Contact: Geoffrey Baum, (213) 821-1491
Los Angeles, January 21, 2005 — The Jazz Journalists Association has joined four major organizations for critics —
American Theatre Critics Association,
Dance Critics Association,
International Association of Art Critics/USA and
Music Critics Association of North America — for the first National Critics Conference in Los Angeles,
May 25-28, 2005. More than 400 arts writers, critics, editors, scholars and educators are expected to attend.
"The Jazz Journalists Association is thrilled to join America’s dance, theater, visual arts and classical music critics in ongoing discussions about how culture is observed and reported in all media, here and now," said Howard Mandel, JJA executive director. "Like all the arts, jazz is in enormous flux — and journalists, JJA members included, are on the front lines, with important news about cultural transformations all around us. To be in Los Angeles seeing and hearing new work, meet with artists, arts organizations and audiences, and talk with one another is an opportunity, at least, to refresh one’s perspective."
The
USC Annenberg School for Communication is partnering with the professional critics’ organizations to present the 4-day event to be held at the Omni Los Angeles Hotel at California Plaza in downtown Los Angeles. The hotel is adjacent to many of Los Angeles’s top cultural venues, including Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles Music Center and the Museum of Contemporary Art.
"Critics don’t just give thumbs up/thumbs down opinions," says
Michael Barnes, former chairman of the American Theatre Critics Association. "At their best, critics lend perspective on human issues, create context for understanding our culture and our times. It is crucial that critics reclaim their roles as vital cultural observers and we invite the Los Angeles arts community to join us in this process."
Among the highlights of the
2005 National Critics Conference will be "Criticism at the Crossroads," a panel featuring three Pulitzer Prize winners, who will discuss the art and craft of critical writing: Margo Jefferson, arts critic, The New York Times; Dan Neil, automobile critic, Los Angeles Times; and Leonard Pitts, columnist, Miami Herald. A cross-disciplinary day will include panels about the role of the critic in contemporary society, ethics, writing across disciplines, and digital media. The Kamikaze Writing Workshop, developed by Village Voice senior editor Elizabeth Zimmer, will be open to all participants. Zimmer will lead a team of mentors from the four arts organizations who will work with participants on producing arts criticism on deadline.
The
2005 National Critics Conference will be open to members of the five participating critic organizations and also to the public. In addition to panel discussions, the conference will include attendance at performances, symposia and special receptions, such as a half-day meeting at the J. Paul Getty Center. The ATCA, DCA, AICA/USA, JJA and MCANA are nonprofit service organizations founded by critics and journalists to serve those who write about theater, dance, art, jazz and classical music.
"The National Critics Conference is an important opportunity for our members to share ideas and concerns with critics who write about and have expertise in other artistic disciplines," says
Karyn Collins, co-chairman of the Dance Critics Association. "We can all learn from each other, and in unity there is strength — a crucial fact given these times when the future of arts criticism is in jeopardy in some circles."
The conferences, seminars and panels will open to the public for a fee. More details are available online at http://annenberg.usc.edu/ncc.
"First-rate arts reporting and criticism helps strengthen cultural institutions and the communities they serve," says
Geoffrey Cowan, dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication. "This gathering will not only showcase the rich cultural resources of Los Angeles, but will also underscore the value and importance of good arts journalism. We are delighted to join with the critics organizations to make this historic meeting possible."
The
American Theatre Critics Association (ATCA) is the only national group for theater critics in the United States. Since 1974, it has provided services for theater journalists while advocating excellence, ethics and freedom of expression in theater and theater criticism. Its 260 members meet as a group for twice-a-year conferences. The Foundation for the American Theatre Critics Association supports regular workshops for young critics and distributes $36,000 in new play awards each year. ATCA members vote on the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre, Theatre Hall of Fame, Primus Prize, M. Elizabeth Osborn Award and American Theatre Critics/Steinberg Awards. ATCA is the American section of the International Association of Theatre Critics.
The
Dance Critics Association (DCA) was founded in 1974 to advocate for the needs of professional dance critics and to advance the field of dance criticism. Today, the organization has almost 300 members—freelance and staff writers—who work for newspapers, magazines and websites across the US, Canada, Europe and Asia. Membership is also open to students, scholars and others interested in the art and practice of dance writing. A nonprofit service organization, the DCA offers a host of networking and professional opportunities and acts as a clearinghouse for the exchange of information. The organization publishes a quarterly newsletter, members' directory, books, and research guides. Its annual conference serves as a forum for meaningful dialogue and debate with symposia covering topics in dance scholarship; fresh approaches to critical writing; and practical issues facing journalists. As part of its ongoing commitment to education, the DCA offers conference scholarships and writing practicum workshops.
The
International Association of Art Critics (AICA) was founded in 1948/1949 in Paris (as l’Association Internationale des Critiques d’Art) and originally affiliated with UNESCO. The US chapter represents around 400 critics nationwide, while the international organization comprises some 72 member nations and more than 4,000 art critics. Each year, in a widely covered event, AICA/USA presents museums, galleries and alternative spaces with awards, the only organization to award excellence in museum and gallery exhibitions. It organizes lectures and programs, tours to artists' studios in emerging art neighborhoods, maintains a website, and concerns itself with working conditions for critics. Members are invited to the annual AICA International Congress in a different nation each year in continents around the world. AICA members are issued a press card recognized for entrance to museums around the world. In order to become an AICA member, critics must have been writing in the field of contemporary art at a high level and on a continuous basis for at least three years.
The
Jazz Journalists Association has more than 400 members - writers, photographers, television and radio broadcasters and new media professionals - mostly in the U.S. and Canada, but also worldwide. Among its major programs are the Jazz Awards (the ninth annual benefit event is scheduled for June 14, 2005, at B.B. King’s Blues Club and Grill on 42nd St. in New York City), publication of quarterly "Jazz Notes," support of the Jazz Foundation of America’s Musicians’ Emergency Fund, and initiation of educational and mentoring programs in jazz journalism across disciplines. More information is available at
www.jazzhouse.org.
The
Music Critics Association of North America was founded in 1956 by music critics as a service organization to promote high standards and ensure the future of classical music criticism in the press of the Americas. MCANA provides a communication network among critics through annual conferences, a quarterly newsletter and a website. The organization also provides educational programs for professional development as well as advocacy for the field. These include institutes in which members have the opportunity to travel to music festivals or major musical events to get a behind-the-scene look at an arts institution. Nuts and Bolts, hands-on writing workshops, bring emerging critics into close contact with some of the finest music editors and writers in the field and offer a chance for professional development. The quarterly newsletter keeps members informed about job opportunities, upcoming conferences, institutes, available fellowships, and colleagues’ activities. The annual conference includes three days of symposia, panel discussions, social events, and performances. MCANA, in collaboration with the National Arts Journalism Program at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, held a major international conference, "Shifting Ears: A Symposium on the Present State and Future of Classical Music Criticism," at Columbia in October 2004.
Located in Los Angeles at the University of Southern California, the
USC Annenberg School for Communication (
www.annenberg.usc.edu) is among the nation's leading institutions devoted to the study of arts journalism and criticism. Its programs include the USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Program and the Western Knight Center for Specialized Journalism. In addition to its programs for working journalists, USC Annenberg enrolls of more than 1,500 graduate and undergraduate students earning B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in journalism, communication, and public relations.
Please contact the following individual critics’ organizations in Los Angeles for more information or visit http://www.annenberg.usc.edu/ncc:
The American Theatre Critics Association (ATCA)
Lee Melville
(213) 614-0556 x14
lmelville@theatrela.org
The Dance Critics Association (DCA)
Laura Bleiberg
(714) 796-4976
Lbleiberg@ocregister.com
The International Association of Art Critics/ USA (AICA/USA)
Robert Atkins
(760) 328-5552
robert@robertatkins.net
Music Critics Association of North America (MCANA)
Rick Ginell
(661)-245-3196
rsg78rpm@aol.com
For membership information, contact:
The American Theater Critics Association (ATCA)
Patricia Angotti
(317) 826-7874
THEatreSERVICE,
ts@evansville.edu
www.americantheatrecritics.org
The Dance Critics Association (DCA)
Anita King
dancecritics@hotmail.com
Jazz Journalists Association (JJA)
Howard Mandel
(212) 533 9495
Jazzmandel@aol.com
www.jazzhouse.org
Music Critics Association of North
America (MCANA)
Robert Leininger
(410) 435-3881
musiccritics@aol.com
www.mcana.org
The International Association of Art Critics / USA (AICA/USA)
Phyllis Tuchman
(212) 249-2763
www.aicausa.org
Carey Lovelace
(212) 566-6777
board@aicausa.org
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