Inside the Most Politically Charged Met Gala in Years

Inside the Most Politically Charged Met Gala in Years

Follow our live coverage of the 2025 Met Gala red carpet. Last October, when the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute announced its next fashion show, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” the political landscape looked very different. Kamala Harris, the first female vice president and the first Black woman ever to …

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The Classical Music Our Critics Can’t Stop Thinking About

The Classical Music Our Critics Can’t Stop Thinking About

The New York Times’s classical music and opera critics see and hear much more than they review. Here is what has hooked them recently. Leave your own favorites in the comments. ‘Her Story’ at the Kennedy Center There was a time in recent memory when a performance of Julia Wolfe’s …

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At Kennedy Center, Trump Inherits a Tough Job: Fund-Raising

At Kennedy Center, Trump Inherits a Tough Job: Fund-Raising

In just one week, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington has been completely transformed. President Trump purged the center’s board of all Biden appointees and installed himself as chairman, ousting the financier David M. Rubenstein, the center’s largest donor. The new board fired Deborah F. …

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Trump’s Revenge Now Includes His Takeover of the Kennedy Center

Trump’s Revenge Now Includes His Takeover of the Kennedy Center

The trouble started in August 2017 when the television producer Norman Lear said he was skipping a White House reception for his Kennedy Center Honors award. Another honoree, the dancer and choreographer Carmen de Lavallade, pulled out after President Trump said there were “very fine people on both sides” of …

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Why Is an Entire Age of American Opera Missing at the Met?

Why Is an Entire Age of American Opera Missing at the Met?

“Vanessa” had the kind of pedigree you rarely see in a world premiere at the Metropolitan Opera. Samuel Barber, who was already famous for his Adagio for Strings, composed the score. Gian Carlo Menotti, his partner and an experienced hand at opera, wrote the libretto and directed. Cecil Beaton, mere …

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Trump Made Chair of Kennedy Center as Its President Is Fired

Trump Made Chair of Kennedy Center as Its President Is Fired

President Trump was made chairman of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, he announced on Wednesday, cementing his grip on an institution that he recently purged of Biden appointees. The center’s longtime president, Deborah F. Rutter, was then fired from her position, the center said. …

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