Ballroom dance

Dancing with the Amateur Stars

Amateur ballroom dance enthusiasts value dance not just as a hobby, but as an indelible component of their identity.
Tribute in Light

John Adams’ “On the Transmigration of Souls,” After 9/11

How to memorialize a national tragedy in music?
Sidney Robertson Cowell

A Bag of Old Songs from Elsewhere

Sidney Robertson Cowell might be starting to get the attention her rich life, first-rate writing, and broad work as an ethnomusicologist deserve.
Abel Meeropol

The Unlikely Origins of “Strange Fruit”

The man behind the anti-lynching anthem "Strange Fruit" was a white, Jewish, Communist named Abel Meeropol.
Queen Zenobia

More Than an Aria Written Over Rice: Rediscovering a Lost Rossini Opera

Rossini's "lost opera," Aureliano in Palmira is making a comeback with a new production. The opera's history involves antiquity, archeology, and Bugs Bunny.
Vinyl cover of Bob Dylan's Highway 61 Revisited

How Plato Anticipated Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone" would not have surprised Plato. 
Andrei Maximov via Flickr

The Real Meaning Behind Russia’s Eurovision Controversy

The annual Eurovision contest often serves as a stage on which political tensions play out.
The Danish Girl

Cisgender Actors in Transgender Roles: The Theatrical Roots of The Danish Girl

If Eddie Redmayne wins an Oscar for The Danish Girl, he will be the most recent in a string of cisgender actors lauded for portraying a transgender figure.
Promo image from The X Files with David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson

Reopening The X-Files: Is ESP Possible?

"Here I am again, Scully, up late pursuing this obsession with ESP." "It's a fraud, Mulder."
Musician David Bowie performs onstage during his "Ziggy Stardust" era in 1973 in Los Angeles, California

The Science Fiction of David Bowie

David Bowie died January 10th, two days after his 69th birthday and the release of his album Blackstar.