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Thursday

Audra McDonald: Shaping 'Bess' On Broadway

Audra McDonald plays Bess in the current Broadway production of Porgy and Bess. Michael J. Lutch/Courtesy of the American Repertory Theater hide caption

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Michael J. Lutch/Courtesy of the American Repertory Theater

Audra McDonald: Shaping 'Bess' On Broadway

Fresh Air

The actress plays Bess in the Broadway musical Porgy and Bess. The show, which won two Tony Awards, closes next month.

Audra McDonald: Shaping 'Bess' On Broadway

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Broadway Spoofers Return To 'Forbidden' Territory

Natalie Charle Ellis, Scott Richard Foster, Jenny Lee Stern and Marcus Stevens are part of Gerard Alessandrini's Forbidden Broadway troupe, which is returning to the stage after a three-year hiatus. Carol Rosegg/Forbidden Broadway hide caption

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Carol Rosegg/Forbidden Broadway

Theater

Broadway Spoofers Return To 'Forbidden' Territory

After a three-year hiatus, satirist Gerard Alessandrini is back with Forbidden Broadway: Alive and Kicking! Alongside Once and The Book of Mormon, they also target the Broadway-centric TV series Smash — but like all good parody, the skewering comes from a loving place.

Broadway Spoofers Return To 'Forbidden' Territory

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David Alan Grier's 'Sporting Life' On Broadway

In Porgy and Bess, David Alan Grier plays the drug dealer Sporting Life, a role closely associated with Sammy Davis Jr. and Cab Calloway. Courtesy of the American Repertory Theater hide caption

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Courtesy of the American Repertory Theater

David Alan Grier's 'Sporting Life' On Broadway

Fresh Air

The stand-up comedian and star of In Living Color played Sporting Life in the opera Porgy and Bess. The show, which won Tony Awards, closes on Broadway next month.

David Alan Grier's 'Sporting Life' On Broadway

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Wednesday

George Takei Takes Story Of Internment To The Stage

George Takei rehearses a scene from Allegiance, a new musical inspired by Takei's childhood in Japanese-American internment camps during World War II. Jeffrey Weiser/Courtesy of The Old Globe hide caption

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Jeffrey Weiser/Courtesy of The Old Globe

Theater

George Takei Takes Story Of Internment To The Stage

The actor was born in 1937 to a Japanese-American family that, after Pearl Harbor, was sent to live in internment camps for the duration of World War II. His experience growing up in the camps inspired a new musical, Allegiance, which Takei also stars in.

George Takei Takes Story Of Internment To The Stage

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Thursday

In The Theater Of Politics, Staging Is Everything

Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate, arrives to announce his choice of running mate aboard the U.S.S. Wisconsin in Norfolk, Va., on Aug. 11. Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

Theater

In The Theater Of Politics, Staging Is Everything

As the party conventions approach, elaborate theatrics on the part of presidential candidates are at the forefront. NPR critic Bob Mondello takes a look at the ways campaigns frame their candidates to make them stand out like Broadway stars.

In The Theater Of Politics, Staging Is Everything

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The Marlon Brando Of Screen Dance, 100 Years On

Blessed with athleticism and skill, actor-dancer Gene Kelly always managed to look like a regular guy having a lot of fun dancing. Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Movies

The Marlon Brando Of Screen Dance, 100 Years On

Dancer-actor Gene Kelly would have been 100 this year, and his legacy of unparalleled athleticism and joyous, comic performance still looms large in popular culture. His versatility and his physical beauty were both part of his appeal.

The Marlon Brando Of Screen Dance, 100 Years On

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Friday

Wednesday

Tuesday

Stratford's Big Stars, From The Bard To The Bieb

The Festival Theater in Stratford, Ontario, is the main venue for the town's annual Stratford Shakespeare Festival. The town lies on the Avon River — just like Shakespeare's British birthplace — and had schools named after Romeo and Juliet before the festival started in 1953. Richard Bain/Stratford Shakespeare Festival hide caption

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Richard Bain/Stratford Shakespeare Festival

Destination Art

Stratford's Big Stars, From The Bard To The Bieb

When it opened in 1953, nobody expected much of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival. But what began 60 years ago as two plays in a tent is now a major theater festival. It attracts half a million ticket-buyers a year to the small Ontario town — which also boasts homegrown heartthrob Justin Bieber.

Stratford's Big Stars, From The Bard To The Bieb

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Remembering Award-Winning Composer Marvin Hamlisch

Marvin Hamlisch (left) with Liza Minnelli and Barry Manilow in 1987. Time & Life Pictures/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images hide caption

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Time & Life Pictures/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images

The Record

Remembering Award-Winning Composer Marvin Hamlisch

He wrote music for The Sting, A Chorus Line and The Way We Were, and won a Tony, Oscars, Grammys and Emmys.

Remembering Award-Winning Composer Marvin Hamlisch

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Wednesday

Playwright Fugard Bucked South Africa's 'Racist Ideas'

South African playwright Athol Fugard (center) with actors John Kani (left) and Winston Ntshona at the Royal Court Theatre in London in 1973. Getty Images / Hulton Archive hide caption

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Getty Images / Hulton Archive

Theater

Playwright Fugard Bucked South Africa's 'Racist Ideas'

South African playwright, actor and director Athol Fugard was a thorn in the apartheid regime's side. Now 80, he calls any suggestion that he would slow down "nonsense."

Playwright Fugard Bucked South Africa's 'Racist Ideas'

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Sunday

'Oklahoma!' Actress Celeste Holm Dies At 95

Academy Award-winning actress Celeste Holm was best known for roles in Gentleman's Agreement, All About Eve and Oklahoma! AP hide caption

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AP

Obituaries

'Oklahoma!' Actress Celeste Holm Dies At 95

The Academy Award-winning actress was a star on both stage and screen, best known for roles in Gentleman's Agreement, All About Eve and Oklahoma!

'Oklahoma!' Actress Celeste Holm Dies At 95

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Seattle Theater Returns For A Shrunken Second Act

Miracle!, a drag version of the Helen Keller drama The Miracle Worker created and directed by Dan Savage, is a highlight of the Intiman Theater's comeback summer festival in Seattle. Chris Bennion/Intiman Theater hide caption

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Chris Bennion/Intiman Theater

Theater

Seattle Theater Returns For A Shrunken Second Act

KUOW

After financial problems forced it to close midseason last year, Seattle's Intiman Theater is reopening with a more limited offering: an eight-week summer festival. The comeback shows include a drag version of The Miracle Worker.

Seattle Theater Returns For A Shrunken Second Act

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Tuesday

A One-Man Madhouse, With Murder On His Mind

Alan Cumming plays Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Banquo and many other characters in a one-man adaptation of Shakespeare's tragedy set in a psychiatric ward. The show plays as part of the Lincoln Center Festival in New York through July 14. Manuel Harlan/Lincoln Center hide caption

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Manuel Harlan/Lincoln Center

Theater

A One-Man Madhouse, With Murder On His Mind

Alan Cumming stars in a creative reinterpretation of Shakespeare's Scottish play Macbeth. Cumming stars as Fred, a mental patient who performs his own highly personal version of the classic tragedy, playing nearly every character.

A One-Man Madhouse, With Murder On His Mind

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Thursday

Humor & Fun

Translating South African Jokes For A U.S. Audience

In just a few years, comedian Trevor Noah went from performing at amateur clubs to selling out large theaters in his native South Africa. Born to an African mother and Swiss father during apartheid, many of his jokes stem from his upbringing in a township where law separated blacks and whites.

Translating South African Jokes For A U.S. Audience

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