The Best (and Worst) Theater in Europe in 2021 by Matt Wolf, Laura Cappelle and A.j. Goldmann

The Times's three European theater critics pick their favorite productions of the year " plus a turkey apiece for the festive season.

Best Theater of 2021 by Jesse Green, Maya Phillips, Laura Collins-Hughes, Scott Heller, Alexis Soloski and Elisabeth Vincentelli

Digital innovation continued this year, but experiencing plays in isolation grew tiring. Then came an in-person season as exciting as a child's first fireworks.

Best Dance of 2021 by Gia Kourlas, Brian Seibert and Siobhan Burke

A year of uncertainty was capped by a happy ending: a rush of performances this fall, including standouts by masters (Twyla Tharp) and breakout stars (LaTasha Barnes).

Praise for Stephen Sondheim at 'Company' and 'Assassins' by Matt Stevens, Sadiba Hasan and Julia Jacobs

"I would ask you to sit back and luxuriate in his extraordinary words and music," the director John Doyle said before Friday's performance of the "Assassins" revival.

The Last Word: Stephen Sondheim by Matthew Orr, Mervyn Rothstein and Robin Stein

In a never before seen interview, Stephen Sondheim sat down with The New York Times in June 2008 to talk about his life, career and accomplishments.

Little Amal, a Refugee Puppet, Looks for Home by Alex Marshall, Carlotta Gall and Elisabetta Povoledo

In "The Walk," a 12-foot tall, 9-year-old Syrian girl named Amal trekked from Turkey to Britain to find her mother. In a politically divided continent, were any minds changed?

S2 E2: Russell Tovey, actor by Grace Dent, Leah Green, Emma Roberts, Cathy Drysdale and Sami El-Enany

Next round to Grace's dining room is the actor Russell Tovey. Over a bowl of his favourite childhood treat, he tells Grace about his upbringing in Essex, embarrassing acting scenes, reconnec…

For a Broadway Torn by a Pandemic, a Split-Personalities Tonys by Jesse Green, Elisabeth Vincentelli and James Poniewozik

The streaming part of the ceremony actually did a better job conveying the electricity of being in a theater than the CBS special billed as "Broadway's Back!"

The Best and Worst Moments of the Tony Awards by Jesse Green, Stella Bugbee, Maya Salam, Sarah Bahr and Nancy Coleman

Despite an evening split between streaming and TV, the message on Sunday night was clear: Broadway is back.

Finally! Get ready for a new season of culture by Presented By Nosheen Iqbal With Arifa Akbar, Ammar Kalia and Ben Beaumont-Thomas; Produced By Hannah Moore and Axel Kacoutié; Executive Producers Phil Maynard and Archie Bland

New albums, new TV series, and actual live shows " the culture taps might have run dry during the pandemic, but this autumn they are switching on again at last. Our critics give their pick o…

Driving Ms Margolyes " A hilarious road trip through Europe in lockdown by Lucy Darwin, Noah Anderson, Annabel Kipnis, Elmaz Ekrem, Tony Sage, Phoebe Clothier, Noah Payne-Frank, Joseph Pierce and Charlie Phillips

At the height of Europe's spring Covid wave in 2021, the filmmaker Lucy Darwin offered to drive the actor and national treasure Miriam Margolyes from her home in Italy to London so that she …

How Indonesian Young Creative Workers in Yogyakarta Stay Productive Amid the Pandemic by Oki Rahadianto Sutopo, Annisa R Beta, Arian Utomo, Gregorius Ragil Wibawanto, and Novi Kurnia

Danastri Rizqi Nabilah, a filmmaker from Yogyakarta " a city in Indonesia known for its education and art " has no choice but to sell snacks after losing up to 40% of her income during the p…

Hamlet, Cabaret and a fistful of Romeos: the best theatre, comedy and dance of autumn 2021 by Arifa Akbar, Brian Logan and Lyndsey Winship

Cush Jumbo tackles the troubled prince, Jessie Buckley and Eddie Redmayne head for 30s Berlin, while standup favourites and dance spectaculars burst back on the stage Continue reading...

We Used Performing Arts to Map Out Gender Violence in Sierra Leone. What We Found by Aisha Fofana Ibrahim, Helen Shutt and Laura S. Martin

It's been more than two years since Sierra Leone declared a state of emergency over sexual and gender-based violence. The declaration followed a public outcry over a spate of high-profile se…

The First Play Returning to Broadway Is Doing Things Differently by Dodai Stewart, Michael Paulson, Anna Martin, Tracy Mumford, Theo Balcomb, Phyllis Fletcher, Wendy Dorr and Corey Schreppel

The playwright Antoinette Nwandu is making her Broadway debut with "Pass Over" " and trying to change long-held precedents in the process.

As New York Reopens, It Looks for Culture to Lead the Way by Michael Paulson, Ben Sisario and Robin Pogrebin

Culture is part of the lifeblood of New York " a magnet for visitors and residents alike that will play a key role if the city is to remain vital. There are signs of hope everywhere, as vacc…

As New York Reopens, It Looks for Culture to Lead the Way by Michael Paulson, Ben Sisario and Robin Pogrebin

The arts scene, from Broadway and nightclubs to museums and concert halls, is coming back to life after the pandemic shutdown. Getting it right will be vital to the city's comeback.

'In the Heights' y el colorismo: lo que se pierde cuando se borra a los afrolatinos by Maira Garcia, Sandra E. Garcia, Isabelia Herrera, Concepción De León, Maya Phillips and A.o. Scott

La película, ambientada en un barrio neoyorquino conocido como la Pequeña República Dominicana, no incluyó a latinos de piel oscura en los papeles principales. Críticos y repo…

'In the Heights' and Colorism: What Is Lost When Afro-Latinos Are Erased by Maira Garcia, Sandra E. Garcia, Isabelia Herrera, Concepción De León, Maya Phillips and A.O. Scott

The film, set in a New York neighborhood known as the Little Dominican Republic, didn't cast dark-skinned Latinos in lead roles. Our writers discuss how that absence reverberates.

Watch David Hare read new satirical poem about Boris Johnson " video by David Hare, Noah Payne-Frank and Charlie Phillips

Playwright David Hare has written a new poem, Agony Uncle, about Boris Johnson's handling of the coronavirus crisis. Written in the tradition of 18th century satire, the poem castigates t…

'I got a job on a fishing trawler' " Covid: one year on, stars of music and theatre look back by Dave Simpson , Imogen Tilden, Arifa Akbar, Lyndsey Winship and Brian Logan

In the second of our two-parter, rock stars, roadies, actors, dancers, composers and comics describe how their lives have been transformed without live shows " and imagine what now lies ahea…

The Night New York's Theaters, Museums and Concert Halls Shut Down by Michael Paulson, Julia Jacobs and Jason Farago

Chocolate fountains, Debbie Harry and an artist's swan song cut short. We gathered scenes from the New York City cultural landscape in the last moments before lockdown.

'You can smell the sweat and hair gel': the best nightclub scenes from culture by Peter Bradshaw, Claire Armitstead, Keza Macdonald, Simran Hans, Ammar Kalia, Lanre Bakare, Lyndsey Winship, Alexis Petridis, Arifa Akbar, Aniefiok Ekpoudom and Jonathan Jones. Artist Interviews By Ben Beaumont-Thomas

Writers and artists including Róisín Murphy, Tiffany Calver and Sigala on the art that transports them to the dancefloor during lockdown There have been many notable nightclubs in film…

Carlos Acosta: 'There's a danger we'll lose a whole generation of young dancers' by Vanessa Thorpe, Arts and Media Correspondent

The Cuban star talks about his battle to lift spirits at the Birmingham Royal Ballet and the film he has made to rally performers as their stages stay dark When Carlos Acosta, considered one…

Seattle restaurants and arts and culture institutions are hoping for a big boost in latest round of COVID-19 relief by Paul Roberts, Tan Vinh, Brendan Kiley and Michael Rietmulder

Tucked inside Congress' latest round of small-business relief is some rare good news for restaurants, hotels and the performing arts " sectors that have been especially hard hit by COVID-19 …

Cash for Cate? Struggling arts groups offer donors online access to stars by Vanessa Thorpe, Arts and Media Correspondent

As Zoom fatigue sets in, organisations are seeking creative ways to bring art to patrons to keep them " and their wallets " engaged A concert from your favourite opera singer, delivered pers…

Jerusalem, Beckett and Bridget Christie: theatre, comedy and dance to book in 2021 by Arifa Akbar, Brian Logan and Lyndsey Winship

Modern masterpiece Jerusalem storms back and Trevor Nunn goes underground with Beckett, while Bob Marley gets a musical and Frankenstein becomes a ballet Continue reading...

In Four Audio Plays, No Stages but Lots of New Voices by Maya Phillips, Jesse Green and Laura Collins-Hughes

A big-box store, a hotel for transgender women and a dinner party gone awry are some of the places your ears will take you to.

Advocating and Agitating, Connecting and Inventing by Michael Paulson, Jesse Green, Scott Heller, Laura Collins-Hughes and Elisabeth Vincentelli

With their field rocked by unprecedented challenges in 2020, these people and groups " some notable, some new " stepped into the breach.

The Artists We Lost in 2020, in Their Words by Gabe Cohn, Peter Libbey and Lauren Messman

We Begin Again: a musical for 2020 " video by Noah Payne-Frank, Jess Gormley, Amy Hodge, James Graham, Jim Fortune, Emily Lim and Lara Taylor

Written by the Olivier award winner James Graham and produced by the Guardian in partnership with the National Theatre, this short musical film is a unifying song for the country to…