The shooting at the Capital Gazette Reporter in Annapolis on June 28, 2018, claimed five lives including that of arts writer Wendi Winters, a contributor to DC Metro Theatre Arts and a colleague of ATCA member David Siegel, who shares the following reflection: “It is with utter sadness that I...
We are in the middle of our membership renewal drive, and while this Harold Hill spiel is, indeed, aimed at enticing those who haven’t put renewals high on their “to do” list, this is really a contemplation of what ATCA is and what it should...
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 16, 2017 ATCA has closely followed the controversy sparked by a review of Pass Overby Chicago critic Hedy Weiss and referred members to articles about the controversy on our website. As the only nationwide organization of theater critics and journalists, we believe issues have...
“In reference to the recent Wooster Group/Harold Pinter situation in Los Angeles and scattered reports of troubling analogs around the country, the American Theatre Critics Association strongly reaffirms our bedrock tenet that arts criticism is journalism,” stated Wm. F. Hirschman, chair, ATCA executive committee. Harold Pinter (1930-2008): What...
Coming out of productive meetings in New York and drawing on much work beforehand, excom chair Bill Hirschman has a lot to announce: proposals on ATCA’s membership and governance; sharing the NY conference via video; volunteers for international meetings; nominations for the Steinberg/ATCA and Osborn Awards; Primus...
NOV. 4, 2015: The American Theatre Critics Association is incensed that a Seattle theater critic for The Huffington Post has offered for sale on Craigslist his second free ticket to events that he was covering. “To be very clear, the writer is not a member of...
Mystery miscreant A Seattle critic for the Huffington Post recently advertised his extra press comps for sale to women willing to accompany him. (Howard Sherman has the basic facts.) That’s risible enough, and it may even have been a joke (he advertised them at half face...
The website Bitter Lemons now allows theaters to pay to be reviewed. You can get an overview on the commentary in the LA Times and an account in opposition in the LA Weekly. Speaking for the ATCA excom, chair Bill Hirschman has said: “The American Theatre Critics’ Association, the only national organization...
The ATCA executive committee has joined the protest over the cancelation of a scheduled production of Spamalot at the South Williamsport Junior/Senior High School in Williamsport, Pa., because of, according to principal, Jesse Smith, its “homosexual themes.” In a Sept. 19 letter to Superintendent of Schools Dr....
Jay Handelman, excom chair, has written member John McMullen about the recent request from eight S.F. Bay Area theaters for page view stats for online reviewers (scroll down two items for the original letter). Handelman points out that no theater owes any critic a free ticket, but that...