January 5, 2009
Downtown News 15
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CALENDAR Stage Standouts It’s a Huge Year for the Performing Arts, Highlighted by the Start of the Ring Cycle by AnnA Scott StAff writer
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ith its wealth of stages and companies, Downtown is the performing arts capital of Los Angeles. This year, the theaters and groups will be especially busy, with a slew of notable presentations. The highlight will be the kickoff of an operatic Ring cycle in Downtown Los Angeles, but that is only one of many standout events. Here are five where you won’t want to wait to grab tickets.
with surprisingly dark undertones, Pippin and his struggles through war and love will be on stage at the Mark Taper Forum from Jan. 15-March 15. High Pitched Fun: Starting Jan. 28, REDCAT hosts five performances from the renowned Mexico City theater company Teatro de Ciertos Habitantes. The group will bring to life characters including a pair of Siamese twins, a gossipy opera maven and Napoleon’s horse, among others. All are part of the cast of Monsters and Prodigies: The History of the Castrati, a musical farce about the castrati superstars of 18th-century opera. Don’t try this at home.
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Starting a Cycle: In 2006, L.A. Opera General Director Plácido Domingo announced that the company would mount Richard Wagner’s epic Ring cycle, comprised of four operas. This year, the first of those, Das Rheingold, opens at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Feb. 21, where it continues through March 15. It’s a fantastical tale of various characters lusting after a magical ring of gold, and centers around themes of power, destruction and lust. The second part of the cycle, Die Walkure, runs April 4-26. Expect ring fever to envelop Los Angeles.
Full of Pip: Decades after it debuted on Broadway, the Tony Award-winning musical Pippin is nothing if not original. The coming-of-age story is based on the life of King Charlemagne’s oldest son, Pippin, and is set to 1970s pop tunes by Stephen Schwartz, composer of musicals including Wicked and Godspell. Mischievous and fun on the surface,
Beautiful Tragedy: Doomed love never looked so beautiful as it will this summer, when American Ballet Theatre brings Romeo and Juliet to the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion for five performances July 16-19. Shakespeare’s romantic tragedy has been part of ABT’s repertoire for 24 years and is one of the company’s signature productions. Set against music by Sergei Prokofiev, the acclaimed dancers in the company where Mikhail Baryshnikov was artistic director for a decade bring the centuries-old, star-crossed lovers to new life. Face Off: The title Frost/Nixon might ring a bell, thanks to the big-screen version directed by Ron Howard. But before it was a movie, Frost/Nixon was a Tony Award-nominated
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Five Big Museum Shows Coming in 2009 by Jon regArdie executive editor
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ight now, when people think of museums in Downtown Los Angeles, the first thing that pops to mind is the financial woes the Museum of Contemporary Art is enduring. It’s understandable, but it overshadows something else: Museums this year, including MOCA, will have a variety of interesting exhibits. Here are five not to miss.
visitors will be able to walk on; it will serve as a vehicle for showcasing some of Morphosis’ projects. Where Music and Politics Collide: You might not expect to encounter late FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover in a museum dedicated to music. But his FBI summary of Detroit revolutionary rockers the MC5 is part of the Grammy Museum’s show that explores the 200-year history of American music and politics. Songs of Conscience, Songs of Freedom, which opened with the rest of Downtown’s newest museum in December, has an array of items, from John Philip Sousa’s conducting baton and gloves to Grandmaster Flash’s turntables. The show on the museum’s second floor features more than 100 artifacts and 70 photographs.
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Mayne Man: The Museum of Contemporary Art, which when not squandering millions has staged some thought-provoking artmeets-architecture exhibits, continues the trend with Morphosis, a show featuring the work of the Santa Monica architecture firm of the same name led by Thom Mayne (he designed Downtown’s Caltrans headquarters). The display that runs Aug. 23-Dec. 7 in the Grand Avenue space will feature a variety of the firm’s work; the centerpiece will be a glass and aluminum structure that
Hawaii’s Not Just for Obama: On Feb. 14, the Japanese American National Museum will open Gokurosama: Contemporary
Concerts in ’09 Continued from page 1 Latin jazz legend, who has been performing for more than 30 years, will play the small venue. His latest album, Raise Your Hands, is an homage to Afro-Cuban music. He will perform with his Latin jazz band, which is heavily inspired by mambo and Tito Puente, so it’s almost impossible not to move to the beat of his congas. Final Curtain: After 17 years as music director of the Los
photo by Monika Ritterhaus
A 2008 workshop image of Die Walkure, the second play in the Ring cycle. It runs at L.A. Opera April 4-25.
play. Written by Peter Morgan, the stage version debuted in London in 2006. Now the story of how British talk show host and reputed playboy David Frost managed to elicit the first and only apology from former President Richard Nixon for the Watergate scandal returns to the stage. It plays at the Ahmanson Theatre March 11-29. Contact Anna Scott at anna@downtownnews.com.
Photographs of the Nisei in Hawai’i. The exhibit will feature 35 black and white images by Brian Y. Sato depicting secondgeneration Japanese Americans in the state. As Sato said on JANM’s website, “I came to the realization that if it was not initiated and completed immediately, the opportunity to document the remaining Nisei generation would be lost forever.” Good Sports: There is so much to see in the new Sports Museum of Los Angeles that it’s mind-boggling. Highlights include a display that chronicles the evolution of the baseball glove, a section dedicated to early sportsrelated arcade games, a large room featuring artifacts cocnerning the Dodgers (Los Angeles and Brooklyn) and Babe Ruth’s shotgun. The facility on Main Street south of the 10 Freeway will be packing in sports fans year-round. Andy, Still Dandy: The USC Fisher Museum of Art will likely draw big crowds on Feb. 25 when it debuts Looking Into Andy Warhol’s Photographic Practice. The show, which continues through April 18, will display highlights from the museum’s recently acquired collection of more than 100 Polaroids and 50 black and white gelatin prints taken by pop artist Warhol, who
Angeles Philharmonic, Esa-Pekka Salonen will pick up the baton for the last time on April 19. In his farewell at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Helsinki-born conductor will lead the troops in Stravinsky’s “Oedipus Rex” and “Symphony of Psalms.” Expect emotion to run over as Salonen leaves to focus on composing. He will be replaced by Gustavo Dudamel when the 2009/2010 season begins. It’s Britney: She flipped the switch for the Christmas tree at L.A. Live, and on April 16 and 17, she’ll move across the street to Staples Center for what’s sure to be a pop-errific show. Sure, she may not have the greatest voice of all time, but it’s Britney, and her new album Circus has actually earned some
photo by Gary Leonard
The work of architecture firm Morphosis, led by Thom Mayne, is featured in a Museum of Contemporary Art exhibit that opens in August. Morphosis designed Downtown’s Caltrans headquarters.
died in 1987. The feature subjects are a mix of celebrities and unknowns. Contact Jon Regardie at regardie@downtownnews.com.
decent reviews. Plus, you’ll get to make all sorts of “oops, she did it again” jokes. Cool Thing: Alt-rock pioneer Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth will come Downtown to the nearly as legendary underground music club The Smell. The Feb. 20 show will give locals a chance to see the New Yorker in a tiny spot. It’s a testament to Moore’s credibility that after decades of making music, he still has enough street cred to rock this joint. And it’s a testament to The Smell that, although Moore could play in many larger, cleaner places, he’s coming here. Contact Richard Guzmán at richard@downtownnews.com.