British Airways ARC Opens At Olympia: Inside London’s Newest Music Venue

London’s live entertainment landscape just took a massive leap forward. The doors officially opened at the British Airways ARC at Olympia on June 16, marking the launch of the capital's newest live entertainment and music venue in over a decade.

As the crown jewel in the ongoing £1.3 billion transformation of the historic Olympia estate in West London, this state-of-the-art, 3,800-capacity venue is operated by global live entertainment giant AEG Presents. It seamlessly bridges the gap between intimate club gigs and massive arena shows, creating a vital stepping stone for rising stars and a unique playground for established global icons.

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An Electrifying Opening Season

The British Airways ARC isn't wasting any time making its mark on the city's cultural calendar. The venue kicked off its highly anticipated opening season with a headline performance by Mercury Prize-nominated artist Self Esteem, setting a bold tone for what's to come.

Music fans can look forward to an incredibly eclectic, world-class lineup of artists filling out the inaugural season, including pop-rock icons McFly, global R&B star Khalid, rock powerhouse The Black Keys, and a legendary five-night residency by Van Morrison.

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Inside the Venue: High-Tech Meets Intimate Heritage

While the broader 140-year-old Olympia site has previously hosted historic rock royalty like Jimi Hendrix, Rod Stewart, and The Cure, the purpose-built ARC venue is entirely designed for the modern fan experience:

• Plug-and-Play Production: Built above the existing West Exhibition Hall, the venue features a state-of-the-art L-Acoustics sound system and cutting-edge in-house lighting, ensuring flawless acoustics and immersive sightlines from any vantage point.


• The British Airways Wing: For those looking to upgrade their night out, premium ticket holders gain access to the exclusive British Airways Wing private lounge and bar, alongside highly coveted, lowered front-row balcony VIP seating.


• Perks for Executive Club Members: As the founding partner of the destination, British Airways is heavily integrating rewards. Club members have access to ringfenced ticket allocations and the exclusive opportunity to collect Avios points across various bars and restaurants throughout the newly opened Olympia campus.

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Bringing Olympia to the Skies: Wolves of Tokyo Collaboration

The celebrations aren't just staying on the ground. To honor the launch of the venue, British Airways has partnered with one of Olympia’s most exciting new rooftop restaurants, Wolves of Tokyo, to bring a taste of the venue's neighborhood to the skies.

From July 1st, premium travelers flying in Club World (long-haul business class) on flights departing London Heathrow to Tokyo Haneda will get to enjoy an exclusive, altitude-adapted menu featuring signature dishes from the restaurant. Travelers can expect sophisticated delicacies like crab maki with avocado, black cod with plum miso, and a rich matcha cheesecake.

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📍 Planning Your Visit

Location: The British Airways ARC is located along Emberton Walk on Level 2 of Olympia, right next to the massive new digital screen canopy.

Getting There: The closest transport link is Kensington Olympia station (just a 5-minute walk away), which is reliably connected via the London Overground (Mildmay Line), as well as weekend District Line Underground services.

Rooftop Dining: Make a full night of it by checking out Olympia's dazzling new rooftop spaces before the show, which feature Bar Arriba (Mexican small plates), Lillie's (seasonal British dishes), and the Arbour food hall alongside Wolves of Tokyo.

With a purpose-built theatre (the British Airways Theatre) scheduled to join the complex in 2027, the opening of the ARC officially cements Olympia's return as West London's ultimate entertainment capital.

Are you planning to catch a show at London’s newest venue this summer? Let us know who you're most excited to see in the comments below!

Klaus Mäkelä, Just 28, To Become Chicago Symphony Orchestra Music Director In 2027

Klaus Mäkelä was hired Tuesday to succeed Riccardo Muti as music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and will become the youngest head since its start in 1891.

A Finn who turned 28 in January, Mäkelä has had an astonishing rise in the music world, becoming principal guest conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra in 2018-19, then chief conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic in 2020-21 and music director of the Orchestre de Paris in 2021-22. He is to start a five-year term as chief conductor the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in the Netherlands in 2027-28 after his contracts in Norway and France expire.

Mäkelä will become CSO music director designate immediately and start a five-year tenure in 2027-28, conducting a minimum 14 weeks per season. Mäkelä will be the youngest U.S. music director with a major orchestra since Gustavo Dudamel was 28 when he started with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 2009.

“It’s just something which I don’t think about,” Mäkelä said during an interview with The Associated Press. “I was just reminded when I started in Amsterdam that I’m actually not even young, (Willem) Mengelberg was 24 when he started.”

Muti was music director for 13 seasons before stepping down last summer ahead of his 82nd birthday. Mäkelä will be 31 years, seven months, 16 days when he starts on Sept. 1, 2027. The previous youngest head of the orchestra was Frederick Stock at 32 years, 5 months, 1 day when he was hired on April 11, 1905, to succeed founding music director Theodore Thomas.

Mäkelä will take over an orchestra far older than he is. Among 93 members, Muti made 32 appointments and Daniel Barenboim 28, with most of the remainder by Georg Solti. Principal trombone Jay Friedman and harpist Lynne Turner were hired by Fritz Reiner, music director from 1953-62.

“What I like about Chicago Symphony is there is quite a big part of it which still sounds like it sounded with Reiner,” Mäkelä said.

He first led the CSO in April 2022 in a program that included Stravinsky’s “The Firebird.”

“When you conduct an orchestra for the first time, it’s somehow a chemistry thing,” Mäkelä said. “I felt that, OK, this orchestra they were willing to go to places with me which I had not had done with other orchestras.”

CSO president Jeff Alexander attended the first rehearsal.

“You said, ‘Good morning. Let’s begin’ and went right into the music,” Alexander recalled during a joint interview. “Very often a guest conductor will talk and talk and talk about the piece, but I think the musicians appreciated just getting to work. So I stayed for the first 10 or 15 minutes and I can tell you I already felt there was something really special happening.”

Mäkelä returned in February 2023 for Mahler’s Fifth Symphony. Alexander then started negotiations. The announcement was timed ahead of Mäkelä‘s performances with the CSO this week that include Shostakovich’s 10th Symphony.

“When you see Klaus conduct, there’s such a connection between him and the orchestra, and you can just feel it, and then between him and the audience,” Alexander said.

Mäkelä's hiring comes at a time when several other major U.S. institutions have upcoming podium vacancies, including the Cleveland Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Opera and San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. As music director of a U.S. orchestra, Mäkelä’s role will include a fundraising component.

“I don’t think it will actually be so drastically different from the work in Amsterdam and in Paris,” he said. “In Oslo we have 100% of the funding is from the state and zero is private but then already in Amsterdam it’s 50-50 and there’s a lot of work to be done, and it’s also very much in my interest because then we can achieve things together if we find the right partnerships.”

Mäkelä played cello as a child — his father was a cello teacher and his mother a piano instructor. He remembers attending concerts given by Finnish conductor Hannu Lintu in Helsinki and decided his future vocation when he was 7 and singing in the children’s chorus at the Finnish National Opera in Bizet’s “Carmen.” He was riveted while watching the conductor on a backstage monitor.

“It sounds like a silly story, but it’s really true — from that moment,” Mäkelä said.

Studying cello at the Sibelius Academy, he took a conducting class with Jorma Panula, whose pupils have included Esa-Pekka Salonen and Susanna Mälkki. He was first included as a Helsinki Philharmonic cellist when he was 15, then was asked to conduct. He first conducted the Oslo Philharmonic in May 2018, and a string of debuts followed. He made his first Berlin Philharmonic appearance in April 2023 and is to make his Vienna Philharmonic debut this December. Decca Classics signed him as an exclusive recording artist in 2021, a rarity in 21st century classical music.

With all the symphonic work, Mäkelä has found little time for opera, where one-to-two-month stays are the norm.

He lives in Helsinki but hadn’t been there this year until late March. Mäkelä spends most of his time in Paris and Oslo, and getting scores to the right location proves time-consuming.

“I have FedEx and DHL and UPS all the time, and of course I always forget the score,” he said. “I want to have my own scores because I write things.”

He already is thinking about his initial programs in Chicago.

“It needs to be something which is a very clear start, a clear new chapter,” he said. “It needs to be music which keeps both me and the orchestra a little bit on our toes, because this needs to be everything else than comfort zone.”

BY RONALD BLUM, AP

The Philadelphia Orchestra To Rename Its Home At The Kimmel Center For The Performing Arts Marian Anderson Hall In Honor Of The Legendary Contralto, Civil Rights Icon, And Philadelphian

On June 8, 2024, Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts will be rededicated as Marian Anderson Hall, home of The Philadelphia Orchestra, in honor of the legendary contralto, civil rights icon, and Philadelphian. The first major concert venue in the world to honor the late performer and trailblazer, Marian Anderson Hall will be a permanent monument to its namesake’s artistry and achievements, a reflection of the inclusive future she helped to engender, and an active testament to the intersection of music, art, and positive social impact.

They will officially dedicate the hall in Ms. Anderson’s honor on June 8 with an unveiling in the afternoon, and will celebrate that evening during the Great Stages Gala, featuring The Philadelphia Orchestra and Music and Artistic Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, actress and singer Audra McDonald, soprano Angel Blue, and jazz pianist Marcus Roberts.

Marian Anderson Hall will be dedicated 85 years after Ms. Anderson was denied the opportunity to perform at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., because of her race, singing instead for a crowd of over 75,000 at the Lincoln Memorial. Throughout her life, Marian Anderson emblemized the idea that music can change the world. It is our hope that Marian Anderson Hall will inspire everyone who comes through its doors with the idea that the arts are a transformative force for good in the world. We hope you will join us as we forge a bright, inclusive future in which the arts are for everyone.

To ensure this work continues long into the future, they have partnered with the Philadelphia branch of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) to establish an endowed scholarship in honor of Ms. Anderson, to be awarded each year to two Black students from the Philadelphia region studying the performing arts or pursuing a career in arts administration at schools throughout the country.

The dedication of Marian Anderson Hall was named in her honor by a visionary philanthropic gift from Richard Worley and Leslie Miller. They extend our deepest gratitude for their transformative leadership. Additional generous support for Marian Anderson Hall was given by Sidney and Caroline Kimmel. They also thank the family and estate of Marian Anderson, whose enthusiasm and support for this initiative have been crucial.

For more details, please visit: https://www.ensembleartsphilly.org/

To Sir With Love: Distinguished Concerts International Kicks Off 2024 Season With 80th Birthday Celebration For Sir Karl Jenkins At Carnegie Hall

On Monday, January 15, 2024, Distinguished Concerts International New York (DCINY) will present The Best of Sir Karl Jenkins, DCINY’s 2024 season kick-off performance celebrating the renowned Welsh composer’s 80th Birthday. The concert will be conducted by DCINY’s own Artistic Director, Dr. Jonathan Griffith, and will feature singers from around the world for a once-in-a-lifetime performance opportunity. The monumental event will bring this new collection of Sir Karl’s most beloved pieces to life on stage in the Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall. Longtime WQXR host, Jeff Spurgeon, will serve as emcee.

Sir Karl Jenkins is DCINY’s original, and longest-performing composer-in-residence. “We are proud to be kicking off next year’s season celebrating his 80th year,” says DCINY Artistic Director and Principal Conductor Jonathan Griffith, who co-founded the company with General Director Iris Derke. “Jenkins is one of the most frequently performed composers in the world, and this concert will be his 17th performance with us. I am particularly honored to conduct his work for this event.”

One act will feature works from ‘Songs of Sanctuary’ (Adiemus, Kayama, Hymn), ‘Requiem” (Dies Irae) and ‘Stabat Mater ‘And the Mother Did Weep, Virgo Virginum, Ave Verum, Paradisi Gloria), and a second act will feature The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace. Now nearly 25 years old, this popular composition is one of Sir Karl’s–and the world’s–most performed compositions.

DCINY conducted extensive auditions for singing and choral groups for Sir Jenkins’ milestone concert celebration, welcoming inquiries from schools and communities around the world. Several of the selected groups have participated in Sir Jenkins’ concerts over the past 15 years, including: VOENA (Annabelle Marie, Director; CA); Pennsbury High School (James Moyer, Director; PA); Chor Capriccio; and Birgit Ensminger-Busse, Director; Germany).

Along with Chor Capriccio, performers for The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace include: KlangKunst Chor Iffeldorf (Andrea Fessmann, Director, Germany); Grand Union Community Choir (Susan Jane Cox, Director; UK); The Village Singers (Rachel McCorry, Director; UK); Meininger Kantorei (The Meiningen Lutheran Church Choir) (Sebastian Fuhrmann, Director; Germany); Hochschulchor Sankt Georgen, Frankfurt/Collegium Vocale Bad Homburg (Dr. Helmut Föller, Director; Germany); Singgemeinschaft Salzkotten e.V. (Thomas Rimpel, Director; Germany); Karl-Rehbein School Choir (Frank Hagelstange, Director; Germany); and Johannes Brahms Chor Hamburg (Kazuo Kanemaki, Director; Germany).

Joining VOENA and Pennsbury Choirs in other acts throughout the evening will be: Lutherkantorei Bad Harzburg (Karsten Krüger, Director; Germany); The Lorilee Singers (Lorilee Bajema, Director; CA); Sheppard Academy of Vocal Arts (Bettina Sheppard, Director; NY); and Mosaïque Musicale Malouine (Isabelle Ginet Besnard, Director; France).

Sir Karl Jenkins has famously and comically received global media attention after he was suspected of being Meghan Markle in disguise at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla, which he attended to witness the crowning and hear the coronation orchestra perform his original work, Tros y Garreg. “It was a piece I was commissioned to compose almost two decades ago, when the King was the Prince of Wales” Jenkins said. He was recently included in the New York Times list: Styles’s 71 Most Stylish People in 2023.

As part of the celebratory event, DCINY will be presenting the DCINY Educator Laureate award to James Moyer, who is a Director and serves as a Program Consultant for the organization. The DCINY Educator Laureate Award acknowledges an individual’s contribution to music education. It recognizes a personal commitment to instilling a life-long love of making music. A native of Easton, Pennsylvania, Mr. Moyer is a veteran teacher of 37 years and is in his 25th year as Director of Choral Activities at Pennsbury High School. Choirs under Mr. Moyer’s direction have performed throughout the United States and across Europe. Past recipients of the award are Dr. Donald D. Donaldson, professor emeritus of Asbury College and former choral director at Shawnee Mission South High School and chair of the music department at Kansas Wesleyan University, and Dr. Eph Ehly, formerly the Director of Choral Studies at the Conservatory of Music at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

For more information on DCINY’s unforgettable 2024 season opener with Sir Karl Jenkins, please visit: https://dciny.getfeedback.com/r/GtGspzuU/

See All Of Taylor Swift’s Eras On Display At The Museum Of Arts and Design In New York, Through September 4th

Taylor Swift has been breaking records and delighting fans on the U.S. leg of her Eras Tour, a splashy celebration of her career and new releases since the pandemic.

It’s become a notoriously tough ticket to get.

But on the second floor of the Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) in New York City, fans can catch glimpses of Swift’s “eras” for much cheaper. “Taylor Swift: Storyteller,” features dozens of costumes and objects spanning her music videos, tours and awards show performances — from the lace gown she wore when performing “All Too Well” on the Red Tour to the “key to the castle” featured in the video for “Bejeweled.”

The goal, museum director Tim Rodgers said, was to explore how Swift uses clothing and props to tell stories — almost as much as she does lyrics. “It’s different than stars that use costumes or fashion in order to enhance themselves,” Rodgers said. “Taylor Swift is using costumes and props like a vocabulary.”

Rodgers said Swift’s team came to MAD with the idea because of another exhibit they hosted — “Queer Maximalism X Machine Dazzle” — featuring the work of artist, performer and costume designer Matthew Flower, also known as Machine Dazzle. “It was totally unexpected,” Rodgers said.

“Taylor Swift: Storyteller” opened ahead of Swift’s three-night stop nearby at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium. Like her concerts, the collection walks visitors through her genre- and decade-spanning career. There’s the crystal-encrusted guitar she used when performing her 2010 album “Speak Now,” a hooded bodysuit she wore during her Reputation Stadium Tour, the striped T-shirt she wore in a 2020 photoshoot for “folklore.”

“She’s a visual storyteller. Everything she does ... it feels very intentional,” said Teresa Bocalan, a fan visiting the museum. “So it’s really cool to see those outfits up close.”

The exhibit, on display through Sept. 4, is accompanied by a playlist of Swift’s music videos — including her short film for the 10 minute version of “All Too Well” — which are projected on screens around the room. Lyrics scrawled in Swift’s handwriting adorn key walls in the space.

But perhaps the centerpiece of it all is a more recent piece of Swift’s lore: the flowing red wedding dress she wore in the 2021 video for “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault),” directed by Blake Lively and co-starring Miles Teller. The song, featuring Chris Stapleton, was an addition to the re-released version of her 2012 album “Red.” Adorned with tulle roses, the dress was custom made for Swift by Nicole + Felicia Couture.

In the video, the red gown is a showstopper — or, more literally, a wedding stopper.

In the exhibit, it seems to hold the same power.

“We had people come in and look at that red wedding dress over there and literally start to cry,” Rodgers said of the exhibit’s opening weekend. “It is, for a lot of people, almost like a religious experience to see this clothing that Taylor once wore.”

“I’m also super excited to see the ‘I Bet You Think About Me’ dress over there,” said Greta Myers, a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology. “We haven’t looked at it yet. I’m saving it.”

By ELISE RYAN

Travelore Entertainment News: Gustavo Dudamel To Become NY Philharmonic Music Director, Leave LA

Gustavo Dudamel will become music director of the New York Philharmonic for the 2026-27 season, ending a heralded tenure with the Los Angeles Philharmonic that began in 2009.

The 42-year-old Venezuelan conductor agreed to a five-year contract as New York’s artistic and music director, the orchestra announced Tuesday. Dudamel will become the first Latino to head the orchestra since its founding in 1842.

“What the orchestra told us very, very clearly was that the person that they wanted, their dream candidate, was Gustavo,” New York Philharmonic CEO Deborah Borda said. “When you’re trying to recruit the most sought-after conductor in the world, you don’t run a sort of classic search.”

Dudamel — who will hold the title of music director designate in 2025-26 — will also remain music director of the Paris Opera, a role he’s held since 2021, and of Venezuela’s Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra, a position he took in 1999 that gained him international recognition.

Dudamel, in a statement, cited the Spanish poet Federico García Lorca’s quote: “Every step we take on earth brings us to a new world.”

“I gaze with joy and excitement at the world that lies before me in New York City, and with pride and love at the world I have shared — and will continue to share — with my dear Angelenos over the next three seasons and beyond,” Dudamel said. “All of us are united in our belief that culture creates a better world, and in our dream that music is a fundamental right.”

King Tut And His Treasures Come Alive For The Instagram Age

A new exhibit celebrating the ancient pharaoh King Tut is about to land in several cities with a very modern twist — taking a digital look at the boy king for the Instagram age.

Not a single golden treasure or artifact from the tomb is on view at “Beyond King Tut: The Immersive Experience.” Instead, high-resolution digital projections of Tutankhamun’s world are splashed along high walls and floors as visitors walk through nine galleries that chart his life, death and times.

“The culture of ancient Egypt and modern Egypt is one that we know has been endlessly fascinating to our audiences, not just in the United States but around the world. So the question became, how do we tell this story through a 2022 lens?” says Kathryn Keane, vice president of public experiences for the National Geographic Society, which is helping produce the show.

The exhibit coincides with the 100th anniversary of the tomb’s discovery, a watershed moment in archeology. “Beyond King Tut” opens Friday in New York City and is already open in Washington, D.C., with openings in Los Angeles and Vancouver planned for Nov. 4, and plans for Atlanta, Houston, San Diego and San Francisco.

The New York show is at the massive Pier 36 event space — once home to 25 basketball courts — and uses 25,000 square feet (2322.58 square meters) to show Tut’s burial chamber, explore his family tree, how he was prepared for mummification, the treasures he was buried with and even his impact on popular culture. An introductory film presented in an archeologist’s tent starts the process off, and all of it is very social media friendly.

There are a few replicas of the 5,400 items found in Tut’s tomb, including his modest throne and a sleek Egyptian sailing vessel, whose sail provides a screen for projections. A block of stone becomes his shrine, a place where projections show his various coffins and his magnificent golden burial mask. Visitors can also play a board game that ancient Egyptians enjoyed — one of five board games found in his tomb — called senet, a sort of precursor to backgammon.

“I always think it’s interesting, particularly for kids, to show them that people 3,000 years ago were maybe not all that different than they are,” says Keane. “It helps audiences connect with a time in history that is so long ago that it’s almost hard to imagine.”

The exhibit culminates in a massive room and a swirling, vivid, even trippy animated sequence that traces what ancient Egyptians believed was Tut’s fraught path to the afterlife. Following the formal immersive experience, guests who elect to pay extra can strap on VR headsets to watch the film “Tutankhamun: Enter the Tomb,” narrated by Hugh Bonneville of “Downton Abbey” fame.

Ever since English archaeologist Howard Carter discovered Tut’s intact tomb in 1922, the pharaoh has captured the public’s imagination. The curious lined up for hours to see the U.S. tour in the 1970s, which drew more than 8 million people and inspired pop culture tributes such as Steve Martin’s Tut parody on “Saturday Night Live.”

Mark Lach, the creative producer for the new show who has previously toured with artifact-heavy Tut exhibits, says the boy king “probably would have gotten lost in the pages of history if it wasn’t for this incredible discovery 100 years ago.”

He became king at around 9 and died mysteriously when he was 18 or 19, found in a modest tomb not picked apart by graverobbers. Lach says everything about Tut has “the makings of that kind of perfect storm of intrigue.”

“Beyond King Tut” is produced by Paquin Entertainment Group and Immersive Experiences. The technology they’ve harnessed comes at a key time for Tut artifacts.

Egypt, struggling to revive tourism battered by years of political turmoil, has been eager to gather its archaeological treasures inside the country. A new museum near the pyramids will hold the complete Tutankhamun collection, meaning traveling exhibits are unlikely for many years.

“I’m so happy for Egypt, for the folks that visit Egypt, but the folks that can’t go to Egypt, I think this exhibit is the next best thing and brings these artifacts to life in a brand new way,” says Lach.

Immersive experiences are all the rage these days, with traveling, projection-driven exhibits of Vincent Van Gogh, Gustav Klimt, Frida Kahlo and Claude Monet, just to name a few. There is even a rival Tut exhibit called “Immersive King Tut” touring the U.S.

Making this immersive Tut exhibit required a little more thought than the ones that celebrate the painters, said Lach. “You kind of lose yourself in the art, and the art comes alive, if you will,” he said. “As we sat down with this one, we thought, ‘This really needs and deserves more of a storyline, more of a progression — a beginning, middle and an end.’”

Keane agreed, hoping to move the medium forward by adding more educational elements. She says the Tut experiment has whetted the appetite of National Geographic to do more such digital-forward projects.

“I think it’s our hope that we can lead the way a little bit and that museums will start to adopt some of these techniques in their own storytelling, and make museums more accessible to people because that’s the goal: to bring in bigger, more diverse audiences.”

Online: https://beyondkingtut.com

By MARK KENNEDY