Culture Canvas

A roundup of the week’s arts and culture headlines.

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Thieves targeted a Greek museum in the wake of massive protests, via The Washington Times. Two masked, armed robbers apprehended the sole guard at a museum showcasing artifacts from the ancient Olympic Games. The pair stole over 60 objects from the institution, located in Olympia. Museum officials say that extreme austerity has led to a decline in security on site. Above, investigators survey the premises following the theft. Photo by Menelaos Myrillas /AFP /Getty Images.

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The National Museum of African American History and Culture broke ground on the National Mall, via The New York Times. The NewsHour reported on the undertaking Wednesday night. The museum is one of several under construction nationwide that aims to educate patrons about civil rights in America.

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Seven people have been in arrested in Italy for allegedly forging antiquities, via The Art Newspaper.

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The Los Angeles Times reports on regional theater in Southern California and the challenges companies are facing.

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The Houston Symphony Orchestra’s second multimedia performance is in the works, via The Houston Chronicle.

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Wired reports on underground video arcades.

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Performer Mike Daisey is making his monologue, “The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs,” available to other actors for free, without copyright, via The Verge. Art Beat spoke with Daisey about his one-man show in April.

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ARTINFO has a virtual tour of the upcoming Cindy Sherman retrospective at MoMA.

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A new study suggests that working against a din of background noise boosts creativity, via The Wall Street Journal.

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Dick Anthony William, an accomplished actor who won Tony nominations for his Broadway performances and played roles in blaxploitation films, on television, and in mainstream movies, died this week at the age of 77. Williams was also a co-founder of the New Federal Theater, which helped showcase emerging artists and playwrights, including Morgan Freeman and Amiri Baraka.

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Former Grove Press publisher Barney Rosset died this week at the age of 89. Rosset promoted influential — and controversial — works, bringing explicit and avant garde content to mainstream publishing. He promoted authors like Samuel Beckett, Henry Miller and Allen Ginsberg, as well as publishing other notable nonfiction, including “The Autobiography of Malcolm X.”

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Soprano Kay Davis, a classically-trained Coloratura who worked with Duke Ellington, died this week at the age of 91. Davis used her voice to instrumental effect on songs like “The Creole Love Call.”