L.A. Opera board adds Keith Leonard, Courtney Reum by David Ng

Los Angeles Opera is adding two prominent members of the local business community to its board of directors.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Glenn Close heading back to 'Sunset Boulevard,' this time in London by David Ng

Glenn Close began her journey down "Sunset Boulevard" in 1993, with a production in Los Angeles that eventually catapulted her and the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical to Broadway, where th…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

'In Your Arms' a pleasing, sketch-heavy dance-musical at the Old Globe by Charles McNulty

"In Your Arms," the audience-pleasing new dance musical receiving its world premiere at the Old Globe, seems designed, packaged and market-tested for Broadway.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Brian Friel dies at 86; 'Irish Chekhov' won Tony for 'Dancing at Lughnasa' by David Ng

Brian Friel was never a household name, but within the theater world, and especially among Irish actors, the playwright was a beloved figure whose poetically loquacious dramas provi…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Eccentric French 'Dragons' exhibits commendable humility by Charles McNulty

The most tantalizing aspect of "La Mélancolie des Dragons," an eccentric performance work by French artist and director Philippe Quesne, is the gentle camaraderie of the longhaired heavy-me…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

It's a tame 'One Man, Two Guvnors' at South Coast Repertory by Charles McNulty

Commedia dell'arte meets British farce: In "One Man, Two Guvnors," Richard Bean gives Carlo Goldoni's 18th century comedy "The Servant of Two Masters" the Benny Hill treatment.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Each person is a mystery in East West Players' lively 'Chinglish' by Daryl H. Miller

"Use at your own risk," the local vice minister of culture says enigmatically to an Ohio businessman seeking a contract in China.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Revival of 'The Baker's Wife' wafts freshly baked aromas at Actors Co-op by Daryl H. Miller

Among theater geeks, "The Baker's Wife" is a sort of merit badge. Top marks to the person who can sing "Meadowlark," the show's ravishing mini-musical of a ballad, from memory -- and bonus p…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Eloisa Maturen working with Gustavo Dudamel, Frank Gehry on 'Ay Carmela' by David Ng

Eloisa Maturén, the wife of conductor Gustavo Dudamel, will star in a Los Angeles stage production of the popular Spanish play "Ay Carmela!" that will feature music by her husband and sets …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

'Amélie's' magical bread crumbs lead to storybook ending in musical's Berkeley premiere by Charles McNulty

"Amélie," the new musical based on the offbeat 2001 French film that made a star out of a pixieish Audrey Tautou, does more than translate for an American audience the tale of a minor mirac…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:09pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Danny Elfman adds 2nd 'Nightmare Before Christmas' concert at Hollywood Bowl by David Ng

When Danny Elfman announced last week a Halloween concert at the Hollywood Bowl, tickets for the event sold out in a matter of hours. In response to the demand, the film composer has added a…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

'Best of Enemies' in Burbank: Racial fireworks explode from the stage by David C. Nichols

Two weeks remain to catch "The Best of Enemies" in its West Coast premiere at the Colony Theatre in Burbank. The production is mandatory viewing for anyone who values the stage's ability to …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

David Geffen unveils David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center in New York by David Ng

Officials at Lincoln Center in New York bade farewell to Avery Fisher Hall on Thursday, formally renaming the storied classical music venue David Geffen Hall in recognition of the enterta…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

MacArthur 'genius' grant to 'Hamilton' creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and 23 others by Mike Boehm

The MacArthur Foundation has given its "genius grant" imprimatur for 2015 to six visual and performing artists, ranging from the current darling of the Broadway stage -- "Hamilton" composer …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

'Vietgone' is a journey of intersecting lives after the fall of Saigon by Charles McNulty

The program for South Coast Repertory's production of Qui Nguyen's "Vietgone," which is having its world premiere in Costa Mesa, has some interesting biographical tidbits about the author th…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Benedict Cumberbatch in 'Hamlet': Where to watch it in Southern California by David Ng

Fans of Benedict Cumberbatch who missed out on tickets to his London stage performance in "Hamlet" will have the opportunity to catch the British actor in Shakespeare's most famous pla…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Wallis Annenberg Center names Paul Crewes as artistic director by David Ng

The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills has reached unusually far afield to find its new artistic director. All the way the Cornwall, England, to be exact.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Toni Morrison's ghostly 'Desdemona' blends words and music in lyrical revision of Shakespeare by Charles McNulty

From the merest suggestion in Shakespeare's "Othello" that Desdemona may have had an African maid as a girl, Toni Morrison imagines hidden dimensions in the mind and heart of the Senator's d…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Gustavo Dudamel makes his case for keeping quiet on Venezuelan politics by David Ng

As the Los Angeles Philharmonic prepares for its season-opening gala concert on Tuesday at Walt Disney Concert Hall, music director Gustavo Dudamel has taken the unusual step of penning a…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Walt Disney Family Museum to hold first gala, honoring Richard Sherman by David Ng

The glitzy gala is a familiar fundraising tool among prominent museums across the country. Starting next month, the Walt Disney Family Museum will get into the tradition with a bash…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 12:08pm on October 15, 2015☆⚑

That offer asking theaters to pony up $150 for pay-to-play reviews falls flat in L.A. by Mike Boehm

A Los Angeles theater website's controversial but novel bid to prop up one of the 21st century's dwindling occupations " professional theater criticism " has failed to take hold, with few th…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:33am on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Tonys 2015: Scott Rudin, Harvey Weinstein give their regards to Broadway by David Ng

In the battle of the alpha movie producers on Broadway, the winner on Sunday was as obvious as Alan Cumming's Scottish brogue. Actually, there was really no contest at all.  Scott R…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:26am on October 15, 2015☆⚑

James Earl Jones, Cicely Tyson back on Broadway in 'Gin Game' by Rebecca Keegan

NEW YORK " At the top of several steep flights of stairs behind the stage at Broadway's Golden Theatre, an unmistakable baritone voice boomed out of a dressing room door. "Are you feeling th…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:26am on October 15, 2015☆⚑

'Spring Awakening' from Deaf West wins critical praise on Broadway by David Ng

The lights of Broadway are a world away from the small theater space at Inner-City Arts in Los Angeles where Deaf West Theatre's staging of "Spring Awakening" began its life a year ago.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:26am on October 15, 2015☆⚑

Clive Owen and Sam Rockwell hit Broadway in 'Old Times' and 'Fool for Love' with different results by Charles McNulty

Funny the way success renders yesterday's avant-garde palatable to today's mainstream. Harold Pinter and Sam Shepard, once bewildering to theatergoers addicted to stories with a beginning, m…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:26am on October 15, 2015☆⚑