It only took a few hours for Susan Orlean to find out from thousands of people the books that changed their world.  And she didn't even ask. Due to the magic of twitter, she just mentioned that Ron Hansen's book, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford had changed her world and within minutes people were responding with what books had changed theirs.

Working artists in New York are twice as likely to be living without adequate health insurance as those who make their living by other means.  And after health care funding was slashed by $775 million dollars in the most recent state budget, it may be more urgent than ever for people who make a living through creative means to make their health care dollars stretch.

The World Cup isn’t just a soccer tournament – it’s an worldwide cultural happening. Find out about the best World Cup music, videos, art exhibitions, and books, right here.

After spending four years in storage, Alice Tully Hall's 19-ton concert organ is back in business. Or at least back at Lincoln Center.

One night every year, Broadway pulls out all the stops for the Tony Awards. If Twitter is a barometer of the zeitgeist, it worked. Emcee Sean Hayes and attendee Catherine Zeta-Jones were trending in the top 10, despite competition from the NBA Finals, a potential no-hitter in Chicago, and the season premier of True Blood. Whether that bodes well for the theaters, struggling to sell tickets in a down economy, is yet to be seen. In the meantime, here are the top 5 things to take away from the Tonys.

Author David Goodwillie organizes his books the way he sees New York: “My books are not organized at all, which is kind of how I like it.  Classics mixed in with pop culture mixed in with non fiction and it’s kind of a big mess”.  

In the last five years, New York has added hundreds of miles of bike lanes and closed parts of Broadway to cars, a re-allocation of street space that has caused no small measure of controversy. But those plans? Child's play, compared to what a group of international planners wants the city to do: tear down the lower part of the FDR drive.

You may still not know who Tèa Obreht is, but by now you may have heard of the list that will supposedly make her a household name: The New Yorker's 20 writers under 40 list, which was featured in the recent fiction double issue.  The New Yorker claims that "these twenty men and women dazzlingly represent the multiple strands of inventiveness and vitality that characterize the best fiction being written in this country today."

You know that incredible, electrical connection that takes place when you look directly into Beyonce’s eyes, and she into yours? I do.

It happened just the other night, actually, when we were at the Palm, in midtown. We were there, technically speaking, because this guy she knows, Jay-Z, is a producer for Fela!, the Broadway musical, and they’re hyping the show for the Tonys (this Sunday). Will Smith was there too, with his girl Jada. They’re all producers on the show, all except for Beyonce. She didn’t have anything to do with Fela.

Unless you've taken the month off of work, you probably won't be able to catch all the games of this year's World Cup. There are 48 games in the first round alone. If you can only manage to see five of them, here are which ones to watch:

Every August, the sprawling International Fringe Festival brings 1200 performances from over 200 countries to 20 venues around the city (or thereabouts.) In the meantime, there are a number of smaller festivals popping up with promising new fare.

At long last, the World Cup has arrived. WNYC weighs in with places to watch the games and matches not to miss.

Film festivals in New York are like multiple roommates. In a studio apartment. Living on top of each other.

John Waters loves Johnny Mathis. "He's so famous, they don't even introduce him," Waters says.

Bahamian filmmaker Kareem Mortimer is the first to admit that he is taking a big risk with his debut feature film, Children of God. The  story of two young men falling in love puts the spotlight on homophobia in Caribbean society.

WNYC takes you behind the scenes of one of the city's major theatrical institutions. Watch the video for details.

If art exhibits, outdoor music or car-free bike-riding aren’t enough of a draw, consider visiting Governors Island for a peek at a massive urban redevelopment project.

If all goes well, you're going to take a lot of pictures this summer.  Artist and filmmaker Miranda July would like to help you out.

Get the lowdown on the best of the bard in New York this summer.