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How Re-Establishing Diplomatic Ties with Cuba Will Change the Arts

The restoration of diplomatic and commercial ties between the United States and Cuba will not only hit us politically but will also have a profound effect on music and the arts.Though battling bureaucratic laws, the cultural exchange between the U.S. and Cuba has not been lost in recent years. Even before this week’s announcement, musicians have been traveling to perform in the previous out-of-bounds nation. Arturo O’Farrill, a New Yorker, was performing at the Havana International Jazz Festival with his Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, while Cuban flutist Maraca was in New York preparing to play this weekend at Jazz at Lincoln Center.President Barack Obama’s “new approach” to Cuban policy will make it easier for American artists to travel to Cuba to perform and vice versa. Cuba could even plausibly become a profitable tourist destination for the first time in five decades. The new policy can end need for time-consuming security checks that often leave Cubans who want to perform in the United States in limbo. Easing commercial restrictions could allow American presenters to begin paying fees to the Cuban artists they bring to the United States, who by law are now allowed only smaller per diem payments and travel reimbursements.
By Jaime Prisco

  • Maida Withers Dance Construction Company Creates Kickstarter Campaign for 'MindFluctuations,' Neuro Headsets Used on Dancers to Create Visual Animation

    The Maida Withers Dance Construction Company, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary season, has created a Kickstarter campaign to help fund the world premiere of "MindFluctuations," an amazing night of dance and technological innovation.Choreographed by Maida Withers, recipient of this year’s 29th annual Washington, D.C., Mayor’s Special Recognition Arts Award, "MindFluctuations" is the cornerstone of the 40th anniversary of MWDCCo, a group known for their extensive and bold integration of cutting-edge technology mixed with dance."MindFluctuations" is a unique work involving dancers wearing an Emotiv neuro headset, which uses their brainwaves to influence computer art. This creates a startling interactive experience combining dance, projected 3-D visual animation by computer artist Tania Fraga and live electronic music by composers Steve Hilmy and John Driscoll.
    By Jaime Prisco

  • Minnesota Opera Music Director Michael Christie to Lead 'The Manchurian Candidate,' Based Off Famous Novel by Richard Condon

    Minnesota Opera music director Michael Christie will lead the world premiere performances of "The Manchurian Candidate" from March 7 to 15 in the Music Theatre at Ordway.The new opera by Kevin Puts and librettist Mark Campbell is based on the novel by Richard Condon. "The Manchurian Candidate," a Minnesota Opera New Works Initiative Production, traces the suspenseful story of an American soldier decorated during the Korean War who is brainwashed into becoming an unwitting assassin in a conspiracy to overthrow the U.S. government.The performances of "The Manchurian Candidate" are part of the Rock the Ordway series. These 22 days of opening nights will be marking the grand opening of the new, state-of-the-art concert hall at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts in Minnesota. The celebration kicks off Feb. 28 with a gala evening featuring The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra led by Christie in collaborative performances with the Minnesota Opera Chorus, pianist Jeremy Denk, mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke and more.
    By Jaime Prisco
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