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Deadheads, ballerinas and Mick Jagger: As 2023 winds down, revisit a memorable handful of the thousands of images commissioned by our photo editors that capture the year in culture.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was not so much interested in the way this mother mimicked the Nativity scene because the parallels were evident. I was looking to capture a genuine moment of engagement with the family. The story about Dollywood was about the decadence of Christmas decorations, but it was also about the way families share time together.\u201d \u2014 Stacy Kranitz<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cAs a kid who grew up racing go-karts, I had dreamed of attending an F1 race. Still, I had no idea what to expect in Miami. With a fake marina, a fake beach club and a set by Post Malone, the event was more over-the-top than I could have anticipated. So I was extra excited when I stumbled onto moments like this one, removed from all the glitz and glamour of the weekend.\u201d \u2014 Scott Rossi<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cOn the night I met Judd, I think she was still mourning the loss of her mother, but she was very calm and stoic as she carried on with the opening night of the tour without her. Here, we were in her dressing room together. I wanted to show the focused, almost trance-like state she was in as she powered through the loss and carried on with the show. (She sprayed the hair spray for over 60 seconds, and we were surrounded by fumes.)\u201d \u2014 Thea Traff<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cTom Cruise seemed to have a moment of primal connection with nearly everyone in the room. Here you can see him embracing Jamie Lee Curtis as Steven Spielberg, Hong Chau and Michelle Williams wait in the wings.\u201d \u2014 Sinna Nasseri<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve long admired Jason Moran as a full, ranging, complex Black musician who is committed to caring for our Black musical histories. Getting the opportunity to photograph him in his home was a serious honor. Watching him play the piano, his limber fingers gliding across the keys faster than my eyes could follow, was meditative and transfixing, like watching the whirling dervishes.\u201d \u2014 Gioncarlo Valentine<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cShooting dance can be difficult because things move very quickly. When I saw the dancers enter this particular position, I knew I had to ask them to hold it for a photo, because it exemplified their relationship with one another, onstage and off.\u201d \u2014 OK McCausland<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cHong was part of a New York Times Oscars portfolio on Asian American nominees, and I wanted the little pocket mirror Hong is holding to represent the piercing and nuanced reflections these artists gave to us through their movies.\u201d \u2014 Justin J Wee<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cWe were at Wo Hop in Manhattan\u2019s Chinatown, and the room was so small that only the director, camera operator, assistant director and I could squeeze into a corner without appearing on camera. The costume design alongside the colorful space was unbelievable \u2014 and surrounded by only the cast and extras, it strangely felt like I was transported to the \u201960s!\u201d \u2014 Heather Sten<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cMaybe these were Swifties or possibly Swifties\u2019 parents. Either way, these particular fans seemed content enjoying the concert from afar.\u201d \u2014 Jutharat Pinyodoonyachet<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cThis photo was taken during a rehearsal, and watching the projectionist work in real time \u2014 watching him adjust and refine his technique \u2014 was illuminating. The amount of work and precision juxtaposed with the gesture and improvisational quick nature of his drawings really drew me in.\u201d \u2014 Lila Barth<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cA light snow dusted the ground as the cast and crew of \u2018Rust\u2019 prepared for the first scene of the rebooted production at the Yellowstone Film Ranch in Montana. When photographing performances or film sets, I aim to step back and create images that show the elements of the filmmaking process overall. There\u2019s an obvious subtext here, but the context \u2014 the Montana landscape, the crew, the equipment \u2014 is an important counterweight to balance it.\u201d \u2014 Todd Heisler<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cThere is a moment in the production when Greg Tannahill, who played Peter Pan, goes \u2018flying\u2019 with intentional haphazardness through the air while harnessed in a flying rig. This skillfully performed moment of planned chaos goes by in the blink of an eye, so I took advantage of every single frame before, during and after the scene. The show is about chaos, so I had no choice but to embrace it and try to anticipate and chase this moment. It all happened so fast I didn\u2019t have time to think, I had to just shoot.\u201d \u2014 Dolly Faibyshev<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cThe life of Chita Rivera is defined by movement. When I photographed her, at age 90, I wasn\u2019t exactly sure what to expect of the legendary Broadway star. The moment she stepped into frame, her charisma and energy filled the room. Onstage, Chita is timeless.\u201d \u2014 Philip Montgomery<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cI photographed John at his ranch a few hours outside of LA. It was a very warm, dry day, and at the end of the shoot, I motioned to the pool and asked John, \u2018How does swimming sound?\u2019\u201d \u2014 Chantal Anderson<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cI was amazed by how embodied Trenary was. I thought a principal ballerina might be very controlled, but she was so raw and authentic both as a person and in the way she danced.\u201d \u2014 Thea Traff<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cAll the dancers moved so gracefully, I genuinely felt like I was photographing actual birds. I wanted to be as close to the dancers as possible to feel like I was a part of the flock. In this frame, the dancer on the sand was the first one to move away from the group: just like any bird that suddenly leaves the flock and the other follows after.\u201d \u2014 Amir Hamja<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cDead shows are one of the few places where I can find myself completely enveloped in my own world yet feel connected to the thousands around me by a single thread of music. I wasn\u2019t exactly thinking about that when I took this photo, but this woman exemplified that feeling perfectly. It\u2019s a feeling that keeps us coming back show after show after show after show.\u201d \u2014 Peter Fisher<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cElizabeth is someone who holds such grace and height that just exudes so magnetically on set. We were winding down, and I asked her if she could turn to her profile. The shape that her entire body held \u2014 neck extended, looking into the light \u2014 I knew that was the last shot.\u201d \u2014 Jingyu Lin<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cI attended U.F.O. Days as a kid, many years before I was a photographer. Returning to Elmwood for this shoot around a theme that\u2019s long held America\u2019s attention was a great way to reconnect with a place that\u2019s always captivated my memory.\u201d \u2014 Erinn Springer<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cI wanted to create an image that shows the face he puts on for a crowd. I think this result is effective because it\u2019s both performative and weird!\u201d \u2014 Thea Traff<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cEven though these kids are on a world stage, they are able to lose themselves while they wait in line to enter their classroom. They don\u2019t notice me or my camera; they are completely living in the moment.\u201d \u2014 OK McCausland<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cThis was a light test and the first shot that afternoon \u2014 one of those happy accidents. She hit her mark, brought her hands together and took a breath. I checked my focus, framed my shot and took a breath. Then, both of us now composed, we began.\u201d \u2014 Erik Carter<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cThis was my attempt at capturing the voyeuristic nature of the audience in this production. In the final scene, they are very aware that they are watching something unfair unfold. I thought this view, paired with the enormity of the set and the color, showed an interesting angle on the production.\u201d \u2014 Lila Barth<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cJohn Stamos was the most energetic person I photographed this year, hands down. He was constantly in motion, cycling through poses and ideas. Once in a while, he\u2019d flash me a look that seemed to stop the Earth\u2019s rotation.\u201d \u2014 Sinna Nasseri<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n