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    in Theater

    Theater Breaks Ties With Ivo van Hove After Report on Bullying

    An investigation found that a “culture of fear” had developed at the International Theater Amsterdam during the years when the star director led the company.The International Theater Amsterdam said on Wednesday that it had cut ties with Ivo van Hove, the Tony-winning director who led the company for more than 20 years. The breakup was announced just weeks after a report said that a “culture of fear” had developed under van Hove’s leadership and that he allowed bullying to go unchecked.Although van Hove stepped down as the theater’s artistic director last year, he stayed on as a salaried artistic adviser and was scheduled to create new work. A news release this week said that those collaborations had been terminated, and that the theater’s entire supervisory board had resigned.“By taking these steps and creating space for restoration and transparency, the interests and feelings of all involved are taken seriously,” Clayde Menso, the International Theater Amsterdam’s managing director, said in a statement.In July, the International Theater Amsterdam published an independent report that included the results of a survey of 285 current and former employees.The report detailed incidents of bullying and intimidation, including an actress shouting at a member of the technical staff after an error, and a guest director acting similarly toward actors. Many of the survey’s respondents said they did not feel safe at the company.Last week, the NRC newspaper published its own investigation into the theater’s backstage culture. In the article, an actress said a colleague had grabbed her by the throat.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    in Television

    Silvio Santos, Provocative Brazilian Television Host, Dies at 93

    He was best known for the long-running variety show “Programa Silvio Santos,” on which he charmed his audiences with gimmicks and showcased a range of performers.Silvio Santos, a Brazilian media mogul and television personality who built one of the country’s biggest entertainment empires, died on Saturday in São Paulo. He was 93.His death, in a hospital, was caused by bronchopneumonia related to a case of H1N1 flu this month, according to a statement by SBT, the television channel he owned.Mr. Santos spent more than six decades in front of the camera. He created and hosted several popular variety shows, including Brazil’s homegrown version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.” His best-known show, “Programa Silvio Santos,” has been on the air since 1963. (His daughter Patrícia became the host in 2021, although he continued to appear occasionally.)Every Sunday night, viewers watched Mr. Santos shimmy with dancers, hand out prizes to a mostly female audience, and showcase a range of performers, including circus acrobats, drag queens and hypnotists.“It wasn’t Sunday without Silvio Santos on the television screen,” said Geraldo Alckmin, Brazil’s vice president, who knew Mr. Santos personally. “He would become part of every Brazilian family in this fun, relaxed way.”A natural showman, Mr. Santos came to be known for his 100-kilowatt smile and his playful interaction with audiences. Dressed sharply in a custom-made suit, he would walk onstage to the tune of a catchy jingle, posing a question to the audience: “Who wants money?” In one of his signature gimmicks, he fashioned paper planes out of cash and launched them into a cheering crowd.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    in Television

    ‘Coach Walz’ Leads a Democratic Pep Rally

    The vice-presidential nominee’s prime-time debut offered football analogies and an alternative to Trumpian masculinity.Follow the latest news on the Democratic National Convention.The United Center arena in Chicago is the home of basketball’s Bulls and hockey’s Blackhawks. But you would be forgiven, Wednesday night at the Democratic National Convention, for thinking it was a football stadium — or rather, a locker room.“I haven’t given a lot of big speeches like this,” said Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota and Kamala Harris’s running mate. “But I have given a lot of pep talks.”This was what Mr. Walz, a former high school football coach, gave, delivering a cheerfully combative speech in front of a sea of “COACH WALZ” signs. But his style, his biography and the production that the convention built around him also gave the Democrats something more.To a campaign headed by a woman and backed prominently by female validaters — Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama and on Wednesday, Oprah Winfrey — Mr. Walz contributed an idea of masculinity that contrasted with Donald Trump’s performative, pro-wrestling-influenced machismo. He answered Mr. Trump’s coarse bluster with his own version of locker-room talk. He counterprogrammed Mr. Trump’s endless production of “The Apprentice” with a reboot of “Friday Night Lights.”Mr. Walz was introduced by Benjamin C. Ingman, a former student whom he coached in seventh-grade track, and preceded onstage by grown members of the football team he helped coach, stuffed into their high school jerseys.There was enough dad energy onstage to power a nuclear submarine.Not all coaches are men, but there are few pop-culture archetypes more male-coded. There’s the coach as paternalistic strongman — the my-way-or-the-highway leader whom you obey or you’re off the team. There’s the coach as icon — the Vince Lombardis and Tom Landrys whom fans hold equal to political leaders, or greater.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    in Television

    Matt Berry Is Afraid of Heights, Not Comedy

    His performance as a debauched vampire in “What We Do in the Shadows” earned him an Emmy nod. It has also often had him dangling 50 feet off the ground.Many actors will claim to have been surprised by an Emmy nomination. Matt Berry seems to mean it. While “What We Do in the Shadows,” the gleefully grotesque FX vampire comedy, has piled up a score of Emmy nominations, none were for performance.So when Berry’s agent called in mid-July and asked to FaceTime, Berry, a prolific singer-songwriter who was busy at his drum kit recording a new folk-pop album, had no idea why.“I can honestly tell you I was not expecting an Emmy nomination,” he said. But it was — a nomination for best lead actor in a comedy series, his first in any category.Berry, 50, an English actor best known for cult comedies like “Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace” and “Toast of London,” stars as Laszlo Cravensworth, a 300-year-old English aristocrat turned vampire. An avatar of decadence with a thing for orgies and cravats, he is played by Berry with a debauched joy and an accent that somehow suggests cut glass, crushed velvet and many, many quaaludes.Berry, whose gift is for making the most outlandish circumstances feel oddly plausible, recently wrapped the show’s sixth and final season. He didn’t seem to regret it. “I’m one of those that is very keen to cut loose when I’m onto a good thing,” he said. And despite the occasional wire work — he has an entirely serious fear of heights — “Shadows” had been good.Reached at his home in Bedfordshire, England, Berry discussed Victorian style, vampirism’s upsides and the most outlandish things the show has ever made him do. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    in Television

    Seth Meyers Approves of the Obamas Dissing Donald Trump

    The “Late Night” host remarked that former President Barack Obama burned Donald Trump “without even saying a word” on Day 2 of the D.N.C.Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.Double-Teaming Donald TrumpFormer President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle Obama, gave rousing speeches on the second night of the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday.On Wednesday’s “Late Night,” Seth Meyers said that Michelle Obama “brought down the house when she tore into Trump.”“She is very, very good. I’m a little bummed she doesn’t want to get into politics, but I’m very happy she doesn’t want to host a late-night talk show.” — SETH MEYERSBarack Obama’s speech, Meyers said, “got everyone talking when he took a jab at the size of Trump’s crowds.”“He did it without even saying a word — just a tiny hand gesture.” — SETH MEYERS“I’ve said it for years, and I’ll say it again: the best Obama is standup Obama.” — SETH MEYERS“That was the first time Trump was like, ‘That’s enough TV; I’m going to go exercise and read a book.’” — JIMMY FALLON“The last time Trump got burned that badly, he locked himself in his tanning bed.” — JIMMY FALLON“Yeah, then Stormy Daniels said, ‘Nothing to fact check there.’” — JIMMY FALLON“I see what he did there. Yeah, yeah, that’s brutal. That’s the second time this summer that the Secret Service has failed to protect Trump from a lethal attack.” — JORDAN KLEPPER, guest host of “The Daily Show”The Punchiest Punchlines (Turn Down for What Edition)“I just know that when Lil Jon wrote this song, he was thinking to himself, ‘This will absolutely rip at the 2024 Democratic National Convention.’” — JORDAN KLEPPER, on Lil Jon’s appearance at the D.N.C.“I didn’t know politics was so lit. I’m going to start voting!” — JORDAN KLEPPER“Oh my gosh! They don’t call it a political party for nothing’.” — RUPAUL, guest host of “Jimmy Kimmel Live”“C-SPAN even covered it and identified Lil Jon in a lower third, although they should have used his official title: ‘Rep. Lil Jon, Democrat, Crunksylvania.’” — SETH MEYERSThe Bits Worth WatchingDiane Lane, who stars in “Feud: Capote vs. The Swans,” chatted with the guest host, RuPaul, on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” and recalled seeing Truman Capote on late-night shows in the 1970s.What We’re Excited About on Thursday NightJon Stewart will host Thursday’s “Daily Show” live from Chicago on the fourth and final night of the D.N.C.Also, Check This Out“My bed is so comfortable,” Hannah Gadsby said, “and that keeps me up at night.”Ian LaidlawThe Australian comic Hannah Gadsby takes on Taylor Swift and fans in a new routine, “Woof.” More

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    in Television

    Nancy Pelosi Interrupted by Pro-Palestinian Protesters on ‘The Late Show’

    “Isn’t it great to be in Chicago?” the former House speaker exclaimed in her appearance with Stephen Colbert, an apparent attempt to defuse the tension.Welcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. Here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.Speaker, InterruptedBroadcasting live from Night 2 of Chicago during the Democratic National Convention, Stephen Colbert on Tuesday night welcomed to “The Late Show” the former speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, who, as has been widely reported, was a key player in efforts to nudge to nudge her longtime colleague and friend President Biden out of the 2024 presidential race. As Pelosi began to answer — or, rather, deflect — a question about her private conversations with Biden, a protester in the audience began to shout about the ongoing war in Gaza. (See the clip below around the 3:40 mark.)Colbert, after acknowledging the protester, returned to the subject after a commercial break (see around 1:35 in the clip below), while also mentioning the wider pro-Palestinian protests surrounding the convention and within the Democratic Party. He asked:There is dissension over what is the proper use of American power — especially our projected power overseas, both firm and soft power — if the goal is the peaceful and prosperous future for both Israelis and Palestinians: What role does the United States play?After beginning by talking about Biden’s role, which Pelosi said he “played very well,” she went on to say that Israel had a right to defend itself and that “we want the hostages free.” She also said, “we don’t want children killed in Gaza, and so we have to come up with a solution.”Pelosi argued that “war has no role in a civilized society” (just after the 3:40 mark), at which point the protesters interrupted again; paraphrasing their words, Colbert explained, “They’ve said that the United States should not have any role in supplying arms to kill the people of Gaza.” Watch the full exchange below.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    For Aja Naomi King, an Emmy Nomination Is a Seismic Event

    The earth shook as she talked about receiving her first Emmy nod, for her role as Harriet in the Apple TV+ show “Lessons in Chemistry.” Literally.A few minutes into a conversation with Aja Naomi King, a first time Emmy nominee for her graceful, purposeful supporting turn in the Apple TV+ limited series “Lessons in Chemistry,” the earth began to move. “Oh my God. Earthquake! Earthquake!” King said. Once the ground quieted, she collected herself.“Sorry,” she said. “I just really got the fullness of that shake.”An Emmy nomination? That has been earthshaking, too. King’s Instagram post about the news is an outpouring of exuberant run-on sentences punctuated by a heart emoji. “If you made it to the bottom of this post you deserve an award,” she wrote.King, 39, graduated from the School of Drama at Yale in 2010. She had been working professionally for over a decade, most notably in the tangy ABC procedural “How to Get Away With Murder,” when she was cast in “Lessons in Chemistry.” Based on the best seller by Bonnie Garmus, the show tells the story of Elizabeth Zott (Brie Larson), a onetime chemist who becomes the host of a 1960s cooking show.King plays Elizabeth’s close friend Harriet. Described in the novel as a middle-aged white woman, Harriet was reimagined as a young Black mother and an aspiring lawyer who fights to save Los Angeles’s Sugar Hill neighborhood from the incursions of the freeway system.When Elizabeth, concerned for her career, declines to participate in the fight, King’s Harriet confronts her. “You’re always talking about the things that keep women down, but who does that include?” Harriet says.While King was initially concerned that Harriet would be a mere foil for Elizabeth, she was gratified by what she described as “the fullness of Harriet’s Black womanhood” that the show allowed for.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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    in Theater

    7 Days in the Cultural Life of an Artistic Director

    Violaine Huisman, who leads programming for the Crossing the Line festival, takes in dance on Little Island, a world premiere at Asia Society and “invigorating” translation projects.Bastille Day felt a little bit different this year than others, said Violaine Huisman, the artistic director of New York’s annual Crossing the Line festival. L’Alliance, the French cultural center in Midtown, throws a party every July 14, the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille during the French Revolution. This year, the celebration took place just one week after a surprising snap election left President Emmanuel Macron — and France — in a state of flux.“I overheard onlookers wondering out loud whether it was a French tradition to demonstrate with blank signs on that day,” recalled Huisman, who had just been in the country to witness the upset in the streets. (Many participants in this year’s festival opted to carry blank placards in homage to a demonstration created by the choreographer Anna Halprin during the civil rights and antiwar protests of the 1960s.)During these times of uncertainty, many look to art for clarity and guidance. Huisman, 45, is certainly one of those people, as she has been hard at work curating programming for the next Crossing the Line, which kicks off several weeks of art, dance and theater on Sept. 5.Ahead of the festival, Huisman tracked a few days of her cultural life, noting some of the performances, books and music, mostly from her native France, that inspired her. Here are edited excerpts from phone and email interviews.“I overheard onlookers wondering out loud whether it was a French tradition to demonstrate with blank signs on that day,” Huisman said.Jutharat Pinyodoonyachet for The New York TimesSunday: Placards for PeaceWe celebrated Bastille Day at L’Alliance with a street fair and an amazing piece of performance art, in which two dozen volunteers carrying blank placards engaged in a procession through Midtown, trailed by a marching band. It was a re-enactment by Anne Collod of Anna Halprin’s “Blank Placard Dance.” Volunteers asked audience members what they would march for. “Peace” was the overwhelming response.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More