Live music and theater in L.A. will happen outdoors in summer. But it won't be easy by Jessica Gelt

Theaters and other arts groups big and small scramble to make COVID-safe plans, but in many cases the rules are still murky.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 6:09am on March 25, 2021☆⚑

Live theater was left out of California's COVID-19 plan. But now it gets guidelines by Jessica Gelt

Indoor theater will remain closed even as counties move from red to orange to yellow tier, and the state spells out capacity limits for outdoor stages.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 6:08am on March 13, 2021☆⚑

She was hired to play at the Grammys with Lizzo. Then everything changed by Jessica Gelt

She performed with Lizzo and Titus Burgess and got hired for a Broadway musical, but then came COVID-19. Kyra Sims joins classical musicians from both coasts sharing their stories of struggl…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 5:39pm on March 11, 2021☆⚑

There are tough choices facing cash-strapped musicians. An L.A. gig artist explains by Jessica Gelt

Corinne Olsen, a gig artist who's part of L.A.'s so-called Freeway Philharmonic, talks about the tough choices facing cash-strapped musicians. She's one of 11 voices from both coasts sharing…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 5:39pm on March 11, 2021☆⚑

How Broadway's delayed reopening affects classical musicians like her by Jessica Gelt

Violinist Melissa Tong landed her dream job playing a Broadway musical when the pandemic became the ultimate showstopper. She's one of 11 classical musicians from both coasts sharing their s…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 5:39pm on March 11, 2021☆⚑

Fountain Theatre's first play on its pandemic outdoor stage? 'An Octoroon' by Jessica Gelt

The Fountain in East Hollywood will mount Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' acclaimed satire 'An Octoroon' on an outdoor stage. Target opening: June.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 6:55pm on March 9, 2021☆⚑

L.A. Phil and Hollywood Bowl leader is leaving for the Boston Symphony Orchestra by Jessica Gelt

Gail Samuel, president of the Hollywood Bowl and chief operating officer of the L.A. Phil, will be the first female leader of the 140-year-old BSO.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:00pm on February 18, 2021☆⚑

San Francisco Opera to launch live drive-in performances this spring but not in S.F. by Jessica Gelt

S.F. Opera bets on spring to launch drive-in performances, including a new 'Barber of Seville.' But San Franciscans will have to cross the Golden Gate to see them.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 7:26am on February 17, 2021☆⚑

How this drag performer is trying to save regional theater, one cocktail at a time by Jessica Gelt

Kris Andersson, star of 'Dixie's Happy Hour,' aims to bring much-needed cash to 21 pandemic-hit arts centers, including Segerstrom in Costa Mesa.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 7:14am on February 11, 2021☆⚑

Center Theatre Group raises $700,000 on Zoom with RWQuarantunes party by Jessica Gelt

Lin-Manuel Miranda, John Legend, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Dolly Parton lend their pandemic support to L.A.'s largest nonprofit theater.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:29pm on February 5, 2021☆⚑

Not a drive-in: An L.A. theater gets city approval for an outdoor stage by Jessica Gelt

The Fountain in East Hollywood gets city permission to turn its parking lot into an outdoor theater with distanced seating for up to 84 people.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 6:08am on January 13, 2021☆⚑

Reactions to Ali Stroker's historic Tony Awards win will make your heart soar by Jessica Gelt

When Ali Stroker rolled onstage in her wheelchair to accept the Tony Award for featured actress in a musical, audiences at home went bananas. As Ado Annie in director Daniel Fish's revival o…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:05am on June 12, 2019☆⚑

Tony winner Rachel Chavkin of 'Hadestown' on being a woman alone by Jessica Gelt

Rachel Chavkin was glad to win the Tony Award for best director of a musical for "Hadestown" at the Tony Awards on Sunday night, but made it clear that she was profoundly unhappy about the l…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:05am on June 12, 2019☆⚑

Herb Alpert Award names five winners who will get $75,000 each to push their art forward by Jessica Gelt

A playwright exploring the Asian American experience and a film and video artist who addresses the representation of Puerto Ricans in culture are among the five people who will receive $75,0…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 6:35pm on May 15, 2019☆⚑

'What the Constitution Means to Me' will come to L.A.'s Mark Taper Forum in 2020 by Jessica Gelt

"What the Constitution Means to Me," Heidi Schreck's Tony Award-nominated play that has Broadway buzzing, will come to Los Angeles as part of the 2019-20 season lineup at the Mark Taper Foru…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 8:44am on May 3, 2019☆⚑

Center Theatre Group names its first female managing director by Jessica Gelt

Center Theatre Group announced Monday that Meghan Pressman will be its next managing director and CEO, making her the first female managing director in the nonprofit company's 52-year histor…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 3:00pm on April 8, 2019☆⚑

Why the Gay Men's Chorus of L.A. is singing for survival by Jessica Gelt

Gary Hayashi thought that if he could just get close enough to God, he would be cured. Hayashi was not like other men he knew at church, and he certainly wasn't like his older brother, whom …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:00am on April 4, 2019☆⚑

'The Little Mermaid' live at the Hollywood Bowl with Lea Michele and Cheech Marin by Jessica Gelt

Disney's "The Little Mermaid" live concert is set to return to the Hollywood Bowl next month just in time for the film's 30th anniversary, with Lea Michele as golden-voiced mermaid Ariel, Ch…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:00am on April 1, 2019☆⚑

Ahmanson 2019-20 season: 'Once on This Island,' Bourne's 'Swan Lake' and Mike Birbiglia by Jessica Gelt

"Once on This Island," the underdog Tony Award winner last year for best musical revival, will lend some Caribbean sunshine to the 2019-20 Ahmanson Theatre season to be announced Friday by C…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 1:00pm on March 1, 2019☆⚑

LeBron James is now theater: Playwright Rajiv Joseph turns Laker's story into 'King James' by Jessica Gelt

Lakers star LeBron James and his impact on the city of Cleveland during his run with the Cavaliers will be the subject of the new play "King James," written by Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:00pm on February 28, 2019☆⚑

The Oscars may be over at the Dolby Theatre, but 'The Band's Visit' and 'Mean Girls' are coming by Jessica Gelt

The Oscars may be over, but the Dolby Theatre is just getting started. For the first time, the 3,400-seat home of the Academy Awards will host a full slate of touring Broadway productions, i…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 1:00pm on February 25, 2019☆⚑

Nudity in the theater? The actresses in 'Linda Vista' have it covered by Jessica Gelt

In the darkly comic play "Linda Vista" at the Mark Taper Forum, three lead actors get naked. Not semi-naked, but totally naked. And not to take a bath or get dressed, but in service of some …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 2:00pm on February 14, 2019☆⚑

Nudity in the theater? The actors of 'Linda Vista' have it covered by Jessica Gelt

Nudity in "Linda Vista" at the Mark Taper Forum is so abundant, actors can hear the audience gasp when it begins. Lead actresses Cora Chantal Thuy and Cora Vander Broek, director Dexter Bull…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 2:00pm on February 14, 2019☆⚑

Hollywood Bowl 2019 lineup: John Legend, Hugh Jackman, Cyndi Lauper and, yes, Harry Potter by Jessica Gelt

If you love pop-driven R&B, singer-songwriter John Legend will headline opening night of the Hollywood Bowl's 2019 season. Fan of Hugh Jackman's boisterous brand of musical theater? The Tony…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:00am on February 5, 2019☆⚑

'Hamilton' Puerto Rico actors talk about a musical with a mission, and the job of impressing Lin-Manuel Miranda by Jessica Gelt

It didn't take long for Donald Webber Jr. to hear about the hardships endured by residents of Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, the monster storm that ravaged the island in late 2017. The t…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 1:20pm on January 16, 2019☆⚑