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Dinosaur costumes, signs mark last push to save Academy of Natural Sciences Philly rallies to save Academy of Natural Sciences
Philadelphia supporters rallied outside the Academy of Natural Sciences ahead of its planned Sept. 30 closure, urging Drexel to keep the museum open.
How HBO's "Industry" uses vests to signal status in banking
The costume designer of HBO's "Industry" broke down how the characters' clothing, like vests and ties, are used to convey status and power.
Rotta The Hutt Is Ready To Be The Hottest Halloween Costume Of The Year
Everyone, please stop calling me Jabba the Hutt, okay? I spent like $80 on this thing
Entertainment Listing: April 15
Wednesday April 15 Hangar 9 • Carbondale Saluki Con Super Hero Trivia and Costume contest, 8 p.m. PK’s • Carbondale Trivia, 8 p.m. Project Human X • Carbondale Advertisement Open studio, 4 p.m. Paint night: “Spring Gnome,” 6 p.m. Little Nashville • Marion Trivia, 6 p.m. Thursday April 16 Booby’s • Carbondale Karaoke, 8:30 p.m....
Plaid? For ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’? Groundbreaking
With costumes designed by Molly Rogers, "The Devil Wears Prada 2" hits theaters, very fashionably, on May 1.
Things to do this weekend and beyond in Gainesville and Alachua County
Looking for that perfect Halloween costume? Check out Dance Alive National Ballet and Next Generation's Great Halloween Costume Sale.
Comic-Con 2026: Johnny Depp promotes 'Ebenezer'
There was a Thursday panel about vampires
Pokémon GO Halloween 2026: Part One
Pokémon GO’s Halloween 2026 Part One event runs from October 27 at 10:00 a.m. to November 1 at 10:00 a.m. local time, bringing three new costume Pokémon: Pikachu wearing a hat and capelet, Zubat wearing a top hat, and Sinistea wearing a bow! Expect spooky wild encounters, costume raids, and trick-or-treat surprises that can reward […]
HOTDAM hosts square dance, costume contest this weekend
HUNTINGTON — Mark your calendar for this Saturday.
Eeyore’s Birthday Party costumes show Austin’s weird spirit
Austin's weirdest event returns to Pease Park Saturday with face paint, masks and butterfly wings galore. Here are our favorite costumes through the years.
Topeka Renaissance Festival closes out weekend of entertainment
TOPEKA (KSNT) – The Topeka Renaissance Festival wrapped up its three-day run Sunday, bringing together performers, vendors and visitors for a weekend of costumes, live entertainment and historical-…
Punk Politics/Camp Costume is a fashion exhibition curated by (some of my) brilliant Parsons students!
I have the most amazing students. I teach Fashion Journalism at Parsons, as part of its MA Fashion Studies degree, though I have students of all different disciplines throughout the New School in my class — from fine-art photographers to investigative journalists to textile designers. And I learn about all sorts of fascinating things from them, like that designers are adding faux sweat stains to their garments now (part of a trend piece about “anatomy core”) and that real “French girl style” is actually about being “cunti cunta” (aka loud, rude, too much, liberated). So when I found out that some of my students were curating a fashion exhibition opening tonight(!!!), I just knew that it would be brilliant too. Wearable Art is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe It’s called Punk Politics/Camp Costuming1, and it’s up through May 10 at La Sudestada, the wonderful gallery and concept store in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. I asked the exhibit’s lead curator, Ella Birney (a talented costume and knitwear designer from Belfast who also happens to be in my class), all about it. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity. Tell me about the idea of this exhibition and how it came about. Ella Birney: For our Fashion Curation class, we had to pitch [exhibition] proposals to our professor, Jessica [Glasscock], and I really wanted to continue on the themes that I was exploring in my BA when I was studying in London a couple of years ago. My BA was very punk-inspired and very political. Everything I do, as you know from my writing, always has a slight Irish, political twist to it2. So in my BA project, it was looking at knitwear as a conveyor for exploring political identity in somewhere like Ireland, where identity is such a point of contention. And looking at the images that I generated from that project, there was something so camp about the whole thing. Like, it’s so playful and in bad taste to do a political message — like a knitted Union Jack — out of mohair. There’s something very camp about that. So that’s where it kind of became punk politics/camp costuming — looking at how from the 1970s to now there’s been protest through costume and clothing. What was your BA in? It was fashion textiles, knitwear. Very craft heavy, which — craft is never taken seriously either. That’s also a kind of spin [on the punk/camp thing]. The Union Jack knit that you made is included in the show — what is camp about knitting a Union Jack out of mohair? The whole ethos of camp is kind of bad taste, doing things that are tongue in cheek and a bit wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Like, this is a bit silly. Everything I do is like, this is a bit silly. Like, being from the North of Ireland, everything you do is political. So it’s like, everything is going to be looked at in a certain lens anyway, so we may as well lean into it. So the Union Jack was because I come from a mixed marriage — Protestant-Catholic. And in the North of Ireland, that’s still a big deal. And even though I’m a Catholic and brought up in a very like Catholic Nationalist family, there [were] Union Jacks [the symbol of the United Kingdom] on my street. So I was like, then I’m gonna make your Union Jack out of knitwear. And then that kind of all linked back to the punk movement that Vivian Westwood forefronted in the late 70s, [with her stores] Let It Rock and Seditionaries. How did you source your items? Once we decided on this exhibition idea, everyone in the class was put to [think about] what do you think can fit into punk politics/camp costuming and finding designers that fit that brief. Me and my co-curators, Dulcinea Flores and Allison Gramando, made a brief to send out — with a mood board and color stories, stuff like that — and then everyone kind of got to work emailing people. We reached out to other Parsons grads. Even through Instagram stories we’ve been able to reach so many people who were like, Yeah, of course, I’ll write something for this, or Please — let me submit stuff. It actually was quite easy sourcing things. … The Parsons thing gets you quite far. What were some great pieces you got? There’s a Brooklyn-based, nonbinary artist called Buzz Slutsky. I can’t even remember how I found them, but I came across this crazy, shoe thing — they had made all these different shoes out of papier-mâché, and the story behind them is so fantastic, so interesting. They were just so obliging, like, Of course, you can have these for a few weeks. I was really happy about that. And then we have art from a collective here called Art Comes First. And they lent loads of really amazing pieces that just tied everything together. You have your Union Jack knit in the show too. Any other pieces that you made? There’s three of my BA mohair knits. There’s the Union Jack. There’s a mohair with the word “No” — which is based on an old political campaign in Ireland that was “Ulster says no to sodomy.” And then there’s another one that is red, white and blue, like the Union Jack, but has the word “Catholic” on it and lots of holy medals. I’m so happy I got to include those. How many pieces are in the show? Between 49 and 52, something like that. A load of clothing and accessories, shoes. There’s a Brooklyn-based Irish photographer who’s given us photos. There’s also a shopping cart that is an art piece by Art Comes First that has gold knuckle dusters as the handles. There’s also lots of T-shirts, original pins from the 70s and 80s that were from people’s dads. I also brought my record player, and all of [co-curator] Allison’s dad’s original albums so everyone could play records. Oh my gosh! Yeah, it’s cool. Anything else you would like to add? If we get to do an exhibition, why would we not make it political in this day and age? I hope that people come. There’s a lot of history, because it starts back in the 70s. It’s not like chronological or anything, but there are historical objects. I hope people come out of it thinking, out of all the really horrendous decades of the 70s and 80s and 90s, all these amazing subcultures happened. There are horrible political times, but there’s art that comes out of it that lasts. Punk Politics/Camp Costume is on view May 1-10 at La Sudestada, 67 West St. Suite 513, Greenpoint, Brooklyn. RSVP for the opening Friday May 1 6pm-8pm here. There’s also a button-making and patch-making workshop and artist talk May 9. Follow the show’s Instagram page @punkxcamp.parsons. Special shout out to all the students who put on this show: Ella Birney (lead curator), Dulcinea Flores (curator), Allison Gramando (curator), Pierre Sanon (lead exhibition designer), Eliana Daneshvari (exhibition designer), Reilly Lowell (editor), Jess Gayo (researcher/writer), Joyce Gayo (researcher/writer), Maria Magdalena Ugarte Montero (researcher/writer), Cassidy Colarik (exhibition press officer), Shelby Shovein (educator), Sarah Mahnke-Baum (educator), Trinidy Coleman (graphic designer), and Leonie Soravia (project manager). Jessica Glasscock was the faculty advisor. 1 The website is definitely worth checking out. 2 This is true!
Extracurricular: Finding their tribe
The first clue that Monica Carson and David Lo have arrived at San Diego Comic-Con isn’t the elaborate costumes. It’s the conversations they strike up with fellow fans.
Legal docs reveal Miyamoto originally saw Donkey Kong as "a human in a gorilla costume," disclose other names considered for the game/character
Nightmare unlocked
Now that’s entertainment!
Annual Gay Ski Week costume contest continues to delight
Met Gala 2026: Venus and Serena Williams, Angel Reese, A'ja Wilson, Dwyane Wade among athletes to hit red carpet at annual costume gala
Met Gala co-chair Venus Williams and fellow tennis star Naomi Osaka hit the red carpet for the annual event on Monday.
PNB costume shop brings designs to life with couture-like detail
The average costume at Pacific Northwest Ballet takes 100 hours to make. We get a special peek behind the scenes in the costume shop to see the makers' magic.
Paul Tazewell costume exhibit to close after Monday at Griffin Museum of Science and Industry
This weekend is the last to see some incredible costumes from movies and Broadway musicals, all created by award-winning fashion and costume designer Paul Tazewell.
California-born costume designer Bob Mackie dies at 87
From Hollywood studios to Palm Springs, Bob Mackie helped define generations of entertainment style.
‘Play On!’ hits all the right notes
The English Renaissance meets the Harlem Renaissance in “Play On!,” a sparkling show that marries a loose adaptation of Shakespeare's “Twelfth Night” with the music of Duke Ellington. Conceived by Sheldon Epps, who also directed the original 1996-97 production (first in San Diego, then on Broadway), the show is getting a marvelous revival under his direction to open Chicago Shakespeare Theater's 40th anniversary season.While the title “Play On!” refers to the famous quote about music being the food of love and thus to the dozens of Ellington songs—among them “It Don’t Mean a Thing,” “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” “I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good),” “Solitude” and “I’m Beginning to See the Light”—incorporated into the plot, one of the highlights for me is the clever way Cheryl L. West's book reworks the story. Apparently, it's also been updated for this outing, among other things to give the women more agency. In the big opening number (there's a six-piece, horn-heavy onstage band), aspiring songwriter Vy (Hailee Kaleem Wright) is the one to “Take the 'A' Train” to “Drop Me Off in Harlem.” She wants to meet the famous Duke (Edred Utomi) — Ellington, not Orsino, that is — and she seeks the help of Jester (an engaging James Harkness) to find out how. When Jester tells her in no uncertain terms that the music industry is a man's world, she disguises herself as Vy-Man and persuades the Duke to listen to one of her songs. He's suffering from a creative block because he's pining for Lady Liv (Krystal Joy Brown), queen of the Cotton Club, and convinces Vy-Man to bring the Lady the song as if the Duke had written it, promising to reward her with employment. Vy reluctantly complies, and the predictable complications ensue. Lady Liv is attracted to Vy-Man, while Vy is attracted to the Duke and he to Vy, though it disturbs him because he thinks she's a man. The fallout when the deception comes to light bodes ill—at least for a while.Here's where West's book cannily diverges from Shakespeare. Vy's twin brother Sebastian really is dead, so West devises another love interest for Lady Liv basically by rehabilitating the Malvolio character, here named Rev (Alan H. Green), the Lady's uptight, self-important manager. His unrequited love for her is magically transformed after he gets his comeuppance (minus the torture) from Miss Mary (Alanna Lovely), her honey Sweets (James Earl Jones II) and Jester, the stand-in for Sir Toby, who has romantic problems of his own with a woman named CC (Kaylah Janssen). In other words, Rev gets the girl — and also a show-stopping yellow zoot suit from costume designer An-Lin Dauber. All the costumes are dandy, though those for the men have more pizzazz than the women's day dresses. The bilevel, slanted scenic design by Beowulf Boritt brings 1930s Harlem to life in a slightly expressionistic way with the help of Adam Honoré's lighting and Ray Nardelli's sound design. Edgar Godineaux's choreography adds to the period feel, though there could be even more of it.Most of all, the leads have splendid voices, and the performances are terrific. Green's Rev and Harkness's Jester get my vote for comedy chops, and Brown's Lady Liv probably will stay with me the longest for her complexity and big blues number, “I Ain't Got Nothin' But the Blues.”
Marvel exhibit brings more than 150 artifacts to Houston Museum of Natural Science
Marvel: The Exhibition – Universe of Super Heroes opens at the Houston Museum of Natural Science Dec. 19, featuring more than 150 artifacts including costumes, props, concept sketches and original-comic book art.
Met Gala guests take artistic liberties with dress code
Fashion biggest night is making a statement this year with its dress code, “Fashion is art." Global Editorial Director of Vogue Anna Wintour and the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume
Luke Evans's revealing 'Rocky Horror' costume goes viral
The handsome actor shows off his frank-n-beans as the Broadway show begins previews.
Bigfoot to Bojangles: How a Charlotte family built a business on make-believe
Long before the store became a Charlotte fixture, it started with a phone call, a rack of costumes and a couple willing to take a chance.
Trick-or-treating, spooky science and haunted houses arrive at Miami Children’s Museum for Halloween - WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports
Trick or treating in a museum can be full of surprises because mixing up spooky science with costumes equals a bash to remember. Experimenting withRead More
Midland Mall Renaissance Festival draws thousands on opening day
Thousands of costumed festivalgoers filled Midland Mall on Saturday for the opening day of its first Renaissance Festival, featuring vendors, food, dancing and fantasy fun.
‘Halloweenmas’: how the spooky one-nighter turned into a month-long spectacular
Welcome to Halloweenmas, weeks of themed fun and gifts – from costume parties to decorating trees – without the stress, rules or cost of Christmas
Paul Tazewell exhibit opens at MSI, featuring costumes from 'Wicked,' 'Hamilton'
Paul Tazewell is one of the most acclaimed costume designers in Hollywood and on Broadway, winning every major award for his craft.
Costume exhibition celebrates 50 years of city's 'spaceship-like' theatre
To mark the anniversary of the seven-sided theatre constructed from tubular steel, some archive costumes go on display.
Marvel Rivals May 21 Patch Notes: New Savage Adventure Event, Skins, and More
A minor content update is on the way for Marvel Rivals this week. Check out the Marvel Rivals patch notes for May 21 update here.
Stellar Blade Still Not Finished, Four Free Bayonetta Costumes Coming to PS5
Original game will get "some changes" for sequel
Houston Museum of Natural Science scores massive Marvel exhibit
Costumes, iconic comics and life-size statues of Marvel Heroes are coming to Houston.
Old Town Trick-or-Treat returns, business sought
Halloween fun returns to Old Town Lompoc on Saturday, Oct. 24, from 12–3 p.m., featuring for treats, games, music, costumes, and "plenty of spooky fun for the whole family," the
Met Gala guests take artistic liberties with dress code
Fashion biggest night is making a statement this year with its dress code, “Fashion is art." Global Editorial Director of Vogue Anna Wintour and the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume
Bay Area Halloween family events: Trick-or-treats and spooky time fun
A region-by-region guide to Bay Area Halloween events for kids and families, from trick-or-treat trails and costume parades to spooky train rides, pumpkin drops and glowing gardens.
Fashion and costume designer Bob Mackie, who made stars sparkle, dies at 87
(CNN) — The legendary fashion and costume designer Bob Mackie, who dressed divas from Cher to Diana Ross in glittering, eye-catching designs, has died at age 87, according to his
Met Gala 2026: Theme, hosts, how to watch NYC’s biggest fashion night
The 2026 Met Gala is Monday, May 4, with a 'Costume Art' theme and 'fashion is art' dress code. Here's how to watch.
Angine de Poitrine is weird. That may be exactly what your brain craves.
Québécois rock duo Angine de Poitrine has gone viral for its bizarre costumes and unconventional music, earning praise from rock legends. A cognitive neuroscientist explains the science behind its app...
‘The View’ cancels fan-favorite cohost Halloween costumes for 3rd consecutive year
‘The View’ cohosts will not dress up in Halloween costumes once again in 2026, marking yet another year the panelists won’t participate in the historically fan-favorite episode.
How lip-syncing to AI let Forced Entertainment ‘play the game of theatre’
Today we have a fascinating piece by long-time Forced Entertainment fan Ben Kulvichit, speaking to Tim Etchells about their latest show Cold Sweat, how they are integrating lip-sync and AI voices into their work, the question of ‘authenticity’ on stage, and how lip-sync has even opened the door for them to make “something a little bit like drama”. This piece is a paid partnership with the Southbank Centre, where you can see Cold Sweat next month – we’re very grateful to the Southbank Centre for their ongoing support for Exeunt. Holly Williams ‘It was immediately interesting and uncanny’ **By Ben Kulvichit** “Is the microphone on?” So goes one of the opening lines of Signal to Noise, delivered by a human performer lip-syncing to an AI-generated voice. The voice is American, cheery but sluggish, slowed down into a gelatinous drawl. It repeats ad infinitum in a farce of stuckness; an answer never materialises. I find myself asking the same question as I hop on a Google Meet call with Tim Etchells, the artistic director of Forced Entertainment. We spend five or ten minutes frowning at each other, muting and unmuting, me gesticulating in semaphore into my webcam, checking if I am coming through now, restarting the laptop. To Etchells, I appear exaggeratedly mouthing words, my voice missing. In this gloopy purgatory of broken communication, life imitates art imitates life imitates art. We try a Zoom instead. Forced Entertainment, the pioneering British theatre company who have been at the avant-garde of performance since the 1980s, turned an interesting artistic corner with Signal to Noise, created on the occasion of their 40th anniversary. The whole performance employed this lip-sync technique to AI voices; on the face of it a left-field move from a company whose identity has long been grounded in the earthy, immediate presences of its performers and its unassuming, low-tech approach to theatricality. The technique, however, turned out to provide the company with a “rich new seam” of artistic enquiry, and has now spawned a trilogy of works. The second instalment, Cold Sweat, plays at Sheffield Theatres, Southbank Centre, and Lancaster Arts in October, while the third part, Everything Must Go, has been touring in Europe and is slated to come to the UK in 2027. As is often the case with Forced Entertainment shows, the main conceit for this work didn’t arrive until quite late. They were “four or five weeks into rehearsals for Signal to Noise,” Etchells recalls, and getting nowhere. Away from rehearsals, he had been playing around with feeding “weird texts” to AI voices to see how they would cope with them – “basically for my own amusement” – and was compelled by the uniformly “serviceable, benign, good-natured” tone they would read in, no matter how poetic, fractured or experimental the writing. On a hunch, he brought some examples into rehearsals and the performers gave lip-syncing a go. “It was immediately interesting and uncanny,” he recalls, with the performers having to deal in the moment with the problem of mapping themselves onto another artificial ‘performer,’ which itself was dealing with the problem of a very human text. “Almost all the writing for these projects would be useless to us unless it was done in this way,” says Etchells. “We wouldn’t know what to do with it. It’s too poetic. It’s too fictional. It’s too tangled.” But exploring lip-syncing along to the text has opened “an enormous reservoir of ways of thinking about writing and performing.” Subscribe to Exeunt, and get two in-depth pieces on theatre a week, direct to your inbox Subscribe Forced Entertainment have long been sifting through the detritus of popular culture, from daytime TV to end-of-the-pier vaudeville, magic acts and clown shows, to find frameworks for their own unusual entertainments. Lip-syncing, then, makes sense for them to experiment with. As a mode of performance, it’s wired into popular consciousness through pop stars trying to convince stadium audiences of their liveness, or those same voices as channeled through the made-up lips of contestants on RuPaul’s Drag Race, or movie dialogue spreading virally through the host bodies of TikTok users. For Etchells, lip-syncing is often about “approaching real voices and trying to take on their aura,” subsuming that original human presence into yours. “There’s a very basic, elemental sort of theatre magic to it, produced in this very easy way.” This broad approach resonates with instances of lip-syncing within contemporary performance, too. In works like Re-Member Me and Showmanism, performance artist Dickie Beau acts as a kind of spirit medium for archival recordings (this process of re-membering – as in, giving corporeal form to voices – relies on his masterfully precise actor’s technique), while Frankie Thompson is similarly possessed by a host of characters ranging from a nine-year-old Jacob Rees-Mogg to Cliff Richards, all of whom she finds compellingly nauseating, in the exorcism ritual that is her latest show, Horrible Things. What’s different about Forced Entertainment’s use of lip-syncing is that here, there is no original presence to be channeled. The performers are instead taking on what Etchells describes as “the voices of nobody,” or rather the “phantasmic, aggregated echoes” of the many many voices on whose data the AI has been trained, and which are now conjuring into existence words they never actually said. There is a sort of mournful, empty quality to these voices, having “washed up” far away from the people they originally belonged to, to find themselves in stranger’s mouths listing objects, wondering if anyone can hear them and glitching in interminable loops. There is a cold, sad anonymity to it all. Etchells remarks that occasionally the software company he used has notified him that particular people are withdrawing their voices from the platform, instructing him to cease use of those voices. Using these technologies in performance certainly brings up ethical questions around digital rights, consent, identity and ownership, although in the grand scheme of things, Etchells is fairly blasé about it: of all the purposes someone’s voice might be put to without their knowledge, “an avant-garde performance is probably the least of their worries.” [ ](https://exeuntmagazine.substack.com/p/frankie-thompson-horrible-things-essay-mental-health-compulsive-behaviours-pleasance-courtyard-soho-theatre) [ Frankie Thompson: How I manage my own ‘horrible things’ at the Edinburgh Fringe ](https://exeuntmagazine.substack.com/p/frankie-thompson-horrible-things-essay-mental-health-compulsive-behaviours-pleasance-courtyard-soho-theatre) Exeunt · Aug 25 [ Read full story ](https://exeuntmagazine.substack.com/p/frankie-thompson-horrible-things-essay-mental-health-compulsive-behaviours-pleasance-courtyard-soho-theatre) For the performers, though, lip-syncing to these strange, artificial voices is an odd task, requiring them to bend their live, human presence into the shapes produced by machines. Politically, it mirrors processes that are already at play in the continued computational automation of human life. Etchells brings up James Bridle’s writings on new technologies as a reference point: one example Bridle gives is of “chaotic storage”, a logistics technique employed by Amazon fulfilment centres whereby items are stored not according to traditional methods of categorisation or alphabetisation, but in a way that an algorithm determines to produce the most efficient routes for ‘picking’ based on customer purchase patterns. This appears completely random and incomprehensible to humans, with paddling pools sitting next to USB sticks sitting next to blowtorches, and so for the warehouse workers, the process of picking items becomes completely reliant on technology which tells them where to go. Our world is increasingly being designed not with humans in mind, but rather machines. As Etchells puts it, “technology malforms the space, and then you end up having to live in it.” Initially, Forced Entertainment tried their best to live in the world of machines: “I was in the it’s-got-to-be-perfect school of lip-sync,” says Etchells. But with their aesthetic being so tied to the failing act, the slipping mask, the shoddy costume, “it’s no surprise really that that didn’t last.” Instead, the performers got to enjoy being late for a line, or playing games with each other, “stealing” each other’s voices. Etchells compares it to the principles of ventriloquism, in which a free-floating voice unattached to a body is fundamentally discomforting and “sort of traumatic”. That discomfort is equally as alluring to Forced Entertainment as the satisfaction of precision, the pretence of authenticity only interesting if shown to be a pretence. Lip-sync has also opened up new avenues for the company. Having been allergic all their lives to Plays-with-a-capital-P, with Cold Sweat Forced Entertainment find themselves approaching something a little bit like drama. Rather than the presentational arena of Signal to Noise’s open white stage, Cold Sweat places us more decisively in a “fictional locale”: what appears to be “the aftermath of some disastrous party or backyard drinking binge” where three figures – family members, or neighbours, perhaps – are the last ones standing. “It’s all quite acrimonious and accusatory, everyone’s talking over each other.” For Etchells, this more fictional mode is “a door that we’ve never been able to open. We’ve just never really gone there.” Perhaps it is the technique of lip-syncing, an extra buffer of mediation, that allows them to venture away from the here-and-now without feeling that they have to commit to the “psychological claptrap” that comes along with acting; to be able to “play the game of theatre, without getting one’s hands too dirty.” As I wonder how else the impulses behind Forced Entertainment’s work have changed over time, it occurs to me that over the last ten years of new creations, with the exception of If All Else Fails, the company’s performers haven’t ever spoken on stage: there were two shows without any language at all, Out of Order and Under Bright Light, and then this trilogy of lip-sync works. Etchells agrees it’s a shift away from earlier productions, that were so often about “the actual voices of the performers and their actual presences. We had a lot of money, in some ways, on an authentic approach to what it might mean to speak on the stage.” But this sense of authentic presence itself had a fakeness to it; these days, Etchells can’t stand that mode of being onstage where performers “are here to be cheeky and witty versions of themselves. I don’t want to be charmed.” Pulling back into a more anonymous space has resulted in works that feel slightly sharper-edged, more brutal in a way. “All of these shows are post-Brexit, post-Trump, post-truth, post-everything,” Etchells notes. Speech, charisma, authenticity – these things feel politically loaded, and perhaps warmth and openness just don’t feel like the right tools to reflect the world we’re living in. “It feels like the space is closing down, and we’re trying to deal with the fact that the system, the structure that you’re in, is more oppressive and more powerful. It probably always was, but I think we’re just more tuned to it now.” Yet even without their voices, the performers’ distinctive presences – ones that many audiences have followed around for years, if not decades – still, inevitably, shine through as they physically navigate whatever unending task the system of the piece has set for them. They’re still trying to keep up with the onslaught of text, still running about, changing costumes, moving stuff around. The human is always stuck in the teeth of the machine, jamming the smooth, frictionless cheeriness of the not-real, gesticulating silently, trying desperately to communicate. Cold Sweat is at Sheffield Theatres, 2 to 3 October; Southbank Centre, London, 9 to 10 October; Lancaster Arts, 14 October [ ](https://exeuntmagazine.substack.com/p/exeunt-recommends-the-best-autumn-theatre-2026-lives-of-others-standard-of-living-our-friends-in-the-north-lanny-) [ Exeunt recommends... the best autumn theatre ](https://exeuntmagazine.substack.com/p/exeunt-recommends-the-best-autumn-theatre-2026-lives-of-others-standard-of-living-our-friends-in-the-north-lanny-) Exeunt · Sep 16 [ Read full story ](https://exeuntmagazine.substack.com/p/exeunt-recommends-the-best-autumn-theatre-2026-lives-of-others-standard-of-living-our-friends-in-the-north-lanny-) This piece was paid for by the Southbank Centre. Such support helps Exeunt to keep publishing the most interesting writing, about the most exciting theatre. Interested in partnering with Exeunt? Visit our Advertise with Exeunt page, where you can get more information, download an advertising pack, and find our contact details.
Madonna pleads for 'safe return' of vintage outfits that 'went missing' after Sabrina Carpenter Coachella performance
Madonna says she pulled her costumes from her "personal archives" and that "they are part of my history" as an artist.
Dancing at Rockaway Beach: Now That’s Entertainment
Eye-catching costumes? Eerie foghorns? For this year’s Beach Sessions, Alexa West shines a light on the bright and dark sides of American showbiz in “Amusement.”
Rocky Horror Picture Show, Haunted Hallway return to Rome
Rome's Capitol Theatre hosts The Rocky Horror Picture Show and free Haunted Hallway Bazaar on Oct. 24, featuring costumes, entertainment and more.
Bay View business owner leans into Halloween as families search for ways to save on costs
Halloween spending is expected to hit $115 per person this year. Here's where local families can find deals on costumes and candy.
First-look ‘Tangled’ footage shows off Rapunzel costume and Mother Gothel’s grin
Disney revealed at D23 first-look footage for its live-action ‘Tangled’ movie, including costumes worn by Rapunzel, Flynn Rider, and Kathryn Hahn’s Mother Gothel.
Target apologizes for children’s clown Halloween costume after backlash
Target apologized on Monday and said it had pulled a Halloween costume from sale depicting a circus clown that critics said evoked Blackface and minstrel shows.
See first look at 'Masters of the Universe' characters Fisto, Ram Man, and Trap Jaw (exclusive)
'Masters of the Universe' is filled with unique characters, and EW has the exclusive first look at He-Man's cohorts Fisto and Ram Man, and Skeletor's henchman Trap Jaw. Plus, costume designer Richard Sale breaks down each look's creation.
Nicole Kidman's daughter Sunday Rose, 17, accompanies mom to the Met Gala
Nicole Kidman's 17-year-old daughter, Sunday Rose, whom she shares with ex-husband Keith Urban, accompanied her mother to the Met Gala.
After Being Ditched by Xbox, Double Fine Says It'll Make Brütal Legend 2 If Its Amnesia Fortnight 2026 Kickstarter Raises an Impossible-Sounding $100 Million
Psychonauts and Costume Quest maker Double Fine has launched its new game development Kickstarter project after cutting ties with Xbox, and says it'll make Brütal Legend 2 if it raises an impossible-sounding $100 million.
Grayson Gallery accepting submission for Halloween-themed art show
GRAYSON, Ky. — The Grayson Gallery Board and volunteers will host the annual Halloween-themed art show with an opening reception and costume contest set for Oct. 30, the evening before
My afternoon becoming a background actor on ‘The Chosen’
I spent an afternoon on the Texas set of ‘The Chosen,’ where a stop at the costume closet transformed me into a first-century background actor
Bob Mackie dead: Iconic designer who dressed Cher, Beyoncé was 87
Bob Mackie, the prolific fashion designer who fashioned elaborate garments for pop culture icons including Cher, Dolly Parton and Beyoncé, has died. He was 87.
Allison Williams Says There Is ‘a Science’ to Buying a Kids’ Halloween Costume as a Parent (Exclusive)
The actress shares a 4-year-old son, Arlo, with husband Alexander Dreymon
Dragon Con 2026: 10 things to do, including costumes, science and wrestling
Among the many things to do at Dragon Con 2026 in Atlanta are watching wrestling, collecting artist sketches and cheering on robots.
Behind the Seams | Wildwood
Go behind the scenes at LAIKA Studios for an up-close look at the extraordinary costumes of ‘Wildwood,’ the studio’s most intricately designed stop-motion film yet. Nearly 20 years after ‘Coraline,’ LAIKA’s artists and designers reveal how every tiny stitch, button and layer of fabric is handcrafted and engineered to help bring its puppets to life, combining costume design, fabrication and animation at an astonishing scale.
Boo! Insider's guide to Halloween in Haywood
Halloween season is here and Haywood County is getting into the spooky spirit. From trick-or-treating and costume parties to haunted happenings and family-friendly fun, there will be plenty of ways
WKTV Boo-ti-ful Costume Contest 2026
WKTV's Boo-ti-ful Costume Contest 2026 is inviting the community to submit their best kids and pets pictures for a chance to win prizes.
PlatinumGames talks Nintendo Switch 2, offers brief comment on Bayonetta's future
PlatinumGames has offered a few words about Nintendo Switch 2 as well as the future of Bayonetta. PlatinumGames CEO Atsushi Inaba was recently taking part in a joint discussion with Shift Up’s Kim Hyung Tae. For those who missed the news, the companies recently announced a collaboration which will bring special Bayonetta costumes to Stellar Blade in time for the...
“The View” cancels fan-favorite cohost Halloween costumes for 3rd consecutive year
The show’s panelists previously wore elaborate costumes on the air, ranging from full-body “Avatar” makeup to Carl from “Up!”
Pet costume parade coming soon to NewBo City Market
Howl-O-Ween Pet Costume Parade coming to NewBo City Market on Oct. 24. Also, “Candles & Classics” at Orchestra Iowa, Cedar Rapids museum hosts artists market, Iowa City chorus honored, and Clermont concert highlights historic pipe organ.
From Westwood to the Valley: How ‘The Shards’ recreates 1981 L.A.
Ryan Murphy's FX adaptation of 'The Shards' brings Bret Easton Ellis' coming-of-age thriller to life with meticulous production design, costumes and iconic L.A. locations.
The Franklin Institute Plans Adults-Only Halloween Event Featuring Science, Horror Films
The Franklin Institute is hosting an adults-only Halloween event, Science After Hours: Fright Nite, on Friday, Oct. 16, from 7:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. This event involves costumes, drinks, music,…
Photos show Baghdad Ballet Academy students taking the stage at Baghdad’s Al-Sinbad Theater
BAGHDAD (AP) — Students from Baghdad’s Ballet Academy performed a production titled “Mermaid” before an audience at Al-Sinbad Theater on Friday. Wearing colorful costumes, dancers of different ages presented solo and ensemble routines, moving through choreographed formations, leaps and turns...
Scary Business Trick or Treat set for Sunday in Crestline
CRESTLINE – The Crestline Community Development Team (CCDT) is hosting Scary Business Trick or Treat from 4 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25 in downtown Crestline. The costume contest will take place at 5:15 p.m. on the patio at The Hub. Contest age groups are 0-2, 3-5, 6-10, 11-13, and family/group. “Downtown is always full […]
How “Wicker”’s special effects team turned Alexander Skarsgård into a sexy man-basket
The wizards at Wētā Workshop, the award-winning special effects company, used new technology to create the costume.
A final day at the Academy of Natural Sciences bring tears, nostalgia and disbelief
Inside the museum, a steady stream of visitors took photos, touched the skin of of a scaly anteater being circulated by educators, and guided toddlers in dinosaur costumes through exhibits.
Iconic 'Star Trek' Costumes and Props Beam Into London’s Science Museum
The Science Museum is staging a display of Star Trek props and costumes to coincide with the franchise's 60 anniversary.
Saturday Science Gets Spooky: 100-Plus Hands-On Experiences Return to Alexandria
Alexandria's free Spooky Mad Science Expo returns Saturday with hands-on STEM activities, costumes and more than 100 interactive experiences.
Talent show brings joy to kids at children’s hospital
A weekly talent show at University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children's Hospital helps pediatric cancer patients and families find support, healing and happiness through music, magic, and creative expression.
Carmen Electra opens up about her return to ‘Playboy’ three decades after first spread
Carmen Electra is opening up about her return to ‘Playboy’ 30 years after her first spread and following ‘over 150’ covers worldwide: ‘I’m kind of collecting bunny costumes at this point.’
Wear your costume to Haywood Community Band's 'Frightacular' concert
An exciting monster mash of music will fill the chapel at First United Methodist Church in Waynesville when the Haywood Community Band takes the stage for its “Frightacular” concert at
Janelle Monáe wants to be L.A.'s reigning Halloween queen
Once again, Janelle Monáe brings Halloween festivities to Los Angeles, from Hollywood Forever to USC to a secret party location. Her hope is to bring people together over a shared love of creative expression.
Outfit 3 DLC revealed for Ingrid, Sagat, Alex and C. Viper in Street Fighter 6
We're now just a few days away from Street Fighter 6's next big update with Ingrid's release and can now see more of the shiny new toys she's bringing with her.Capcom just revealed the Outfit ...
Purim’s two heroines and the politics of moral choice
Yesterday, we celebrated Purim. I’ll share a secret: I hate the holiday. Or rather, I’ve long hated how we celebrate it. I don’t like costumes. And the carnival spirit set against a story that ends with 75,000 dead — even if killed in justified self-defense —...
Moiese gallery and gift business celebrates 50 years
A kiddie pool with gently floating ducks in Scottish Highlander costumes, and a big sign over the door that says Happy 50 Years gave a clue that something was happening at Lonesome Heritage Farms at Wagon Wheel Gift and Gallery in Moiese.
Area establishments announce Halloween entertainment
IRON MOUNTAIN — Halloween is the perfect excuse to dress up, dance the night away and enjoy some spooky-season fun. Area establishments are embracing the holiday with a lineup of Halloween-themed entertainment. — Lakeside Bed & Breakfast of Florence, Wis., will host “Murder at the Costume Ball” on Friday and Saturday, featuring a four-course dinner, […]
American turn to villain costumes to protest city cameras
What do Darth Vader, Dr. Doom, and The Lorax have in common? People have dressed up as them to protest license-plate reader cameras and data centers.
Binface, foxes and raving loonies: the UK’s proud history of costumed candidates
British love of silliness comes to the fore when politicians stand shoulder to shoulder with satirical rivals
How ‘Sense and Sensibility’ costume designer used color to show a family in mourning
‘Sense and Sensibility’ costume designer Grace Snell tells EW about how she used color and fabric to depict a family in mourning — and the difference between the sisters’ personalities.
The best, boldest and most ‘wait, what?’ Met Gala outfits, from Bad Bunny’s old-man look to Heidi Klum's marble sculpture costume
Check out the most showstopping — and headscratching — looks from the 2026 Met Gala.
Barbara Eden says she last put on ‘I Dream of Jeannie’ costume for charity with Bill Clinton and Elton John
Barbara Eden remembered the last time she put on her ‘I Dream of Jeannie’ costume ‘by accident’ in a bit with Bill Clinton and Elton John.
Effingham Health Department hosting ‘Boo to the Flu’ vaccination event
Get a walk-in flu shot at the Effingham County Health Department on Oct. 29. No appointment is needed, and Halloween costumes are encouraged.
Children learn about nuclear science as they trick-or-treat through Fall Fission Fest
AIKEN — Children dressed in Halloween costumes filled a downtown parkway Oct. 17, learning about nuclear science and even wielding Geiger counters at the SRS Heritage Foundation’s fourth Fall Fission ...
Local business plans Halloween event at Buckhannon’s Jawbone Park
Majestic Mountains Studio is planning a Halloween event at Jawbone Park in Buckhannon on Oct. 31 from noon to 5:30 p.m. The free event will feature vendors, games, crafts and costume contests.
Dragon Con 2026: 10 things to do, including costumes, science and wrestling
Among the many things to do at Dragon Con 2026 in Atlanta are watching wrestling, collecting artist sketches and cheering on robots.
6 things we learned from 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day' script (exclusive)
'Spider-Man: Brand New Day' annotated script page from director Destin Daniel Cretton reveals the opening scene, updated Marvel logo and Spidey costume, new tech, and more.
Aahs! to shutter after Halloween, joining recent Westwood business closures
Aahs! The Ultimate Gift Store will celebrate its last Halloween in Westwood before shuttering Nov. 3. Aahs! – which opened in 1981 on the corner of Kinross Avenue and Westwood Boulevard – sells costumes, props, toys and novelty items.
Griffin MSI exhibit traces Paul Tazewell's career
Before he designed costumes for “Hamilton,” “Wicked” and “West Side Story,” Paul Tazewell made puppets. One of them — a handmade version of Little Red Riding Hood — sits near
MS Comic Con 2026: cosplayers, celebrities and fans unite to celebrate beloved characters
Attendees decked out in costumes and homemade props from their favorite TV shows and movies gathered at the Mississippi Trade Mart for Comic Con 2026
Munson After Dark Halloween Event Oct. 31
Munson After Dark is bringing Halloween festivities to downtown Utica with a night of music, dancing, costumes and cocktails.
Saturday football open thread
Happy Saturday, folks! There’s a lot of football today that I will not watch, including the (live) Tottenham Hotspur vs. Everton match. Why? Because I will be with my family attending my first ever Renaissance fair. That’s right, instead of going insane watching Spurs, I’ll be watching people in period costumes try and sell me […]
Met Gala guests arrive on carpet in dramatic works of art
On display this Spring, the “Costume Art” exhibit will “examine the centrality of the dressed body.”
Spirit Halloween stores are already open for the fall season. See southeast Louisiana locations.
As the fall season approaches, Spirit Halloween stores are popping up seemingly overnight. Here’s where to find the costume shop this year.
Naruto x Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections 1.70 update announced, patch notes - new character Uchiha Nanashi and more [update: trailer]
August 19: In a surprise update, a new version 1.70 update has been announced for Naruto x Boruto Ultimate Ninja Storm Connections, highlighted by the addition of Uchiha Nanashi for free. The patch goes live tomorrow, August 20. Uchiha Nanashi is the main thing here, but that’s not all. Other highlights include the addition of Color 5 to the costumes...
2026 high school musicals: Tell us about your spring show in Lancaster County
High school musical season is on the way, with rehearsals gearing up and Lancaster County schools preparing for production. Casts, crew, set design, costume construction, promotions are all getting ready
Keri Russell recalls ‘having sex all the time’ with Matthew Rhys in disguises on set of ‘The Americans’
Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys became a couple while making ‘The Americans,’ and now Russell reveals that they were ‘having sex all the time’ in their costumes.
John Travolta Explains His New Look at the Cannes Film Festival: ‘I’m Going to Play the Part’
John Travolta was in costume at the Cannes Film Festival. The Hollywood icon, 72, raised eyebrows wearing round glasses and a series of jaunty berets while in France to promote his directorial debut, ...
New DriveTech Wear costumes coming for every Street Fighter 6 character this week, and they're free
Street Fighter 6 is on the cusp of receiving its next big update with Ingrid's arrival, and the patch is shaping up to be one of the largest the game has ever seen in terms of content.Capcom just ...