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    How ‘The Jennifer Hudson Show’ Took Over TikTok

    I have never watched an episode of “The Jennifer Hudson Show.” Yet here I am at my desk, singing to myself: “Aaron. Pierre. That’s Mufasa.”If you’re familiar with the tune, you’re singing it now too. If not, picture Pierre, the dashing actor who voiced the title character in “Mufasa: The Lion King,” strut-dancing his way down a hallway surrounded by … Actually, just watch it below and then keep reading.

    @jenniferhudsonshow Aaron Pierre, that’s Mufasa #thejenniferhudsonshow #jenniferhudson #aaronpierre #jhud ♬ original sound – Jennifer Hudson Show OK, welcome back.“The Jennifer Hudson Show,” a daytime talk show, is not a top syndicated program, according to the ratings agency Nielsen. But it has amassed a huge social media following with its behind-the-scenes promotional videos.Before taking the stage, guests make their way down a hallway as members of the show’s staff serenade them with a complicated, customized hype song, sung entirely from memory. Some of the biggest names in American culture — Michelle Obama, Usher, Angela Bassett — have danced, skated or nervously shimmied through this “spirit tunnel” as the TikTok cameras roll.Some of the videos are awkward. Some are suave. Most go viral.During the show’s first season in 2022, members of the show’s staff learned that cheering for Hudson before she took the stage boosted her confidence and energy.

    @jenniferhudsonshow We got @imkevinhart #thejenniferhudsonshow #jenniferhudson #kevinhart #jhud ♬ original sound – Jennifer Hudson Show

    @jenniferhudsonshow It’s Gwen! @Gwen Stefani! S-T-E-F-A-N-I! #thejenniferhudsonshow #jenniferhudson #gwenstefani #jhud ♬ original sound – Jennifer Hudson Show 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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    ‘Love Island: Beyond the Villa’ Will Follow Season 6 Cast Around Los Angeles

    Trying to capitalize on the success of the sixth season of “Love Island USA,” Peacock announced a series that would follow former islanders around Los Angeles.In its sixth season, “Love Island USA,” an American remake of the popular British dating reality show, found its footing with fans. That season, which aired on Peacock last summer and was hosted by Ariana Madix, a veteran of “Vanderpump Rules,” was the top-rated reality series in the United States for multiple weeks and a hot topic on social media. It also produced some of the franchise’s most memorable couples, many of whom are still together.Given that success, it was not a surprise this week when Peacock announced “Love Island: Beyond the Villa,” a spinoff series featuring some of the islanders from Season 6.Here’s what we know.How is it different from the original show?“Love Island USA” is a reality dating competition that gathers a group of contestants, called islanders, into a luxury villa — Season 6 was set in Fiji — and has them couple up, either out of true love, friendship or simply for survival. Single islanders are kicked out of the villa, and every so often viewers are given the chance to vote out their least favorite couple. The pair voted “most compatible” at the end wins a cash prize.“Love Island: Beyond the Villa” appears to be more of a straightforward reality show, without a competition element. According to Peacock, the show will follow several of the cast members “around Los Angeles as they navigate new careers, evolving friendships, newfound fame and complex relationships outside of the Love Island villa.”Who’s going to be on it?Almost all of the Season 6 favorites are slated to star in the show, including two couples that made it to the finale: JaNa Craig and Kenny Rodriguez, and Leah Kateb and Miguel Harichi. Kendall Washington, who split from his finale partner, Nicole Jacky, will also star in the show alongside Olivia Walker, Connor Newsum and the exes Aaron Evans and Kaylor Martin.Ms. Craig and Mr. Rodriguez, who made it to the Season 6 finale, are both part of the main cast for “Love Island: Beyond the Villa.”Eugene Gologursky/Getty ImagesIn something of a surprise, only half of Season 6’s winning couple was officially announced as being part of the show: Serena Page, who, alongside her partner, Kordell Beckham, took home the grand prize, will appear. But Mr. Beckham — the younger brother of the N.F.L. player Odell Beckham Jr. — is not listed as a main cast member.Ms. Page cleared up the gossip around Mr. Beckham’s absence rather quickly, replying to a fan on Snapchat, “He’s gunna be in it with me!!!” and saying that he could not be announced as part of the main cast because he had booked another role.Also missing from the listed cast was Robert Rausch, a veteran of Seasons 5 and 6 of the show, though Peacock’s announcement said other islanders would appear, so he might be on at some point.What else do we know?Peacock did not release a trailer or announce a release date for the show, but the streamer said it would be coming in summer 2025. More

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    There’s No People Like Show People

    In a new book, the Broadway photographer Jenny Anderson captures the craft and camaraderie of making theater.When Jenny Anderson was 7, her mother was cast in a local production of “Annie” in Brookhaven, Miss., near their hometown; Anderson, who had auditioned to be an orphan, was not. But sitting backstage watching her mom rehearse, she discovered a kind of “magic.” Where an actor’s job is to be seen, Anderson, even at 7, loved to look — not just at the razzle-dazzle happening onstage but at the alchemy that happened beyond it, transforming 1990s suburban kids into Depression-era orphans and a Mississippi theater into the streets of New York City.Anderson eventually made her way to New York, where she built a career as a theater photographer. THE IN-BETWEEN (Applause, $45), her first book, collects 16 years of her work behind the Broadway stage. The volume is a celebration of the labor and love that go into making theater — the trial and error of the rehearsal room; the transformative process of layering on costumes, makeup and wigs; the back-alley cigarettes and stairwell quick changes; the frenzied laughter, reflective calm and tears that all pour into a performance, and that turn a bunch of strangers into a momentary family.Brian d’Arcy James and Kelli O’Hara in 2023, dressed to go on as a couple battling alcoholism in the musical “Days of Wine and Roses.”Jenny AndersonSarah Paulson warms up backstage at “Appropriate” in 2024.Jenny AndersonThough not a performer, Anderson is undeniably a member of that club called show people, and she suffuses each of her photographs with a palpable tenderness. Devotees of Broadway will find many familiar faces here; in the span of a few pages, you can trace Caissie Levy or Gavin Creel from baby-faced hippies in the 2010 “Hair” tribe to confident veterans leading the casts of “Frozen” (2019) and “Into the Woods” (2022). This is a book, in many ways, about becoming: a twisted mother, an underdog boxer, the goddess of the underworld, a bona fide Broadway star.Caissie Levy, Gavin Creel and Will Swenson rehearsing for “Hair” in 2010.Jenny AndersonLevy starring as Elsa in “Frozen” in 2019.Jenny AndersonAndy Karl prepares for his role as the titular boxer in the 2014 musical “Rocky.”Jenny AndersonThey say magicians should never reveal their secrets. But in exposing the inner workings of so many showstopping performances, Anderson pulls us all under the theater’s spell — holding our breaths as we race toward that moment when the room is hushed and everything is possible, just before the curtain goes up.Shaina Taub — the writer, composer and star of “Suffs” — at the 2024 Tony Awards, where she took home the prizes for best book and best original score.Jenny AndersonAmber Gray pauses before performing a number from “Hadestown” at the 2019 Tony Awards.Jenny AndersonCherry Jones and Celia Keenan-Bolger share a lighthearted moment backstage at “The Glass Menagerie” in 2013.Jenny AndersonLeslie Odom Jr. takes a moment for reflection before a 2023 performance of “Purlie Victorious.”Jenny Anderson More

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    Stephen Colbert Translates Trump’s Italian Tariff Talk

    “The Late Show” host said Italy’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, is “seen as something of a Trump whisperer” after she visited the White House on Thursday.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.Speaking Trump’s LanguagePresident Trump hosted Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy at the White House on Thursday.On “The Late Show,” Stephen Colbert said that hopes were high that Meloni, a right-wing populist and a favorite of Trump’s, could convince him to loosen up on tariffs. His admiration for her was demonstrated again when he marveled at her Italian-speaking ability during their news conference.“[imitating Trump] It sounded great — it was beautifully presented. I’ll have the same thing she ordered, but double meatball, double parm.” — STEPHEN COLBERT.“Trump got a visit from the prime minister of Italy today. He had them bring in lunch from the Olive Garden to make her feel at home.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Things went so well that they planned a second play date. Meloni announced that Trump has accepted her invitation to come to Italy for an official visit, and Trump is going to blend right in with the Italians, because he looks like a pile of prosciutto with a little spaghetti on top.” — STEPHEN COLBERTThe Punchiest Punchlines (High Holy Day Edition)“Easter weekend is almost upon us. And, man, oh man, if Jesus comes back and sees what’s going on, we are in deep trouble.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“For the first time since 2014, Easter and 4/20 will land on the same day this year, which is going to lead to some very long and confusing egg hunts.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“This Sunday, He is risen, and you is high.” — STEPHEN COLBERT“Easter and 4/20 seem like a natural pairing ’cause whoever came up with our Easter traditions was definitely stoned.’” — STEPHEN COLBERTThe Bits Worth WatchingThe actress Nancy Kwan discussed her new book, “The World of Nancy Kwan: A Memoir by Hollywood’s Asian Superstar,” with host Ronny Chieng during Thursday’s “Daily Show.”Also, Check This OutKelly Marie Tran, left, Lily Gladstone, Han Gi-Chan and Bowen Yang in “The Wedding Banquet.”Luka Cyprian/Bleecker Street/ShivHans Pictures Starring Kelly Marie Tran, Lily Gladstone and Bowen Yang, Andrew Ahn’s “The Wedding Banquet” is a 21st-century twist on Ang Lee’s 1993 queer classic. More

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    ‘The Rehearsal’ Is an Awkward, Dazzling Ride

    For Season 2, Nathan Fielder’s focus is commercial airline safety, hardly a typical topic for comedy. But his approach is never typical.The first season of HBO’s “The Rehearsal,” which aired in 2022, was an entrancing experiment. Created by and starring the comedian Nathan Fielder, the show began with a relatively simple but absurd premise: What if you could rehearse for events in your everyday life — like, for instance, having a difficult conversation with a friend? Eventually, the experiment turned into a large-scale simulation in which Fielder “rehearsed” raising a kid, a feat that, because of child labor rules and an accelerated timeline, involved a rotating cast of child actors.The second season premieres on Sunday, anticipated by the question: How is Fielder is going to top that first brilliantly uncomfortable season? His answer is to turn his attention to the world of commercial airline safety, and what results is both sidesplitting and one of the most stressful television watching experiences in recent memory.The season revolves around Fielder’s personal research into the causes of aviation disasters — a premise he admits isn’t particularly ripe for a comedy. (“So far, I was failing,” he narrates in what is perhaps the show’s first joke. “We were over 10 minutes into this episode with zero laughs.”) He has concluded that a primary cause of crashes is a lack of communication in the cockpit, where the second-in-command feels too intimidated to press his or her concerns with the captain.Fielder’s solution? Getting the pilots to open up through his rehearsal methods involving professional actors. But in Fielder’s universe, nothing is that straightforward.Working with real pilots and building a full-size replica of a Houston airport terminal, Fielder takes bizarrely hilarious detours. One involves a singing competition called “Wings of Voice.” Another uses oversize puppets to examine the life of the “Miracle on the Hudson” pilot Chesley Sullenberger.Fielder’s life-or-death subject is distressingly topical, but “The Rehearsal” is interested in more than aviation. It is a study of human behavior and the masks people wear, investigating the psychology not only of the pilots but also of the actors Fielder employs and, ultimately, of Fielder himself.Fielder draws from his own life more than ever — including in references to his other shows “Nathan for You” and “The Curse” — all while keeping the audience guessing about how much of what he is showing us is just a character. But his typically deadpan persona takes on new weight here. “The Rehearsal” remains one of the best comedies out there, but what’s at stake is no joke. More

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    Review: Caryl Churchill Times Four Makes an Infinity of Worlds

    “Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp,” a new collection of one-acts by the great British playwright, is a cause for celebration, wonderment and grief.A girl made of glass. A god — or, really, all of them. Ghosts, but of the future. An imp who may be trapped in a bottle.Just another day in Caryl Churchill’s world.The arrival of new work by Churchill is like the arrival of a new theorem in a supposedly settled body of knowledge. “Cloud Nine” (1979) explored gender as colonialism; “Escaped Alone” (2016) domesticated the apocalypse. “Drunk Enough to Say I Love You” (2006) reframed the alliance of Britain and the United States as a sloppy date. Clones and multiverses are part of her world. With a mathematician’s precision, she posits ways of thinking about the universe and its inhabitants that, even when baffling, give more dimension to our experience of both.Her latest investigations take the form of a collection of four one-act plays at the Public Theater, under the portmanteau title “Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.” Written separately over the last few years, each is pointed enough on its own: short and edgy. But together, in a splendid and surprisingly emotional production directed by James Macdonald, a frequent Churchill collaborator, they are so sharp you hardly feel them slicing your skin.“Glass” is the most literally shattering. The life of a girl made of the substance, who lives on a mantelpiece for safety, is encompassed in 13 minutes. Her mother frets over her, her brother brags about her, her mantelpiece neighbors — an old clock, a plastic dog, a painted vase — compete with her. (She may be pretty, the clock says, but he’s useful.) Soon the girl (Ayana Workman) meets a flesh-and-blood boy (Japhet Balaban) who is entranced by the transparency of her feelings: He can see straight into them, with no need for words. When his own feelings are spoken, in the form of whispers we do not hear, the express bus to tragedy departs.The way intimacy opens to loss is a theme here; the way abstractions become characters is a miracle. Somehow, it takes just a moment to adjust to the bizarre setup and the ensuing complications. (The mother warns that if the girl goes out for a walk with the boy, she had better wear Bubble Wrap.) Nor do we trouble ourselves that the production makes no attempt to literalize the figurines. They’re just us.In a 12-minute monologue, Deirdre O’Connell looks down on the ancient parade of human viciousness.Sara Krulwich/The New York TimesWe 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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    Jinkx Monsoon Sails From ‘Drag Race’ to ‘Pirates! The Penzance Musical’

    Jinkx Monsoon talks about feeling like a lifetime of hard work is finally paying off, and her return to Broadway as a zany maid in “Pirates! The Penzance Musical.”As she prepared to discuss a part in the upcoming Broadway show “Pirates! The Penzance Musical” with the director Scott Ellis, Jinkx Monsoon had only one outcome in mind. “I knew I was going in for a meeting, but I wanted to leave with that role,” she said in a recent conversation.And she was not coy about it. “The first thing she said was, ‘I’ve never wanted anything more than this,’” Ellis recalled, laughing.Now Monsoon is above the show’s title in playbills, alongside Ramin Karimloo and David Hyde Pierce. A lifetime of hard work has added up.“I’ve done so many freaking things!” Monsoon said. “I’ve been a stand-up comedian, I’ve been a singer and a dancer and a stripper. I think auctioneer is one thing I haven’t done.”A two-time winner of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” Monsoon, 37, a Portland, Ore., native, has an eclectic résumé that includes cabaret shows, guest starring on “Doctor Who” and a wildly popular seasonal bauble, “The Jinkx & DeLa Holiday Show” (created and performed with BenDeLaCreme). When she made her Broadway debut in January 2023 as Matron “Mama” Morton in “Chicago,” casual — or perhaps cynical — observers might have assumed she was just another TV personality crossing off another item on her wish list, like headlining Carnegie Hall. (Monsoon did that, too, in February.)Instead it was a big step toward her end goal. She then took an even bigger step, professionally and personally, last year, when she was cast as Audrey in the hit Off Broadway revival of “Little Shop of Horrors” and ended up surprising even people who know her well.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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    Stephen Colbert Defends PBS and NPR Against Trump’s Defunding Plan

    Colbert said both public media entities are “already operating on a shoestring budget — Daniel Tiger can’t even afford to wear pants.”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.‘Bert and Ernie Have Wives Now’Earlier this week, the Trump administration announced plans to rescind $1.1 billion in federal funding from NPR and PBS.On Wednesday, Stephen Colbert worried that both public media entities are “already operating on a shoestring budget — Daniel Tiger can’t even afford to wear pants.”“And with the administration calling the shots, it could mean changes to public programming. So NPR fans, get ready for ‘Fresh Air’ to become ‘Cough Cough,’ and PBS fans can look forward to ‘Sesame Street: Bert and Ernie Have Wives Now.’” — STEPHEN COLBERT“The White House says PBS funding does not ‘align with the Trump administration’s priorities,’ including a PBS program from 2022 about a transgender woman who comes out to members of their bowling league in Ohio. OK, well I get that, ’cause America can’t be allowed to find out that trans people bowl. Because then, other trans bowlers might bowl as well, and if the bowling alleys allow — the pins are women, the pins clearly are women, and the balls are boys, if you use two balls, and then, and then, and then where do the fingers go? I’m not sure where that — and the bowling shoe spray turns my feet into women? I don’t … What would the problem be?” — STEPHEN COLBERTThe Punchiest Punchlines (Round Trip Edition)“So the plan, as I understand it, I’m sure we’ll get more details, is if you’re an undocumented immigrant, Trump wants you to go home, but if you’re good at home, he will get you back into the country. They will fly you out of the country and then bring you back. Who came up with this plan, Spirit Airlines?” — JIMMY KIMMEL“You know, usually when Trump offers an immigrant money and plane tickets to go away, it’s because he’s getting divorced. Melania is like, ‘Am I eligible for this?’” — JIMMY KIMMEL“[imitating Trump] I mean, what can we do? America is a gentle, passive giant that would never put pressure on a sovereign nation. Now, then, Denmark, suck on these tariffs and gimme-gimme Greenland.” — STEPHEN COLBERTWe 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