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We're almost at the First Quarter which means the Moon is almost half illuminated. Each night it gets a little brighter, and this will keep happening until the Full Moon when the reverse will then occur and each night it will appear less.

What is today’s Moon phase?

As of Thursday, April 23, the Moon phase is Waxing Crescent. Tonight, 41% of the moon will be lit up, according to NASA's Daily Moon Guide.

If you're looking at the Moon with just your naked eye, you should be able to catch a glimpse of the Mares Serenitatis, Tranquillitatis, and Fecunditatis. If you have binoculars, the Mare Nectaris and Endymion and Posidonius Craters should also come into view, appearing from halfway up the Moon to near the top. And, finally, with a telescope you'll see all this plus the Apollo 11 and 17 landing spots, and the Rupes Altai.

When is the next Full Moon?

The next Full Moon is predicted to take place on May 1, the first of two in May.

What are Moon phases?

NASA says that the Moon completes a full orbit around Earth in about 29.5 days, during which it passes through eight stages. Although the same face of the Moon is always turned toward us, the portion illuminated by the Sun shifts as it travels along its path, producing the familiar cycle of full, half, and crescent shapes. These variations are referred to as lunar phases, and there are eight altogether:

New Moon - The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it's invisible to the eye).

Waxing Crescent - A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

First Quarter - Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.

Waxing Gibbous - More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

Full Moon - The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.

Waning Gibbous - The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)

Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) - Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.

Waning Crescent - A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

Be sure to read the fine print about Beaches: A New Musical, now on Broadway. This is not an adaptation of the beloved 1988 movie, in which Barbara Hershey played advocate and lawyer Hillary Whitney, and Bette Midler brought bawdy brilliance to singer C.C. Bloom. The Broadway stage musical Beaches is instead based on the movie's inspiration: Iris Rainer Dart's 1985 novel about the highs and lows of the friendship of outgoing actress Cee Cee Bloom and sheepish preppy Bertie White. 

The author has a heavy hand in this stage adaptation, writing both the book — with the help of playwright Thom Thomas — and the lyrics, while Mike Stoller, who once co-wrote songs for Elvis, composed the music. This makes for a stage show that is shockingly disconnected from Garry Marshall's cinematic tearjerker, as the plot is starkly different, especially for Bertie/Hillary. However, directors Lonny Price and Matt Cowart fight hard to bring the Beaches that movie-goers loved to the stage in some capacity. And leading lady Jessica Vosk does her damndest to bring a Midler-level moxie to every scene and song. 

It's just a shame that Dart's book and lyrics are less the wind beneath her wings and more an anchor sinking the whole production. 

Beaches on Broadway ditches most of the movie's songs.  Samantha Schwartz, Bailey Ryon, Jessica Vosk, Kelli Barrett, Emma Ogea, and Zeya Grace as Cee Cee and Bertie in "Beaches: A New Musical." Credit: Marc J. Franklin

Only "Wind Beneath My Wings," which won the Grammy for Record of the Year and Song of the Year, makes the playlist for the stage musical Beaches. In the movie, Midler also sang moving covers of "Under the Boardwalk," "The Glory of Love," and "Baby Mine." None of these makes the stage. And bad news for fans of Midler's playful performance of "Otto Titsling," the comical story of the uncredited inventor of the brassiere; that daffy track doesn't make it to Broadway either. Worse news: This last omission sharply reflects how Dart leaned hard away from the movie's most fun and campy bits. 

Beaches — in both versions — begins with a grown-up Cee Cee (Vosk) rehearsing a song for a big show, when a mysterious phone call causes her to race away. Then, the story flashes back to decades before, when Cee Cee was a fiery little girl (Samantha Schwartz) who befriended a shy, posh little Bertie (Zeya Grace) on a beach in New Jersey. The two became pen pals, supporting each other through fights with their overbearing mothers and frustrations with boys and then men. For a stint in their 20s, they'd live together in a cramped but beloved apartment as Cee Cee tried to make it as an actress, and Bertie helped out at the theater — mostly to avoid her mother and Michael, the boring man she was expected to marry. 

Both women will marry soon enough. But while Cee Cee's career takes off, Bertie (unlike her movie counterpart, Hillary) fails to realize her dream of becoming a lawyer. However, she does still have a daughter that she adores. A big misunderstanding will keep the two friends estranged for years, but they'll ultimately reconnect over Bertie's pregnancy, and then again when she gets fatally ill.

Despite all the highs and lows of their relationships, the songs that Dart and Stoller write all feel achingly one-note. "You Believe in Me," "Wish I Could Be Like You," and "My Best" all share the sentiment that these two are so different yet love each other more than anyone else. Even "God Bless Girlfriends" — sung by their annoyed husbands — echoes this. And none of these numbers has the emotional wallop or the visual language of "Wind Beneath My Wings." Instead, they all feel like mediocre AI-generated imitations of that great song. 

Beaches on Broadway presents confounding characters.  Brent Thiessen (left) and Ben Jacoby (right) as husbands John and Michael in "Beaches: A New Musical." Credit: Marc J. Franklin

Seeing Beaches the movie made me curious about Beaches the musical, but Beaches the musical does not make me curious about Beaches the book. The songs are frustratingly forgettable, but moreover, the story feels vexingly dated and thin. 

In Mary Agnes Donoghue's script for the movie, Hillary's ambitions as a lawyer made her equal to C.C. in ambition. In Dart's Broadway show, it's hard to understand who Bertie is, as the author/playwright leaves gaping holes in her story. Bertie has dreams of becoming an attorney, but when they go nowhere, it's unclear what she's done instead. Likewise confusing is, who is Aunt Neetie? Bertie's daughter Nina brings her up repeatedly, qualifying her as her "real" aunt as a means to show disdain for Cee Cee. And while both "aunts" seem in contention for raising Nina after Bertie dies, because Neetie isn't on stage, she's a distracting obstacle with no grounding. What we do know is Bertie says she has no sister. So maybe Neetie is her sister-in-law? But after their divorce, Michael has no relationship with his daughter Nina. So, what's the likelihood Aunt Neetie is Michael's sister? It's a perplexing plot hole that becomes more grievous in the show's final act.

Dart also ignores Bertie's privilege with a song called "Normal," where Bertie taunts Cee Cee that the brassy star could never have a "normal" life. But all her examples are about being wealthy, like having servants on hand. And these are all things the affluent Bertie has had access to since birth. Her husband, Michael (Ben Jacoby), gives no further insight into who she is, as he's a thinly sketched creep in a suit coat. By contrast, Cee Cee's husband John (Brent Thiessen) is a creep in an open denim shirt. They come off as the same guy in different fonts. 

Now, you might wonder if that's intentional to bolster the queer undertones that existed in the movie. Queer audiences have long speculated whether or not these women were actually in love with each other. Well, a lyric in "The Brand New Me" might have you think so, as Bertie sings about realizing she's in love with a girl. But it's a misdirect; she means the brand-new her. Then, the women share a double wedding on stage, where both are giddily dressed as brides. Here, the six actresses who play Bertie and Cee Cee as children, teens, and adults frolic together, while the grooms are a bland accessory. (Like an unconvincing beard?) 

Jessica Vosk and Beaches directors try to bring the camp and Midler flare.  Jessica Vosk stars as Cee Cee Bloom in "Beaches: A New Musical." Credit: Marc J. Franklin

This is a thankless show for the cast. The songs are awful. And all of the adult actors, aside from leads Jessica Vosk and Kelli Barrett, are tasked to play multiple thin roles, including teen Cee Cee (Bailey Ryon), teen Bertie (Emma Ogea), Cee Cee's mom (Sarah Bockel), and nuns, TV studio techs, nurses, and people waiting for a plane. It can actually be confusing when all of a sudden the actor who plays Cee Cee's husband is in a scene as a different character, with no attempt at disguise beyond a suit jacket. But props to Zurin Villanueva, who is given a smattering of bit parts, and manages to be dazzling and funny in every one. Here's hoping she'll get a role worth of her charisma soon.

As for Barrett, she commits completely to Bertie's agonies and ecstasies as Dart's script has her character turn on the head of a pin, from furious to benevolent. It's not her fault that it doesn't work. It's the unconvincing lyrics, made-up cliches possibly snatched from Hallmark cards. Barrett is at her best in the dialogue scenes, where she can play with Vosk, whose vivacity lifts everyone around her. 

Vosk gives her all to every underwhelming song. And while I can't remember a single lyric from the new Broadway numbers, I can remember the way my heart soared as she hit a high note with a broad smile. She's a stunner who understands why the audience has come. She's working hard to give us Midler-like oomph. And that is echoed by her teeny counterpart, Samantha Schwartz, who is a dynamic pint-sized showgirl with charisma and chutzpah to spare. 

Zeya Grace (left) and Samantha Schwartz (right) as Little Bertie and Little Cee Cee in "Beaches: A New Musical." Credit: Marc J. Franklin

Vosk sinks her teeth into Cee Cee's zeal, jealousy, and earnestness. Directors Price and Cowart support her by bringing in Midler allusions, like a scene where the staging suggests Cee Cee is performing at a bathhouse, as Midler used to, or a double-bunned red wig that recalls Midler's look in Hocus Pocus. Likewise, some costume choices — including the little girls' outfits — recall the movie directly, gladly playing on the audience's nostalgia. You can feel in these choices the attempt to please an audience of women who connected to Hillary and C.C.'s tumultuous story and to the queer audiences who love Midler's brassy bravura. But these flourishes,  while charming, cannot wrestle Beaches from the banality of Dart's writing. 

Plus, the rest of the staging is a mess. Rather than physical set pieces, a collection of columns affixed with projectors blares suggestions of a setting, like street signs or graphics, which do not evoke mood or location effectively. The front of the stage is a sandy beach dune, with fronds poking up for the girls to play on. Then, in the final act, when they are on a beach, the backdrop is painted. After so much projection, in this final moment, where the beauty of the beach itself could help anchor the heavy emotions about to flow, they went with a backdrop that looks like a motel room painting.

More thoughtless, though, was the blocking. A platform on the stage creates a second stage, which is used as a beach house veranda, a TV studio set, and a variety of other theater stages for Cee Cee to strut upon. This was multipurposeful and smart. However, the blocking often has the actresses sitting or lying down on this stage. In my orchestra seats, there were times I could not see who was singing without moving my head to crane around the person in front of me. I'm short, admittedly. But at the intermission, I switched seats with my guest, and he, who is not short, still had issues, despite the person in front of us not being exceptionally tall! Maybe this is a show better suited for the cheap seats?

All in all, Beaches is a profound disappointment. Vosk gives her all to racy jokes, high notes, and an iconically bold heroine. The supporting cast is asked to sing, dance, and play a bevy of small parts and thinly written characters. The directors try to weave in elements from the movie and Midler's broader impact to appeal to fans of her and the film. But in the end, this show is doomed by Dart's underwhelming writing.

Beaches is now on Broadway, and will begin national tours this fall.

Today's Connections: Sports Edition will be a lot easier if you're a football fan. And if you're not, then good luck!

As we've shared in previous hints stories, this is a version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier — so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections: Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. The sports Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words, and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake — players get up to four mistakes before the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. Here's a hint for today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Draft day

• Green: First half

• Blue: A player in very high demand

• Purple: Famous firsts

Here are today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Draft Pick Information

• Green: Can Precede "Draft"

• Blue: Associated with Fernando Mendoza

• Purple: Non-QBs Picked First in NFL Draft

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections: Sports Edition #577 is...

What is the answer to Connections: Sports Edition today?

• Draft Pick Information — ALMA MATER, PICK, POSITION, ROUND

• Can Precede "Draft" — FANTASY, MOCK, NFL, SUPPLEMENTAL

• Associated With Fernando Mendoza — CAL, HEISMAN, INDIANA, QB

• Non-QBs Picked First in NFL Draft — FISHER, LONG, MARYLAND, PACE

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new sports Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.

Released in August 2025, Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you're stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move on to the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

How to play Pips

If you've ever played dominoes, you'll have a passing familiarity with how Pips is played. As we've shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don't necessarily have to match.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for April 23, 2026

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible — and common — for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you'll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

SEE ALSO: NYT Strands hints, answers for April 23, 2026 Easy difficulty hints, answers for April 23 Pips

Equal (3): Every domino half in this purple space must have 3 pips. The answer is 6-3, placed horizontally; 3-4, placed vertically.

Less Than (5): The domino half in this red space must have less than 5 pips. The answer is 3-4, placed vertically.

Equal (3): Every domino half in this light blue space must have 3 pips. The answer is 3-3, placed vertically.

Greater Than (3): The domino half in this yellow space must have more than 3 pips. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically.

Number (2): Everything in this yellow space must add up to 2. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically; 1-0, placed horizontally.

Medium difficulty hints, answers for April 23 Pips

Number (10): Everything in this purple space must add up to 10. The answer is 6-4, placed vertically; 4-3, placed horizontally.

Equal (3): Every domino half in this red space must have 3 pips. The answer is 4-3, placed horizontally; 3-3, placed vertically; and 5-3, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (3): The domino half in this light blue space must have more than 3 pips. The answer is 6-4, placed vertically.

Greater Than (4): The domino half in this yellow space must have more than 4 pips. The answer is 5-3, placed horizontally.

Equal (4): Every domino half in this dark blue space must have 4 pips. The answer is 2-4, placed horizontally; 4-4, placed vertically.

Number (3): Everything in this green space must add up to 3. The answer is 1-1, placed vertically; 1-3, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this purple space must add up to 3. The answer is 1-3, placed horizontally.

Hard difficulty hints, answers for April 23 Pips

Number (2): Everything in this purple space must add up to 2. The answer is 0-2, placed vertically; 0-5, placed vertically.

Less Than (5): The domino half in this red space must have less than 5 pips. The answer is 3-5, placed horizontally.

Number (10): Everything in this light blue space must add up to 10. The answer is 3-5, placed horizontally; 5-4, placed vertically.

Equal (1): Every domino half in this yellow space must have 1 pip. The answer is 5-1, placed horizontally; 1-1, placed horizontally.

Number (4): The domino half in this dark blue space must have 4 pips. The answer is 5-4, placed vertically.

Greater Than (2): The domino half in this green space must have more than 2 pips. The answer is 0-5, placed vertically.

Greater Than (3): The domino half in this purple space must have more than 3 pips. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally.

Does Not Equal: Every domino half in this red space must have a different number of pips. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally; 6-6, placed horizontally.

Number (5): The domino half in this light blue space must have 5 pips. The answer is 5-6, placed vertically.

Less Than (4): The domino half in this yellow space must have less than 4 pips. The answer is 3-6, placed vertically.

Greater Than (3): The domino half in this ark blue space must have more than 3 pips. The answer is 6-6, placed horizontally.

Number (17): Everything in this green space must add up to 17. The answer is 5-6, placed vertically; 5-2, placed vertically; and 3-6, placed vertically.

Less Than (3): The domino half in this purple space must have less than 3 pips. The answer is 2-3, placed horizontally.

Less Than (3): The domino half in this red space must have less than 3 pips. The answer is 5-2, placed vertically.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you're a history buff.

Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for April 23, 2026 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Provinces of the pantheon

The words are related to history.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe ancient Roman values.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is horizontal.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Domain.

Mashable 101 Fan Fave: Nominate your favorite creators today

NYT Strands word list for April 23

• Thunder

• Harvest

• Wisdom

• Domain

• Love

• Marriage

• Underworld

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Strands.