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Direct and to the point: Richard Eyre believes that the 'theatreness' of theatre marks it apart from the other media

Art of the matter: Richard Eyre on the meaning of culture

After his first trip to the theatre at the age of 16, everything changed for Richard Eyre. He fell in love with the arts. Now, he says, it's time to rethink our ideas about what makes great art

Navigator / Reveal Records Mixtape giveaway

Available exclusively to readers of The Independent online, Navigator and Reveal records present a compilation of 30 tracks of the finest new music around, all free to download.

Inside Arts & Entertainment

Ben Bradshaw at the Nowhere Boy premiere last month

Cultural Life: Ben Bradshaw, culture secretary

The White Ribbon (15) (Rated 4/ 5 )

Michael Haneke (144 mins), starring Burghart Klaussner, Christian Friedel, Marisa Growaldt

Album: Leona Lewis, Echo, (Syco) (Rated 3/ 5 )

Of all the talent-show turns unearthed in the past decade, Leona Lewis is the only one to have parlayed the opportunity, when it knocked, into a significant international career; and judging by this safe, careful follow-up to the multi-platinum Spirit, she's not taking any unnecessary chances that might prematurely derail that career.

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Rupert Penry-Jones: 'It's nice not to be chasing a bad guy'

Rupert Penry-Jones is grateful to be TV's most famous spy, and with a play set to open, he isn't worried about being typecast

The Kreutzer Sonata, Gate Theatre, London (Rated 4/ 5 )

The motion of a train loosens the tongue, confides Pozdnyshev, our companion in a railway carriage for the 85 minutes of this extraordinarily compelling stage adaptation of Tolstoy's great, warped novella The Kreutzer Sonata.

Architecting, The Pit, Barbican, London (Rated 4/ 5 )
First Night: Staff Benda Bilili, Barbican, London (Rated 4/ 5 )
Uncle Vanya, Old Vic, Bristol (Rated 2/ 5 )

Album: Alberto Veronesi, Placido Domingo, Violeta Urmana, Puccini Ritrovato, (Deutsche Grammophon) (Rated 3/ 5 )

Echoing the recent trend for classical music played with authentic period instrumentation, Alberto Veronesi here presents a series of Puccini arias and orchestral pieces according to the original versions premiered by the composer.