Center Theatre Group News & Blogs

The latest in LA’s art scene

Thu, 26 Jun 2014 00:00:00 -0700

The latest in LA’s art scene

What’s happening in the city? Read about what L.A. officials are doing for the arts.

1. Garcetti picks Danielle Brazell to lead L.A.’s culture department by Mike Boehm [LATimes.com]
June 19, 2014

"Danielle Brazell, whose job over the past eight years has included regularly prodding City Hall to spend more money and pay more attention to L.A.’s nonprofit arts scene, has been nominated by Mayor Eric Garcetti
to take charge of the Department of Cultural Affairs ... "

2. LA Creating and Saving Murals from the Eastside to Venice by Neal Broverman [LA.Curbed.com]
June 25, 2014

"The LA City Council this week ok'd $750,000 to preserve and create new murals throughout the city ... with about half the money going to upkeep and the rest to the creation of new art. ... "

3. Supervisor Molina starts new foundation to oversee Grand Park by Mike Boehm [LATimes.com]
June 25, 2014

"Buried inside the $86.7-million arts and culture budget the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved this week for the coming 2014-15 fiscal year is a $1-million start-up fund that could have a far-reaching effect on … Grand Park."

4. LACMA redesign avoids tarpits, creates challenges by Christopher Hawthorne [LATimes.com]
June 24, 2014

"Architect Peter Zumthor has dramatically revised his design for a new Los Angeles County Museum of Art, creating a new bridge-like section of the building that would span Wilshire Boulevard. ..."

5. L.A. Mayor Tries to Convince George Lucas to Build Museum [in L.A.] by Victoria McNally [TheMarySue.com]
June 25, 2014

"Garcetti, with the help of a special @WhyLucasInLA Twitter account, kicked off the [#WhyLucasInLA] last-minute campaign with a series of tweets explaining why L.A. would be the perfect place for the Lucas Cultural Arts Museum. ..."

CTG announces the 11th mainstage season at Kirk Douglas Theatre

Fri, 20 Jun 2014 00:00:00 -0700

CTG announces the 11th mainstage season at Kirk Douglas Theatre

The Kirk Douglas 2014-2015 Theatre season pushes boundaries with 10 powerful and stimulating events, comprised of both our mainstage and DouglasPlus productions. The mainstage season, beginning August 31, brings us four compelling works, from Pulitzer Prize-winner David Mamet’s critically acclaimed Race to Todd Almond and Matthew Sweet's charming musical Girlfriend.

MAINSTAGE SEASON

David Mamet’s Provocative Showstopper

RACE

In David Mamet’s explosive tale Race, two lawyers find themselves defending a wealthy white executive charged with sexually assaulting a black woman. When a new legal assistant gets involved in the case, the opinions that boil beneath explode to the surface.

Race fosters critical dialogue on “the ethnic varieties of shame and universal nature of guilt [and] should offer ample nutrition for many a post-theatre dinner conversation,” according to The New York Times.

DID YOU KNOW? David Mamet was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for Glengarry Glen Ross, for which he later wrote the screenplay. Having directed 10 films, Mamet is a veteran of both stage and screen.

_Race _will run August 31 through September 28, 2014.

Rebecca Gilman's Critically Acclaimed World Premiere GoodmanTheatre Production

LUNA GALE

Luna Gale explores with profound humanity the issues of faith, family and one child’s uncertain future. Veteran social worker Caroline thinks she has a typical case on her hands when she meets Peter and Karlie, two teenage drug addicts accused of neglecting their baby, Luna Gale. But Caroline sparks a family conflict that exposes a shadowy past when she places Luna in the care of Karlie’s religious mother and is forced to make a risky decision with potentially life-altering consequences.

DID YOU KNOW? Rebecca Gilman’s work has garnered many accolades for the playwright, including the Guggenheim Fellowship, the Harper Lee Award, the Scott McPherson Award, and the Theater Masters Visionary Award, among others.

Luna Gale will run November 23 through December 21, 2014.

A ‘Remix’ of a Culture Clash Hit

CHAVEZ RAVINE

Culture Clash returns to CTG with a new version of their popular Chavez Ravine. Energized with new material and music from the Rodarte Brothers, Culture Clash examines the changing landscape of urban Los Angeles — in particular, the transformation of a tightly knit neighborhood into what was initially to be a low-income housing project, but eventually became Dodger Stadium.

DID YOU KNOW? Founded in 1984, Culture Clash is celebrating its 30th year of bold and fun theatre-making. The group, which consists of Richard Montoya, Ric Salinas and Herbert Sigüenza, wrote, executive-produced and starred in 30 episodes of the first Latino-themed sketch comedy show, Culture Clash the T.V. Show for Fox Broadcasting.

Chavez Ravine will run January 27 through March 1, 2015.

Todd Almond and Matthew Sweet’s Musical Charmer

GIRLFRIEND

Set to irresistible songs from Matthew Sweet’s landmark pop album of the same name, the rock musical _Girlfriend _gives voice to those who grew up in small towns, to those who didn’t quite fit in, and to everyone who remembers the terror and thrill of first love.

The musical, which takes place in Nebraska during the 1990s, follows two teenage boys — one a social outcast, the other the quintessential jock — who explore a relationship during a summer of self-discovery between high school graduation and the rest of their lives.

DID YOU KNOW? Todd Almond, who wrote the book for Girlfriend, recently wrote the music for Sarah Ruhl’s Stage Kiss at Playwrights Horizons.

Girlfriend will run July 12 through August 9, 2015.

In addition, the DouglasPlus season, beginning July 13, includes an eclectic mix of theatre choices, ranging from staged events to workshops and readings.

The 2014-2015 Kirk Douglas Theatre mainstage season begins August 31, 2014, and runs through August 9, 2015. For more information, visit Center Theatre Group's website.

Women take theatre: from script to stage

Fri, 20 Jun 2014 00:00:00 -0700

Women take theatre: from script to stage

In this week’s theatre digest, learn how women are rewriting theatre and taking the stage by storm.

THE KILROYS AND 'THE LIST'

1. Here Are 46 Female-Authored Plays That Deserve Your Attention by Katherine Brooks [HuffingtonPost.com]
June 17, 2014

"In a public document posted online, the 'gang of playwrights and producers in LA who are done talking about gender parity' [the Kilroys] showcased a list of 46 female-authored plays that leave no room for ambiguity. ..."

2. Theatre makers act on gender parity by Richard Watts [ArtsHub.com.au]
June 20, 2014

"The list of plays was generated by surveying 127 influential American theatre-makers ... [who] had read or seen at least 40 new works in the last year and who then voted for the best work they had encountered in the past year. ..."

Note: CTG's literary associate and artistic engagement strategist Joy Meads is a member of The Kilroys and was involved in this project!

WOMEN PLAYWRIGHTS TAKE THE STAGE

3. Sex, Violence and Power, With a Feminist Slant by Alexis Soloski [NYTimes.com]
June 12, 2014

"[According to playwright Penelope] Skinner ... female playwrights are still the exception rather than the rule. The typical playwright 'is a man in glasses wearing a suit jacket,' she said, speaking at a Brooklyn cafe during previews. 'I’m never going to be him.' ... "

4. Women Are Missing From Tonys and Broadway by Lynn Nottage [NYTimes.com]
June 6, 2014

"Broadway is a closed ecosystem. As Theresa Rebeck noted in The Dramatist recently, not a single new Broadway play this season was written by a woman or person of color ... "

5. Where are all the women playwrights on Broadway? They’re too busy writing all the best plays for Off Broadway [PortlandTheatreScene.com]
June 12, 2014

"Broadway is the Walmart of theatre ... the good news is that when it comes to the smaller theatres where important new work is launching, women are writing most (all?) of the great new plays these days ... "

2014 Tony Awards coverage

Tue, 10 Jun 2014 00:00:00 -0700

2014 Tony Awards coverage

This week’s theatre digest is all about the 2014 Tony Awards — and the drama that played out both on and offstage.

THE CEREMONY

1. 20 Hours Behind the Scenes at the Tony Awards by Jennifer Vineyard and Jada Yuan [Vulture.com]
June 10, 2014

"While the rest of us watched the Tonys on TV, Vulture's Jennifer Vineyard and Jada Yuan ran around town — sitting through rehearsals, hitting the pre-ceremony red carpet, attending the show ... and floating through as many after-parties as possible. ... "

2. A Commentary on The 68th Annual Tony Awards: Broadway's Brightest, Best and Bunny-hoppers Alike by Philippe Bowgen [Playbill.com]
June 8, 2014

"[Hugh] Jackman hosted the premiere awards event of the American theatre community and presented Broadway's best and brightest with the highest form of recognition in the nation. ... "

3. Tony Awards 2014: Watch all the musical performances by Jessica Derschowitz [CBSNews.com]
June 9, 2014

"Here are all the performances from Sunday night's Tony Awards, from Harris as Hedwig to Jessie Mueller and Carole King singing 'Beautiful,' James Monroe Iglehart's 'Friend Like Me' and more. ... "

THE CONTROVERSY

4. Tony Awards Face Criticism Over ‘In Memoriam’ Segment by Patrick Healy [ArtsBeat.Blogs.NYTimes.com]
June 10, 2014

"This year, Tony Award Productions and CBS decided to air the In Memoriam only for the audience at the Tonys ceremony inside Radio City Music Hall during a commercial break. It is also posted the segment online. ... "

THE COMMENTARY

5. A Tony Awards round table with L.A.-area theatre leaders by Charles McNulty [LATimes.com]
June 6, 2014

"To get the West Coast view on the Broadway year, [Charles McNulty] sat down with four leaders of the area's most prominent theaters: Center Theatre Group's Michael Ritchie, the Pasadena Playhouse's Sheldon Epps, the Geffen Playhouse's Randall Arney and ... South Coast Repertory's Marc Masterson. ... "