Performing Arts

German writer Günter Grass arrives at Günter Grass-Haus, a museum in Luebeck, Germany, for his 80th birthday celebration on Oct. 27, 2007.

Books
Arts

Günter Grass, Who Confronted Germany's Past As Well As His Own, Dies At 87

7:53pm April 13, 2015

by Tom Vitale

In 2006, the Nobel prize-winning author of The Tin Drum admitted that as a teen during World War II, he had served with the Waffen-SS — the combat unit of the Nazi Party's elite military police force.

Queue Listen Now

Edie Falco stars in Showtime's "Nurse Jackie."

'Nurse Jackie' Ends As TV's Most Honest Depiction Of Addiction

4:46pm April 13, 2015

by Eric Deggans

Showtime's dramedy Nurse Jackie begins its final season Sunday. NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says the show offers television's most realistic depiction of a high functioning drug addict.

Queue Listen Now

Misty Copeland (left) and Brooklyn Mack play Odette/Odile and Prince Siegfried in this year's Washington Ballet production of Swan Lake. It is the first time that two black dancers star in Swan Lake in a major American production.

Who Gets To Dance In 'Swan Lake'? The Answer Is Changing

2:34pm April 13, 2015

by Elizabeth Blair

For the first time, two black dancers will star in a major American production of Swan Lake. NPR's Elizabeth Blair peeks behind the curtain to see why it has been so hard for ballet to diversify.

Queue Listen Now

As the new season of Game of Thrones begins, Tyrion Lannister (played by Peter Dinklage) is on the run after killing his manipulative father.

Arts

'Game Of Thrones' And 'Veep' Anchor HBO's Killer Sunday Lineup

8:26pm April 10, 2015

by Eric Deggans

HBO's Game of Thrones, Veep and Silicon Valley all start new seasons Sunday. NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says these three shows just might form the best Sunday night lineup on television this spring.

Queue Listen Now

Florence Klotz's costume design for Follies, which opened in 1971.

Arts

'Grand Illusion' Exhibit Lifts Curtain On The Secrets Of Setting The Stage

7:56am April 10, 2015

by Susan Stamberg

An exhibit at the Library of Congress is devoted to the art of theatrical design. Drawings, sketches, watercolors, posters and scale models reveal how magic and spectacle are achieved before our eyes.

Queue Listen Now

Bill Nighy is starring a revival of David Hare's 1995 drama Skylight. "I adore it. It's probably my favorite play," he says.

Arts

Bill Nighy And David Hare Team Up Again In 'Skylight' Revival

7:54pm April 07, 2015

by Jeff Lunden

"Our paths haven't crossed — we've beaten a path towards each other," says playwright David Hare. "Bill is my favorite leading man." Nighy is now starring in a revival of Hare's Skylight on Broadway.

Queue Listen Now

The times, they may be changing — but the cast of AMC's Mad Men find it difficult to change with them.

Arts

The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same As 'Mad Men' Winds Down

3:21pm April 03, 2015

by Eric Deggans

AMC's award-winning drama Mad Men returns for its final season Sunday. NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says these last seven installments explore how little people change, even in tumultuous times.

Queue Listen Now

Actor Mark Rylance, seen here as Thomas Cromwell in Masterpiece's Wolf Hall, views Cromwell as a survivor who knows how to manipulate power to his advantage. "He has the mind of a chess player," Rylance says.

Books
Arts

'Wolf Hall' On Stage And TV Means More Makeovers For Henry VIII's 'Pit Bull'

8:39pm March 31, 2015

by Lynn Neary

Hilary Mantel's popular novels breathed new life into Thomas Cromwell's legacy. Now, between a play and a miniseries, there seems to be no limit to the blacksmith's son's potential for reinvention.

Queue Listen Now

Trevor Noah, South Africa's top comic, will be named the host of the Daily Show.

He Just Flew In From South Africa To Join 'The Daily Show'

9:24am March 30, 2015

by Anders Kelto

And boy, are his arms tired. Because he's been holding them up so the U.S. police don't attack him. That joke launched Trevor Noah's "Daily Show" gig — and now he's about to be named the new host.

In Carrie The Musical, now being revived at a California theater, Carrie gets a jarringly Disneyesque song before her fateful prom.

Books
Arts

Pour A Bucket Of Blood On These New Adaptations Of 'Carrie'

6:03am March 28, 2015

by Beth Accomando

Stephen King has said his novel Carrie is about women's power and men's fear — an idea reporter Beth Accomando says has gotten lost in newer adaptations of the horror classic for stage and screen.