Center Theatre Group News & Blogs

Boy Bands to Swoon Over from the 1960s to Now

Center Theatre Group — Tue, 23 May 2017 12:00:00 -0700

The Beatles (1964)

It doesn’t matter if you’re five, 15, or 80: you’ve heard of the Beatles. And you’ve probably loved the Beatles, too. You may not remember their historic live television performance on The Ed Sullivan Show or the hysteria that erupted each time they performed, but their music continues to affect modern-day compositions and chart-toppers.
The Temptations (1964)

The Temptations are one of the most iconic groups produced by Motown Records. Not only are they the unsung heroes of the Men in Matching Blazers movement, but they were just as well-known for their choreography and distinct harmonies. They’ve sold tens of millions of albums, making them one of the most successful musical acts of all time.
The Jackson Five (1969)

Another Motown Records success story, the Jackson 5 need little introduction. Before birthing the career of the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, the Jackson brothers topped the charts with songs like I Want You Back and ABC.
Menudo (1980s)

You can thank Menudo for the other-worldly gift that is Ricky Martin. Formed in the 1970s, this Puerto Rican boy band became one of the most popular Latin American acts of the 1980s. The group’s rotating lineup—which included Martin from 1984–1989—featured more than 30 members during its 32-year life span.
Boyz II Men (1991)

Kings of the “new jack swing” or “swingbeat” genre—which fuses hip-hop with R&B—Boyz II Men topped the Billboard Hot 100 with their first single “Motownphilly” in 1991. With smooth harmonies, mock turtlenecks, and matching silk pajamas, the Boyz became one of the most successful R&B groups of all time, selling 60 million albums worldwide.
Backstreet Boys (1996)

Most women over the age of 24 and under the age of 34 remember the moment they held the Backstreet Boys album Millennium in their hands and popped it into their boom box for the first time. It was a moment that changed lives, and sparked countless middle-school fights about Nick Carter’s moral character. After years out of the spotlight, they are again going strong with a summer tour and a residency in Las Vegas.
*N Sync (1998)

*N Sync and the Backstreet Boys were forever caught in a metaphoric battle of the bands. Most tweens camped on one side or the other. Those of us who chose correctly can take indirect claim to Justin Timberlake’s magnificent rise to musical royalty.
Jonas Brothers (2006)

The Jonas Brothers started out as Disney-fied, barely pubescent, purity ring-sporting tween icons. Their innocent pop-rock sound garnered them a Grammy nomination and an AMA Award while the two youngest brothers were still in their teens. Perhaps more impressively, they sold over 17 million albums worldwide. Kevin is now an entreprenuer, Joe is a musician with dance-rock band DNCE, and Nick has taken up the mantle of Former Awkward Tween Heartthrob, Current Adonis.
One Direction (2011)

The English-Irish boys of One Direction got their start on England’s The X Factor reality TV show in 2010, where they took third place. Unlike most talent competition finalists, One Direction leapt to fame after the show, igniting the frenzied adoration of tweenage girls around the world. After having four albums debut at number one, they have ascended to the realm of royalty and are free to date models and grace the covers of magazines.

Five Serbian Sandwiches Worth Going to War For

Center Theatre Group — Fri, 19 May 2017 11:00:00 -0700

All the talk of sandwiches in the show got us wondering…what kind of sandwiches do they eat in Serbia, anyway? It turns out that like most Serbian cuisine, their origins come from around the Balkans and beyond—not surprising given that the country has variously been part of the Ottoman Empire, the Austria Empire, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, and the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as a union with Montenegro.

Here are five Serbian sandwiches that sound pretty delicious to us.

Cevapi

Cevapi (pronounced “chay-VOP-ee”) are finger-sized, uncased sausages—usually grilled—that can be eaten with a fork and knife or, for our purposes, stuffed into a pita or flatbread. Different Balkan countries have different riffs on their ćevapi, which arose during Serbia’s period under Ottoman rule. The sausages might contain pork, veal, lamb, beef, or some combination of these meats, along with seasonings like garlic, onion, and paprika. Cevapi sandwiches often include ajvar, a traditional Serbian roasted red pepper sauce.

A post shared by J. Kenji López-Alt (@kenjilopezalt) on May 16, 2017 at 12:45am PDT
Pljeskavica

The New York Times calls this sandwich the wholesome Mediterranean ancestor of a Big Mac. These thin, smoky, grilled burgers are made with ground lamb, beef, and onions, and can be stuffed with other ingredients like cheese, ham, and/or mushrooms. They are usually served on lepinja, a soft, fluffy flatbread. Pljeskavica is one of the national dishes of Serbia and is beloved across the Balkans.

A post shared by @dontfollowmeifyouarehungry on May 7, 2017 at 4:35am PDT
Kajmak

Kajmak is a fresh dairy product made in Central Asia and the Balkans that is sometimes described as a fresh cheese, sometimes described as clotted cream, and sometimes described as cream cheese (at least in English). One blogger calls it the region’s cream cheese, mayo, and ketchup all in one for its ubiquity in the Balkans. It can be eaten as an open-faced sandwich on bread with honey, spread directly on a bagel, or sandwiched, preferably on warm bread so it gets melty, kind of like a Serbian grilled cheese.

A post shared by Bella Cucina İstanbul (@bellacucina_ist) on May 1, 2017 at 12:10am PDT
Kobasica

This spicy Serbian smoked sausage contains pork, paprika, and other seasonings, and sometimes beef as well. Unlike cevapi, they are in casings, and they can be eaten hot or cold. Kobasica is the Serbian version of kielbasa, essentially.

A post shared by Dejan Milenkovic (@razjarenibik) on Feb 19, 2017 at 1:58am PST
Komplet lepinja

A high-calorie hangover cure of a breakfast sandwich, komplet lepinja is soft, fluffy flatbread (lepinja) containing eggs and some other toppings like cheese, cream, gravy, lard, and/or ham. It’s a specialty of western Serbia, and it makes sense that such a hearty sandwich comes from the Alps.

A post shared by Tijana Milovanovic (@flawless_mess_) on May 11, 2017 at 6:54am PDT

Curious about whether a sandwich really sparked World War I? Check out this Smithsonian.com story on assassin Gavrilo Princip's sandwich.

Wonder Woman, Uncle Sam, and ‘Archduke’

Center Theatre Group — Thu, 18 May 2017 10:36:00 -0700

'A Farewell to Arms'

Ernest Hemingway’s classic novel is a love story between an American man and a British nurse set against the backdrop of the Italian campaign. Published in 1929 to critical acclaim, it has since gotten the Hollywood treatment twice, and has even been turned into a full-length play. Fun fact: the first edition of A Farewell to Arms was originally censored, prompting Hemingway to personally reinsert some of the deleted text in a handful of copies that he delivered to literary friends.
'Black Adder Goes Forth'

This 1980s British sitcom tells the story of the Black Adder, a bumbling would-be Machiavelli who continually attempts (and fails) to gain political power. The show ran for four seasons, each representing a key moment in British history. The final season takes place during World War I, and follows the Adder (played by Rowan Atkinson) as he does his best to sneak out of military service. If you didn’t think that World War I could be funny, then Black Adder is sure to prove you wrong. Oh, and did we mention that a very young (and very funny) Hugh Laurie co-stars?Black Adder Goes Forth (and the entire series, for that matter) are currently available on Hulu.

'Valiant Hearts: The Great War'

While there is certainly no shortage of video games that take place during World War I, Valiant Hearts is special. Yes, it does tell the story of a solider in the trenches. But it also includes the stories of a nurse, a dog, and soldiers on different sides of this famous conflict. It is the rare video game that focuses on the human side of the events it depicts rather than simply glorifying the violence. Purchase Valiant Hearts: The Great War on Steam or the App Store.
'Gallipoli'

No matter what your feelings about Mel Gibson are, it must be said that he starred in what amounts to a truly excellent 1980 film about the Australian campaign in Gallipoli. Rather than focusing on hardened soldiers or the political climate, Gallipoli tells the story of two track stars. Fun fact: did you know that most messages in the trenches were hand-delivered by literal runners? Gallipoli tells the story of two such messengers, friends conscripted into a war they don’t fully understand.
Uncle Sam

While it may be ubiquitous now, this star-spangled geriatric is largely the product of World War I. Uncle Sam was a relatively common fixture in American popular culture at the time, but it was J.M. Flagg’s propaganda poster for the U.S. Army (modeled after a previously successful British campaign) that has proved to be the Uncle’s most lasting image. In fact, the poster was so successful that it was used again as a part of the recruitment campaign for World War II.
'War Horse'

This story of a horse and his boy on the battlefields of World War I first entered the public consciousness in the form of a 1982 novel by author Michael Morpurgo. In 2007 it was turned into a play (which played the Ahmanson in 2012), and in 2011 it became a Steven Spielberg Hollywood blockbuster. Fun fact: when Morpurgo originally heard that the Royal National Theatre intended to stage his book, he remarked, They must be mad.
'Wonder Woman'

The classic DC Comics heroine was an Amazon warrior princess who ended up fighting the Axis powers during World War II (when she first appeared as a member of the Justice Society of America). The forthcoming Hollywood adaptation, however, brings her instead to the world of World War I pop culture. It tells the story of how Diana—a princess who is the daughter of Hippolyta, warrior princess of the Amazons—becomes Wonder Woman in an attempt to try to bring World War I to an early end. As an added bonus, it also features Chris Pine (who starred in 2007’s The Lieutenant of Inishmore at the Taper).
'Downton Abbey'

Set in the fictional Yorkshire country estate of Downton Abbey, this PBS drama tells the story of the Crawley family. Though not expressly about World War I, the show’s first and second seasons encompass the years surrounding The Great War, as well as their affects on the family and British society at large. Downton Abbey is currently available to stream on PBS Passport and Amazon Video.

Finding ‘Dry Land’ with Alana Dietze & Block Party

Center Theatre Group — Wed, 17 May 2017 12:48:00 -0700

Playwright Ruby Rae Spiegel (now a writer on the hit Netflix original show The OA) was still in college when she read a 2012 article in The New Republic titled The Rise of DIY Abortions. She was so affected by it that she decided to write Dry Land. I think she was so close to that experience that she really had a unique, insightful look into these girls’ lives. Every time I read the play, I pick up on something else that’s so truthful to that experience, said Dietze.

The Echo Theater company production of Dry Land received rave reviews during its initial run last year. It even won the 2016 Ovation Award for Best Production of a Play (Intimate Theatre). But if the prospect of re-mounting her production for Block Party intimidates Dietze, she doesn’t show it. This is such a unique opportunity to get to revisit something that I loved so much the first time around, said Dietze.

It’s also a chance, she added, to maybe ask a question that we never asked before. The national landscape concerning women’s health has shifted considerably in recent months. A 2016 New York Times article explored the issue of DIY pregnancy terminations by tracking relevant Google search queries and mapping them with regard to states that have limited public access to organizations like Planned Parenthood. Their conclusion: Demand [for DIY pregnancy termination] is concentrated in areas where it is most difficult to get an abortion, and it has closely tracked the recent state-level crackdowns on abortion.

It should be said that, while abortion may be its subject, Dry Land is not a play that’s interested in proselytizing. It is—in the end—a play about two teenage girls in a difficult situation with no one to rely on but each other. When he reviewed the play in 2014, Ben Brantley came away with this conclusion: The most extraordinary occurrences take place amid ordinary settings with ordinary people, who behave as usual, only more so. This is a fact of human life that usually takes a while to register as we grow up. Ms. Spiegel has evidently grasped it, quite firmly, early on.

Dietze is excited to get the chance to share this powerful story with Los Angeles one more time thanks to Block Party. I’m so grateful that this institution is recognizing the value of small Los Angeles theatre, she said. And I’m so excited that so many more people get to see our work because of this program..

August Wilson Monologue Competition Finalists Take Broadway

Center Theatre Group — Wed, 17 May 2017 12:00:00 -0700

Williams and Villaseñor spent a whirlwind weekend in New York City alongside regional finalists from Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Portland, and Seattle. The group saw Groundhog Day and Sweat on Broadway and participated in a talkback with cast members after Sweat. They also toured Jazz at Lincoln Center, met some of August Wilson's collaborators, and got to spend some time seeing the New York City sights. The experience culminated in performing their monologues at the August Wilson Theatre on Monday evening, followed by a post-performance bowling party.

Despite the fact that Williams and Villaseñor were both making their first trip to New York, the highlights of the experience for both were not being tourists but being a part of the August Wilson Monologue Competition.

The best part of this trip was the people, said Williams of her fellow student performers. Every single person from each city had a warmth and a light to them, and when we came together, we shined brighter than the whole city. The genuine love that was felt from each and every person was irreplaceable.

Villaseñor said that for him, the most important part of the weekend was his own performance. My highlight of the trip was being able, as a performer and person, to ‘just let go.’ By letting go I was able to bring a natural side of me to my performance, he said. My experience performing on the August Wilson Theatre stage was just amazing. I was able to grow as an actor…I understood that I needed to stop ‘acting’ and just ‘be.’ (He did mention that the other highlight was the food: New York City had the best food I’ve had in a long time!)

Every single person from each city had a warmth and a light to them, and when we came together, we shined brighter than the whole city.

Williams agreed that the experience of being on Broadway was unbelievable. She explained, I continuously tried to conceptualize what it meant for me to be onstage, but it is still bigger than words. After I performed, I felt comforted, as if I belonged exactly where I was.

As they head toward high school graduation and beyond, both students will carry their August Wilson Monologue Competition journeys with them.

I want to invest more into kids of color and show them that there is a beginning of a path that has already been started for them. All they have to do is contribute their stories, said Williams, who is heading to Howard University.

The August Wilson Monologue Competition has helped me in so many ways! said Villaseñor. I'm super excited for the future and what it has in store for me. Thank you August Wilson!

Building Theatre's Professional Pipeline

Center Theatre Group — Fri, 05 May 2017 11:24:00 -0700

For the past two years, Center Theatre Group has teamed up with these groups to create two college and career fairs that are becoming an integral part of our professional pipeline for the next generation of theatre makers. On April 8, 2017, we joined forces with LA STAGE Alliance, the UCLA School of Theatre, Film and Television, and the USC School of Dramatic Arts to present the Center Theatre Group Going Pro Career Fair at the East Los Angeles College (ELAC) Performing & Fine Arts Complex. The event is designed to help undergraduate and graduate students get ready to transition to a professional theatre career. And on April 22, 2017, we invited 30 colleges, universities, and organizations to our College & Career Fair for the Arts at The Music Center Annex, which helps high school students figure out how to pursue the arts after graduation.

Center Theatre Group Next Generation Initiatives Director Camille Schenkkan has been overwhelmed by enthusiasm from all fronts. There’s nothing like this in Southern California that I’ve heard of that’s designed expressly for students interested in theatre, she said. The fairs were originally meant to serve students, but now they’re serving everyone. On the high school side, colleges are really eager to be there because it’s such a specific audience of students interested in the arts. And on the Going Pro side, so many of the theatre professionals we’ve invited, who are volunteering their time, have said, ‘I wish this existed when I was in school.’ Even UCLA and USC set aside their storied rivalry to participate together.

USC is thrilled to be partnering with Center Theatre Group and UCLA on the Going Pro Career Fair for the second year, said David Bridel, who holds the Braverman Family Dean’s Chair at the USC School of Dramatic Arts. This event offers our students invaluable access to theatre professionals from all around Los Angeles and helps to pave the way for their early career steps. It’s a terrific way to build community around young people with a passion for the performing arts.

We’re looking to disrupt stereotypes with professionals who don’t look like whatever students may have thought their profession would look like. The experience we want every student to have is, ‘I think I can do that, I can see myself doing that.’

Added UCLA TFT Department of Theater Chair Brian Kite, UCLA was proud to be part of the first two years of the Going Pro Career Fair, and to be working with Center Theatre Group, USC, and LA STAGE Alliance to create a not-to-be-missed event filled with great information and artistic community.

The organizations participating in the College & Career Fair for the Arts offered nearly every conceivable option for students trying decide where to go and what to pursue after high school, representing general education, technical training, and community colleges, as well as private and public colleges and universities.

There’s so much fear around the question of, how do I do this? And in the arts, there’s not a clear career pathway like in other fields.

There’s just so much uncertainty when you’re a teenager and you’re trying to figure out what to focus on, said Schenkkan. There’s so much fear around the question of, how do I do this? And in the arts, there’s not a clear career pathway like in other fields. We’ve also discovered that there’s inequity in what students are learning about college and career access. Some schools may teach students a lot about scholarships, but at others they may learn about what a BFA in acting is, but not find out how to pay for it. Everybody is getting little bits of college and career information, but nobody’s getting the full picture.

The Going Pro Career Fair also strives to give students a full picture of the lay of the Los Angeles theatre landscape, with tables hosted by many different unions, panel discussions on career paths in theatre, individual speed networking sessions with professionals, and an informal networking mixer.

There was a lot of synchronicity in the planning of this, said Schenkkan, with colleges thinking deeply about how to help their students transition to the professional theatre workforce. It’s much easier to teach craft than it is to teach students how to get a job in this field—and they know that. There was also a lot of excitement from unions who are looking to bolster their ranks. IATSE Local 33, the stage technicians union, signed attendees up for work. It wasn’t theoretical—it was, ‘Can you work next Saturday?’ said Schenkkan. In addition, Backstage magazine offered everyone who attended free subscriptions. Everyone’s really eager to help, said Schenkkan.

The fairs are a natural extension of Center Theatre Group's programs to build leadership skills and create career paths for young people in Los Angeles in the arts, which include our high school Student Ambassadors and our graduate and undergraduate interns. We’re figuring out how to help students in each step along their journey from when they first go see theatre and fall in love with it to becoming the next artistic director or technical director or master electrician or actor, said Schenkkan. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are at the forefront of these efforts. We want every panel to reflect the diversity of the students who are watching it, who look like Los Angeles, said Schenkkan. We’re looking to disrupt stereotypes with professionals who don’t look like whatever students may have thought their profession would look like. The experience we want every student to have is, ‘I think I can do that, I can see myself doing that.’

At Stephen Sondheim's Table

Center Theatre Group — Tue, 02 May 2017 10:43:00 -0700

Into The Woods composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim has a delightful history of writing songs about the pleasures and perils of dining. In honor of the Baker and company, here are five favorites.

"The Miller’s Son" from 'A Little Night Music'

In the 11 o'clock number of A Little Night Music, Petra, the maidservant, imagines life with three different husbands. Of "The Miller's Son" she sings:

It's a very short road
From the pinch and the punch
To the paunch and the pouch and the pension
It's a very short road
To the ten thousandth lunch
And the belch and the grouch and the sigh

Not the most appealing portrait of marriage or lunch, but in any case, food is not what's on Petra's mind: the song’s refrain goes, “In the meanwhile there are mouths to be kissed / Before mouths to be fed…”
"The Ladies Who Lunch" from Company

One of Broadway legend Elaine Stritch's most famous (and certainly most parodied) performances is her lament of Manhattan "Ladies Who Lunch" as Joanne in Act II of Company, which begins:

I'd like to propose a toast.
Here's to the ladies who lunch.
Everybody laugh.
Lounging in their caftans and planning a brunch.
On their own behalf.

Joanne is skewering herself as well as an entire class of wealthy New York women who don't have to work, and thus can spend their time lunching or brunching. Sondheim’s mother inspired the song, he explained to Vanity Fair in 2012. "The ladies who lunch for me are the denizens of the '21' Club. Some of these ladies were very chic, and they wore hats to lunch. And they also hung around our house a lot…And picturing them, the phrase 'the ladies who lunch' just popped into my head."
"Mr. Goldstone, I Love You" from Gypsy

Gypsy's Mama Rose loves Chinese food so much her dog is named Chow Mein. So naturally, she's ordered take-out to celebrate her daughter Louise's birthday, which is a rather sad event…until Mr. Goldstone of the Orpheum Circuit enters the picture. On learning that her daughters' vaudeville act has been booked in this higher-class theatre chain, a super-excited Rose proceeds to offer Mr. Goldstone anything he'd like: egg rolls, spare ribs, fried rice, a fortune cookie…what’s theirs is his: "Have a dish, have a fork, / Have a fish, have a pork." This is the only song on the list with lyrics only by Sondheim; Jule Styne wrote the music.
"Everybody Loves Louis" from Sunday in the Park with George

The Stephen Sondheim-James Lapine collaboration that preceded Into The Woods also features a baker character. In "Everybody Loves Louis," Georges Seurat's longtime mistress and model, Dot, explains to Georges why she's left him for Louis, a baker. Louis is, Dot assures Georges, also an artist—but he works in cake rather than paint. And then there's

The bread, George.
I mean the bread, George.
And then in bed, George…
I mean he kneads me—
I mean like dough, George…

How can a painter top that?
"The Worst Pies in London" from Sweeney Todd

Sondheim's most famous song about food belongs to Mrs. Lovett near the top of Sweeney Todd, as the title character enters the pie shop he used to live above. Mrs. Lovett, the proprietor, hasn't seen a customer in a very long time, which is no surprise, since she's the first to admit that her wares are essentially inedible:

These are probably the worst pies in London
I know why nobody cares to take them
I should know, I make them, but good? No
The worst pies in London
Even that's polite, the worst pies in London
If you doubt it, take a bite

As any Sondheim fan knows, Mrs. Lovett and Sweeney Todd together figure out a way to make those pies much more palatable…as long as you don’t know what you’re eating.

Center Theatre Group News & Blogs

Boy Bands to Swoon Over from the 1960s to Now

The Beatles (1964)

The Temptations (1964)

The Jackson Five (1969)

Menudo (1980s)

Boyz II Men (1991)

Backstreet Boys (1996)

*N Sync (1998)

Jonas Brothers (2006)

One Direction (2011)

Five Serbian Sandwiches Worth Going to War For

Cevapi

Pljeskavica

Kajmak

Kobasica

Komplet lepinja

Wonder Woman, Uncle Sam, and ‘Archduke’

'A Farewell to Arms'

'Black Adder Goes Forth'

'Valiant Hearts: The Great War'

'Gallipoli'

Uncle Sam

'War Horse'

'Wonder Woman'

'Downton Abbey'

Finding ‘Dry Land’ with Alana Dietze & Block Party

August Wilson Monologue Competition Finalists Take Broadway

Building Theatre's Professional Pipeline

At Stephen Sondheim's Table

"The Miller’s Son" from 'A Little Night Music'

"The Ladies Who Lunch" from Company

"Mr. Goldstone, I Love You" from Gypsy

"Everybody Loves Louis" from Sunday in the Park with George

"The Worst Pies in London" from Sweeney Todd