Reflections on "The Golden Age" & More
Our favorite reads from the past month. Activists take over Portland theatre and the American Booksellers Association. Plus the latest work from our community.
EXCLUSIVE: Art From the Ashes
For FAIR’s Substack, voice actor and director Mary McDonald-Lewis tells all about the recent cancellation of her play THE MACBETHS from Portland’s Milagro Theatre.
And then I asked myself if I would change a single thing about what happened; if I would recant my alignment with science, federal law and the Constitution to stage my play in Portland, and the answer was “no.” But I have to confess that underneath this question is a darker one, now. A harder one than before, when I thought my trials were over and I was going to be able to “return to my art as a soldier returns to his fields, home from the war.”
Even though houndings might terrify me, decimate my friendships and drive my art out of Portland; even though they might never stop—am I willing to endure it all to speak up for women and girls?
It seems I have to.
Read Mary McDonald-Lewis’ full piece here:
The Big Read: Free Speech and Readers’ Rights
For FAIR’s Substack, Nicole Sullivan writes about the activist takeover of the American Booksellers Association (ABA) and its ongoing consequences—including her own story.
So, [the ABA seems] to have adopted policies that ensure their DEI commitment remains impervious to any internal or external dissent.
It is in the best interest of authors, publishers, and customers to stand up to the kinds of censorship the ABA seeks to normalize. We need to move the needle back to a place that prioritizes art over idealism and the viability of our small businesses over activism.
Read Nicole Sullivan’s full piece here:
Feature: Clifton Duncan on MAGA's "Golden Age" in Art
For The State of the Arts, actor, writer, and FAIR Arts Fellow Clifton Duncan argues that a renaissance in American art and culture is sorely needed, but it's unlikely to come from the political right—until they understand the bigger picture. And what that will take.
Rightists seek order, a career in the arts is chaos; rightists chase stability, artists chase dreams; rightists crave normal, artists defy normal. Artists live in emotion while the right asserts “facts don’t care about feelings.” […]
Such pragmatism is obviously vital to a functioning society. But the right’s dedication to consequential knowledge comes at a cost: the left has the pride, privilege and prestige of controlling such vaunted institutions as Juilliard, the Metropolitan Museum, the Metropolitan Opera, and Carnegie Hall (each just miles from one another, in a single city)—to say nothing of owning the music, entertainment and publishing industries. The right has zero cultural clout.
It doesn’t have to stay that way.
Read Clifton Duncan’s full piece here:
Highlights from Our Community
In service of highlighting our community artists, we would love to share a few of their projects.
Ildiko Tillmann: Captured Landscapes
Photographer, journalist, and FAIR Artist Grant winner Ildi Tillmann joined the Institute for Liberal Values for a conversation about ideology, propaganda, and cultural paradigms, discussing their influence on art and education in the contemporary United States.
Ildi’s most recent work in progress is Captured Landscapes: Cuba, New York, a multimedia art-documentary project in collaboration with award-winning composer and jazz pianist Elio Villafranca. Learn more and support Ildi’s work here.
Stage Right Theatrics: Celebrating Eugene O’Neill
Stage Right Theatrics, founded and directed by FAIR member artist Robert Cooperman, is pleased to announce a new annual theatrical program designed to “edutain” audiences on American theatre history. “Before They Were Gods” is SRT’s new annual celebration of American master playwrights. For the 2025 season, SRT will focus on the plays of Eugene O’Neill (1888-1953).
Performances are March 21 and 22 at 7:00 PM and March 23 at 1:00 PM at the Abbey Theatre of Dublin, OH. The plays will be presented both in-person and live-streamed. Tickets cost $20 per person (in-person) or per device (live-stream) and are available here.
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Looking to share your work with FAIR for All Arts? Email Brent Morden at arts@fairforall.org.
Read, Listen, and Watch
This month, we’re reading:
“If William Shakespeare Came to Hollywood Today...” – Ted Gioia for The Honest Broker (3/9/25)
“The Art of Conformity” – Hector Herrera for Friendly Fire (3/6/25)
“Nobody Told the Oscars That the Madness Is Over” – Ted Balaker for The Shiny Herd (3/4/25)
“Make Actors Apolitical Again” – Kat Rosenfield for The Free Press (3/1/25)
And we’re watching:
Bodies Upon the Gears – A short film by FAIR artist Paul Wagner about Mario Savio and the 1964 Berkeley Free Speech Movement.
Questions? Tips? Anything you’d like to share? Reach out to us at arts@fairforall.org.
President Trumps Golden Age in the Arts!
https://healthyfamilies.substack.com/p/jenny-marie-hatch-live