Front Row Lesley Manville, and Art in Space
Mar 30, 2026
Lesley Manville, veteran British actress famed for stage and screen, reflects on Les Liaisons Dangereuses and theatrical vulnerability. Emily Wilson, classicist and translator, and Mary Beard, renowned classics scholar, discuss reading and translating Homer's Odyssey and its modern resonances. Sofia Kishkovsky, New York arts reporter, tackles the controversy over Russia and the Venice Biennale. Short, lively conversations on theatre, translation and art politics.
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Oscars Trip Sandwiched Between Stage Performances
- While performing in Long Day's Journey Into the Night, Manville flew to attend the Oscars and returned to keep Saturday and Monday stage performances.
- She described the intensity and admitted she plans a break after this play to rediscover ordinary evenings.
Russia's Return To Biennale Signals State Soft Power
- The Venice Biennale initially excluded official Russian participation after the 2022 invasion, but that policy has shifted and Russia is now listed as participating via state-linked organisers.
- Sofia Kishkovsky highlights the pavilion's state ties, noting commissioners are daughters of high-ranking Russian officials, signalling soft-power strategy.
Cutting EU Grants Would Be Symbolically Powerful
- Withdrawing EU film grants (~€2m) would be symbolic rather than financially crippling, but could influence Biennale decisions and provoke protests.
- Kishkovsky notes Pussy Riot and others plan demonstrations, and financial cuts would signal political pressure on cultural organisers.