MAR 2022 Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center
HAMBURG BALLET JOHN NEUMEIER B E R N ST E I N DA N C E S LI V E O RC H E S TR A
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Bernstein Dances. Photo by Kiran West.
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MAGAZINE
contents P1 Program Cast, performances, who’s who, director’s notes and donors
6 In the Wings L.A. Opera’s boundary-breaking 2022-23 season; cultural satirist Fran Lebowitz at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica; Barbara Kruger exhibition at L.A. County Museum of Art.
10 Dateline In New York, A Strange Loop and Birthday Candles open on Broadway; the San Francisco Symphony presents an array of intriguing events at Davies Symphony Hall.
14 Performing Arts
18 Design
Heath Ceramics showcases its distinctive California-cool artisanal dinnerware alongside objets d’art in a Moderne-style building on Beverly Boulevard.
22 Dining Owner-chefs Katianna and John Hong channel Michelin Award-winning cooking experience to create KoreanAmerican deli Yangban Society in the Arts District.
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32 Parting Thought Performances’ new program platform for shows and concerts can be accessed from any digital device.
18
P. 17 DYLAN + JENI. P. 14 COURTESY HEATH CERAMICS. P. 24 COURTESY L.A. MASTER CHORALE
Grant Gershon marks 20 years at the helm of the Los Angeles Master Chorale; under his direction, it has arguably become the country’s preeminent choral ensemble.
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P. 17 DYLAN + JENI. P. 14 COURTESY HEATH CERAMICS. P. 24 COURTESY L.A. MASTER CHORALE
On view February 15– May 8, 2022 Getty Center FREE ADMISSION
Painting detail: A Bacchanalian Revel before a Term, 1632–1633, Nicolas Poussin. © The National Gallery, London. Ana María Alvarez image: © 2021 J. Paul Getty Trust. Text and design © 2022 J. Paul Getty Trust
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MAGAZINE
PUBLISHER
Jeff Levy EDITOR
Benjamin Epstein ART DIRECTOR
Carol Wakano CONTIBUTING WRITERS
Roger Grody, Zoe Lorenzo, Sherry Stern, Caleb Wachs PRODUCTION MANAGER
Glenda Mendez PRODUCTION ARTIST
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Lorenzo Dela Rama ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
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BLOOM Los ANGELES BALLET Thordal Christensen & Colleen Neary Artistic Directors
2021 / 2022 Season GHOSTS/Wheeldon APOLLO/Balanchine BLOOM/Lopez Ochoa
April 21, 22, & 23*, 2022 Exclusively at The Broad Stage
*SOLD OUT
Los Angeles Ballet Gala 2022 follows the April 23rd performance
get tickets!
Jasmine Perry & Tate Lee; Photo: Reed Hutchinson
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losangelesballet.org 310.998.7782
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IN TH E W I N G S
Passion! Tragedy! Triumph! L.A. OPERA’S 2022-23 season brings six productions to Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. New resident conductor Lina González-Granados leads a new staging of Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor starring Amanda Woodbury (Sept. 17-24) and Liv Redpath (Sept. 28-Oct. 9). The West Coast premiere of Omar, by Grammy Award-winning composer/librettist Rhiannon Giddens and composer Michael Abels, is about a West African scholar enslaved in the American South; Kazem Abdullah conducts, Jamez McCorkle stars (Oct. 22-Nov. 13). In her LAO debut, Oksana Lyniv leads a revival of Puccini’s Tosca starring Angel Blue (Nov. 19-Dec. 10). Music director James Conlon helms a new production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro directed by James Gray with costumes by Christian Lacroix (Feb. 4-26, 2023) as well as revivals of Debussy’s Pelléas and Mélisande (Mar. 25-Apr. 16) and, starring artist-in-residence Russell Thomas, Verdi’s Otello (May 13-June 4). 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown, 213.972.8001, laopera.org
BELOW, VINCENT MASTER. ABOVE AND OPPOSITE: RICHARD CAMPBELL/SCOTTISH OPERA
OPERA
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BELOW, VINCENT MASTER. ABOVE AND OPPOSITE: RICHARD CAMPBELL/SCOTTISH OPERA
This page and opposite: David McVicar’s staging of Debussy’s Pelléas and Mélisande. Below opposite: Omar star Jamez McCorkle.
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IN TH E W I N G S
ART
WIT AND CRITICALITY
By Barbara Kruger: above, still from the video Untitled (No Comment), 2020; right, still from the video Untitled (Forever), 2017; top, Untitled (Forever), 2017, digital print on vinyl wallpaper and floor covering.
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TOP: TIMO OHLER, COURTESY OF THE ARTIST AND SPRÜTH MAGERS. RIGHT: CYBELE MALINOWSKI / SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
from the 1980s, digital productions of the last two decades, large-scale vinyl room wraps, multichannel video installations, audio soundscapes throughout LACMA’s campus and new video works that re-imagine her most iconic vinyl pieces. Co-organized by LACMA with the Art Institute Chicago and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), it is the most comprehensive presentation of Kruger’s work in 20 years. Comments Michael Govan, LACMA’s CEO, “Her dialogue with advertising and propaganda and human nature is essential ‘reading’ for anyone who wants insight into our modern culture.”
LEFT AND FAR LEFT: COURTESY OF SPRÜTH MAGERS, AND DAVID ZWIRNER, NEW YORK, DIGITAL IMAGE COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
THE LOS ANGELES County Museum of Art presents Barbara Kruger: Thinking of You. I Mean Me. I Mean You. Barbara Kruger (b. 1945) is an L.A.–based artist world-renowned for works that take their cues from our imagesaturated culture, that often combine visual and written language and that interrogate the hierarchies of power and control. As a consumer and vigilant viewer of popular culture, she grapples with the accelerated ways in which pictures and words flow through media. The exhibition, opening March 20, spans four decades and features 33 works, including Kruger’s single-channel videos
TOP: TIMO OHLER, COURTESY OF THE ARTIST AND SPRÜTH MAGERS. RIGHT: CYBELE MALINOWSKI / SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE
LEFT AND FAR LEFT: COURTESY OF SPRÜTH MAGERS, AND DAVID ZWIRNER, NEW YORK, DIGITAL IMAGE COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
Purveyor of Urban Cool CULTURAL SATIRIST IN a landscape filled with pundits, Fran Lebowitz offers her acerbic views on THEATER current events—as well as pet peeves such as tourists, baggage-claim areas, after-shave lotion, adults who roller skate and children who speak French—April 28-May 1 at the Broad Stage. “Hilarious,” writes The New York Times, “an unlikely and perhaps alarming combination of Mary Hartman and Mary McCarthy.... To a dose of Huck Finn, add some Lenny Bruce, Oscar Wilde and Alexis de Tocqueville, a dash of cabdriver, an assortment of puns, minced jargon, and top it off with smarty pants.” 1310 11th St., Santa Monica, 310.434.3200, thebroadstage.org
Fran Lebowitz
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THE WEST
A Symphony of Intriguing Events THE SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY brings an array of presentations to Davies Symphony Hall, among them a notable pair of keyboard programs and others with a focus on the podium. Brilliant organist Cameron Carpenter improvises to a live screening of Buster Keaton’s 1926 silent comedy The General on March 27. Lang Lang offers his vision of Bach’s monumental Goldberg Variations March 30, a performance that, given the pianist’s highly individual flair, promises to be memorable. Hear L.A.’s own Gustavo Dudamel, artistic director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, lead the San Francisco Symphony in Mozart’s “Prague” Symphony and Mahler’s Fifth Symphony April 21-14. Conductor Klaus Mäkelä, 25, leads the orchestra April 28-30 in Jimmy López’ Perú Negro, Alban Berg’s Violin Concerto with soloist Vilde Frang, and Dmitri Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony, widely considered to be a depiction of the composer’s terrifying life in Stalinist Russia.
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Conductor Klaus Mäkelä, 25, and, opposite, organist Cameron Carpenter.
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NEW YORK
A Strange Loop at the Lyceum and, below, its Pulitzer Prize-winning creator, Michael R. Jackson.
A strange loop, a lifetime of birthdays USHER IS A Black, queer writer who hates his day job—as an usher—and writes a musical in his spare time about …. a Black, queer writer who hates his day job and writes a musical in his spare time. In A Strange Loop, opening April 6 at the Lyceum Theatre, Usher tries to break out of this “strange loop” while contending with unforgiving voices in his head personified by an ensemble onstage. Creator Michael R. Jackson won a Pulitzer Prize for the new musical in 2021. Debra Messing celebrates a lifetime of birthdays in Birthday Candles, opening March 18 at American Airlines Theatre and marking playwright Noah Haidle’s Broadway debut. Messing stars as a woman from her 17th birthday to her 101st. About the only constant in her life is the birthday
cake she bakes each year based on her mother’s recipe. A small ensemble, including Veronica Mars star Enrico Colantoni, plays the ever-changing people in her life.
MARC J. FRANKLIN AND, BELOW, BEOWULF SHEEHAN. PREVIOUS SPREAD: DOVILE SERMOKAS, LEFT, AND MARCO BORGGREVE
D ATELIN E
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Rapunzel Rapunzel Alone Alone
Bridge to Bridge to Everywhere Everywhere
MARC J. FRANKLIN AND, BELOW, BEOWULF SHEEHAN. PREVIOUS SPREAD: DOVILE SERMOKAS, LEFT, AND MARCO BORGGREVE
MUSE/IQUE MUSE/IQUE
MUSIC THEATER DANCE CINEMA
SPRING @ THE WALLIS
MAR MAR 3 3 Bridge Bridge to to Everywhere Everywhere MAR 3-6 MAR 3-6 Reckoning Reckoning A A SHORT SHORT PLAY PLAY FESTIVAL FESTIVAL
MAR MAR 5 5 Shai Shai Wosner, Wosner, piano piano MAR 12-19 MAR 12-19 Rapunzel Rapunzel Alone Alone MAR 12-13 MAR 12-13 MUSE/IQUE MUSE/IQUE MAR MAR 18-19 18-19 DIAVOLO DIAVOLO MAR MAR 24-26 24-26 Bedtime Bedtime Stories Stories MAR 27 MAR 27 Hershey Hershey Felder Felder presents presents The The Verdi Verdi Fiasco Fiasco
APR APR 2 2 Kelli Kelli O’Hara O’Hara with with Seth Seth Rudetsky, Host Rudetsky, Host & & Pianst Pianst APR 8 APR 8 ® FIVE FIVE MINUTES MINUTES for for Earth Earth® APR APR 9 9 Susan Susan Bartal Bartal and and the the Calder Quartet Calder Quartet APR APR 14-16 14-16 Complexions Complexions Contemporary Contemporary Ballet Ballet presents presents SNATCHED SNATCHED BACK BACK From From the EDGES & the EDGES & STARDUST STARDUST FOR THE WALLIS’ FOR THE WALLIS’ CURRENT HEALTH & SAFETY CURRENT HEALTH & SAFETY PROTOCOLS VISIT PROTOCOLS VISIT
TheWallis.org/Safety TheWallis.org/Safety
DIAVOLO DIAVOLO
TheWallis.org TheWallis.org
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FEATURE
Lifting VOICES
The Los Angeles Master Chorale marks 20 years of Grant Gershon’s adventurous leadership.
HE DAY THE MUSIC returned for the Los Angeles Master Chorale, artistic director Grant Gershon experienced a reborn sense of purpose. “I think all of us, the singers and myself, felt that we were singing with a new appreciation for what we do,” Gershon says of the full chorus’ first post-pandemic performances at Walt Disney Concert Hall. The program, Rachmaninoff’s All-Night Vigil, took place 18 months after its cancellation due to the COVID-19 performing-arts shut down. This time of renewal comes as the Master Chorale celebrates 20 years of Gershon’s adventurous leadership. Under his direction, the 100-member chorus has
arguably become the country’s preeminent choral group. “Grant made them different. I mean, he really has created something with them,” says Mark Swed, long-time classical music critic for the Los Angeles Times. “He is a brilliant choral conductor. He has a command of the material in a way that’s extremely natural and convincing.” Under Gershon’s guidance, that material shifted. While preserving its repertory of traditional and sacred music, the ensemble expanded its artistic reach with innovative productions and critically lauded commissions. “I feel like one of my superpowers, as it were, is making difficult, gnarly
new music possible for singers and players,” Gershon says with a smile, speaking over Zoom from the Eagle Rock home he shares with his wife, soprano Elissa Johnston. Gershon’s 20th anniversary season features a March gala in his honor bursting with new music—
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IMAGES COURTESY L.A. MASTER CHORALE
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/ BY SHERRY STERN /
IMAGES COURTESY L.A. MASTER CHORALE
Los Angeles Master Chorale artistic director Grant Gershon
notably a commission by Get Out composer Michael Abels—and concludes with performances in June of Bach’s towering Mass in B Minor. Everybody says that Gershon is nice. But behind the affable personality is an artist with a distinctive ability for interpreting music.
“Grant just has a gift for musical phrasing that is unbelievable,” says director Peter Sellars, who often collaborates with Gershon and the chorale. “A bunch of notes can sound like a bunch of notes or the most amazing melody in the world. “Grant finds that hidden melody.
Suddenly the music flows, the music’s alive, it’s eloquent. It speaks, it’s tender. It reveals its inner-most soul when Grant is there.” Sellars especially appreciates Gershon’s supportive approach. “He’s encouraging everybody and he creates /CONTINUED ON PAGE 28
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Note from our President & CEO
RACHEL S. MOORE
2021/2022 BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFICERS Cindy Miscikowski Chair
Rollin A. Ransom
Robert J. Abernethy Vice Chair
DIRECTORS EMERITI
It is with great delight and optimism that I welcome you to The Music Center for a series of incredible dance residencies that will be both inspirational and experiential. In our 19th season of Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center, we return with live indoor performances in our theatres, ways for us to dance together outdoors on our beautiful Jerry Moss Plaza and dance learning opportunities that will deepen your understanding of the dance companies, their repertoire, the vision of the choreographers and artistic directors, and the themes they are embracing.
Darrell R. Brown Vice Chair
What a way to kick off our dance and dancing experiences than with two firsts —The Music Center debut of Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier and the West Coast premiere of Bernstein Dances! We are pleased to be partnering with LA Opera to bring the company to The Music Center [members of Hamburg Ballet are appearing in LA Opera’s presentation of St. Matthew Passion]. With our Hamburg Ballet residency, we celebrate two great American artists, Milwaukee native John Neumeier, who serves as the Company’s artistic director and chief choreographer, and the inimitable composer, conductor and musician Leonard Bernstein.
William Taylor Assistant Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer
We are fortunate to witness both Neumeier’s beautiful, compelling work as well as the artistry of the dancers; under his direction, the Hamburg Ballet has become one of the leading ballet companies, not only in Germany, but also internationally. As you will experience, Bernstein Dances is a wonderful collection of Bernstein’s music and a glimpse into his emotionality and spiritual nature; it showcases just how much Bernstein’s music and dance were meant to be partnered. As Jerome Robbins said, “The one thing about Lenny’s music which was so tremendously important was that there always was a kinetic motor—there was a power in the rhythms of his work, or the change of rhythms in his work and the orchestration—which had a need for it to be demonstrated by dance.” I know how much we have missed the joy that dance brings into our lives, and, with this residency, we resume what we began in summer 2021 as we brought dance experiences back to The Music Center on Jerry Moss Plaza. We continue to make safety our number one priority with comprehensive protocols in place to provide you the best, safest experience possible when you visit. We have been fortunate to have the dedication and support of our donors throughout these times; they make it possible for The Music Center to be a center for dance and dance learning. My thanks to the visionary Glorya Kaufman for helping sustain the dance field, and to Center Dance Arts, founding supporter of dance at The Music Center, for their commitment to dance in Los Angeles. I hope you will join us next month as Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater returns to The Music Center from April 6–10, 2022 MusicCenter.org), and be sure to follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@MusicCenterLA) for more exciting programs from our arts arm, TMC Arts. Enjoy the performance!
Rachel S. Moore President & CEO
GENERAL COUNSEL
Rachel S. Moore President & CEO Diane G. Medina Secretary Susan M. Wegleitner Treasurer
MEMBERS AT LARGE
Charles F. Adams William H. Ahmanson Wallis Annenberg Jill C. Baldauf Susan E. Baumgarten Phoebe Beasley Thomas L. Beckmen Kimaada M. Brown Dannielle Campos Greg T. Geyer Lisa Gilford Jeffrey M. Hill Carl Jordan Stefanie Kane Terri M. Kohl Kent Kresa Cary J. Lefton Keith R. Leonard, Jr. David B. Lippman Richard Lynn Martinez Mattie McFaddenLawson Elizabeth Michelson Darrell D. Miller Shelby Notkin Michael J. Pagano Cynthia M. Patton Karen Kay Platt Joseph J. Rice Melissa Romain Beverly P. Ryder Maria S. Salinas Lisa See Mimi Song Matthew J. Spence Johnese Spisso Philip A. Swan Walter F. Ulloa Timothy S. Wahl Jennifer M. Walske Alyce de Roulet Williamson Jay S. Wintrob
Peter K. Barker Judith L. Beckmen Ronald W. Burkle John B. Emerson ** Richard M. Ferry Brindell Gottlieb Bernard A. Greenberg Stephen F. Hinchliffe, Jr. Glen A. Holden Edward J. McAniff Walter M. Mirisch Fredric M. Roberts Richard K. Roeder Claire L. Rothman Joni J. Smith Lisa Specht ** Cynthia A. Telles James A. Thomas Andrea L. Van de Kamp ** Thomas R. Weinberger Rosalind W. Wyman ** Chair Emeritus Current as of January 3, 2022
American Ballet Theatre’s Katherine Williams and Blaine Hoven perform the pas de deux in A Time There Was at The Music Center.
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Photos courtesy of John McCoy on behalf of The Music Center
A Performing Arts Center for the 21st Century The Music Center is a cultural anchor in Los Angeles and home to the world's greatest and most highly regarded artistic programs and events. Rooted in a strong commitment to equity, excellence and access, TMC Arts, The Music Center’s programming engine, provides yearround programming inside The Music Center’s four theatres, on Jerry Moss Plaza at The Music Center, outside at Grand Park — a 12-acre adjacent green space — and in schools and other locations all over Los Angeles County. From Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center and free and low-cost concerts and events, to customized
learning experiences for all ages and more, TMC Arts programs reflect the diverse voices and interests of the many communities in the county and bring Angelenos together in ways that enable them to discover their shared humanity. The Music Center is also home to four renowned resident companies — Center Theatre Group, the Los Angeles Master Chorale, LA Opera and LA Phil. The Music Center is truly a performing arts center for the 21st century, continually pushing the boundaries to further inspire and contribute to the artistic voice of Los Angeles.
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THE MUSIC CENTER STAFF
THE MUSIC CENTER EXECUTIVE TEAM Rachel S. Moore President & CEO Howard Sherman Executive Vice President & COO, TMC Ops Josephine Ramirez Executive Vice President, TMC Arts Shelby D. Boagni Senior Vice President, People & Culture William Taylor Senior Vice President, Finance / CFO Valentine Gelman Senior Vice President, Advancement Bonnie Goodman Senior Vice President, Marketing & Communications
THE MUSIC CENTER OPERATIONS (TMC OPS) BUILDING SERVICES Carlos Acosta Engineer Eric Amaya Engineer
Ramon DeLeon Lead Engineer
Erik Ekserjyan Mailroom Clerk
Ruben Enriquez Mailroom Clerk Nick Garcia Engineer
Jose Godinez Engineer
Damon Joseph Apprentice Engineer Francisco Loayza Lead Engineer
Delia Martin Office Services Manager
Keith McTague Director & Chief Engineer Adrian Padilla Engineer
Jose Quintero Landscaping
Ismael Rodriguez Engineer
Alex Romero Engineer
Jose Santillan Engineer
Gerard Silva Lead Engineer
Mark Taper Forum
Jeanice Williams Coordinator, Tours & Special Events Demetra Willis Head Usher
OPERATIONS ADMINISTRATION Carol Zamora Executive Assistant PRODUCTION Shawn Anderson Head Carpenter, Ahmanson Theatre
Shane Anderson Head Flyman, Ahmanson Theatre
ARTS (TMC ARTS) OFFICE OF EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT/TMC ARTS ADMINISTRATION Anne Marie Acosta Senior Administrative Assistant EDUCATION Patrice Cantarelli Associate Director, School Programs Rada Jovicic Program and Events Manager
Sydney Ko Coordinator
Lorena Panfilo Prospect Research Analyst Laura Recchi Senior Director of Annual and Leadership Giving
Kari Sartorius Director of Events and Special Projects Laurie A. Selik Senior Director, Institutional Giving
Melanye Taylor Assistant Director, Data and Analytics
Virginia Wilcox Membership Manager, Center Dance Arts FINANCE
Andrew Berger Senior Production Manager
Vincent Lopez Coordinator
Marcus Conroy Head Electrician, Walt Disney Concert Hall
Juan Sanchez Coordinator, School Programs
Laura Canon Accounts Payable Specialist
Ronald Galbraith Head Carpenter, Walt Disney Concert Hall
Keith Wyffels Associate Vice President
Andrew Kayano Manager, General Accounting and Financial Systems
Dennis Holbrook Head Property, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Julia Diamond Director
Jason Clark Director, Production
Timothy Conroy Head Carpenter, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Justin Hamblen Project Manager Emmet Kaiser Head Carpenter, Mark Taper Forum
Ryan Lebetsamer Head Electric, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Scott Lucas Head Property, Ahmanson Theatre
Katie Miller Production Manager John Phillips Head Property, Walt Disney Concert Hall
Lisa Quang Senior Coordinator
Todd Reynolds Head Audio/Video, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Mary Romero Head Property, Mark Taper Forum Lee Smilek Head Wardrobe
Robert Smith Head Audio, Ahmanson Theatre
Aaron Staubach Head Electrician, Ahmanson Theatre
Ebony Ruffin Manager, Professional Development
Michelle Alfonso Controller
Silvia Canales Payroll Specialist
Monk Turner Manager, The Music Center Artists in Schools and Communities
Maria Justo Clerk, Accounts Payable / Accounts Receivable
GRAND PARK
David Modisett Manager, Financial Planning
Robert Gonzalez Operations Manager
Kirman Ng Staff Accountant
Martha Guzman Marketing Manager
Cindy Rauch Manager, Accounts Payable /Accounts Receivable
Dawn Robinson-Patrick Senior Programs Manager
Cynthia Covarrubias Manager
Oleah Olaguera Marketing Coordinator
Angela Tsai Business Manager
Julian Yapkowitz Coordinator, Lease Events & Location Coordinator PRODUCING Lily Alia General Manager
HUMAN RESOURCES Gloria Schaffer Senior Director MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS Danielle Bliss Coordinator, Ticketing & Marketing Strategy
Nick Schwartz-Hall Senior Producer
Lisa Ducore Assistant Vice President, Marketing and Brand Communications
Martin Wechsler Sr. Advisor, Dance Presentations
Hillary Litherland Manager, Social Media & Content Creation
Patrick Traylor Producing Production Manager Jasira Woods Senior Coordinator SPOTLIGHT
Stephanie Kao Manager, Web Content and Digital Analytics Mike Mancillas Manager, Digital Programming
Brandon Villalobos Engineer
Kevin Wapner Head Audio, Walt Disney Concert Hall
Jordan Adelman Coordinator
Sofia Saenz Coordinator, Marketing & Brand Communications
FOUNDERS
SCHEDULING & EVENTS
Jeri Gaile Fredric Roberts Director, Spotlight program
Melissa Tan Assistant Vice President, Ticketing and Marketing Strategy
Edgar Vasquez Coordinator
Daniel Cristante Coordinator Jane Jackson Director
Liliana Gonzalez Events Operations Manager
Georgi Nikolov Manager
Lisa King Events Operations Manager
GUEST RELATIONS
Sharon Stewart Director
Elia Ortega Coordinator
Peggy Alvarez Head Usher
Alvin Broussard Senior Manager, Special Services Jenny Calvo Head Usher
Christine Cox House Manager, Ahmanson Theatre Robert Devis House Manager, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Greg Flusty House Manager, Walt Disney Concert Hall Omar Garcia Head Usher
Jose Agustin Garibaldi Head Usher
Ruben Lopez Special Services Coordnator
Seng Neth Head Usher
Steve Olear Manager, Guest Services Courtney Rabena Head Usher Jose L. Rivas Head Usher
Santa Roman-Garcia Head Usher Carolyn Van Brunt Vice President Linda Walker House Manager,
Marisol Moro Scheduling Administrator
Ken Talley Scheduling Administrator Ismael Tenorio Events Operations Manager SECURITY MANAGEMENT & ADMINISTRATION Juan Macias Captain, Events Operations Group Jonathan Ng Commander, Field Services Division
Bedros Ohanian Director of Security Scott Pollack Commander, Events Operation Group
Gonzalo Silvia Commander, Field Services
Edward Too Captain, Administration THE BLUE RIBBON Suzy Boyett Associate Director
Cinda Rosenberg Senior Coordinator
THE MUSIC CENTER
Monique Carroll Program Manager
BUSINESS RESOURCES ADVANCEMENT Belby Aguillon Coordinator, Major Gifts
Bennett Anderson Senior Coordinator, Institutional Giving Debra Beadle Director of Planned Giving & Stewardship Robert Boone Senior Director, Advancement Services Cheryl Brown Vice President
Rob Carson Major Gifts Officer
Hillary Chisum Director of Board Relations Erica Goodrich Coordinator, Advancement Services
Veronica Green Assistant Director, Annual Giving Jordan Haynes Coordinator, Annual Giving
Clifton Lum Assistant Director, Advancement Services
Mayra Medina Donor Records Clerk
Marielle Shrock Marketing Specialist
PRESIDENT’S OFFICE Susan Hutcheon Executive Assistant to the President & CEO SAFETY Edward Hennings Manager TELECOMMUNICATIONS Rona Compton Manager CREATIVE SUPPORT Keith & Co. Graphic Design The stage crew, wardrobe crew and box office staff are represented by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States of America and Canada, AFL-CIO, CKC, Local Numbers 33, 768 and 857, respectively. The House Managers employed by The Music Center are represented by the Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers. PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P3
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Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier’s Bernstein Dances. Photo by Kiran West.
Center Dance Arts (CDA) is a dynamic community of patrons with a passion for dance. CDA brings dance to life in Los Angeles by promoting The Music Center’s world-class dance performances, extensive educational outreach and free and low-cost community experiences so all may experience the transformative power of dance. Members enjoy special access to performances and activities with concierge ticketing, Meet-the-Artists receptions, private salons, rehearsals and more!
Young tap dancers on Jerry Moss Plaza at The Music Center. Photo by Will Tee Yang
Connect
with arts patrons and dance enthusiasts in a variety of fun social settings around Los Angeles.
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dance and enjoy behind-thescenes access such as salons, receptions and artist talks featuring dance luminaries.
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Membership begins at $1,000. To learn more about becoming a member, please contact us at (213) 972-3359 or cda@musiccenter.org. P4 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
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The Music Center Thanks Center Dance Arts Guests socializing at Meet the Artists reception for Mariinsky Ballet.
From all of us here at The Music Center, we thank Center Dance Arts (CDA) members for their unwavering support of dance. Throughout the many challenges of the past two years, CDA has persevered, hosting fabulous events including the Digital Dance Salon series, screening the West Coast premiere of AILEY, and supporting countless dance learning opportunities in classrooms and online. We welcome you back to dance in our theatres, and look forward to many seasons of dance ahead!
American Ballet Theatre Meet the Artists reception. Photo by David Buchan.
Center Dance Arts Board of Directors Susan Baumgarten President
Joan Herman Secretary
Jane Jelenko* Chair/Founding President
Mattie McFadden Lawson Chair Emerita
JoAnn Bourne Vice President and Treasurer
Charlene Achki-Repko
Julia Strickland
Jane ArnaultFactor, Ph.D*
Bradley Tabach-Bank
Mira Hashmall
Diane Wittenberg * Founding Member
Catharine Soros Chair Emerita
Liz Levitt Hirsch*
Liane Weintraub* Founding Chair
Dominque Shelton Leipzig
Judith Reichman, MD
Sue Tsao
Center Dance Arts Members (2021–2022) DANCE SPONSOR ($25,000+) Anita Mann Kohl and Allen D Kohl Marie H. Song DANCE AMBASSADOR ($10,000–$24,999) Charlene Achki Repko Jane Arnault-Factor* Susan Baumgarten JoAnn and Wayland Bourne Joan A. Friedman, PhD and Robert N. Braun, MD Walter and Ruth Chameides Helen Funai Erickson J. Mira Hashmall, Esq. Joan E. Herman Liz Levitt Hirsch* Jane Jelenko* Cynthia Watson, MD and David B. Katzin, MD, Ph.D Patrick Kinsella David Minning and Diane Wittenberg Olivia and Anthony Neece
Judith Reichman Dominique Shelton Leipzig Catharine and Jeffrey Soros Bradley Tabach-Bank and Dee Dee Dorskind Sue Tsao Julia Strickland and Timothy Wahl Alyce de Roulet Williamson* DANCE ADVOCATE ($5,000–$9,999) Karla and Richard Chernick Christopher Combs and Charlotte Hughes Elizabeth and Brack Duker Lisa Field Gerald Friedman* June Li Anita Lorber DANCE ENTHUSIAST ($2,500–$4,999) Barry Baker Terri and Timothy Childs Beth and Leslie Michelson Mary Nichols
Stuart M. Warren DANCE PATRON ($1,000–$2,499) Donna M. Altmann Ken Ballard and Renee Rinaldi Paul N. Barkopoulos, M.D. Josephine Baurac Marjorie Blatt Irene and Stuart Boyd Lillian Chin Katherine Colbert Catherine Cristall Lynne and James DeWitt Jennifer Diener* Susan Friedman* Leslie and Frederick Gaylord* Paul Greenberg Leonie Gross Marcy Gross Claire and Robert Heron Christine M. Hessler Bonnie Oda Homsey and Philip R. Homsey II Freya and Mark Ivener Barbara and Richard
Kernochan Jay Kinn and Jules Vogel Vivian Krepack Rosanne Lapan Aliza Lesser Paula Marcus Julie McDonald Kathy and Michael Moray Renae Williams Niles and Greg Niles David Richard Pullman Hadley and Lee Rierson Helene Rosenzweig, M.D. Nancy Lee Ruyter Maxine Savitz Bob and Helene Schacter Sherie and Alan Schneider David Shaw I.H. Sutnick Laurie Vender and Stephen Halper Daniel and Janice Wallace Marcia and Charles Wasserman * Founding Members PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P5
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HAMBURG BALLET JOHN NEUMEIER B E R N ST E I N DA N C E S Ballet Revue by John Neumeier for Leonard Bernstein Music Leonard Bernstein Lyrics Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden, Adolph Green, Stephen Schwartz and Stephen Sondheim Choreography, Stage Design and Lighting Concept John Neumeier (using the New York photos by Reinhart Wolf) Costumes Giorgio Armani Musical Director Garrett Keast
Support for this presentation is provided, in part, by: Glorya Kaufman Foundation Center Dance Arts Dorothy Buffum Chandler Program Fund Elisabeth Katte Harris The Music Center Foundation The Music Center Annual Fund
P6 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
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Bernstein Dances. Photo by Kiran West.
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PROGRAM
Part I Overture Music: Overture from Candide
Prologue: Who am I? Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19) “Love” David Rodriguez Hélène Bouchet / Ida Praetorius (March 19)
“A Little Bit in Love” Madoka Sugai, Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19), Karen Azatyan “Wrong Note Rag” Karen Azatyan Music: Songs from “Wonderful Town” “Lonely Town”
Jacopo Bellussi, Karen Azatyan
Hélène Bouchet / Ida Praetorius (March 19), Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19), Jacopo Bellussi
Music: “Anniversary for Susanna Kyle” and “Who am I?” from Peter Pan
Music: Songs and Dance Episode from On the Town
The Beginning
The Spirit
Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19)
“A Simple Song”
Emilie Mazoń, Madoka Sugai
Emilie Mazoń, Jacopo Bellussi
Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19), David Rodriguez
Olivia Betteridge, Giorgia Giani, Paula Iniesta, Greta Jörgens, Charlotte Larzelere, Ana Torrequebrada
Francesco Cortese, Alessandro Frola, Matias Oberlin, Ricardo Urbina, Lizhong Wang
David Rodriguez
Borja Bermudez, Francesco Cortese, Alessandro Frola, Nicolas Gläsmann, Louis Haslach, Louis Musin, Matias Oberlin, Lizhong Wang Music: “Facsimile”, Choreographic Essays
City of Cities “What a Waste” Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19) Karen Azatyan, Marc Jubete Yaiza Coll, Georgina Hills, Charlotte Larzelere, Hayley Page, Yun-Su Park Borja Bermudez, Louis Musin, Florian Pohl, Artem Prokopchuk, Eliot Worrell
“Meditation No. 2” Hélène Bouchet / Ida Praetorius (March 19), Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19) Olivia Betteridge, Giorgia Giani, Greta Jörgens, Alice Mazzasette, Hayley Page, Ana Torrequebrada Borja Bermudez, Nicolas Gläsmann, Florian Pohl, Emiliano Torres, Eliot Worrell, Illia Zakrevskyi Music: “A Simple Song” and “Meditation No. 2” from Mass “So Pretty” Emilie Mazoń Music: “So Pretty” from Broadway for Peace
P8 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
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PROGRAM
Success — A Success Story Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19) Hélène Bouchet / Ida Praetorius (March 19)
Artem Prokopchuk, Emiliano Torres, Ricardo Urbina, Eliot Worrell, Lizhong Wang Music: Overture from Candide
Emilie Mazoń, Madoka Sugai
Flashback
Jacopo Bellussi, Karen Azatyan
Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19)
Yaiza Coll, Patricia Friza, Charlotte Larzelere, Yun-Su Park Marc Jubete, Matias Oberlin, Emiliano Torres, Ricardo Urbina, Lizhong Wang Olivia Betteridge, Victoria Bodahl, Georgina Hills, Xue Lin, Hayley Page, Madeleine Skippen Francesco Cortese, Alessandro Frola, Nicolas Gläsmann, Louis Haslach, Marc Jubete, Matias Oberlin, Pietro Pelleri, Florian Pohl, Artem Prokopchuk, Emiliano Torres, Eliot Worrell, Ricardo Urbina, Lizhong Wang, Illia Zakrevskyi, Aleksa Zikic Music: “Something´s Coming” and “Symphonic Dances” from West Side Story
—25 Minute Intermission— Part II Fast Forward Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19) Hélène Bouchet / Ida Praetorius (March 19) Emilie Mazoń, Madoka Sugai Jacopo Bellussi, Karen Azatyan Olivia Betteridge, Viktoria Bodahl, Yaiza Coll, Francesca Harvey, Greta Jörgens, Charlotte Larzelere, Xue Lin, Hayley Page, Yun-Su Park, Georgina Hills
Hélène Bouchet/ Ida Praetorius (March 19), Emilie Mazoń, Madoka Sugai Jacopo Bellussi, Karen Azatyan “Love” David Rodriguez Music: “The Story of my Life” from Wonderful Town
In the Evening ... and Through the Night Alexandr Trusch / Christopher Evans (March 19) Hélène Bouchet / Ida Praetorius (March 19) Emilie Mazoń, Jacopo Bellussi Madoka Sugai, Karen Azatyan “Love” David Rodriguez Yaiza Coll, Patricia Friza, Georgina Hills, Xue Lin, Yun-Su Park, Priscilla Tselikova Nicolas Gläsmann, Marc Jubete, Florian Pohl, Matias Oberlin, Emiliano Torres, Lizhong Wang Music: “Serenade after Plato´s Symposium” for solo violin, string orchestra, harp and percussion and “Five Anniversaries” for piano Publisher: Boosey & Hawkes Bote & Bock GmbH for Boosey & Hawkes, Inc. By arrangement with Boosey & Hawkes, Inc., sole agent for Leonard Bernstein Music Publishing Company LLC, publisher and copyright owner.
Borja Bermudez, Lasse Caballero, Alessandro Frola, Nicolas Gläsmann, Pietro Pelleri, Florian Pohl, PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P9
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ABOUT THE COMPANY
The Hamburg Ballet has achieved a phenomenal reputation as one of the world’s most outstanding dance companies. International tours have made it not only a highlight of the international ballet scene, but also one of Germany’s most important cultural ambassadors. The heart of the company is Artistic Director and Chief Choreographer John Neumeier, who has directed the company since 1973. Mr. Neumeier is a master at combining classical ballet tradition with contemporary forms in his works, while developing a unique personal choreographic language. Mr. Neumeier’s lecture demonstrations are a special feature of the Hamburg Ballet’s tradition. During these matinees, which have taken place on the stage of the Hamburg State Opera several times per season since 1973, Mr. Neumeier, with his company, explains specific aspects of ballet history — the themes of current repertoire or the technical and historical background of traditional ballets. Since 1975, the dance festival Hamburg Ballet Days has provided the high point and finale of every season. The festival traditionally opens with a premiere of a new work and ends with the Nijinsky Gala, featuring international guest stars as well as the entire Hamburg Ballet ensemble. Although the company performs at the Hamburg State Opera, its creative home, rehearsal venue, and educational centre is a separate building, the Hamburg Ballet Centre which opened in 1989. Founded in 1978, the ballet school with its integrated boarding facilities, a pre-ballet department, eight professional classes, and a final two-year “Theatre Class” program, trains the next generation of dancers. The Ballet Centre are also the home of the National Youth Ballet, founded by John Neumeier in 2011.
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Photos by Kiran West.
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John Neumeier, Artistic Director and Chief Choreographer of the Hamburg Ballet Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1939, John Neumeier studied in his native city as well as in Chicago, Copenhagen and London. In 1963, John Cranko invited him to join Stuttgart Ballet, where he progressed to soloist and continued his choreographic development. Appointed Director of Ballet Frankfurt in 1969, he soon caused a sensation with his new interpretations of such well-known ballets as The Nutcracker and Romeo and Juliet. In 1973, he became Director and Chief Choreographer of the Hamburg Ballet. Under his direction, Hamburg Ballet became one of the leading ballet companies on the German dance scene and soon received international recognition. As a choreographer, Neumeier has continually focused on the preservation of ballet tradition, while giving his works a modern dramatic framework. His ballets range from new versions of full-length story ballets, to musicals and symphonic ballets as well as choreographies, to sacred music. His latest creations for the Hamburg Ballet are Ghost Light in 2020, and Beethoven Project II, Hamlet 21 and the new version of The Sleeping Beauty in 2021. In addition to his great commitment to the Hamburg Ballet, he regularly works as guest choreographer with the most renowned international ballet companies.
In 1975, Neumeier conceived the Hamburg Ballet Days as a climax and end to each season. Three years later, he founded The School of the Hamburg Ballet. Today more than 80% of the company’s dancers are graduates from the school. In 2011, Neumeier founded Germany’s National Youth Ballet, a creative, youthful company that that finds its performing spaces in schools, retirement homes and prisons. Neumeier has received some of the most prestigious international awards, e.g. the Dance Magazine Award in 1983. He holds the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany as well as the French Order of Arts and Letters and the Legion of Honor. In 2015, the Inamori Foundation presented him with the Kyoto Prize for his contributions to the arts and philosophy. In 2017, he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Awards of the Prix Benois de la Danse and the Prix de Lausanne as well as the Erich Fromm Prize. In 2019, he received the People's Republic of China Friendship Award. In 2021, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark awarded him the Medal of Honor ›Ingenio et arti‹, a personal honor bestowed by the Danish royal house on outstanding personalities in the field of arts and scientists. In 2006, Neumeier established the John Neumeier Foundation with the aim of preserving and eventually making available to the public his collection of dance and ballet-related objects. PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P11
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WHO’S WHO IN BERNSTEIN DANCES
Hélène Bouchet (Guest Artist) Hélène Bouchet, born in Cannes, France, received her dance education at the Centre de Danse Rosella Hightower in Cannes and the École Nationale de Danse de Marseille. She was a member of Ballet National de Marseille —Roland Petit and the English National Ballet. In 1998, she joined Hamburg Ballet where she advanced to Soloist in 2003 and to Principal in 2005. John Neumeier created for her the title role in his ballet Tatiana, Silvia in Préludes CV, La Barbarina in Death in Venice, Eurydice in Orpheus, Alma in Purgatorio, The Servant (Désirée von Wertheimstein) in Duse, solo roles in Beethoven Project II and Ghost Light as well as The Rose in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021). Over the course of her long career, she performed numerous leading roles in ballets by John Neumeier and other choreographers such as George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins and made several international guest appearances. Bouchet won a Silver medal at the 20th International Ballet Competition in Varna in 2002, the Dr. Wilhelm Oberdörffer Prize in 2004 and the Benois de la Danse in 2010 for her interpretation of Eurydice in Orpheus.
Ida Praetorius Born in Copenhagen, Denmark, Ida Praetorius completed her dance education at the Royal Danish Ballet School and became a member of the Royal Danish Ballet
in 2010 where she was promoted to Soloist in 2014 and Principal in 2016. In 2021, she joined Hamburg Ballet. John Neumeier created with her the title role of Aurora in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021). Her repertoire includes the title roles in John Neumeier’s Lady of the Camellias, Romeo and Juliet and Daphnis and Chloe as well as leading parts in ballets by August Bournonville, George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Christopher Wheeldon, Wayne McGregor, et al. Among numerous international guest performances, Praetorius performed at the Nijinsky Gala and John Neumeier’s 80th Birthday Gala in Hamburg. Her awards include the Erik Bruhn Price for Best Female Dancer in 2012 and the Queen Ingrid Honorary Grant in 2013. In 2019, she won the Danish Reumert Prize as Dancer of the Year and was appointed Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog.
Madoka Sugai Born in Atsugi City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, Madoka Sugai completed her dance education at the Sasaki Mika Ballet Academy in Yamato. After receiving an award at the Prix de Lausanne in 2012, she joined the National Youth Ballet of Germany and two years later she joined Hamburg Ballet. She was promoted to Soloist in 2017 and to Principal in 2019. In 2018, she won the Dr. Wilhelm Oberdörffer Prize. John Neumeier created for her leading roles in Beethoven Project I, II and Ghost Light. Her repertory ballets include Woman III in Bernstein Dances, the title role in A Cinderella Story, Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Prudence Duvernoy in the Lady of
the Camellias, Ophelia in Hamlet 21 and the title role in Sylvia and Aurora in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021). She also danced Woman in Apricot in Jerome Robbins’ Dances at a Gathering and Kitri/Dulcinea in Rudolf Nureyev’s Don Quixote as well as a leading role in George Balanchine’s Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet.
Jacopo Bellussi Born in Genoa, Italy, Jacopo Bellussi received his dance education at the Accademia Teatro alla Scala and the Royal Ballet School. After an engagement with the Bavarian State Ballet II, he joined Hamburg Ballet in 2012, where he advanced to Soloist in 2017 and to Principal in 2019. John Neumeier created for him a figure from the romantic novels Tatiana loves to read in Tatiana, The Soldier's Friend (Annunzio Cervi) in Duse as well as leading roles in Beethoven Project I, II and Ghost Light. His repertoire includes Alexej Wronski in Anna Karenina, Romeo and Paris in Romeo and Juliet, Gaston Rieux and Des Grieux in Lady of the Camellias, Lysander in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Prince Désiré and A Spanish Prince in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021). He danced solo roles in George Balanchine's Liebeslieder Walzer and BrahmsSchoenberg Quartet, the Man in Blue in Jerome Robbins' Dances at a Gathering and Espada in Rudolf Nureyev's Don Quixote. In 2016, he won the Premio Danza & Danza; in 2019, the Konstanze Vernon Prize and in 2021, the Premio Nazionale Sfera d'Oro per la Danza.
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WHO’S WHO IN BERNSTEIN DANCES
Christopher Evans Christopher Evans was born in 1994 in Loveland, Colorado, USA. He received his dance education at the BalletMet Dance Academy, at Canada's National Ballet School and the School of Hamburg Ballet. In 2010, he was awarded the Prix de Lausanne. Since 2012, Evans has been a member of Hamburg Ballet. In 2015, he won the Dr. Wilhelm Oberdörffer Prize and advanced to Soloist. In 2018, he was appointed Principal. John Neumeier created for him a leading role in Turangalîla, Jim O'Connor in The Glass Menagerie as well as leading roles in Beethoven Project I, II and Ghost Light. He made his debut as Armand in John Neumeier’s Lady of the Camellias alongside Olga Smirnova in the title role. He danced the leading male role in the revival series of Bernstein Dances (2018). His repertoire includes Benvolio and Antonio in Romeo and Juliet, Günther in The Nutcracker, Catalabutte in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021) as well as Mann in Green in Jerome Robbins’ Dances at a Gathering and Basil in Don Quixote by Rudolf Nureyev after Marius Petipa. He choreographed A Cosmic Second (2017) and Soul Sketch (2016) for the Young Choreographers program.
Alexandr Trusch Born in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine, Alexandr Trusch completed his dance education at the School of Hamburg Ballet. He joined
Hamburg Ballet in 2007, was promoted to Soloist in 2010 and appointed Principal in 2014. Together with John Neumeier, he created the roles Vaslav Nijinsky as a student in Le Pavillon d'Armide, Hermes' Attendant in Orpheus, A Shy Young Man in Liliom, Angel in Christmas Oratorio I-VI, Vladimir Lensky in Tatiana, The Soldier (Luciano Nicastro) in Duse and Prince Désiré in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021). He performed the leading male role in the revival series of John Neumeier’s Bernstein Dances (2018) and in the German premiere of The Song of the Earth (2016). His repertory includes The Prince in A Cinderella Story, the title roles in Nijinsky and Romeo and Juliet, Günter and Fritz in The Nutcracker, Armand Duval, Des Grieux and Graf N. in Lady of the Camellias, and Philostrat/Puck and Lysander in A Midsummer Night's Dream. In 2010, he was awarded the Dr. Wilhelm Oberdörffer Prize.
Yaiza Coll Yaiza Coll, born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, received her dance training at the Conservatori Professional de Música i Dansa de Mallorca and at the School of the Hamburg Ballet. She joined Hamburg Ballet in 2012 and advanced to Soloist in 2021. Her repertoire in ballets by John Neumeier includes Lavinia in Romeo and Juliet, The Servant (Désirée von Wertheimstein) in Duse, Audrey in As You Like It and Polina Andreyevna in The Seagull as well as Woman in Green in Dances at a Gathering (Jerome Robbins) and A Friend in Don Quixote (Rudolf Nureyev after Marius Petipa). She danced solos in John Neumeier’s ballets Winterreise, Saint Matthew
Passion, Fifth Symphony of Gustav Mahler, Vaslaw, Nocturnes and At Midnight. She participated in several creations of the Young Choreographers such as Speechless (Lizhong Wang), Metamorphosis (Marc Jubete) and Soul Sketch (Christopher Evans).
Xue Lin Xue Lin, born in Beijing, received her dance training at the Beijing Dance Academy and the Hamburg Ballet School. She has been a member of Hamburg Ballet since 2011 and advanced to Soloist in 2016. In 2014, she was awarded the Dr. Wilhelm Oberdörffer Prize. John Neumeier created for her the Ballerina Istomina as Cleopatra in Tatiana. Her repertoire includes the title roles in Anna Karenina and The Little Mermaid, Woman I in Bernstein Dances, Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Moyna and Zulma in Giselle, Olympia in The Lady of the Camellias, the Pas de Huit in The Nutcracker, Tamara Karsavina in Nijinsky, Masha in The Seagull and Olga in John Cranko’s Onegin. Lin made a guest appearance in the title role of The Little Mermaid with the National Ballet of China in Wuhan, China.
Emilie Mazoń Born in Hamburg/Germany, Emilie Mazoń received her dance education at The School of The Georgia Ballet and the School of Hamburg Ballet. Since 2013, she has been a member of Hamburg Ballet and was appointed Soloist in 2017. In the same year, she PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P13
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WHO’S WHO IN BERNSTEIN DANCES
was awarded the Dr. Wilhelm Oberdörffer Prize. Together with John Neumeier, she created the role of Kitty in his version of Anna Karenina as well as solo roles in Beethoven Project I and Ghost Light. Her repertoire includes major roles, such as Marie in The Nutcracker, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Nina in The Seagull, Solveig in Peer Gynt, La Primavera and Desdemona in Othello, Olympia in Lady of the Camellias, Woman II in Bernstein Dances as well as Aurora and Amors Segen in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021).
Karen Azatyan Born in Yerevan, Armenia, Karen Azatyan completed his dance education at the Yerevan Dancing Art State College and the Zurich Dance Academy. He was a member of the Bavarian State Ballet and joined Hamburg Ballet in 2014 as Soloist. He came in second at the Tanzolymp Berlin 2005 in the category classic variation and won the Prix de Lausanne in the same year. In 2006, he won the Prize for Promising Young Dancer at the Varna International Ballet Competition. Together with John Neumeier, he created The Seducer (Gabriele D’Annunzio) in Duse and A Muzhik in Anna Karenina as well as solo roles in Beethoven Project I and Ghost Light. He performed one of the leading roles at the German premiere of John Neumeier’s ballet The Song of the Earth (2016). His repertoire includes Günther in The Nutcracker, Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet, The Golden Slave in Scheherazade and The Faun in L’ Après-midi d'un faune in Nijinsky, Boris Alexeyivich Trigorin in The Seagull,
Man III in Bernstein Dances and The Thorn in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021).
as well as Prince Désiré and Amors Segen in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021).
Greta Jörgerns Born in Bonn, Germany, Greta Jörgens received her dance training at the Ballettschule International Bonn and at the State Ballet School Berlin. In 2015, she joined the Hamburg Ballet, where she created Princess Sorokina in Anna Karenina and a solo role in John Neumeier’s Beethoven Project I as well as solo roles in Metamorphosis (Marc Jubete), I Giorni (Florian Pohl) and M.A. (Lennart Radtke). Her repertory in ballets by John Neumeier includes Woman II in Bernstein Dances, Princess Ekaterina Alexandrovna Shcherbatskaya, Kitty in Anna Karenina, the Pas de deux “La Fille du Pharaon” in The Nutcracker, Amors Segen in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty as well as A Lady in The Concert (Jerome Robbins).
David Rodriguez David Rodriguez, born in Medellín, Colombia, received his dance training at the Ballet Folclórico de Antioquia, the Escuela de Ballet Metropolitano in Medellín and at the Miami City Ballet School. In 2016, he joined Hamburg Ballet. John Neumeier created for him The Unicorn in The Glass Menagerie as well as solo roles in Beethoven Project I and Ghost Light. He participated inthe filming of Ghost Light. His repertoire includes The Man in the Shadow in Illusions — like Swan Lake, Philostrat/Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream, La Fille du Pharaon in The Nutcracker, Tadzio in Death in Venice, A Gypsy in Don Quixote by Rudolf Nureyev after Marius Petipa and a solo role in St. Matthew Passion. He also performed as An Indian Prince and The Thorn in the new version of The Sleeping Beauty (2021).
Alessandro Frola Alessandro Frola was born in Parma, Italy. He received his dance education at the Profession Dance Parma, the Fomento Artístico Cordobés in Córdoba, Argentina and at the School of the Hamburg Ballet. Since 2019, he has been a member of the ensemble of Hamburg Ballet. Together with John Neumeier, he created a solo role in Peter and Igor. His repertoire includes major roles such as Lysander in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Endymion in Sylvia
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WHO’S WHO IN BERNSTEIN DANCES
addition to her engagements on the big theater stages, she has been writing her debut album and performing regularly as a singer in several jazz and soul combos.
CJ Eldred (Male Singer) CJ Eldred was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, where he began his acting career at the 5th Avenue Theatre. He graduated from the prestigious University of Michigan and quickly donned the black tie and white shirt to play Elder Price in the National Tour of the Tony-winning, The Book Of Mormon. Arriving in New York, he starred as “Claudio” in Claudio Quest at the New York Musical Theatre Festival. Across the country and New York, CJ has performed notable shows varying from the comedic Western Desperate Measures (Johnny Blood), to the heartwarming classic, South Pacific (Lt. Cable), as well as the ever popular Billy Elliot (Tony). Most recently he has been seen rocking out in NYC as leading man Drew Boley in the Rock Of Ages at New World Stages.
Dorothea Baumann (Female Singer) While still at school, Dorothea Baumann trained at the Hamburg State Opera and appeared in several productions at Kampnagel and Opera Stabile. Before her graduation in 2013, she made her musical debut with Dance of the Vampires as Sarah. Afterwards, she appeared in various leading roles in plays such as Sister Act, Mozart! and Ludwig² and played the role of Anna in Frozen as part of the Disney in Concert arena tour. In
Nick Tubbs (Male Understudy) Nick Tubbs is honored to be collaborating with this phenomenal group of artists! His recent credits include Marry Me A Little (Man - ICT), A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder (Monty Navarro - Tuacahn/3D Theatricals), Hunchback of Notre Dame (Quasimodo - PCPA), Forever Plaid (Jinx - Welk Resorts/Norris/ICT/ PCPA), Spamalot (Sir Galahad - 3D Theatricals) and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (Swing - McCoy Rigby Nat. Tour). He was a production singer onboard Princess Cruises and currently sings with The Moonrays and Kit and the Kats. Additionally, Nick is the producer of an interactive science app for kids called Tappity, hosted by his much more talented wife, Haley. Huge thanks to the fantastic people at The Music Center, the unparalleled casting team of Michael and Richie, and his rockstar agent, Natalie. And endless love to his family, Haley and hilarious toddler Sebastian. @hiimnicktubbs
recorded backup for Pia Toscano and David Foster. Hicks is releasing her debut EP of original music entitled Hangover later this year. Thank you to the cast and creative team, Todd & ATB Talent, Michael & Richie for this incredible opportunity, and her endlessly supportive family and partner who give selflessly to her everyday. IG: @bellahicks TikTok: @bellahixx Michael Donovan (Casting Director) Michael Donovan is the recipient of nine Artios awards, presented by the Casting Society of America for Outstanding Achievement in casting. Richie Ferris has three Artios awards. The company’s credits include shows produced at The Music Center's Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum and Walt Disney Concert Hall; the Hollywood Bowl, The Wallis, Pasadena Playhouse, the Getty Villa, the Soraya, ICT, Laguna Playhouse, La Jolla Playhouse, San Francisco Symphony and many more. Other credits include numerous films, TV and commercials. Donovan is President of the Board for the Foundation for New American Musicals and serves on the Board for Camp Bravo.
Bella Hicks (Female Understudy) Bella Hicks is so grateful to be a part of this beautiful project. Some recent credits include Rudolph the Musical National Tour (Rudolph), Beehive 30th Anniversary National Tour (Janis Joplin), and Sweet Charity (dir. Kathleen Marshall). She has PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P15
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TOURING STAFF
Artistic Director and Chief Choreographer Prof. Dr. h.c. John Neumeier Managing Director Nicolas Hartmann Director of Communications and Dramaturgy Dr. Jörn Rieckhoff Deputy Artistic Director, Ballet Master Lloyd Riggins Artistic Production Coordinator and Ballet Master Eduardo Bertini Rehearsal Directors Laura Cazzaniga Leslie McBeth Niurka Moredo Ivan Urban Radik Zaripov
Choreologist Sonja Tinnes Musical Coordinator & Pianist Ondřej Rudčenko Pianist Mark Harjes Tour Manager Leonie Miserre Photographer, Videographer and Graphic Designer Kiran West
Technical Production Coordinator Vladimir Kocić Stage Manager Ulrich Ruckdeschel Stage Technicians Corinna Korth Andreas Weiland M. Massaro Fabian Kästner Head of Lighting Ralf Merkel
Assistant to Mr. Neumeier Catherine Dumont
Lighting Technicians Rene Condné Kimberly Horton Julika von Werder Ueli Riegg
Physiotherapist Daan van den Akker
Properties Master Jürgen Tessmann
Technical Director Frank Zöllner
Properties Technicians Sabine Frerichs
Head of Sound Frederic Couson Video & Sound Matthias Kieslich Sound Technician Jochen Schefe Wardrobe Mistress Barbara Huber Dressers Diana Räkers Piret Univer Sandra Schmidt Sabrina Pietron Make-up Artists Andrea Ellegast Adnan Metin Tasja Kluth Miriam Kluge
P16 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
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ENSEMBLE
Females | Principals Leslie Heylmann Anna Laudere Ida Praetorius Madoka Sugai Guest Artist Hélène Bouchet Character Dancer Silvia Azzoni Soloists Yaiza Coll Patricia Friza Xue Lin Emilie Mazon Yun-Su Park Corps de Ballet Olivia Betteridge Viktoria Bodahl Giorgia Giani Francesca Harvey Georgina Hills Greta Jörgens Charlotte Larzelere Alice Mazzasette Amelia Menzies Hayley Page Chiara Ruaro Madeleine Skippen Ida Stempelmann Hermine Sutra Fourcade Ana Torrequebrada Priscilla Tselikova Apprentices Carolin Inhoffen Paula Iniesta Ayumi Kato Mia Petrovic
Males | Principals Jacopo Bellussi Christopher Evans Aleix Martínez Edvin Revazov Alexandre Riabko Lloyd Riggins Alexandr Trusch Soloists Karen Azatyan Marc Jubete Atte Kilpinen Matias Oberlin Félix Paquet Florian Pohl Lizhong Wang Corps de Ballet Borja Bermudez Lasse Caballero Alessandro Frola Nicolas Gläsmann Louis Haslach Marià Huguet Pietro Pelleri Pablo Polo Artem Prokopchuk David Rodriguez Torben Seguin Emiliano Torres Ricardo Urbina Eliot Worrell Illia Zakrevskyi Apprentices Francesco Cortese Yungu Kang Louis Musin Miguel Wansing Lorrio Aleksa Zikic
Photos by Kiran West. PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P17
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ORCHESTRA
VIOLIN I
CELLOS
BASSOONS
HARP
Roberto Cani Concertmaster
Dane Little Principal
William May Principal
JoAnn Turovsky Principal
Armen Anassian Associate Concertmaster
Nadine Hall Associate Principal
Judith Farmer
Lisa Sutton Assistant Concertmaster Hana Kim Olivia Tsui Lucinda Chiu Kathleen Sloan Heather Powell Zlata Grekov Myroslava Khomik
Maggie Edmondson Joo Lee
BASSES Frances Liu Wu Principal Don Ferrone Assoc. Principal Tim Eckert
VIOLIN II
FLUTES
Ana Landauer Principal
Amy Tatum Principal
Ina Veli Associate Principal
Angela Wiegand Sarah Weisz
Florence Titmus Leslie Katz Michele Kikuchi Cynthia Moussas Loránd Lokuszta Irina Voloshina
OBOES
VIOLA
Leslie Reed Principal Michele Forrest Jennifer Cullinan
ENGLISH HORN
Shawn Mann Principal
Jennifer Cullinan
Dmitri Bovaird Associate Principal
CLARINETS
Kate Vincent Carolyn Riley Erik Rynearson Caroline Buckman
Stuart Clark Principal Juan Gallegos
William Wood Contrabassoon
SAXOPHONES
PERCUSSION Theresa Dimond Principal John Wakefield
Sal Lozano Brian Scanlon
DRUMSET
HORNS
Peter Erskine Principal
Steven Becknell Principal
TIMPANI
Daniel Kelley Jenny Kim James Atkinson
Gregory Goodall Principal
TRUMPETS Ryan Darke Principal Steve O'Connor Drew Ninmer Bill Williams
TROMBONES
KEYBOARD Bryan Pezzone Principal
GUITAR Paul Viapiano Principal
William Booth Principal
ORCHESTRA PERSONNEL MANAGER
Alvin Veeh Terry Cravens
Brady Steel
TUBA
MUSIC LIBRARIAN
P. Blake Cooper Principal
Melisandra Dunker
Stephen Piazza Bass Clarinet
Photo by Kiran West.
P18 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
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Join us for the momentous return of this beloved company and feel the profound joy only an Ailey experience can bring.
ALVIN AILEY® AMERICAN DANCE THEATER APRIL 6–10
TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
musiccenter.org/ailey | (213) 972-0711
GROUPS OF 10+: (213) 972-8555 | mcgroupsales@musiccenter.org Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Photo by Dario Calmese
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Let’s celebrate, dream, learn and grow together.
Photo by Will Tee Yang.
Students from Grand Arts/Cortines High School showcase their work with acclaimed dance company Pilobolus on Jerry Moss Plaza at The Music Center.
It takes all of us to create meaningful arts experiences that champion the diverse voices and communities of Los Angeles. Join The Music Center as we bring together artists, children, teachers and people of all ages and backgrounds, to make Los Angeles a better place.
Your gift to The Music Center’s annual fund supports unforgettable performances, immersive programs that welcome everyone, learning in hundreds of schools, and community partnerships across L.A.
Contact Friends of TMC Arts at (213) 972-4349 or membership@musiccenter.org musiccenter.org/give
The Music Center thanks
for their support of the
H A M BU RG BA LLET
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The Music Center Thanks Its Supporters INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILY FOUNDATIONS $1,000,000 AND ABOVE The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation Glorya Kaufman Dance Foundation Cindy Miscikowski / Ring-Miscikowski Foundation/ The Ring Foundation Tina and Jerry Moss / Moss Foundation Fredric Roberts Mimi Song $100,000–$999,999 Robert J. Abernethy Dr. Martin Balser* Helen and Peter Bing Ruth and Charles I. Gold* Estate of Michael Keir* Dr. Susan E. Kendall Terri and Jerry Kohl Marie H. Song $50,000–$99,999 Gregory Adams Edgar & Lilla Aftergood Charitable Trust* Edgerton Foundation The Horn Foundation Marcia Israel Foundation Marla and Cary Lefton Marc and Eva Stern Foundation Julia Strickland and Timothy Wahl Jennifer and Steven Walske Kurt and Susan Wegleitner $25,000–$49,999 Kathy and Charles Adams Pamela and Dennis Beck JoAnn and Wayland Bourne Helen Funai Erickson Field Family Foundation Shelby & Greg Geyer Lisa Gilford Kiki and David Gindler Erika and Jeff Hill
Jane Jelenko Carl Jordan Stefanie Kane Anita Mann Kohl and Allen D Kohl Lee Graff Foundation Keith and Nanette Leonard Jody and David Lippman Beth and Leslie Michelson Darrell Miller Teresita and Shelby Notkin Estate of Robert W. Olsen* Rose and Michael Pagano Cynthia M. Patton Allison and Richard Roeder Alex and Melissa Romain LSMK Investments Lisa See and Richard Kendall Walter Ulloa & Alexandra Seros Alyce de Roulet Williamson Wendy and Jay Wintrob Anonymous $10,000–$24,999 Donna M. Altmann Jane Arnault-Factor Jill Baldauf and Steven Grossman Susan Baumgarten Joan A. Friedman, PhD and Robert N. Braun, MD Claire and Brad Brian Maynard and Linda Brittan/ Traub-Brittan Family Foundation Darrell R. Brown MaddocksBrown Foundation Walter and Ruth Chameides Karla and Richard Chernick Ana and Robert Cook Maude and Richard Ferry J. Mira Hashmall, Esq. Joan Herman and Richard Rasiej Liz Levitt Hirsch Cynthia Watson, MD and David B. Katzin, MD, PHD Jackie and Gerald Kehle
Donors from 07–01–2020 through 01–15–2022
Carol and Patrick Kinsella Kent Kresa Maria V. Altmann Foundation Diane Wittenberg and David Minning Olivia and Anthony Neece Chad Olsen and Brian Duck The Albert Parvin Foundation Karen Kay Platt and Lawrence B. Platt Judith Reichman, MD Charlene Achki-Repko Joseph Rice Ann and Robert Ronus Beverly Ryder Dominique Shelton Leipzig Catharine and Jeffrey Soros Lisa Specht Matthew J. Spence Bradley Tabach-Bank and Dee Dee Dorskind Sue Tsao Janis and William Wetsman / The Wetsman Foundation Anonymous $5,000–$9,999 Tonia and Jeremy Barber Rosanna Hirshon Bogart Christopher Combs and Charlotte Hughes Elizabeth and Brack Duker Bobbi and Henry Fields Gerry Friedman Carol Colburn Grigor and Murray Grigor Laura C. Guthman Cornelia HaagMolkenteller, MD Betty Hayman Tomoko Iwakawa June Li Anita Lorber Muriel F. Siebert Foundation David and Janet Polak Foundation Joseph F. Walsh and Marjorie Walsh Foundation
Thomas Weinberger and Leslie Vermut Anonymous $1,000–$4,999 Gay and Harry Abrams Keith and Ingrid Agre Mikhail Andreev James Baer Barry Baker Kenneth Ballard and Renee Rinaldi-Ballard Julie Ballard-lebe Howard Banchik Paul N. Barkopoulos, M.D. Josephine Baurac Martha and Barry Berkett Leigh Lindsey and Andrew Blaine Marjorie Blatt Yvonne Bogdanovich Pauline and Glenn Boghosian Irene and Stuart Boyd John and Louise Brinsley Dwight Broadneax and Greg Moesser Burnand-Partridge Foundation Joan Burns Jennifer Burton Terri and Timothy Childs Lillian Chin Annie Chu Jane and Lawrence Cohen Katherine Colbert Jonathan and Rebecca Congdon Catherine Cristall Suzanne Crowell Margaret A Cutrona Estate of Elizabeth Hofert Dailey* Nadine and Harold Davidson / Harold and Nadine Davidson Foundation Inas Dessouky Lynne and James DeWitt CONT. →
The Music Center strives to acknowledge all our supporters appropriately. If your name has been misspelled or omitted from this list in error, please contact the Advancement Office at (213) 972-3333. PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P21
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The Music Center Thanks Its Supporters INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILY FOUNDATIONS $1,000–$4,999 CONT. Jennifer Diener Kathleen Dooley Constance B. Elliot Bob & Sue Emmer, Shout! Factory Lynda and Alfred Fadel David Farber Clifford Feldman Chelsea Field Mal and Joyce Fienberg Ruth Flinkman-Marandy and Ben Marandy Penelope D. Foley Shea Fontana Christopher and Margaret Forman Janis Frame Susan Friedman Donna and Jay Gallagher Louise Grant Garland Leslie and Frederick Gaylord Mrs. Terri Gedo Carol S. Gee Allen and Renee Gilbert Elaine & David Gill Patricia Glaser and Sam Mudie Roslyn and Abner Goldstine Helen Gordon Paul Greenberg Josh Groban Leonie Gross Marcy Gross Laura Donnelley Diane J. Henderson Claire and Robert Heron Lawrence and Lilia Hershenson Christine M. Hessler Philip and Bonnie Homsey Louise Horvitz Joan Hotchkis Virginia Huey Ana Iglesias Jane Ann Jackson Maria Rosario Jackson, Ph.D. Richard Jones
Ruth M. Jones Janet & Marvin Jubas Julia Stearns Dockweiler Charitable Foundation Bruce Karatz Barbara and Richard Kernochan Jay Kinn and Jules Vogel Lisa and Victor Kohn Rini and Arthur Kraus Sandra Krause and William Fitzgerald / Strauss Foundation Vivian Krepack Rosanne Lapan Carl W. Large Mattie McFadden-Lawson and Michael Lawson Betty and Maury Leonard Aliza Lesser Barbara Levinson Dr. Melvyn Lewis Anslyene Lloyd Susan and Scott Lord Marlene and Sandy Louchheim Lillian Lovelace Kirk Luetkehans Paula Marcus Pauline Marks Brian H. Martin Julie McDonald Sharon McQueen and Daniel Whalen Diane G. Medina Linda and Sheldon Mehr Jodie Mendelson Vibiana Molina Kathy and Michael Moray Ann Mulally Beatrice H. Nemlaha Chris and Richard Newman / C&R Newman Family Foundation Mary D. Nichols Renae Williams Niles and Greg Niles Michael I. Nissman
Continued
Frank O'Dea Alan Oppenheimer Nancy Rahnasto and Alfred Osborne H. Scott Partridge Michael and Susan Patzakis Janet Petersen Mary Petit and Eleanor Torres Nina and Leo Pircher Laura Pope Phyllis and Henry Present / The Present Family Foundation David Richard Pullman Frank Reddick Hadley and Lee Rierson Barbara and Peter Rosenthal Helene Rosenzweig, M.D. Dr. Lawrence Rubenstein Linda and Tony Rubin Nancy Lee Ruyter Thomas Safran Carol Saikhon Raul and Maria Salinas Ariane & Lionel Sauvage Maxine Savitz Mariette and Alexander Sawchuk Helene Schacter Sherie and Alan Schneider Clare L. Sebenius Margaret Selby David Shaw Laura and William Siart Shani Berko Smolens Lucerne Snipes Joan Snyder Michael Soares Lev L Spiro Errol and Marilyn Stambler Janet and Alan Stanford Deidre Strohm I.H. Sutnick Philip A. Swan Barbara Augusta Teichert Charles and Geneva Thornton / Thornton Foundation
Elinor and Rubin Turner Andrea Van de Kamp Estevan Vasquez Laurie Vender and Stephen Halper Nancy Voorhees Daniel and Janice Wallace Carol Walls Stuart M. Warren Marcia and Charles Wasserman Dorothy and Robert Webb Lisa and Ronald Weckbacher Bill and Susan Weintraub Susan and Josh Wieder Donald Wing and Bonnie Nash Sharon and Fillmore Wood Rosalind Wyman Beth McGlynn and James Zapp Ellen and Arnold Zetcher Anonymous * Deceased
The Music Center strives to acknowledge all our supporters appropriately. If your name has been misspelled or omitted from this list in error, please contact the Advancement Office at (213) 972-3333. P22 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
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CORPORATIONS, FOUNDATIONS AND GOVERNMENT $1,000,000 AND ABOVE The Ahmanson Foundation County of Los Angeles U.S. Small Business Administration Anonymous
$25,000–$49,999 CONT. Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP U.S. Bank / Carl Jordan I.N. and Susanna H. Van Nuys Foundation Anonymous
$100,000–$999,999 Bank of America / Dannielle Campos Dorothy Buffum Chandler Program Fund The Hearst Foundations The Music Center Foundation Office of Emergency Services
$10,000–$24,999 Colburn Foundation Costa de Oro Television Edison International Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation HUB International Insurance Services, Inc. W. M. Keck Foundation The Liberty Company Insurance Brokers The Lucille Ellis Simon Foundation Munger Tolles & Olson LLP Foundation The Music Man Foundation The Louis and Harold Price Foundation The Sidley Austin Foundation The Robert Nelson Foundation Anonymous
$50,000–$99,999 Entravision Communications Corporation / Walter F. Ulloa Max H. Gluck Foundation Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture $25,000–$49,999 CA Office of the Small Business Advocate California Arts Council California Wellness Foundation The Capital Group Companies / Kimaada Brown City National Bank City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs Dwight Stuart Youth Fund Max Factor Family Foundation The Rosalinde & Arthur Gilbert Foundation The Kenneth T. and Eileen L. Norris Foundation PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP / Stefanie Kane Edward A. and Ai O. Shay Family Foundation
Donors from 07–01–2020 through 01–15–2022
$5,000–$9,999 Chevron Corporation Cigna Kaiser Permanente Sidney Stern Memorial Trust Socius Group, LLC $1,000–$4,999 Farwest Insulation Contracting Friars Charitable Foundation Macy's Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts Rodriguez, Horii, Choi & Cafferata LLP Gladys Turk Foundation Weingart Foundation Anonymous
Piano for Bernstein Dances provided by PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P23
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BOARD OF SUPERVISORS COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES Support from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors plays an invaluable role in the successful operation of The Music Center.
Holly J. Mitchell Chair, Second District
Sheila Kuehl Chair Pro Tem, Third District
Janice Hahn Supervisor, Fourth District
Hilda L. Solis Supervisor, First District
Kathryn Barger Supervisor, Fifth District
P24 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
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D ESIG N
TIMELESS TECHNIQUES Heath Ceramics on Beverly Boulevard / by roger grody /
Vases and pitcher by Akio Nukaga and bench by Hideki Takayama
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PRIMITIVE, EXPRESSIVE and intimate are qualities often associated with the ancient art of ceramics, and anybody who has ever attempted to create something on a potter’s wheel can appreciate the skills required for the enduring medium. At its Los Angeles location, Heath Ceramics showcases both process and product in a combination workshop/showroom. “Ceramics fit in perfectly when someone craves a tactile expression,” says Tung Chiang, creative lead and clay-studio director, noting that the medium appeals even in the Digital Age.
Heath, based in Sausalito, was founded in 1948 by potter Edith Heath and husband Brian, according to current co-owner Catherine Bailey. “Edith wanted to produce simple, beautiful ceramic dinnerware with local materials,” says Bailey, whose company continues to eschew mass-production in favor of artisanal craftsmanship. The Los Angeles facility occupies a Moderne-style corner building on a creative stretch of Beverly Boulevard; it's a high-ceilinged space where wooden tables and shelves are stocked with tableware and objets d’art. A working potter’s studio in the rear pays homage to the company’s origins, which were both modest and artisanal. “The store intersects lifestyle, art and commerce for a genuine display of California cool,” Bailey
says. “We decided we also wanted to be able to throw pots by hand and make things in a small clay studio that had nothing to do with our factory.” Says Chiang, “The studio within the showroom is the perfect solution to tell what Heath is about: We’re a maker by heart as we sell and connect with our customers.” He articulates the magic of the pottery-making experience: “I still remember the first time centering the clay in the wheel. The clay was alive, but not alone, with me.” Bailey elaborates: “Designing ceramics is a wonderfully humble experience because one is never fully in control,” she says. Heath products making elegant but unpretentious statements include a bud vase ($35) in
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Marfa’s Texan sensibilities. Chiang unleashes his own creativity while remaining true to Edith Heath’s legacy in an annual Design Series; most recent is a line of limited-edition vessels, each designed around a specific species of plant. “The pot is almost always the background,” Chiang explains. “Unlike a vase, which is often displayed without a flower, a planter is never without its plant. I wanted to rebalance that relationship.” Bailey counts multiple generations of families among her clientele. “Our customers want pieces that will become part of their families’ lives,” she says, “items that shape experiences from daily rituals to holiday dinners.” Heath Ceramics, 7525 Beverly Blvd., L.A., 323.965.0800; heathceramics.com
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UPCOMING CONCERTS
seasonal colors and a shallow salad bowl ($155) glazed in two shades of aqua. The Chez Panisse collection, a collaboration with legendary chef Alice Waters, includes main plates
($53) in slate or sand tones, and graceful yet informal side bowls in a soothing taupe hue. The line marries California clay and French elegance. “The pieces, and the tables they adorn, are vignettes for an unhurried life,” Bailey says. Other brands are also represented at Heath. “We look for wellcrafted and well-designed pieces, but most importantly, we look for someone that is a like-minded artist,” says Chiang. Heath-inspired products include napkins by Block Shop Textiles, a collaboration of L.A.-based sisters Hope and Lily Stockman and weavers in India. Finnish producer Artek presents a modern curvaceous armchair ($4,945) from a 1932 Alvar Aalto design. A pecan-topped café table ($2,055) reflects Garza
IMAGES COURTESY HEATH CERAMICS
Species-specific planters by creative lead Tung Chiang. Below, Chiang at the wheel.
ACADEMY OF ST MARTIN IN THE FIELDS WITH JOSHUA BELL THU MAR 10 | 8PM
Thu Mar 3 | 8pm Bach by Beltrami Featuring violinists Sandy Cameron and Lucia Micarelli Eric Byers, cello and Holly Sedillos, soprano with Delirium Musicum
Sat Apr 2 | 8pm Silkroad Ensemble Home Within Kinan Azmeh & Kevork Mourad
SIlkroad Ensemble
Thu Mar 24 | 8pm Fri Mar 25 | 8pm St. Lawrence String Quartet
Martha Graham Dance Company
Sat Mar 19 | 8pm Martha Graham Dance Company The New Canticle for Innocent Comedians Janet Eilber, Artistic Director Original Music by Jason Moran Wild Up, Christopher Rountree, Conductor
Sandy Cameron
UPCOMING CONCERTS
IMAGES COURTESY HEATH CERAMICS
The fi nal performance in our Great Hall before the COVID lockdown, in March 2020, was Joshua Bell and this magnificent chamber orchestra. Two years later they return, bringing us full circle with the sensational Bell making his 8th appearance at The Soraya to perform works by Florence Price, Dvôrak, and Mendelssohn.
TheSorayaStage | TheSoraya.org | (818) 677-3000
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D IN IN G
A FLAVORFUL DUET
DYLAN + JENI
Katianna and John Hong’s new Yangban Society in downtown’s Arts District. / by jenn tenaka /
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DYLAN + JENI
YANGBAN SOCIETY presents the flavors of K-town’s latenight street food through the lens of its married owner-chefs’ elevated cooking experience ... in the decidedly approachable atmosphere of a modern delicatessan.
Organic egg salad and accoutrements at Yangban Society
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The Arts District’s unassuming new deli and super—as in standalone “mini-mart”—is full of surprising juxtapositions. Katianna Hong trained at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY; John Hong grew up in Highland Park, north of Chicago. Both cooked at Michelin three-star restaurants; they were successive chefs de cuisine at the Restaurant at Meadowood in Napa Valley. John also cooked at Grant Achatz’s Alinea in Chicago. They met in the Michelin two-star kitchen at Mélisse in Santa Monica.
Katianna and John Hong. Right: dotori noodles.
Yet the duo shares an affinity for New York City delis—and they wanted a place of their own. In 2019, not long after the birth of their daughter, the pair tapped L.A.-based Folklor to bring their vision to fruition.
A side alley became a comfy outdoor dining space; the brown brick exterior remained. Inside, white-painted brick, hardwood and vibrant blues modernized the restaurant and gave it a nostalgic playfulness.
Yangban Society opened in January. The mini-mart is filled with Korean- and KoreanAmerican beauty products: face masks, bamboo toothbrushes and artisanal Et Toi Soap made exclusively for Yangban Society.
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Yangban Society outdoor dining and, right, chicken and sides.
As unlikely as it might sound, the eatery offers food that is both deliinspired and chef-driven. Hot smoked ocean trout schmear is tossed with freshly grated horseradish root, verdant pea leaves, crème fraîche and
lemon. Griddled potato bread, and garlic “buchu” fries with Parmesan cheese, are superb vehicles for more schmear. A baked sea bream with chili-daikon paste and toasted breadcrumbs melds Italian, Korean
and Californian flavors. House specialties include a Korean-Mexican-American kimchi pozole, a rich pork-belly stew that incorporates aged kimchi, assorted chilis and Rancho Gordo hominy. Like a banchan
side dish, chilled dotori acorn noodles—with roasted Korean seaweed, fried garlic, scallions, pickled perilla seeds and shirodashi vinaigrette—are perfect between slurps. Other sharable dishes include an ideal starter
HAL & JEANETTE SEGERSTROM FAMILY FOUNDATION CL ASSICAL SERIES
OTELLO By Giuseppe Verdi
Jealousy ...Betrayal ...Murder April 7, 9 & 12, 2022 • Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall
PORTRAIT, STAN LEE. FOOD IMAGES, DYLAN + JENI
Carl St.Clair, conductor • Robert Neu, stage director Pacific Chorale — Robert Istad, artistic director • Pacific Symphony
Verdi's great tragic opera embraces love, jealousy and villainy to its fullest effect. Written decades after going into retirement, Verdi’s interpretation of Shakespeare’s tale takes you on a journey through a passionate romance destroyed by one of opera’s most loathsome villains. Cast Includes
OTELLO Carl Tanner
DESDEMONA Kelebogile Besong
IAGO Stephen Powell
PACIFIC SYMPHONY PROUDLY PERFORMS AT:
PacificSymphony.org (714) 755-5799
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TOUGH AS NAILS. FUNNY AS HELL.
J J
Kimchi-pork belly pozole with Rancho Gordo hominy
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of honey-walnut carrots, glazed in garlic and soy then tossed with gochucandied walnuts, and a dish of mushrooms and bracken fern roasted in doenjang oil. The two desserts are both whimsical. Powdered-sugardusted potato donuts recall the conveniencestore snack devoured on family road trips. The soft-serve from Double 8 Dairy, made with Petaluma buffalo milk, conjures summer afternoons outside Tastee-Freez; you can top it with chocolate Korean rice cakes, crispy nurungji puffed rice or doenjang fermentedsoybean caramel. Both evoke childhood memories while pleasing the adult palate—another blend of two worlds, just as the Hongs intended. 712 S. Santa Fe Ave., downtown, 213.866,1987, yangbanla.com
R R
Th R Th Fi Th Fi Fi
T T B T B B
A A Li A Li
Fe Li Fe in Fe in in
DYLAN + JENI
Written by and Starring
BRETT MITCHELL, conductor ALDO LÓPEZ-GAVILÁN, piano
re re re
D
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We Weare areso so We are so
EXCITED EXCITED to towelcome welcomeyou! you! to welcome you! to welcome you!
CAP for performance, CAPUCLA, UCLA,your yourhome homefor forcontemporary contemporaryperformance, performance, CAP UCLA, your home contemporary CAP UCLA, your home for contemporary performance, returns this spring to Royce Hall and The Theatre at Ace Hotel. returns this spring to Royce Hall and The Theatre at Ace Hotel. returns returns this this spring spring to to Royce Royce Hall Hall and and The TheTheatre Theatreat atAce AceHotel. Hotel.
Join Join us us Join us
cap.ucla.edu cap.ucla.edu cap.ucla.edu cap.ucla.edu TICKETS TICKETSON ONSALE SALENOW! NOW! TICKETS ON SALE NOW! TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
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JENNIFER JENNIFERKOH KOH& JENNIFER KOH && DA VÓNE TINES DA VÓNE TINES JENNIFER KOH CONTEMPORARY DA VÓNE TINES & CONTEMPORARY CONTEMPORARY Everything Rises CLASSICAL Everything Rises CLASSICAL DA VÓNE TINES CONTEMPORARY Everything Rises CLASSICAL
RONALD RONALDK. K.BROWN BROWN RONALD K. BROWN
The Equality ofof Night and Day: The Equality Night and Day: RONALD BROWN The Equality of K. Night and Day: First Glimpse and Upside Down First Glimpse and Upside Down The Equality of Night and Day: First Glimpse and Upside Down First Glimpse and Upside Down
Everything Rises
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CONTEMPORARY CONTEMPORARY CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL CLASSICAL CLASSICAL CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL
ANTHONY ANTHONYDE DEMARE MARE ANTHONY DE MARE Liaisons: Re-Imagining from the Piano Liaisons: Re-Imagining Sondheim from the Piano ANTHONY DESondheim MARE Liaisons: Re-Imagining Sondheim from the Piano Featuring the new 2020 Commissions Featuring the new 2020 Commissions Liaisons: Re-Imagining Sondheim from the Piano Featuring the new 2020 Commissions in honor of Sondheim’s 90th birthday in honor of Sondheim’s 90th birthday Featuring new 202090th Commissions in honor ofthe Sondheim’s birthday in honor of Sondheim’s 90th birthday
DYLAN + JENI
GLOBAL GLOBAL GLOBAL MUSIC MUSIC MUSIC GLOBAL MUSIC
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GLOBAL GLOBAL GLOBAL MUSIC MUSIC GLOBAL MUSIC MUSIC
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FEATURE CONT’D. FROM PAGE 15
the space where you can do the performance you’ve dreamed of,” Sellars says. Composer Reena Esmail, the chorale’s artist in residence, has worked with many choruses; she admires this one’s “incredibly accomplished singers—such a large group yet so translucent and so flexible.” When Gershon joined the chorus in 2001, it already had a fine reputation that began with its founding in 1964. But with the opening of Disney Hall just a few years off, and with the Los Angeles Philharmonic propelling audiences in new directions under music director Esa-Pekka Salonen, the Los Angeles classical scene was on the verge of something new. The Master Chorale turned to Salonen’s former assistant director, Gershon. “I came in with a mandate to commission
Grant Gershon at Walt Disney Concert Hall, home of the Los Angeles Master Choral and, below, with director Peter Sellars
more pieces, to stretch the virtuosity of the ensemble and to bring our audience forward— literally into the 21st century,” Gershon recalls. The proof is in the highlights: During Gershon’s tenure the Master Chorale has premiered 66 new works, among them 45 world premieres and 38 commissions in Los Angeles and other cities. In 2017, the group was inducted into the Classical Music Hall of Fame.
Its 15 albums are both its own and collaborations. This year brought a Grammy nomination for best choral performance: “Mahler: Symphony No. 8, ‘Symphony of a Thousand,’” with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Composer John Williams requested that the Master Chorale perform on the soundtracks for the films Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, two of the 18 soundtracks it has recorded. Gershon began expanding the group’s repertory with his debut performance in September 2001 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, which featured Philip Glass’ massive and minimalist Itaipu. Gershon
knew that audiences were apprehensive or skeptical of the modern work. But minds changed quickly. “Over and over again— not just that night, but over the next months— people would contact us to say their favorite piece ended up being the Philip Glass,” Gershon recalls. A key to reaching the audience with new works, Gershon says, is a trust that goes both ways. “We make sure that every performance we give is invested with the highest artistic standards and the highest emotional commitment to communication,” he says. “You want to open doors and open windows.” Gershon blazed his own trail to lead a chorus;
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2003 promotional shot of Gershon and the chorale on the Music Center Plaza
it was an unlikely journey for a young pianist with no plans to conduct and no formal training for a job that he describes as one you can’t really practice on your own. Born 61 years ago in Alhambra, Gershon started playing piano at age 5. In high school he discovered his love for choral singing. He studied piano and voice at Chapman College (now Chapman University) in Orange, then transferred to USC, where he earned a bachelor of music degree in piano performance. Jobs as rehearsal pianist and vocal coach for Los Angeles Opera and as principal pianist for the L.A. Phil led him on the conducting path. It culminated during the L.A. Phil’s residency at the Salzburg Festival in 1992.
He was tapped as vocal coach and rehearsal pianist for Sellars’ production of Messiaen’s challenging opera St. Francis of Assisi. Rehearsing with vocalists Dawn Upshaw and José van Dam, Sellars recalls, “Grant just revealed the piece.” Clearly, he left an impression. “There was a cast party after opening night,” Gershon told music writer John Henken. “Everybody was rather delirious. Both Esa-Pekka and [the orchestra’s managing director] Ernest Fleischmann took me aside and told me that they thought I was really cut out to be a conductor. “I floated about 20 feet above the ground that night.” Soon after, Salonen became Gershon’s
mentor and provided him the opportunity to conduct. His debut, in 1994, happened abruptly when Salonen’s wife went into labor. Gershon stepped before the L.A. Phil and led a program of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony, Steven Stucky’s Funeral Music for Queen Mary and SaintSaëns’ Violin Concerto. “It was truly, truly terrifying,” Gershon recalls. “I survived it somehow and was a bit foolish enough
to keep going after that.” Frightening though it might have been, he says everything he’d done previously led to that moment—and to his conducting career. “I feel like as a pianist, as a singer and working in opera was all training— not training in waving my arms around but in everything else, in listening and communicating, in experiencing music firsthand.” In 2020 the Master Chorale announced that it extended Gershon’s contract as the Kiki & David Gindler Artistic Director through its 202425 season. This season, he concludes a 15-season relationship with L.A. Opera, most recently as its resident conductor; he remains an in-demand conductor for other choruses and operas. The Chorale also announced that it would program at least half of each season with works by composers from historically underrepresented groups in classical
Grant Gershon with the chorale’s then-president/CEO Terry Knowles and conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen
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music, composers whom Gershon and the chorale have long championed. Esmail, who composes Indian and Western classical music, values Gershon’s broad perspective, his embrace of a wide range of music. “When he comes into something, you don’t get the sense that he is ‘The Maestro,’” she says, “you get the sense that he’s the listener, he’s the observer.” With the chorale’s pledge for new voices, Gershon says audiences can expect to hear unexplored voices from today and long ago. “It’s a combination of fostering new music, new composers and emerging voices, but also looking through the canon of the last 100, 200 years and seeing who has been excluded,” he says. “We’re approaching this with a sense of adventure and a sense of joy.” The adventure continues for Gershon, who reflects in wonder at who he was in those early days. “I feel like it’s a constant journey,” he says. “When I look back 20 years ago, I can’t believe I could even get through a concert, because I’ve learned so much in the intervening time. Now, he adds with a laugh, “I almost feel like I know what I’m doing.”
All details on the website
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PARTIN G TH O U G H T
reprogra mmed! Performances Magazine unveils a digital program platform for shows and concerts
DROP DOWN MENU Table of app contents.
SEARCH Find whatever it is you want to know—easily.
REGISTER Stay arts-engaged, access past programs.
SIGN IN Link to your performing-arts companies and venues.
THE ESSENTIALS Acts, scenes, synopses, repertory and notes.
THE PLAYERS Bios and background for cast, crew and creators.
CONTRIBUTORS Donors and sponsors who make it all possible—you!
The touchless platform provides cast and player bios, donor and season updates and arts-centric features. Audiences receive a link and code word that instantly activate the app; QR codes are posted, too. Screens go dark when curtains rise and return with the house lights. Updates—repertory changes, understudy substitutions, significant donations—can be made right up to showtime, no inserts necessary. Other features include video and audio streams, translations and expanded biographies.
For those who consider printed programs keepsakes, a limited number, as well as commemorative issues for special events, will continue to be produced. Collectibles! Meanwhile, there will be less deforestation, consumption of petroleum inks and programs headed for landfills. For the ecologically minded, the platform gets a standing ovation. Theaters and concert halls are reopening after a long intermission. The stage is set, excitement is mounting. Activate your link and enjoy the shows. —CALEB WACHS
COURTESY L.A. PHIL
NO RUSTLING PAGES, no killing trees.... Of all the innovations to have come out of the pandemic, the new Performances program platform, accessed on any digital device, may be least likely to disappear in the foreseeable future. Not only has its time come—it was long overdue. Performances provides the programs for 20 SoCal performingarts organizations, from the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Ahmanson to San Diego Opera, where the app made its debut.
WHAT’S ON What’s coming at a glance and ticket information.
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