Notcurses
blingful character graphics/TUI library. definitely not curses
...It is furthermore fast as shit. What it is not: a source-compatible X/Open Curses implementation, nor a replacement for NCURSES on existing systems. Notcurses abandons the X/Open Curses API bundled as part of the Single UNIX Specification. For some necessary background, consult Thomas E. Dickey's superb and authoritative NCURSES FAQ. As such, Notcurses is not a drop-in Curses replacement. Wherever possible, Notcurses makes use of the Terminfo library shipped with NCURSES, benefiting greatly from its portability and thoroughness. ...