Performing Arts

Stowell (right) says Sendak (left) needed some convincing before he signed on to design a new Nutcracker. Their version of the ballet debuted in 1983.

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Arts

In Seattle, Maurice Sendak's 'Wild' 'Nutcracker' Reaches Its Final Act

7:32pm December 23, 2014

by Florangela D'Avila

For more than 30 years, the Pacific Northwest Ballet's Nutcracker has used sets and costumes designed by the author of Where the Wild Things Are. This year, the ballet is retiring the production.

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Protesters in Boston during a December demonstration against the deaths of two unarmed black men at the hands of white police officers in New York City and Ferguson, Mo.

Videos Of Ray Rice, Eric Garner Among Biggest Media Moments Of 2014

1:08pm December 23, 2014

by Eric Deggans

Some of the most interesting things on TV in 2014 weren't actually made for TV. NPR TV critic Eric Deggans lists the moments in television, viral video and social media that changed us all this year.

Quvenzhane Wallis (second from right) stars in an updated version of Annie, produced by Jay Z.

Arts

An Updated 'Annie' And The Tradition Of Nontraditional Casting

9:07pm December 17, 2014

by Bob Mondello

As an African-American Annie arrives on movie screens, critic Bob Mondello looks at other cross-cultural reinventions, from Pearl Bailey's Dolly to the Americanization of Carmen as Carmen Jones.

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Daisy Armstrong began performing poetry when her mother took her to a youth poetry group. Soon, she was winning competitions — but she was also kicked out of school after a slam poetry tour.

From Feeling Lost To Army Strong, With The Help Of Poetry

6:56pm December 17, 2014

by Yowei Shaw

Daisy Armstrong struggled in school. She was homeless for a time. Then she began performing poetry — and it helped her, a gay woman, find a niche where she never thought she'd belong: the Army.

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Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson star in HBO's True Detective.

Arts

Deggans: 'Fargo,' 'True Detective,' 'Transparent' Top Best TV Of 2014

11:44am December 17, 2014

by Eric Deggans

At a time when there is so much good TV around, NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says, any Top 10 list says as much about the critic as about the shows he is picking.

Glenn Close stars as Agnes in Edward Albee's play A Delicate Balance.

Arts

Glenn Close Ends 20-Year Broadway Hiatus With 'A Delicate Balance'

6:39pm December 11, 2014

by NPR Staff

Close stars as a suburban matron in a revival of Edward Albee's 1966 play. She tells NPR about the timelessness of Albee's play and getting a nosebleed in the middle of a recent matinee.

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Charlie Hunnam co-stars with Katey Sagal (center) and Drea De Matteo on FX's biker drama Sons of Anarchy.

Arts

'Sons Of Anarchy' Ends As A Macho Soap Opera Often Anchored By Women

9:29pm December 09, 2014

by Eric Deggans

FX's biker drama Sons of Anarchy airs its final episode tonight, capping a seven-season run. NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says cable's most macho series succeeded by finding strong roles for women.

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The Café Edison serves what might be called Jewish soul food — blintzes, matzoh ball soup and kasha varnishkes.

Arts

Don't Let The Kasha Vanish: Diners Band Together To Save Café Edison

10:49am December 09, 2014

by Jeff Lunden

Also known as the Polish Tea Room, the Café Edison is a favorite of regular New Yorkers and Broadway stars and crew. Now, Jeff Lunden reports it's being threatened with eviction by its landlord.

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A Spanish 'Rent' Marks Return Of Broadway Musicals To Havana

11:51am December 06, 2014

by Jasmine Garsd

A half-century after such shows were banned by the Castro government, rehearsals are underway for a Spanish-language production of the rock musical Rent.

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Arts

Suzan-Lori Parks' New Play, 'Father Comes Home From The Wars'

1:07pm December 05, 2014

by Michele Norris

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks is finishing a run on her latest work, "Father Comes Home From the Wars (Parts 1,2 & 3)" at The Public Theater in New York.

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