By JOSÉ BAUTISTA Prosecutors in Madrid said late last week that they had ended an investigation into singer Julio Iglesias, saying that Spanish officials had no legal authority to examine claims that he had sexually abused two former employees in the Caribbean. The decision came nearly three weeks after the two women filed a complaint with a Spanish court accusing Iglesias, 82, of abusing one of them in the Dominican Republic and the other in the Bahamas. Iglesias denied the

“Cutting Through Rocks” By ALISSA WILKINSON Documentaries tend to be about — and are sometimes made by — people who refuse to do as they’re told. But even by those standards, this year’s Oscar nominees for best documentary feature are subversive and brave. Taken individually, each is a story about standing up to something that seems too big to confront: an authoritarian government, an abusive system, dehumanizing societal norms. Together, they show the power of nonfiction fil

Ryan Coogler in Los Angeles on Nov. 22, 2025. Coogler’s “Sinners,” which sold $368 million in tickets, received 16 Oscar nominations in total, more than any other film in Academy Award history. (Ariel Fisher/The New York Times) By KYLE BUCHANAN The Oscar nominations were announced Thursday morning, lavishing love on the season-long front-runners “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another.” Still, not every contender had cause for celebration. Here’s my analysis of the biggest sn

Pianist José Ramos Santana has not performed with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra in several years. (Facebook via Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico) By PEGGY ANN BLISS Special to The STAR When piano fans in Puerto Rico find themselves in company with Hispanophiles, one thing can put them on Cloud 9 faster than anything: the island’s most esteemed classical pianist interpreting a masterful fusion of both elements by Spain’s most revered composer Manuel de Falla with th

“One Battle After Another” By KYLE BUCHANAN The record for the most Oscar nominations is 14, a total accrued only by three movies: “La La Land” (2016), “Titanic” (1997) and “All About Eve” (1950). Could this be the year that 75-year-old record finally falls? I’m inclined to think so. In fact, two of this year’s top contenders — “Sinners” and “One Battle After Another” — have a real shot at cracking that ceiling when the nominations are announced Thursday. It helps that the Os

By JON PARELES Bob Weir — the Grateful Dead’s rhythm guitarist and one of its songwriters and lead singers — should be celebrated for his riffs and vamps alone. The musician, whose family announced his death at 78 on Jan. 10, composed the chiming, rolling, ebb-and-flow 10/4 foundation of “Playing in the Band,” the leaping twin-guitar lick of “One More Saturday Night,” the modal triplets of “The Other One” and the jubilant “sunshine daydream” outro of “Sugar Magnolia.” Those w

Winning the 2025 Virginia Pennock Scholarship for the Landscape Architect Registration Examination revalidation was a turning point for Yanira Delgado Rivera, center, who is flanked by Victor Blay, left, executive director of the Puerto Rico Architects and Landscape Architects Association (CAAPPR), and CAAPPR President Alexandra Betancourt. (Instagram via 90gradosdigital) By THE STAR STAFF Yanira Delgado Rivera has always been creative, drawn since childhood to colors, forms,

By AIMEE ORTIZ Spanish singer Julio Iglesias has denied allegations that he sexually assaulted two of his former employees, days after Spanish prosecutors said they were investigating their claims. In a statement posted to his social media last Friday, Iglesias, 82, called the allegations “absolutely false.” He denied “having abused, coerced, or been disrespectful to any woman,” and said he would defend himself against the claims. The Grammy-winning singer was accused of sexu

The film focuses on several farmers, particularly Willie Head Jr. and Carlie Williams, who are carrying on a legacy and scrambling to hang onto their families’ land in increasingly impossible painful situations. (Indox) By ALISSA WILKINSON At first, only certain modern articles of clothing reveal that “Seeds” (in theaters), Brittany Shyne’s extraordinarily beautiful documentary, is set in contemporary America. The film is shot in black and white, and its images feel so ageles

Romeo Santos in New York, Dec. 11, 2025. Despite huge collaborations, top-selling albums and sellout tours, the leading stars of the Dominican genre still feel like they haven’t received their due. (Victor Llorente/The New York Times) By JON CARAMANICA and JOE COSCARELLI By most conventional metrics, Romeo Santos and Prince Royce, the two biggest stars of Dominican bachata music, are global superstars. Since his time fronting the wildly successful and musically radical boy ba