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Musical Theater

A rendering of a section of the museum focused on Rent, which immerses visitors in the East Village

The First-Ever Broadway Museum Makes Its Debut

Interactive exhibits will walk visitors through the Great White Way’s history and evolution

Lena Horne performing in Stormy Weather

The First Broadway Theater to Bear a Black Woman’s Name Will Honor Lena Horne

The Brooks Atkinson Theater will be renamed for the award-winning actor, singer and civil rights activist

This watercolor portrayed what became the third-act curtain of the musical On the Town.

Broadway Artistry Wasn’t Just in the Stars—It Lives on Through Production Design

A new exhibition pays homage to the art of mid-century costumes, sets and more

Originally founded in 1889, the Moulin Rouge has been a Parisian landmark for more than 130 years. 

Cultural Travel

The Windmill That Gave Paris’ Moulin Rouge Its Name Is Now an Airbnb—And Is Booking for Just $1

A lavish room atop the iconic performance venue will welcome travelers for three nights in June

A member of the Young Tuxedo Brass Band from New Orleans poses with Ukrainian youth in Kyiv, May 1990.  

The Music and Freedom We Experienced on the Streets of Kyiv

The story of a joint Smithsonian-Soviet-Ukrainian program in 1990 lends poignant resonance to Russia’s brutal invasion today

The International African American Museum is slated to open in late 2022 in Charleston's Gadsden's Wharf.

The Most Anticipated Museum Openings of 2022

Scheduled to open this year are new institutions dedicated to African American history, electronic music and Nordic art

Ary Scheffer, The Ghosts of Paolo and Francesca Appear to Dante and Virgil, 1835

Before Romeo and Juliet, Paolo and Francesca Were Literature’s Star-Crossed Lovers

Centuries after Italian poet Dante published “The Divine Comedy,” Romantic artists and writers reimagined the tragedy as a tale of female agency

In Six, Henry VIII's wives (top row, L to R: Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour; bottom row, L to R: Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Catherine Parr) reclaim their stories.

Based on a True Story

The True History Behind ‘Six,’ the Tudor Musical About Henry VIII’s Wives

The show’s creators, Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, reflect on the smash hit ahead of its Broadway premiere

The new film adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's In the Heights draws on the real history of Manhattan's Washington Heights neighborhood.

The Immigrant History of the NYC Neighborhood Behind ‘In the Heights’

How Washington Heights, a community in upper Manhattan, became the heart of an award-winning musical and a hotly anticipated film adaptation

Several line items in Alexander Hamilton's cashbook indicate that the Founding Father purchased enslaved labor for his own household.

New Research Suggests Alexander Hamilton Was a Slave Owner

Often portrayed as an abolitionist, Hamilton may have enslaved people in his own household

With a countrified accent, Will Rogers (Above: (detail) by Walter K. Kinstler, c. 1923) attempted to link arms with ordinary Americans, always reminding them of his Native American ancestry. “My ancestors didn’t come over on the Mayflower, but they met the boat,” he said.

Will Rogers Was One of a Kind

The popular raconteur touched Americans with his humor, newspaper columns, movie star power, philanthropy and as political agitator

This week's feature is a 2012 adaptation of Jesus Christ Superstar starring Spice Girl Melanie Chisholm as Mary Magdalene and Ben Forster as Jesus.

Covid-19

The Show Must Go On(line): Watch Free Broadway Musicals Every Friday

Select Andrew Lloyd Webber productions will stream on YouTube for 48 hours at a time

James Corden is no common place mouser as he takes on the role of Bustopher Jones, "The Cat we all greet as he walks down the street; his coat of fastidious black."

Purrfect or A-Paw-Ling? Why ‘Cats’ Still Gives Some Theatergoers Paws

Experts disagree on the hit musical’s merits; four of the original production’s slinky, feline costumes are held by the Smithsonian

After a 30 Year Absence, the Controversial ‘Porgy and Bess’ Is Returning to the Met Opera

From its debut, the show has been accused of cultural appropriation and stereotyping

The musical finds the six queens competing for the dubious honor of telling the most tragic tale

The Six Wives of Henry VIII Are Coming to Broadway

In ‘Six,’ the Tudor queens get a chance to share their side of the story

Ali Stroker at the 73rd Annual Tony Awards

Ali Stroker Makes History, and More From the Tony Awards

The actress becomes the first wheelchair user ever to take home the coveted prize at the 73rd annual award show

"Hamilton: The Exhibition" opened at Northerly Island in Chicago on April 26, 2019.

‘Hamilton: The Exhibition’ Opens in Chicago to Eager Fans

The sweeping show uses interactive visuals, games and sets to provide an in-depth look at the history behind the hit musical

Michelle Williams as Gwen Verdon and Sam Rockwell as Bob Fosse in Fosse/Verdon

How Broadway Legends Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon Made Headlines Long Before ‘Fosse/Verdon’

She was a megawatt performer, one of the best Broadway dancers of the last century, but it’s his influence that is remembered today

Pop History

Seventy-Five Years Ago, the Television Musical Made Its Debut

“RENT: Live” meet “The Boys from Boise”

Frederic Leighton, "The Music Lesson," 1877

Connie Gilchrist Was the Shirley Temple of Victorian London

The child star captivated audiences and artists alike, served as muse for Lewis Carroll, James McNeill Whistler

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