Culture

Mulatu Astatke’s Timeless Ethio-Jazz Legacy Continues Worldwide

This is Beirut 18/04 10:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Mulatu Astatke struggled for decades before his name became associated worldwide with a musical genre, and he was finally born as the father of Ethio-jazz. Now, despite that long journey and his 81 years of age, the Ethiopian music legend cannot even "think about retirement." A one-man band, equally at home with the vibraphone and the conga, a ...

Snow White Banned from Lebanese Theaters

Marilyne Jallad 17/04 21:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Europe Israel Kuwait

Ninety years after Disney’s pioneering animated version, Snow White is returning to the big screen in a live-action remake—screening in cinemas around the world, or almost. Lebanon and Kuwait have decided to outright ban this timeless tale intended for audiences young and old, from ages seven to 77. Due to the presence of an Israeli ...

Tragic Promise Drove World's first Michelin-Starred Woman Sushi Chef

This is Beirut 17/04 18:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

France Sushi Chizuko Kimura Michelin Star Japan Culture

Chizuko Kimura has become the first female sushi chef in the world to win a Michelin star, fulfilling a promise she made to her dying husband to continue his legacy. The 54-year-old Japanese chef regained the Michelin star her late husband Shunei Kimura won three years ago for their Sushi Shunei restaurant in Paris. For Shunei, the star was a ...

Georges Khabbaz Shoots Global Series in Canary Islands, Spain

This is Beirut 17/04 17:35 - Reading : less than a minute

Georges Khabbaz Arts Theatre Movies Lebanon

After starring in the acclaimed film Yunan by Ameer Fakher Eldin – which was selected for the official competition at the Berlin International Film Festival and won awards at the Bari and Milan film festivals in Italy – and after shooting Mille Secrets Mille Dangers last summer with Oscar-nominated director Philippe Falardeau, Georges Khabbaz ...

Jonathan Anderson takes helm at Dior Men

This is Beirut 17/04 17:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Fashion LVMH Dior Men Jonathan Anderson France Culture

French fashion giant Dior named the highly-rated designer Jonathan Anderson as creative director of Dior Men on Thursday. Anderson, 40, quit Loewe last month after more than a decade in which he turned around the fortunes of the heritage Spanish brand. The Northern Irish designer -- an influential tastemaker with many A-list fans -- made the ...

Sweden Goes into Eurovision as Punters' Favorite

This is Beirut 17/04 14:11 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Music Eurovision Award Television Switzerland Sweden

Eurovision is the world's biggest talent show, featuring 37 national entries, but one country seems to regularly dominate the conversation and the winners' podium: Sweden. With a month to go before the grand finale in Basel on May 17, anything could happen. But Sweden, which has already won the glitzy glamfest seven times - tied with ...

Nate Bargatze to Host 2025 Emmy Awards

This is Beirut 17/04 14:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Entertainment Nate Bargatze Emmy Awards Ceremony USA Culture

Comedian Nate Bargatze, one of the United States' most successful stand-ups, will host this year's Emmy Awards, organizers said Wednesday. The funnyman is being handed the reins of television's most prestigious prize show for its 77th edition, which takes place in Los Angeles in September and will be broadcast on US network CBS. "It's a huge ...

Christian Lacroix Reveals His True Calling in Costumes

This is Beirut 17/04 10:30 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Fashion France Christian Lacroix Paris Luxury Art

He describes himself as an “impostor” in haute couture: at 73, Christian Lacroix is now fully dedicated to what he calls his “real profession”—that of a costume designer. His flamboyant style, shaped by fashion history, folklore, and painting, now finds its true expression on the stage. “As a child, I thought in terms of costumes, of ...

Star Dancer Jean-Pierre Bonnefous Dies at the Age of 82

This is Beirut 16/04 19:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

United States Ballet Star Dancer Jean-Pierre Bonnefous Death Culture

Renowned star dancer Jean-Pierre Bonnefous, celebrated for his performances in major neoclassical ballets, has died in the United States, where he spent most of his career, his family and the Paris Opera announced on Wednesday. “He passed away peacefully at the age of 82 in Charlottesville, Virginia,” his nephew Jérémy Bouhy told AFP. Born ...

SpotlightWhen AI Meets Therapy: The Promise and Pitfalls of Digital Healing

David Sahyoun 16/04 18:00 - Reading : 6 minute(s)

Psychoanalysis Therapy Artificial Intelligence AI Culture

AI (artificial intelligence) is a computer system designed to replicate human thought and behavior. It can reason, process information, and search for answers across vast pools of relevant content available online. A chatbot, by contrast, is a conversational tool designed to simulate human interaction. It runs on pre-scripted responses, ...

The Freida McFadden Phenomenon Confuses French Literary Critics

This is Beirut 16/04 14:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Movie Literature US France Thriller Culture

Why are American author Freida McFadden’s psychological thrillers selling so well in France? French literary critics are trying to understand the craze but remain doubtful about the true merit of her work. The Housemaid was the best-selling book in France in 2024, with over 600,000 copies sold. By the end of February 2025, it had crossed the ...

When Vargas Llosa Punched García Márquez: A Journalist Witness Recalls

This is Beirut 16/04 09:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Peru Literature Llosa Mexico Marquez Culture

When journalist and novelist Elena Poniatowska headed to a film premiere in Mexico City, she had no idea she was about to witness the literary feud of the century as two future Nobel laureates came to blows. It was February 12, 1976, and Poniatowska wound up seated next to Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez and his wife Mercedes to watch the ...