Narrative screenwriters and playwrights tell stories through a character’s experiences. Through this, we as an audience step into someone else’s shoes, walk through their world, and see life ...

You’ve likely heard of the male gaze, the concept coined by British film theorist Laura Mulvey in her 1973 essay “Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.” In her writing, she notes that the ...

From the wise-cracking sidekick to the wily trickster, the just-out-of-reach love interest to the grizzled mentor, archetypal characters fit into age-old storytelling patterns. The most popular ...

Become a member today and gain full access to all the powerful tools Backstage has to help bring your career to the next level. Stay informed with Backstage Daily. Get exclusive content, the ...

When “A Chorus Line” opened on Broadway in 1975, audiences first heard the opening strains of “I Hope I Get It,” in which performance hopefuls sing about how badly they want a chance to ...

Mariska Hargitay has go-to advice for theater actors who show up on the set of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” for the first time: Though you’re used to playing to the back of the house ...

In the Envelope: The Actor’s Podcast features in-depth conversations with today’s most noteworthy actors and creators. Join host and senior editor Vinnie Mancuso for this guide to living the ...

Bruce Wayne, Don Draper, and Lisbeth Salander: Gloomy, rebellious, and oh-so-enigmatic, these characters hook us by the heartstrings despite—or perhaps because of—their darker nature.

Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” and “Hobbit” film series, based on the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, is the latest big-budget franchise that’s getting a revamp. A year after Warner Bros.

For Tamilla Woodard, theater and science aren’t all that different. Though their methods may differ, these areas of study share a common aim: to elevate the human experience. The skills and ...

If you believe in the phrase “two heads are better than one,” you’ll probably make a terrible surgeon, but you just might be right for a comedy double act. As the name suggests, the art form ...

Whether it’s Anthony Hopkins’ empathetic portrayal of dementia in “The Father” or Kirsten Dunst’s depiction of existential depression in “Melancholia,” mental illness can make a ...