Arts and Entertainment

Jon Batiste plays a rainbow-colored piano outdoors as people in surgical masks walk by

Modern Hollywood Discovers Its Jazz ‘Soul’ Modern Hollywood Discovers Its Jazz ‘Soul’

Pixar’s Christmas release is the best jazz film in a long time. But then, there isn’t a lot of competition.

Dec 24, 2020 / Ethan Iverson

Herman Mankiewicz

‘Mank’ Recovers the Radical Roots of ‘Citizen Kane’ ‘Mank’ Recovers the Radical Roots of ‘Citizen Kane’

The biopic of writer Herman Mankiewicz recuperates the subversive politics of a cinematic masterpiece.

Dec 18, 2020 / Jeet Heer

The Best Albums of 2020

The Best Albums of 2020 The Best Albums of 2020

Our music critic’s 11 favorite pieces of music from this year.

Dec 18, 2020 / Books & the Arts / David Hajdu

Shakespeare’s Contentious Conversation With America

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

Serenade Behind a Floating Stage

Serenade Behind a Floating Stage Serenade Behind a Floating Stage

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Dec 15, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Shangyang Fang

Lightning Strike

Lightning Strike Lightning Strike

A movement called the Women’s Strike has been drawing hundreds of thousands of people to protest drastic abortion restrictions in Poland in recent months.

Dec 14, 2020 / OppArt / Various Contributors

Bob Dylan at Montfort Hall, Leicester (U.K.) in 1965.

How Bob Dylan Wrote the Second Great American Songbook How Bob Dylan Wrote the Second Great American Songbook

The sale of the singer-songwriter’s catalogue is a reminder of his massive cultural legacy.

Dec 11, 2020 / Jeet Heer

The Vanishing Queer Underground of Los Angeles

The Vanishing Queer Underground of Los Angeles The Vanishing Queer Underground of Los Angeles

Reynaldo Rivera’s photos of the city's nightlife document a time of cheap rent and possibility.

Dec 10, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Kate Wolf

A Salacious Press, an Unchecked Government: Heinrich Böll’s Prescient Fiction

A Salacious Press, an Unchecked Government: Heinrich Böll’s Prescient Fiction A Salacious Press, an Unchecked Government: Heinrich Böll’s Prescient Fiction

A 1975 film adaptation of his novel The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum looks how fragile freedom is under democracy.

Dec 8, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Phoebe Chen

A worn down marquee reads

Movie Theaters Aren’t Dying—They’re Being Murdered Movie Theaters Aren’t Dying—They’re Being Murdered

The Covid-19 pandemic is providing a perfect cover for media giants bent on replacing theatrical moviegoing with streaming at home.

Dec 4, 2020 / Jeet Heer

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