversation—it’s a masterclass in perseverance, integrity, and the pursuit of happiness. With her powerful life story and candid reflections, Jewel offers invaluable insights to young performers navigating the challenging world of music and entertainment. From her early struggles with homelessness to her rise as a multi-platinum artist, her journey serves as a blueprint for staying grounded amidst the pressures of fame.

Saying No to a Million Dollars: The Power of Integrity

Five minute excerpt:

This is one of the most memorable moments in the interview - when Jewel discussed turning down a million-dollar offer at the beginning of her career. For many, that decision would seem unthinkable, but for Jewel, it was a choice rooted in her desire to maintain control over her artistry and happiness. Understanding what the million dollars meant, she knew that accepting such a deal would have compromised her creative integrity and risked the longevity of her career. In an industry often driven by profit over passion, Jewel’s story is a testament to the importance of staying true to oneself, no matter how lucrative the offer. She makes all this possible by living modestly and understanding how and what to negotiate.

The Book Every Aspiring Musician Should Read

During the interview, Jewel mentions a book she believes every aspiring musician should read: Everything You Need to Know About the Music Industry. This resource provides young performers with a roadmap through the often-confusing business side of the industry. For Jewel, understanding the mechanics of contracts, royalties, and the power dynamics in the industry was essential for maintaining her independence. She urges all young artists to arm themselves with knowledge so they can make informed decisions and protect their creative freedom.

Happiness as a Choice

Jewel’s philosophy on happiness is one of the most inspiring takeaways from the interview. Despite her hardships—growing up in Alaska, battling homelessness, and struggling to get noticed—Jewel remains positive. She emphasizes that happiness is a choice and that the external circumstances of fame, money, or success can never dictate one’s internal state. For young performers who often equate success with happiness, Jewel’s wisdom is a vital reminder that ‘success comes and goes’ but self-worth and contentment come from within.

Jewel in 2019, performing at the Inner Change Coffee Shop (Age 18).

The Integrity of the Artist: A Lifelong Commitment

Throughout the interview, Jewel speaks passionately about the integrity of the artist. For her, remaining true to her creative vision has been a non-negotiable principle. Young performers often face pressure to conform to industry trends or commercial demands, but Jewel’s story encourages them to have confidence in themselves and hold fast to their individuality. She believes that the lasting impact of art comes from its authenticity and should last throughout the life. In her case she is planning for a 60 year career and is always considering what that takes to achieve.

Building the Future: Jewel’s School and Legacy

Beyond her music career, Jewel is now successfully running a school that focuses on teaching young people about emotional and mental well-being. Through this initiative, she’s helping future generations learn how to be strong and navigate life's challenges, not only in the music industry but in all aspects of life. Her dedication to giving back and fostering resilience in others is a natural extension of the lessons she has learned on her own creative journey.

Final Thoughts

Jewel’s interview with Joe Rogan is a treasure trove of life lessons for young performers. Her story of perseverance, authenticity, and emotional resilience is a powerful reminder that true success comes from within. For anyone aspiring to make it in the music industry, Jewel’s advice on happiness, integrity, and knowledge offers a blueprint for navigating the highs and lows of fame while staying grounded in what truly matters.

Jewel's words are more than just wisdom; they are a roadmap for young performers to take control of their emotional stability, careers and their happiness, just as she has.

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The full 3 hour 41 minute interview, Episode #1724, can be found here