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Performing Arts

Friday

Raymond Antrobus uses spoken word poetry to portray a diverse experience of sound

Album cover for The First Time I Wore Hearing Aids. Ian Brennan hide caption

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Ian Brennan

Culture

Raymond Antrobus uses spoken word poetry to portray a diverse experience of sound

The First Time I Wore Hearing Aids aims to make sound more inclusive for listeners by broadening the way in which we experience it.

Raymond Antrobus uses spoken word poetry to portray a diverse experience of sound

Listen · 3:47
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Thursday

Where are the Black musicians in the country's largest orchestras?

The Boston Symphony Orchestra in 2016. Jessica Rinaldi/Boston Globe/Getty Images hide caption

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Jessica Rinaldi/Boston Globe/Getty Images

Deceptive Cadence

Where are the Black musicians in the country's largest orchestras?

In 2014, a study found that only 1.4% of orchestra musicians were Black. In 2022, it's hard to know if that number is better or worse.

Where are the Black musicians in the country's largest orchestras?

Listen · 5:29
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Wednesday

Oregon Shakespeare Festival focuses on expansion – but is not without its critics

Oregon Shakespeare Festival Artistic Director Nataki Garrett stands inside the Allen Elizabethan Theatre in Ashland, Ore. She recently programmed her first full season but not everyone has embraced her new approach. Michael Sullivan for NPR hide caption

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Michael Sullivan for NPR

The Next Stage

Oregon Shakespeare Festival focuses on expansion – but is not without its critics

After two years of pandemic closures, audiences are back at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, to find a season of diverse plays. But for many, change has come too soon.

Oregon Shakespeare Festival focuses on expansion – but is not without its critics

Listen · 7:02
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Wednesday

Across the U.S., regional theaters are starting to transform. Here's why

To mark the 75th anniversary of this uniquely American cultural movement, NPR is traveling across the country for a look forward in our series "The Next Stage." Kristen Uroda for NPR hide caption

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Kristen Uroda for NPR

The Next Stage

Across the U.S., regional theaters are starting to transform. Here's why

In the first of our six-part series, NPR's Bob Mondello explains how the theater that most Americans see is being transformed.

Across the U.S., regional theaters are starting to transform. Here's why

Listen · 7:16
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Saturday

Friday

'The Phantom of the Opera,' Broadway's longest-running show, will close next year

A poster advertising "The Phantom of the Opera" is displayed on the shuttered Majestic Theatre in New York on March 12, 2020. Broadway's longest-running show is scheduled to close in February 2023. Kathy Willens/AP hide caption

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Kathy Willens/AP

Culture

'The Phantom of the Opera,' Broadway's longest-running show, will close next year

The musical — a fixture on Broadway since 1988, weathering recessions, war and cultural shifts — will play its final performance in New York on Feb. 18, 2023.

Wednesday

San Francisco Opera prompter Matthew Piatt sits in the prompter's box at the War Memorial Opera House.

San Francisco Opera prompter Matthew Piatt sits in the prompter's box at the War Memorial Opera House. Chloe Veltman/NPR hide caption

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Chloe Veltman/NPR

Culture

The hidden world of an opera prompter

One of the world's greatest living composers, John Adams, has a new opera, and the prompter keeps Anthony and Cleopatra from flying off the rails.

The hidden world of an opera prompter

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Tuesday

Ukrainian ballet dancer Oleksandr Shapoval is killed on the battlefield

Oleksandr Shapoval volunteered to fight after the Russia invasion. The National Opera of Ukraine says he was killed on the battlefield. National Opera of Ukraine hide caption

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National Opera of Ukraine

Culture

Ukrainian ballet dancer Oleksandr Shapoval is killed on the battlefield

The 47-year old Shapoval volunteered to fight after Russia invaded Ukraine. His unit was recently sent to one of "the hottest zones" in the country, according to The National Opera of Ukraine.

Ukrainian ballet dancer Oleksandr Shapoval is killed on the battlefield

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Sunday

British pop music has a fraught relationship with Queen Elizabeth

Members of the English punk band the Sex Pistols. From left: Lead singer and songwriter John Joseph Lydon a.k.a. Johnny Rotten, drummer Paul Cook, bass guitarist John Simon Ritchie a.k.a. Sid Vicious and guitarist Steve Jones. Mirrorpix/John Mead/Mirrorpix/Getty Images hide caption

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Mirrorpix/John Mead/Mirrorpix/Getty Images

Culture

British pop music has a fraught relationship with Queen Elizabeth

Since the 1970s, the UK's punk, alternative and hip-hop artists have used music to share their feelings about the late monarch and what she represents.

British pop music has a fraught relationship with Queen Elizabeth

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Thursday

'My Body No Choice' — Arena Stage advocates for reproductive rights
Nic Lehoux/Photo by Nic Lehoux, courtesy of Bing Thom Architects

Theater

'My Body No Choice' — Arena Stage advocates for reproductive rights

On the eve of the 2022 election, Arena Stage presents monologues on the theme of choice by eight female playwrights. The show runs for 18 performances and tickets are $18, a nod to the US voting age.

Hear all of Lee Cataluna’s monologue, “Things My Mother Told Me”

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Short Wave Goes To The Circus

Julia Ruth poses in the Cyr wheel. Rob Riingen/Julia Ruth hide caption

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Rob Riingen/Julia Ruth

Short Wave

Short Wave Goes To The Circus

Julia Ruth has a pretty cool job: it takes a lot of strength, a lot of balance, and a surprising amount of physics.

Short Wave Goes To The Circus

Listen · 12:31
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Wednesday

What makes a good race joke?

Comedians Brian Bahe, Maz Jobrani and Aparna Nancherla. Brian Bahe, Storm Santos and Aparna Nancherla hide caption

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Brian Bahe, Storm Santos and Aparna Nancherla

Code Switch

What makes a good race joke?

When a comedian of color makes a joke, is it always about race, even if it's not about race? In part two of our comedians episodes, Code Switch talks to comedians Aparna Nancherla, Brian Bahe and Maz Jobrani about how and why race makes an appearance in their jokes.

What makes a good race joke?

Listen · 27:48
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Friday

Thursday