Making theater fans for life starts with great shows for kids
I have an admission to make: I recently cried during a matinee of “Cat Kid Comic Club: The Musical” at Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver…
Things to do in Los Angeles this weekend: art, music, theater
During The Times’ Actors Roundtable, Adrien Brody gorgeously shared how his mother has “guided me in my understanding of art and the yearning to leave…
Netflix’s ‘Maria’ and Angelina Jolie get Maria Callas all wrong
Here we go again.In Hollywood’s ongoing cheerless attempts to contest the joy of music by cutting stellar classical musicians down to size, “Maria” joins the…
Yuval Sharon steps down as artistic director of the Industry
In what could be considered the end of an era, the Industry on Thursday announced that Yuval Sharon will step down as artistic director of…
Give the gift of homemade arts and crafts this holiday season
It’s December and the holidays are in full swing — as is the relentless consumerism, which always fills me with unease. The way I’m expected…
‘Maria’ review: Jolie’s Callas is a chilly one-note bore
Maria Callas seized fame as the voice of Tosca, Medea and Carmen, opera’s eternally doomed heroines. If opera still commands audiences a century from now,…
Natural History Museum news; plus L.A. arts and culture this week
Exposition Park got a boost last week when the Natural History Museum opened its new 75,000-square-foot welcome center. NHM Commons, the new glass-walled entrance and…
‘Little Women Ballet’ and more Los Angeles arts events this weekend
Happy “Wicked” week, Essential Arts readers! The film adaptation of the long-running Broadway musical arrives in theaters this weekend. I’m staff writer Ashley Lee, who’s…
‘Waiting for Godot,’ ‘Star Wars’ in concert, Usher and more LA arts
The crowd was jubilant on the opening night of “Waiting for Godot” at the Geffen Playhouse last Thursday. Starring Aasif Mandvi and Rainn Wilson, Samuel…
‘Kiss Me, Kate’ screenings and more L.A. arts events this weekend
This weekend’s Essential Arts events are all about big screens and bold ideas. I’m staff writer Ashley Lee, here with my colleague Jessica Gelt to…
3 wins for L.A. Opera, Pacific Opera Project, Independent Opera
If Los Angeles has a reputation for opera, it is as an outlier, a city freed from encrusted tradition and eager to invent. Long Beach…
How the costumes on ‘Elsbeth’ are used to disarm the unsuspecting
Given her fondness for hot pink outerwear, it is unlikely that Elsbeth Tascioni (Carrie Preston) has garments in her closet bearing any resemblance to Lt.…
Where to watch the John Williams documentary in Dolby Atmos
Happy November, Essential Arts readers! This weekend’s top picks for things to do are all about the music. I’m staff writer Ashley Lee, here with…
L.A. Opera’s ‘Spanish Dracula’ and more Los Angeles arts events
While the weekend is once again upon us, I can’t stop thinking about an intimate, site-specific, one-night-only performance I experienced last weekend. Before I jump…
Gustavo Santaolalla gives Spanish ‘Dracula’ new life for L.A. Opera
When L.A. Opera invited Gustavo Santaolalla to write a new score for the Spanish version of the 1931 film “Dracula” to be performed live with…
Goth opera ‘Black Lodge’ invokes David Lynch, William S. Burroughs
“Black Lodge” is maybe a lot of things or maybe not. It calls itself an opera and was a finalist for a Grammy this year…
Stroll through history at Caltech for PST Art: L.A. arts and culture this week
PST Art presents city dwellers with the opportunity to head to places they haven’t been, particularly when it comes to exhibits staged at organizations not…
The best arts events in Los Angeles this weekend
“Warriors,” Lin-Manuel Miranda and Eisa Davis’ concept album inspired by the 1979 cult hit movie and Sol Yurick’s 1965 novel of the same name, debuts…
American Contemporary Ballet and more Los Angeles arts events
It’s time for another edition of Essential Arts, the newsletter for readers who take the arts seriously (unfortunately, not everyone does). I’m staff writer Ashley…
Henry Winkler helps Hammer Museum throws an art party for kids
The Hammer Museum raised $230,000 in support of its free Hammer Kids programs through the 15th Kids Art Museum Project (K.A.M.P.), held in the museum’s…