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☆ How ‘The Outsiders’ Staged a Broadway Fight Club
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-10 | by ( Alexis Soloski | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The rumble had to feel as impactful as a punch to the throat, without any underscoring. In “The Outsiders,” music expresses what can’t be uttered. So the only sounds are the train, the rain and the sonically enhanced punches. Cody Spencer, the sound designer, set speakers around the theater. “We really want to make it feel like you are part of this rumble,” Spencer said.

Persons: Cody Spencer, ” Spencer

But the way homes are built in the United States makes speed impossible. Years ago, Rupnik’s Croatian grandmother, an architect herself, pointed him to an intriguing answer to this conundrum: modular housing projects built in Europe in the 1950s and ’60s. Sure, prefab complexes, and especially Soviet bloc housing, could be ugly and too homogenous, but the process created millions of housing units in a flash. Hooked, Rupnik started researching modular housing for his doctoral dissertation. Unable to find much more information, Rupnik turned to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which created the program.

Persons: Ivan Rupnik, Rupnik, George Romney, Nixon Organizations: Harvard Graduate School of Design, Department of Housing, Urban, HUD, Republican Locations: United States, Croatian, Europe

☆ New York’s Palace Theater Gets an $80 Million Refresh (and 30 Feet Higher)
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-22 | by ( Michael Paulson | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The Palace already has its initial bookings. In October, performances will begin for “Tammy Faye,” a musical about the televangelist, with songs by Elton John and Jake Shears. But first, on May 28, Ben Platt kicks off an 18-performance concert residency to promote his new album. “People are going to be coming in wanting to take in the theater, and we want to give them space and a moment to take in where they are,” Platt said. “You can feel the positive ghostliness of everything that’s come before.”

Persons: Tammy Faye, ”, Elton John, Jake Shears, Ben Platt, ” Platt, that’s

The best in show competition, essentially a doggie beauty pageant, is the culmination of a multiday canine extravaganza here at Westminster. The winner, with a blink-and-you’d-miss-it time of 28.76 seconds, was an All-American dog named Nimble. Nimble was the first All-American dog — the dog show word for mutt — to take the top spot in the 11 years that agility has been part of Westminster, and he was also the first dog from the 12-inch division to win the competition. Perhaps the best example is Kratu, a rescue dog who has appeared several times at the Crufts dog show in England. Miles, an All-American rescue dog from Erie, Pa., who defeated the odds to become an agility champion and whose unlikely road to Westminster was described in The Times, competed on Saturday in the 20-inch division.

Persons: mutt —, Lark, Hogan, Miles, Christine Longnecker, “ Organizations: The Times Locations: Westminster, England, Erie, Pa

☆ The Best Headwear at the Central Park Hat Lunch
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Sandra E. Garcia | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

They waltzed down the steps of Central Park’s Vanderbilt Gate on Fifth Avenue on Wednesday morning like Marilyn Monroe in her bejeweled performance of the song “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend.”But here, there were many more women, each of them escorted by a waiter in a white coat, seemingly floating down the staircase and into the Conservatory Garden. And instead of diamonds, they wore hats or fascinators or headbands made of feathers, Legos and artificial flowers. One was even fashioned as a swan. The procession that entered the 42nd annual Frederick Law Olmsted Awards Luncheon at the Conservatory Garden — or the hat luncheon, as it is colloquially known — donned frocks in shades of pink, orange, lavender, ice blue and Kelly green — enough colors to rival the eggs in an Easter basket.

Persons: Marilyn Monroe, Frederick, Frederick Law Olmsted Organizations: Central, Vanderbilt, Conservatory, Frederick Law

The call came in around 4 p.m., while Adam Abo Sheriah was still at work in his pharmacy in New Jersey. It took a few minutes for Adam to understand: His uncle’s home in Gaza City had been hit by Israeli airstrikes. His parents and his brother’s wife and children were inside, taking shelter after their own homes were bombed. Also struck nearby was a block of multifamily buildings in a neighborhood of Gaza City, home to many relatives and their families, who were hunkered down together. His mind swirling with questions, he got in his car and started driving nowhere in particular.

Persons: Adam Abo Sheriah, Adam, Adam couldn’t Locations: New Jersey, Gaza City, Paterson

☆ Getting Dressed for the ‘Muslim Met Gala’
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-10 | by ( Sadiba Hasan | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Washington Square Park is known for its lively atmosphere and eclectic characters. People celebrate Eid by getting dressed to the nines, which is why some jokingly refer to it as the Muslim Met Gala. Many came to Washington Square Park wearing colorful traditional garments like galabeyas, grand boubous, salwar kameez, thobes, kurtas and abayas, some of which were accessorized with opulent jewels or swipes of dark kajal eyeliner. Others chose more casual clothes — like the comic Ramy Youssef, who wore a hoodie and a green baseball cap. On the morning of Eid, there are many large prayer gatherings throughout New York — in mosques, at high school football fields, on blocked-off streets.

Persons: Eid, salwar, kajal eyeliner, Ramy Youssef, Mr, Youssef, Hasan Minhaj, Ayman Mohyeldin Locations: Washington, New York, Lower Manhattan

Red carpet photographs are able to convey indelible moments of celebrity magnetism and spectacular glamour. But no step-and-repeat can bottle the crackling anticipation, the eruption of victory, the sting of loss or the quiet exchange between individuals amid a sea of superstars like these candid shots from the audience at Sunday night’s Oscars ceremony. Inside the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, our photographer captured moments viewers may not have caught otherwise. These images offer a peek at the year’s most celebrated actors and filmmakers interacting with one other, and not the camera, as we usually see them. Whether that be Florence Pugh looking intently at Christopher Nolan as she rests her hand gently on his arm; Messi the Border collie sitting poised and unfazed as a man, who is lying on the floor, claps faux paws in his face; Colman Domingo and Danielle Brooks leaning over a seated Da’Vine Joy Randolph with wowed expressions; or Lily Gladstone, Emma Stone and Ramy Youssef standing inches apart, gripping each other, their faces nearly touching.

Persons: Florence Pugh, Christopher Nolan, Messi, Colman Domingo, Danielle Brooks, Joy Randolph, Lily Gladstone, Emma Stone, Ramy Youssef Organizations: Theater Locations: Los Angeles

☆ The Evil Eye? Not Invited.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Sadiba Hasan | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

About four years ago, the D.J.s Malinder Tooray, Omar Ahmed and Bianca Maieli hosted a night of music and dancing in Los Angeles. Their show, “No Nazar,” attracted a wide following and filled in what many saw as a gap in the music and nightlife scene. “Nazar” is an Arabic word borrowed by many languages and cultures. It invokes the concept of “evil eye” — that is, an envious glance that can cause harm to those it falls on. The event created by Ms. Tooray, Mr. Ahmed and Ms. Maieli reflected a mood the trio was trying to create — that of an inviting and affirming environment that encourages cultural exchange through music.

Persons: Tooray, Omar Ahmed, Bianca Maieli, ”, “ Nazar ”, Ahmed, Maieli Locations: Los Angeles, Asia

☆ Leather and Lace for the Queen of Pop
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Alex Vadukul | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Madonna performed at Madison Square Garden on Monday night as part of her Celebration Tour, a lavish stage spectacle devoted to her catalog of hits as the Queen of Pop. During “Like a Prayer,” she sang from a spinning carousel filled with jumbo crucifixes and shirtless men. “I don’t know when I’m going to be back here playing again, but I’m doing this show like it’s my last show,” Madonna, 65, told the crowd. “And I’m doing this show like it’s my first show.”Before the concert, the scene outside the arena resembled a fashion runway as Madonna fans arrived to serve up style tributes to her. Men emerged from the subway wearing black biker boots and leather jackets.

Persons: Madonna, ”, Kelly Ripa, “, Papa Don’t, Sophy LeMay Organizations: Vogue, Penn Station, Brooklyn’s Barclays Center Locations: Madison

☆ Party Like ‘Saltburn’ — Bathwater Optional
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Madison Malone Kircher | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The theme of the night was the movie “Saltburn,” which, based on the number of attendees who arrived dressed in costume, is quickly garnering cult status. It was like hopping in a time machine to 2007. The same tone set the mood for the evening’s festivities. There were “bathwater” cocktails — made with pineapple juice, rum and coconut milk for extra, soapy froth — for sale at the bar. (The drink tasted fine, even if its inspiration, a scene in the film where Barry Keoghan laps up Jacob Elordi’s leftover bathwater, is perhaps less than appetizing.)

Persons: partygoers, Fergie, Justin Timberlake, Sophie Ellis, Bextor, —, Barry Keoghan, Jacob Elordi’s Organizations: Veronicas Locations: East Williamsburg, Brooklyn, ”

☆ New York Reminds Itself How to Dress for Snow
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Callie Holtermann | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

At 8 a.m. on Tuesday, a basset hound ambled through Prospect Park in Brooklyn in an extra-long turtleneck sweater. The dog’s ears swept the ground, which was covered in snow — real, fluffy, not-yet-yellow snow — for the first time in nearly two years. The hound was far from the only New Yorker strategically bundled against the cold. By early afternoon, what little snow remained clung to trash bags, and street corners were covered in gray slush. Finally, it looked like winter in New York.

Locations: Prospect Park, Brooklyn, SoHo, Lower Manhattan, New York

☆ Office Stocks Post Biggest Rally in Three Years. Their Real-Estate Problems Remain.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Peter Grant | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Office landlords face hybrid-work patterns that have companies cutting back on their workspace. Photo: Amir Hamja/Bloomberg NewsShares of battered down office landlords had their biggest one-day rally in three years last week, after inflation data came in lower than anticipated and expectations rose that the Federal Reserve was done raising interest rates. Shares of office real-estate investment trusts soared an average of 11.5% on Tuesday, according to real-estate analytics firm Green Street. That is the largest daily increase since November 2020, when an even larger rally was sparked by the announcement of a Covid-19 vaccine.

Persons: Amir Hamja Organizations: Bloomberg, Federal

Image This year’s women’s race was oddly slow until the last few miles. Tola had arrived in New York with questions about his fitness after he dropped out of the marathon at the world championships in Budapest this summer. When she made her marathon debut in New York last year, she went out fast before struggling to a sixth-place finish. “Sometimes,” Obiri said, “you learn from your mistakes.”She put those lessons to use in Boston earlier this year when she won her first world marathon major. By then, only Obiri, Gidey, Lokedi and two others — Viola Cheptoo, the runner-up in 2021, and Brigid Kosgei, a five-time world marathon major champion — were still in contention.

Persons: Hellen, Letesenbet Gidey, Gidey, Obiri, “, ”, Karsten Moran, Sharon Lokedi, ” Obiri, Tamirat Tola, Tola, Geoffrey Mutai’s, Jemal Yimer, Albert Korir, Peter Foley, ” Ritzenhein, Hellen Obiri, Uli Seit, Kellyn Taylor, — Viola Cheptoo, Brigid Kosgei, —, Ritzenhein Organizations: New York City Marathon, Boston Marathon, Boulder, Athletics Club, The New York Times, Shutterstock, Credit, Kenya Locations: Kenya, Ethiopia, Colo, New York, Budapest, Staten Island, Boulder, Boston, “ New York, Central Park, Gidey, Paris

It was hard to miss Mark Aaron Polger, Alexi Pappas and Masashi Kondo at the New York City Marathon on Sunday. With energy gels and bodega coffees in hand, the crowd made its way to Fort Wadsworth, where thousands of runners congregate each year before running the New York City Marathon. Speed demons wearing Nike Vaporflys and short-shorts mingled with casual runners wearing “Monsters, Inc.” onesies. That’s the record I’m going for. Running is therapeutic, even though I’m going to be running really, really slowly.

Persons: Mark Aaron Polger, Alexi Pappas, Masashi Kondo, ”, “, Adam Tjolle, Simon Waterhouse, Malina Roberts, we’ll, they’re, they’ve, Stephen Zachensky, Marlinda Francisco, Mika Shaw, Maansi Srivastava, It’s, I’ve Organizations: New York City Marathon, Nike, Inc, New York Times, York Locations: Fort Wadsworth, Edinburgh, Scotland, Newmarket, England, Brooklyn, York City, Tokyo, Berlin, New York, Westchester, N.Y, How’d, New York Times Tucson, Ariz, Ogden , Utah, Japan, Los Angeles, Manhattan

Liberty fans have waited 27 seasons for a W.N.B.A. The atmosphere at Barclays Center was electric for New York’s opening postseason game against the Washington Mystics. Those fans were rewarded with a Liberty win, 90-75, behind 29 points from Sabrina Ionescu and 20 from Jonquel Jones. The game started as a tense back-and-forth affair, but the Liberty took a narrow lead into halftime, and they never relinquished it. After the Liberty wrapped up the regular season with a 32-8 record, expectations were high that they could take the championship.

Persons: didn’t, Malala Yousafzai, Billie Jean King, Teresa Weatherspoon, Sabrina Ionescu, Jonquel Jones, Ionescu Organizations: Liberty, Barclays Center, Washington Mystics, Brooklyn Nets, Las Vegas Aces

With outstretched arms, dancers skimmed across the sand like gliding birds, soundless against the pressing wind and somehow soaring without actual wings. Surveying the shoreline of Rockaway Beach on a recent morning, Patricia Lent, from the Merce Cunningham Trust, was elated. “This is a dream come true,” she said, adding: “It’s someone else’s dream — but it is a dream come true.”Cunningham’s “Beach Birds” has finally made its way to the beach. An adaptation of this 1991 dance is part of this year’s Beach Sessions Dance Series, at Rockaway Beach on Saturday. Staged by Lent and Rashaun Mitchell — both former company members and trustees — “Beach Birds” comes to life in a setting where the sand, the sea and real birds create, along with 11 dancers, a humming summer landscape.

Persons: Patricia Lent, Merce Cunningham, Lent, Rashaun Mitchell —, —, Cunningham, John Cage Organizations: Merce Cunningham Trust Locations: Rockaway

Several cowboy hats tipped upward toward the departures board at Penn Station, their wearers unusually excited to board a crowded, sweaty train to New Jersey. “Beyoncé, Track 14!” shouted a New Jersey Transit employee in a neon yellow vest. Commuters in sequins trampled over a “Caution: Wet Floor” sign in their rush to the escalators. It was 7 p.m. on Saturday, and an Uber from Midtown Manhattan to the Meadowlands cost about $70. Many Beyoncé fans instead took public transportation to MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, where the singer would soon take the stage for her Renaissance World Tour.

Persons: “, ” Organizations: Penn Station, New Jersey Transit, Midtown, Meadowlands, MetLife Locations: New Jersey, sequins, Midtown Manhattan, East Rutherford

☆ What Happened When a Brooklyn Neighborhood Policed Itself for Five Days
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Maria Cramer | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

It had been a quiet April afternoon until about a dozen teenagers began running up Pitkin Avenue in Brownsville, yelling and cursing. They were chasing a girl of about 14 and it was clear they wanted a fight. Across Pitkin stood about half a dozen men, civilians in jeans and purple-and-gray sweatshirts. The teenagers slowed as they spotted the men, workers from an organization called Brownsville In Violence Out, who calmly waved them in different directions. They scattered as the girl fled down a side street.

Persons: “, ” Locations: Brownsville, Pitkin, New York

☆ These Opera Singers Throw a Mean Right Hook
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Charles Passy | Photographs Amir Hamja For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

In the ever-dramatic world of opera, conflicts of all sorts play out behind the scenes. Deep in the bowels of New York City’s Metropolitan Opera on a recent Saturday afternoon, a fight of a more literal sort broke out: a boxing match with punches aplenty, a few blistering taunts and even an eventual knockout.

☆ Don’t Be Surprised When the Boxers Start Belting Out Opera
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( Charles Passy | Photographs Amir Hamja For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

NEW YORK—In the ever-dramatic world of opera, conflicts of all sorts play out behind the scenes. Singers make royal demands of management. Musicians push for better pay. Deep in the bowels of New York City’s Metropolitan Opera on a recent Saturday afternoon, a fight of a more literal sort broke out: a boxing match with punches aplenty, a few blistering taunts and even an eventual knockout.

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