Photo by Craig Schwartz
Don Shirley – LA Observed
…..there should be an eager audience for “Remote L.A.,” Center Theatre Group’s engrossing headset-guided walk through parts of LA’s primary urban hub, in the vicinity of CTG’s own downtown headquarters.Read more…
Photo by Brian Biery
Don Shirley – LA Observed
January 21 was a great day for immersive theater in Los Angeles. I’m referring to one event you probably know about, the Women’s March. But I’m also writing about “fellowship” – which you probably don’t know about. The former attracted the masses; the latter has a maximum capacity of 42 for any single performance.
Photo by Kevin Parry for The Wallis.
This past weekend several critics from the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle collaborated the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts for our third joint LADCC/Wallis Student Reporter Event.
Approximately 12 students, ranging in age between 12-18, came to the Wallis this past weekend to participate in this special event. Critics Dany Margolies, Katie Buenneke and Jonas Schwartz spent the afternoon with the students, working with them on developing their theater critique techniques.
The event began with a primer on the history of the flop musical Merrily We Roll Along, which is now playing at the Wallis until December 18, 2016.
The dozen students joined the critics for the weekend matinee performance of Merrily at the Wallis. Then everyone returned to the classroom to spent 90 minutes forming a review.
Observed Jonas Schwartz, “As with last time, when we took them to For The Record, the students were very insightful and had a clear understanding of what they saw and how to interpret.”
The critics and students discussed and compiled everyone’s critical input. The students are now tasked with composing and submitting their own critical reviews that will be published on the Wallis website in the coming week.
Everyone was pleased with another successful event.
Runs through December 18, 2016
Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
Beverly Hills
More information and tickets can be found here and here.
music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
book by George Furth
directed by Michael Arden
starring:
Whitney Bashor, Wayne Brady, Aaron Lazar, Saycon Sengbloh, Amir Talai, Donna Vivino
with Eric B. Anthony, Sandy Bainum, Melody Butiu, Doran Butler, Max Chucker, Sarah Daniels, Kevin Patrick Doherty,
Laura Dickinson, Rachael Ferrera, Jennifer Foster, Travis Leland, Lyle Colby Mackston, Brent Schindele, Maximus Brandon Verso.
Photo by Miriam Geer
Don Shirley – LA Observed
The end of summer approaches. Have you seen any alfresco theater this year?
Fortunately, the 299-seat Theatricum Botanicum keeps its expansive stage busy from the first week of June through the first weekend of October, in Topanga Canyon. That’s twice as long as the Old Globe’s outdoor season in San Diego. Read more…
Photo courtesy S.T.A.G.E.
Jonas Schwartz - Arts In LA
The Los Angeles theater community has not forgotten the battle against AIDS, and it continues to take the fight to the S.T.A.G.E. The Southland Theatre Artists Goodwill Event (S.T.A.G.E.) has partnered with AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) for the last 32 years to raise money for AIDS education and prevention by presenting musical delights from some of Los Angeles’s biggest theater talents. This year’s concert, Sondheim No. 5, will take place at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts for a matinee and an evening performance June 18.
Photo by John Perrin Flynn
Don Shirley – L.A. Observed
Two plays named after cities: “Barcelona” at the Geffen Playhouse and Rogue Machine’s production of “Pocatello” (in case that doesn’t ring a bell, its namesake is the fifth largest city in Idaho.)
Which theatrical destination sounds more inviting?
Well, “Barcelona” isn’t bad. But “Pocatello” pops. Read more…
Pauline Adamek – ArtsBeatLA
With his impish smile and boyish, childlike glee, artist Michel Laprise comes across as a fun and genial person with a vast imagination. But the creator (writer and director) of KURIOS – Cabinet of Curiosities™ — the newest Cirque du Soleil extravaganza to come to Southern California — is evidently an extremely hard worker. His main objective with this stunning show, that premiered in Montreal around a year ago, was somehow to breathe new life force into the widely adored company. In particular, Laprise set out to reinvent the internationally renowned troupe with this dazzling touring show that they have now brought to Cali.
Don Shirley – LA Observed
LA theater has been embroiled in behind-the-scenes controversy for the past year. Many actors angrily challenged their own union over its decision to end the 99-Seat Theater Plan, which allows Equity members to work for only token fees in small LA theaters, at much less than the minimum wage. Read more…
Myron Meisel – Stage Raw
Since its founding in 2010, The Industry, under the daring leadership of artistic director Yuval Sharon, has pursued a new media makeover meant to shake up not merely the Los Angeles opera world but the world at large. Its extraordinary coup de theatre, 2013’s Invisible Cities, commandeered Union Station as singers and dancers and audience wandered about as alien invaders amongst the real-life travellers, apprehending the orchestral music through Sennheiser headphones. Read more…
Jenny Lower – Stage Raw
On Friday, ESPN announced the dismantling of its popular sports and culture site Grantland, eliciting shock and disappointment on the web. The move comes a few weeks after ESPN cut 300 jobs, reportedly to make up lost cable subscription revenue. It is, unfortunately, only the latest sobering development to challenge the financial viability of arts coverage.
Paul Birchall – Stage Raw
Howlround, the indispensable national sounding board for theatrical philosophy and policy, has announced the formation of something slightly creepy called “The Committee of the Jubilee.”
Photo by Jason Niedle
Don Shirley – LA Observed
How to attract young-adult audiences to LA’s professional theaters? Plenty of pondering about this subject occurs at theater conferences and in theater journals. I won’t address the logistics of marketing to millennials here. But I’m welcoming two new productions that seemingly target them yet also offer lively experiences to those of us who are definitely not active members of that demographic group. Read more…
Photo by Jason Niedle