Why Mike Nichols Was the Egalitarian Auteur Why Mike Nichols Was the Egalitarian Auteur
Mark Harris’s biography of the filmmaker shows that one cannot be an auteur without some help.
Nov 3, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Lindsay Zoladz
How Theater Can Help Us Survive How Theater Can Help Us Survive
The saga of Chilean director and playwright Oscar Castro is a vivid example of how art can help us endure—and thrive.
May 6, 2021 / Ariel Dorfman
How Covid Transformed US Theater How Covid Transformed US Theater
The art form has been forced to reinvent itself.
Apr 20, 2021 / Feature / Alisa Solomon
Shakespeare’s Contentious Conversation With America Shakespeare’s Contentious Conversation With America
James Shapiro’s recent book looks at why Shakespeare has been a mainstay of the cultural and political conflicts of the country since its founding.
Dec 17, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Alisa Solomon
Why Has Society Failed to Integrate Grief Into Public Life? Why Has Society Failed to Integrate Grief Into Public Life?
We talked to Rachel Kauder Nalebuff about the politics of care, mourning, and her new book, Stages: On Dying, Working, and Feeling.
The Coronavirus Means Curtains for Artists The Coronavirus Means Curtains for Artists
The loss of revenue from live events is only the start of this particular disaster.
May 7, 2020 / no-paywall / William Deresiewicz
Lorraine Hansberry’s Radicalism Lorraine Hansberry’s Radicalism
For the playwright and activist, neither liberal reform nor countercultural art were enough. The very foundations of American democracy needed to be transformed.
Apr 21, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Elias Rodriques
‘The Inheritance’ Takes E.M. Forster Out of the Closet ‘The Inheritance’ Takes E.M. Forster Out of the Closet
Bringing Howards End into today’s gay Manhattan, playwright Matthew Lopez shows that “Only Connect” is still a radical message.
Nov 12, 2019 / Feature / Darryl Pinckney
Tony Kushner on Making Serious Political Theatre in 2019 Tony Kushner on Making Serious Political Theatre in 2019
In a conversation with The Nation, Kushner discusses the first major revival of A Bright Room Called Day, his Reagan-era political drama set in Weimar Germany.
Oct 28, 2019 / Editorial / Alisa Solomon
Dismantling Transphobia at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival Dismantling Transphobia at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival
Three performances at the world’s biggest arts festival react to transphobic rhetoric in the UK.
Aug 22, 2019 / Elliot Ross