The Tony statue features tragedy and comedy masks

The Tony Awards, explained

Broadway's top honor began in 1947, when the American Theatre Wing created the Tony Awards in memory of Antoinette "Tony" Perry. From scrolls and cigarette lighters to today's iconic medallion, the Tonys have evolved into a nationally televised celebration of Broadway's best.

10 books that get the theatre world right

The theatre world is filled with drama—both on and offstage—thanks to big egos, imagined slights, and tense interpersonal dynamics. Despite that reality, it's not easy to portray what goes on behind the scenes on the page. This list breaks down some of the exceptions, featuring 10 novels that accurately capture the insular world and fascinating personalities who populate it.

Since 1974, the Comic-Con Masquerade has been an iconic part of the gathering

At Comic‑Con, the Masquerade is the premier cosplay competition where participants submit handmade or significantly modified costumes for stage presentation. Contestants undergo pre-judging, perform live on stage, and compete for prestigious trophies.

The poet Martial vividly described the Colosseum’s opening games

In "Liber Spectaculorum," Martial recounts the inaugural spectacles at the Colosseum, offering graphic depictions of staged executions—some modeled on Greek myths—that took place during the midday program.

The 'Ratatouille' musical started as a joke on TikTok

It all started as a meme: What if “Ratatouille” were adapted for the stage? Just a few months later, though, it was an actual production, featuring genuine Broadway stars.

Shakespeare’s American productions have often reflected the state of the country

Shakespeare’s works have been used to interpret moments in US history, from the Astor Place Riot in 1849 and Lincoln’s frequent quotations of “Macbeth,” to the use of Shakespeare in nationwide classrooms today.

The author of 'V for Vendetta' explains the Guy Fawkes mask

The "V for Vendetta" mask became famous after the film based on the comic book series was released in 2005. It has since been adopted by global protest movements. This piece, written by the author of the book, explains the logic of the rise of this...

The Oscar statue was created in 1927

The statue of the golden knight that Academy Award winners receive (aka the Oscar) might be nearly as recognizable as the winners themselves. Oscar was born when art director Cedric Gibbons sketched him out and handed him over to sculptor George Stanley to bring to life.

Ancient Greek and Roman sculptures were likely colorful, not white

Archaeologists stumbling upon statues from ancient Greece often found weathered creatures, their faces and figures marred by age and conflict. But evidence of polychromy—painting sculptures with color—has continued to mount.

The true power of being a medieval fool

The stereotypical image of a court jester – their jagged, jingling tunics, donkey-eared hoods, and exaggerated expressions – belies their influence and power in medieval European courts. Jesters mocked their masters and communities through performances that could include witty ripostes, musical instruments, dance, juggling, and more. This gallery offers commentary on the fool’s role and power during the Middle Ages.

Tony Hawk often doesn't get recognized in public

Tony Hawk is frequently misrecognized—partly because he's older now and his legal name is Anthony—with strangers often telling him he "looks like Tony Hawk" without realizing he is, in fact, the famed skateboarder.

Opera seria and opera buffa differ in their tones and themes

Opera began in the late 1590s with "Dafne" and evolved into two styles by the 18th century. Opera seria catered to elites with heroic, mythological themes, while opera buffa brought humor and relatable stories to wider audiences. Today, modern opera often tackles contemporary social issues.

Existential dread still informs popular comedies

Although the Theater of the Absurd was primarily a 20th-century trend, a similar kind of existentialist-minded comedy still exists in popular culture. Films like “Everything Everywhere All At Once” and television shows like “BoJack Horseman” tackle the same issues that existentialist thinkers like Sartre, Beauvoir, and Camus explored, transforming those profound questions into thought-provoking and crowd-pleasing works of comedy.

There are three main types of satire: Horatian, Juvenalian, and Menippean

These classifications are based on the Roman poets who popularized them. Horatian is good-natured and lighthearted, Juvenalian is bitter and more caustic, and Menippean contains many layers.

Aristotle's 'Poetics': a breakdown for the overwhelmed student

"Poetics" by ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle is an analysis and commentary on theater. This 13-minute video by a theater student summarizes and explains the ancient publication, of which only a portion has survived since antiquity. Aristotle studied under Plato, another ancient Greek philosopher, for about 20 years. Aristotle's "Poetics" can be seen as a response to Plato's "Republic," which argued poets and poetry were corruptive forces.

The true story of Cleopatra and Mark Antony

One of history's most romanticized couples, Greek-descended Queen of Egypt Cleopatra and Roman warrior Mark Antony carried out their tryst in the waning days of ancient Egypt. Hollywood has long been fascinated with the pair and has offered up depictions historians claim obscure the real story. Here, an Egyptologist helps separate myths from history.

Tuscany is home to a Pinocchio-themed park

Pinocchio Park, originally conceived as a sculpture park, was built around Emilio Greco's "Pinocchio and the Fairy" monument. It now includes an interactive museum, themed rides, and a puppet show.

Tombaroli steal precious items from ancient people's tombs in central Italy

The tombaroli, or tomb-robbers, raid ancient Etruscan tombs in the dark hours of the night to recover vases, statuettes, mirrors, ornaments, jewellery, and other objects in gold, bronze, and terracotta. Read a firsthand account of a tombarolo who made a living handing stolen items to middlemen who sold them to wealthy buyers abroad. The lives and practices of tombaroli are also explored in the 2023 film "La Chimera."

Horror stories often rely on tropes

All literary genres use tropes, a word used to describe established plot devices, character types, and themes. Horror has many of them, like the "Creepy Child" and the "Evil Mask." Some are based on folklore, like the "Deal with the Devil."

Day of the Dead poems skewer everyone, living or dead

The tradition of calaveras literarias, or satirical poems about death, dates back to the 20th century. They take aim at everyone, including deceased loved ones, politicians, family and friends.

Basquiat's crown appears throughout several works

The artist first used the crown in 1981’s "Red Kings," which placed crowns over two heads. He’d continue using the motif throughout his career, often to highlight important figures, many of them Black, whom he believed had been overlooked.

A joke about mercury in an elevator led to the invention of emoticons

A false message about mercury contamination was posted in response to a physics problem on Carnegie Mellon's discussion board in 1982, which some users took seriously. The need to indicate which messages were jokes led to the creation of facial expressions using special characters.

The myths around London's tiniest sculpture

The Philpot Lane mice have been considered London's smallest sculpture for decades, delighting visitors and locals alike. But there's a common story told for why the unusual sculpture—which features two mice fighting for a piece of cheese—was placed there, saying it commemorated the death of a construction worker fighting over a lunch in the 1800s. The author of this article argues the evidence for such a story is lacking. Dive into the obscure history here.

Marina Abramović wanted to create a shared consciousness between audience and performer in ‘The Artist Is Present’

The HBO documentary follows the preparation and execution of Abramović’s 2010 MoMA show, taking a deeper look into the emotional experience. Performing was both physically and emotionally taxing for the artist, and visitors were often moved to tears while connecting with her. (This resource contains some artistic nudity.)

An artist used forensic techniques to recreate Jane Austen's face

For over two centuries, there was only one accepted portrait of the writer—an 1810 sketch done by Cassandra Austen, Jane's sister. Artist Melissa Dring used that as a basis for her waxwork of the author, along with eyewitness accounts from people who'd met the writer.

Graffiti dates back to at least ancient Pompeii, where citizens scrawled messages to one another on public walls

The Mona Lisa's celebrity status and repeated restorations have obscured what made the painting so revolutionary for its time

Dorothy's famous entrance into Oz in 'The Wizard of Oz' relied on analog tricks, including a body double and sepia-toned paint, as much as it did on technology

Existentialist writer Jean-Paul Sartre coined the famous phrase 'Hell is—other people' in his play 'No Exit'

The identity of the Tank Man in the iconic photo from the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests remains unknown and was possibly killed.

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.

American short story writer Flannery O'Connor raised 40 peacocks, which became potent symbols for her fiction's elegant violence

American dance legend Martha Graham, sometimes called 'the Picasso of dance,' refused to perform at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and conceived the piece 'Chronicle' in response to the experience.

Browse a detailed visual analysis of over 200,000 similes—comparisons that often use 'like' or 'as'—from popular fiction to see how frequently writers the same idiomatic expressions.

Salvador Dalí believed he was his own dead brother, who had died nine months before he was born

The Dracula character, now seen as the vampire archetype, was inspired by a seafood-induced nightmare its creator experienced.

Mark Twain spent decades feuding with the US Postal Service, convinced its costs and regulations were bureaucratic overreach.

Comedy legend Catherine O'Hara, star of 'Schitt's Creek' and 'Home Alone,' quit 'Saturday Night Live' after just one week to return to her old job.

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, but became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.

The 19th-century painters of the Hudson River School were among the first American romantics, with portraits that displayed the natural beauty of the young country.

Explore chaos in this simulation of two double pendulums, where small differences in the release angles produce wildly different outcomes.

For centuries, Niagara Falls has been a magnet for daredevils seeking to conquer one of nature's most powerful wonders, with its 200-foot drop and water rushing at 32 feet per second with 280 tons of force.

Crows are believed to have intelligence on par with a seven-year-old child and demonstrate complex behaviors, from problem-solving with tools to recognizing human faces.

Explore the known asteroids, comets, and spacecraft involved in asteroid studies within our solar system with 'Eyes on Asteroids,' a 3D visualization from NASA.

See a 3D reconstruction of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital that was home to an estimated population of 200,000 to 400,000.

See photos of Meteora, a mountainous site in central Greece, home to 14th-century monasteries perched atop soaring outcroppings.

The Nasdaq's 'Magnificent 7' companies are responsible for roughly 40% of the Nasdaq 100 index's gains, while the remaining 93 companies account for the other 60%.

The 1987 Nintendo video game 'Stadium Events' isn't known for being particularly fun, but its scarcity has made it a highly sought-after item that has sold for up to $35K at auction.

Power lines are dotted with large, brightly colored balls to improve the visibility of these thin wires to helicopters and small planes and help prevent potential crashes.

A small portion of The Winstons' 'Amen, Brother,' an obscure '60s gospel record, is the basis for thousands of hip-hop tracks, making it one of the most sampled records ever that's informally known as 'the Amen break.'