CultureVulture « Cities

Phylicia Rashad. Photo by Craig Schwartz.

Head of Passes

An African-American saga.

Karen Weinstein Theater September 30, 2017 Los Angeles,

What on earth does “Head of Passes” mean? Let us clear that up quickly. It is the mouth of the Mississippi River, a desolate wetland where the river breaks into three branches as it empties into the Gulf of Mexico. ...

The Red Shoes

Quirky, classic Matthew Bourne

Karen Weinstein Dance September 23, 2017 Los Angeles,

I have never felt that ballet was a very successful medium for telling a story. To convey emotion? It works. For the set up of a situation? Sure. But details that push the story forward become exaggerated pantomime. Therefore, I ...

L-R: Tom Phelan, Kecia Lewis, Wendie Malick, Brian Hutchison, Max Jenkins and Luke Macfarlane . Photo: Craig Schwartz.

Big Night

Matt Damon for Best Supporting Actor?

Karen Weinstein Theater September 21, 2017 Los Angeles,

Say: Paul Rudnick. What do you think of? Most likely The New Yorker column, “Shouts and Murmurs,” to which he is a frequent contributor. So your expectation is lots of toss-off, funny one liners, right? Well, “Big Night” has many ...

Carmen

An LAOpera import from Teatro Real, Madrid

Karen Weinstein Music September 15, 2017 Los Angeles,

The battle lines are drawn. On the one side there are the opera snobs who label “Carmen” as that “chestnut.” On the other, there are the thousands who fill halls when “Carmen” plays. The beautiful and melodic score, and the ...

Adam Langdon as Christopher Boone (center). Photo by Joan Marcus.

The Curious Incident of The Dog in The Night-Time

A National Theatre production at the Ahmanson

Karen Weinstein Theater August 8, 2017 Los Angeles,

If “The Curious Incident of The Dog in The Night-Time” were not such terrific theater it would be worth going to see in order to understand what the world looks like through the eyes of an adolescent with Asperger’s, the ...

Archduke

World War I is off to a flying start.

Karen Weinstein Theater May 13, 2017 Los Angeles,

“Bang. You’re dead.” It is June 28, 1914; Gavrilo Princip shoots the Archduke Ferdinand and his wife. World War I is off to a flying start. Or that is the impression one gets from grammar school textbooks. Of course history ...

Sondra Rodvanovsky as Tosca, Ambrogio Maestri as Scarpio, Photo by Ken Howard

Tosca, LAOpera

Karen Weinstein Music May 1, 2017 Los Angeles,

“Tosca” … it is Puccini … what’s not to like? True, and it is probably his best opera. But LAOpera’s current production is a “Tosca” to love, not simply like. With glorious voices that are every bit a match for ...

Into The Woods

A Fiasco Theater production at the Ahmanson, LA.

Karen Weinstein Theater April 10, 2017 Los Angeles,

A confession is in order. I love Sondheim. I adored “Into The Woods” when it was presented by The Oregon Shakespeare Company at the Wallis in 2014. I rushed to take grandchildren to the 2015 film with Meryl Streep. I ...

Salome

Patricia Racette stars in this LA Opera Production.

Karen Weinstein Music March 1, 2017 Los Angeles,

Whether your orientation is religious or secular, if your culture is western the name Salome probably conjures up images of seduction and grisly obsession. She is depicted in the bible. She is seen frequently in European painting. The gruesome image ...

The Abduction from the Seraglio

LAOpera

Karen Weinstein Music January 31, 2017 Los Angeles,

Opera folks have their quibbles. There are those who want a classic staging, just as audiences would have seen at the times the operas were written. The fewer liberties, the better. And then there are those who believe resetting the ...