This is Beirut - culture

Demon Slayer Surge Powers Sony’s Strong Profit Outlook

This is Beirut, 11/11 13:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Demon Slayer Tokyo Culture Cinema Art

Shares in Japanese giant Sony jumped more than five percent Tuesday after it hiked full-year profit forecasts thanks to the latest Demon Slayer anime blockbuster. The company also attributed the improved forecasts to higher expected sales of its PlayStation console and a smaller-than-anticipated impact from US tariffs. For the 2025-26 financial ...

Iranian Actor Homayoun Ershadi, Star of 'Taste of Cherry', Dies Following Cancer Struggle

This is Beirut, 11/11 12:50 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Film Obituary Homayoun Ershadi Iran Culture

Iranian actor Homayoun Ershadi died at 78 on Tuesday after a battle with cancer, state news agency IRNA reported. Ershadi rose to international fame with his breakout role in the late Abbas Kiarostami's Palme d'Or-winning Taste of Cherry (1997), which tells the story of a hopeless man looking for someone to bury him after his planned ...

Netflix Unveils First Immersive Theme Parks Across the US

This is Beirut, 11/11 11:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Nawaf Salam Netflix Film Culture Art Park

Pretending to be a pirate in an immersive game inspired by the manga One Piece, or wandering through a carnival hosted by Wednesday Addams, is now part of the experience offered inside Netflix’s first theme parks in the United States. For its first “Netflix House,” opening Wednesday, the American streaming giant chose one of the country’s ...

David Szalay Wins Booker Prize For Powerful Novel

This is Beirut, 11/11 10:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Booker Prize David Szalay Literature Culture Art Novel

British-Hungarian writer David Szalay won the Booker Prize on Monday for his novel Flesh, a tortured story of a Hungarian emigre who makes and loses a fortune. Szalay beat five other shortlisted authors, including Indian novelist Kiran Desai, who won in 2006, and Britain's Andrew Miller, to claim the £50,000 ($65,500) award at a ceremony in ...

Sabah: The Timeless Voice Lighting Up Lebanon’s Soul

Marie-Christine Tayah, 10/11 18:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Lebanon Sabah Music Culture Art Heritage

Sabah, born Jeanette Georges Feghali in 1925 in the hilltop village of Bdadoun near Wadi Chahrour—the mysterious “Valley of the Blackbird”—was destined for artistry. Poetry ran in her family; her uncle, Anis Feghali, earned the nickname Shahrour El Wadi for his mastery of the traditional Arabic poetic form, zajal. Jeanette inherited this ...

Bulatov, Pillar of Russian Contemporary Art Scene, Dies at 92

This is Beirut, 10/11 17:35 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Painter Erik Bulatov Obituary Contemporary Art Russia Culture

Erik Bulatov, a pillar of Russia's contemporary art scene known for works mocking Soviet propaganda, has died in Paris at the age of 92, the Russian Academy of Fine Arts told AFP Monday. Bulatov was best known as one of the creators of the Sots Art movement that made use of Soviet slogans and shot him to fame in the final years of the USSR. "One ...

Boualem Sansal: Germany Appeals to Algeria for Franco-Algerian Novelist’s Pardon

This is Beirut, 10/11 16:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Literature Boualem Sansal Health Germany Algeria Culture

Steinmeier's office said he had asked Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to pardon Sansal as "a humanitarian gesture." "Given Sansal's advanced age and fragile health condition," Steinmeier also "offered Sansal's relocation to Germany and subsequent medical care in our country." A pardon for Sansal ...

Booker Prize 2025: Six Authors Compete for One of Literature’s Top Honors

This is Beirut, 10/11 14:10 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Literature Booker Prize Award Front Runners Britain Culture

The winner of the Booker Prize will be announced on Monday, with six novels competing for the prestigious English-language literary award and two veterans favored by bookmakers. British author Andrew Miller, who has previously been shortlisted, and Indian author Kiran Desai, the 2006 Booker winner, were predicted to scoop the award at the London ...

Saudi Women Keep Ancient Dance Alive Behind Closed Doors

This is Beirut, 10/11 13:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Music Oriental Dance Saudi Arabia Culture Art

In a fitness studio in Saudi Arabia, dozens of women sway to Arabic music as they practice belly dancing, an activity that many feel compelled to keep secret. Despite their enthusiasm, none of them would give their real name or show their faces on camera, underlining the stigma and cultural prejudices surrounding the ancient dance. In Arab ...

Glen Powell Reinvents Action Stardom In 'The Running Man'

This is Beirut, 10/11 10:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Cinema Film Culture Art Hollywood The Running Man

It is often said Hollywood doesn't produce movie stars anymore. So when someone with a square jaw and loads of charisma like Glen Powell is cast in Arnold Schwarzenegger's role for a reboot of The Running Man, people get excited. But Powell, an unfailingly courteous Texan who quit the Los Angeles life and moved home to Austin as his fame grew, is ...

Nine New Music Legends Join Rock Hall Ranks Today

This is Beirut, 09/11 10:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Rock Music Concert Awards Culture Art

Cyndi Lauper, Outkast, the White Stripes and Soundgarden were among this year's inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Saturday, adding their names to the pantheon of music's most esteemed and beloved acts. New Yorker Lauper, who burst onto the pop scene with colorful punk looks and infectious tunes like Girls Just Want to Have Fun, True ...

Memoirs of Juan Carlos Ignite Fierce Debate Over Franco

This is Beirut, 08/11 13:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Juan Carlos Spain King Memoirs Culture Art

Exiled former Spanish King Juan Carlos's memoirs have sparked renewed debate in Spain over his legacy and ties to the late dictator General Francisco Franco. Its publication coincides with the 50th anniversary of Franco's death on November 20, 1975 and the commemoration of Juan Carlos's proclamation as king two days later. In the book, the ...

culture