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      in Theater

      How Kara Young, a Tony-Winning Actress, Spends Her Sundays

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      Kara Young spends a rare day off brunching with her family in Harlem and popping into beauty supply stores along 125th Street.Many actors have to leave their support systems behind when they set out to follow their Broadway dreams.But Kara Young, a Tony Award-winning actress who grew up on the west side of Harlem — and lives just three blocks from where she was born — has been able to share her success with the community that raised her.Ms. Young, whose parents immigrated from Belize, attended elementary school and high school in Spanish Harlem, the neighborhood on the east side of Manhattan known for its Puerto Rican culture. “It’s a super beautiful community,” she said.“But at the same time,” she added, “I recognize that I’ve been privileged to be able to stay in the community I grew up in. Gentrification is real.”It was at the 92nd Street Y, she said, that she first became hooked on theater. Her older brother, Klay, was taking a mime class as part of an after-school program — and a 5-year-old Ms. Young knew she wanted in.Soon she was performing with the other students around Manhattan, and “that set off my imagination,” she said.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

      Chappell Roan, Kai Cenat, Shannon Sharpe Are Among Our Breakout Stars of 2024

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      Audacious, original and wielding a clear vision, the stars who rose to the top in 2024 pushed boundaries and took bold, even risky, choices. Here are 10 artists who shook up their scenes and resonated with fans this year.Pop MusicChappell RoanIt’s almost incomprehensible to think that last year, Chappell Roan still had time to work as a camp counselor.It’s not that she hadn’t been pursuing pop. Her debut album, “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess,” was released in 2023. One of its now-hit singles “Pink Pony Club” was released back in 2020.But it was this year that all the pieces coalesced: Her album hit No. 2 on the Billboard 200 album chart and No. 1 in album sales; her extravagant drag-inspired persona, 1980s-influenced pop sound, soaring vocals and edgy performances have become wildly viral; she outgrew her tour plans; and her dance-along anthem “Hot to Go!” was even featured in a Target ad and played at sporting events.All the while, her lyrics tackle queer issues frankly. Her track “Good Luck, Babe!” — about a relationship between two women that collapses because one is, as Roan has put it, “denying fate” — was one of the biggest hits of the summer.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

    • 138 Shares119 Views

      in Television

      ‘Malcolm in the Middle’ Is Getting a Four-Episode Revival on Disney+

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      The return of “Malcolm in the Middle,” which aired from 2000 to 2006, will follow Malcolm as he helps his parents celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary, Disney+ announced.One of America’s wackiest families is making a comeback.“Malcolm in the Middle,” the hit television show from the early 2000s, will get a revival on Disney+ with four new episodes, the company announced on Friday. Frankie Muniz, who played Malcolm Wilkerson, helped tease the comeback in videos posted on Disney+ social media accounts.“I have been waiting for this moment for 18 years,” Muniz said in one video, referring to the show’s finale in 2006. “Let’s find out where Malcolm and his family are now.”The post also featured videos of Bryan Cranston, who went on to star in “Breaking Bad,” and Jane Kaczmarek, who will be reprising their roles as Malcolm’s parents, Hal and Lois.“What a delight that I get to yell at that kid again,” Kaczmarek said. “We are very, very excited about coming back together.”According to Deadline, Linwood Boomer, the show’s creator, will be a writer on the four episodes. Ken Kwapis, one of the directors of the original show, will direct all four episodes.The new episodes follow Malcolm’s return home with his daughter to help his parents celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary.It’s unclear whether Christopher Kennedy Masterson, Justin Berfield and Erik Per Sullivan, who played Muniz’s brothers on the show, will reprise their roles. Sullivan, who played the youngest brother, Dewey, left Hollywood after the show ended.“Malcolm in the Middle,” which aired on Fox from 2000 to 2006, tracked Malcolm, a young genius, navigating life with his dysfunctional family of scheming, bickering brothers and unconventional parents.In just its second week, the show became the most-watched comedy on television at the time, drawing 23.2 million viewers, The New York Times reported in 2000.Unlike other sitcoms at the time that were filmed with multiple cameras in front of a studio audience, “Malcolm in the Middle” was produced like a movie and used a single camera for a more realistic look. It also lacked a laugh track.But beyond aesthetics, “Malcolm in the Middle” was built on a cast of characters that were unpredictable and funny, with Malcolm often serving as the narrator and speaking directly to the camera.The show was nominated for 33 Emmys and won seven times in categories including outstanding directing for a comedy series and outstanding writing for a comedy series.Muniz largely stepped away from acting after the show ended and went on to become a professional racecar driver. But in interviews over the years, Muniz teased about the possibility of a “Malcolm in the Middle” reunion, saying his co-star Cranston was working on reviving the show.Variety reported that a premiere date has not been set. More

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      in Music

      Timothée Chalamet Sings Live for the Bob Dylan Biopic, ‘A Complete Unknown’

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      The actor’s vocals so impressed the film’s director that he used the live recordings, instead of those prerecorded in a studio. Here’s a look at other actors who have hit their own high notes in musical biopics.In one trailer for the upcoming Bob Dylan biopic, “A Complete Unknown,” a fan pleads with the musician, played by Timothée Chalamet, saying that she can’t hear the music at his sold-out concert.Chalamet, his eyes hidden behind Dylan’s trademark Ray Ban sunglasses, his hair a frizzy mop, responds: “I’ll sing louder.”Biopics have often relied on creative license to portray a star, but Chalamet’s words are not just blowin’ in the wind. The songs in “Unknown,” directed by James Mangold, have resonated through generations, and Chalamet’s voice was so impressive that his live vocals — sung while performing in character — were kept for the final cut.That is not the industry standard. Some films use an original artist’s track while an actor lip-syncs. When actors in biopics do sing, it is common for them to record the vocals in a studio and then overdub them onscreen. Singing live on camera can leave a performance falling flat, especially if the actor is not a trained vocalist.But when done well, live vocals can add a touch of realism.“The idea was to get a little bit different sound in each different venue by using practical microphones from the period,” Tod Maitland, the sound mixer for “Unknown,” said in an interview with Variety this month. “That helped create a nice tapestry of sounds. But Timmy went 100 percent live. It was pretty amazing.”It’s not Chalamet’s first time at the mic — he sang in the 2023 film “Wonka,” and attended LaGuardia High School, a performing arts school in New York City.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

      36 Things That Stuck With Us in 2024

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      The movie scenes, TV episodes, song lyrics and other moments that reporters, critics, editors and visual journalists in Culture couldn’t stop thinking about this year.The Last Scene in a Film‘Challengers’Mike Faist in “Challengers.”MGMReal tennis, like real dancing, happens when the body is rapt and alive, where visceral sensation takes over and the only thing left is the crystallization of every nerve and muscle, both aligned and on edge. That last match was a dance.— More

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      in Movies

      Nicole Kidman on Watching ‘Babygirl’ and the Loss of Her Mother

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      Nicole Kidman’s eyes widened. “Haven’t you been to the Rockettes?” she asked. “I go every year. Oh yeah, I’m obsessed!”Over celery root soup at the Empire Diner in Manhattan last week, the 57-year-old Oscar winner regaled me with stories about the high-kicking Christmas spectacular, which she had attended the night before with her children and husband, the singer Keith Urban: “I was saying to my husband, ‘Why do we love it so much?’ And he said, ‘Because it’s a memory. You’re remembering the kid in you.’”Lately, Kidman has been thinking a lot about this sort of thing, tracing her life and career as part of a continuum. Her new film, “Babygirl,” is one such reconnection: Though she has recently been seen in splashy streaming series like “The Perfect Couple” and “Lioness: Special Ops,” it marks a return to the kind of risky, auteur-driven filmmaking she used to be acclaimed for.Directed by Halina Reijn, “Babygirl” stars Kidman as Romy, a put-together chief executive with a doting husband (Antonio Banderas) but an unsatisfying sex life: Afraid to explore her desire to be dominated, Romy finds her kink fulfilled by a young intern (Harris Dickinson) with whom she embarks on a tumultuous affair. “It’s very exposing,” Kidman admitted of the sexually charged film. When she watched it for the first time with an audience, she felt so naked and vulnerable that she buried her head in Reijn’s chest.Nicole Kidman said she was able to shoot the intimate sex scenes by telling herself, “Don’t think of this being seen by anybody.”“Babygirl” could earn Kidman her sixth Oscar nomination and has already won her the prestigious Volpi Cup for best actress at the Venice Film Festival in September, though Kidman had to miss that ceremony after the death of her mother, Janelle, at 84. The two were quite close and her passing has put Kidman in a contemplative mood: Over the course of our conversation, she discussed not just “Babygirl” but also her mother’s unrealized ambitions and the difficulties that thwart female fulfillment, tackling those topics in a surprisingly unguarded way.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

    • 150 Shares99 Views

      in Movies

      It’s Ariana Grande vs. Selena Gomez at the Oscars (in Fans’ Minds)

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      Anyone who follows the Oscar race knows it can get nasty. Over the long arc of awards season, films can fall in and out of favor, villains can emerge, and campaigns can be ferocious in their pursuit of gold statues. But movie fans aren’t used to the vitriol that comes along with pop music. Now, they are getting a taste.This year two major pop stars have big roles in notable movies, both of which happen to be musicals. Ariana Grande is the pink-clad mean girl Glinda in “Wicked,” and Selena Gomez plays a cartel boss’s wife in “Emilia Pérez.” While these women have been nothing but nice to one another in the press, their stans, or armies of supporters, have been going to war and drawing unsuspecting bystanders into the battle.Pop music fans are notoriously ruthless — far more so than movie lovers. Their loyalty is unwavering to the point that they take aim at anyone who dare criticize their beloved stars. Perceived slights have resulted in threats and doxxing. And now they have a stake in the Oscars. It’s causing chaos.It’s not as if pop stars have never competed for movie prizes. Cher and Barbra Streisand might have something to say about that. More recently Lady Gaga was nominated in 2019 for her role in “A Star Is Born.” But rarely have two pop idols gone head to head in the way Grande and Gomez are. The notion of a rivalry gained even more fuel this week when they both landed in the same supporting actress category in the Golden Globe nominations.Not that Grande and Gomez seem to have any personal beef. In an October red carpet interview, Gomez said she was “just excited to see Ariana’s movie.” Grande then posted on Instagram: “and we cannot wait for Emilia Perez,” adding a message to Gomez, “I just adore you.”But you would not know that these lovely words had been exchanged if you look at how their fans are acting on X.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

      Best Comedy of 2024: Nikki Glaser, Ronny Chieng,’ ‘English Teacher’ and More

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      Jon Stewart made “The Daily Show” must-see TV again, Theo Von had a memorable moment with Donald Trump, and Nikki Glaser broke through.Joe Rogan jumped to the front of the conservative media establishment. Netflix went in deeper on live comedy, while Disney entered the stand-up market. Katt Williams beefed even more than Kendrick Lamar and Drake. John Mulaney and Taylor Tomlinson became talk show hosts. It was an eventful year in comedy. Here are some highlights.Comedian of the YearNikki GlaserIn 2024, the stalwart comic Nikki Glaser finally broke big. The flashiest examples were her scene-stealing Tom Brady roast set and getting tapped to host the Golden Globes. But her new HBO hour provided more substance. Wearing a glittering dress and a strategic smile, she performs showbiz cheer, but underneath that shimmering facade is not just an ace club comic, but a restless artist exploring darker terrain. Glaser gets underestimated because she’s filthy. But she can go high as well as low, cover universal subjects and meta comedy analysis, do hilarious character work (look out Instagram moms) and brainy jokes. This relentlessly funny hour is bleaker than it looks, digging into suicide, rape and the apocalypse, and in a year when it seemed like everyone had a comic take on why you shouldn’t have kids, hers was the funniest.BEST SPECIAL‘Ronny Chieng: Love to Hate It’Ronny Chieng has always been an inspired hater. His intricately funny bits have long applied a spiky intelligence and distinctive jackhammer delivery to the zeitgeist. His very funny new hour represents a departure and a maturation. It has his characteristic social commentary, which feels timely even though it was shot before the election, but what makes this his best is that it also hits more personal notes, getting introspective without losing its fiery comic momentum.BEST STAND-UP ACTING‘English Teacher’Brian Jordan Alvarez in “English Teacher.”Steve Swisher/FXSo many shows are hurt by casting stiff stand-ups instead of funny actors, but not this one. Its comedians (Carmen Christopher, Langston Kerman) all shine, but the real standout is Sean Patton, a terminally underrated comic whose turn as a crude, if unexpectedly sensitive, gym teacher provides the beating heart of the show.BEST POLITICAL SPECIAL‘Ramy Youssef: More Feelings’The first time I thought the Democrats might lose the White House this year was after seeing Ramy Youssef talk about feeling abandoned by the party at a Brooklyn show early this year. His moody and thought-provoking hour arrived during the heat of the protests over the war in Gaza and engages with its raging politics without having his wry, minor-key sensibility pushed aside. It was a righteous and assured hour that expressed itself not through blunt polemic but elusiveness, metaphor and argument.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