Reviewing the Drama: Broadway, Off-Broadway, Ballet, Movies, and TV Reviews

Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients Announced 17 people will receive the 2015 Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor. The recipients will be presented with the honor by President Obama at a November 24 ceremony. Among those who will be honored are Barbra Streisand ; baseball greats Willie Mays and the late Yogi Berra ; Senator Barbara Mikulski ; Steven Spielberg ; Itzhak Perlman ; the late congresswoman Shirley Chisholm ; and James Taylor . Legendary songwriter Stephen Sondheim was selected for the honor last year, but was unable to attend the ceremony; he will celebrate the honor next week with Babs and the rest of the 2015 honorees. Broadway.com has more. Jesse Tyler Ferguson Returns to Broadway The Modern Family star and five-time Emmy nominee will return to Broadway in spring 2016. Though Ferguson has regularly appeared on stage in Shakespeare in the Park productions since hitting it big on Modern Family , this will mark the first time he's ...

Nominees for the 21st Screen Actors Guild Awards have been announced. Winners will be announced and honored on Sunday, January 25, 2015, and the celebration will air on TNT and TBS. Herein, the full list of nominees. Movies Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture Birdman Boyhood The Grand Budapest Hotel The Imitation Game The Theory of Everything While I haven't seen Into the Woods , I think after I do I will be a little bummed it was left off, though the ensemble of Wes Anderson regulars and newbies in The Grand Budapest Hotel was outstanding. Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role Steve Carell , Foxcatcher Benedict Cumberbatch , The Imitation Game Jake Gyllenhaal , Nightcrawler Michael Keaton , Birdman Eddie Redmayne , The Theory of Everything I've only seen two of the nominated performances (so far) so I can't declare a favorite. I'm glad to see Gyllenhaal, who's preparing to make his Broadway debut, on ...

The nominees for the 66th annual Emmy Awards have been announced. Herein, a list of many of the nominees. Visit emmys.com for the full list. DRAMA Drama Series Breaking Bad Downton Abbey Game of Thrones House of Cards Mad Men True Detective I'm bummed to see The Good Wife didn't make the list. It had such an incredible season. As it stands, this is a good slate. House of Cards and Game of Thrones were terrific this season, but I'm betting things will break well for Breaking Bad 's final season.  Lead Actress Michelle Dockery, Downton Abbey Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife Claire Danes, Homeland Robin Wright, House of Cards Lizzy Caplan, Masters of Sex Kerry Washington, Scandal What a talented crop of ladies. I've never watched Scandal and only last night did I start watching Masters of Sex (so far so good), but even among the first four ladies... This was a breakout season for Julianna Margulies, but I think Robin Wright is flawles...

The Golden Globes, which honor both film and television, have been handed out. (The Globes are presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, HFPA.) Below is the full list of winners but first, as always, the fashion. Let's start off with my runner up for best dressed, Cate Blanchett . The Oscar winning actress (who can now be seen in Blue Jasmine ) wore a beautiful Armani black lace gown. She looked statuesque in the great red carpet-ready dress, with its high neck and detailed cut. And that was before we even saw the back, which featured a daring cut out. Blanchett looked sophisticated and poised, and I dug her tucked-under hair.  Next are a few column(ish) dresses. From left to right, Kata Mara in J Mendel; Kerry Washington in Balenciaga; and Margot Robbie in Gucci. Mara ( House of Cards ) shows off her new blonde tresses and some serious curves in this stunning silver number. Washington ( Scandal ) shows off her baby bump in the Balenciaga frock. It's f...