News And Blogs

A peace pipe. A vial of arsenic. A mango-wheat beer. A necklace that can ward off evil spirits. An intricately carved jewelry box.

From Product Design to Props

We can’t wait to showcase the work of three multi-talented artists at our inaugural L.A. Writers’ Workshop Festival: New Plays Forged in L.A. on June 23, 2018. Sylvan Oswald, Dan O’Brien, and Zakiyyah Alexander are among the 89 playwrights who have participated in Center Theatre Group’s L.A. Writers’ Workshop since 2005. Before we stage r...

Meet the 2018 L.A. Writers’ Workshop Festival Playwrights

Quick: What city is home to the world's best, most diverse community of playwrights? The answer is becoming increasingly clear: Los Angeles.

Playwrights on Fire

From ancient Greek tragedies to the Japanese Noh and Kabuki styles that developed in the 14th and 17th centuries to the English Renaissance traditions we know best from Shakespeare (see: Twelfth Night, a man playing a woman playing a man), gender-swapping has been integral to the history of theatre. Way back when, the reason why was simple: women w...

Roles of a Different Bent

Los Angeles has a long and storied history of LGBTQ rights activism. The city was the site of some of the earliest mass demonstrations against police persecution and the birthplace of the nation’s first widely distributed gay and lesbian publications, including The Advocate. As activism paved the way for acceptance in the second half of the 20th...

LGBTQ History Worth Celebrating

At first glance, the words jazz and politics do not necessarily sound like harmonious ideas.

Can Music Make Democracy?

Critical Mass Performance Group has produced a range of critically acclaimed historical and experimental epics for Los Angeles audiences for over 30 years.

Setting the Stage for Historical Exploration

Boni B. Alvarez brings the mythical aswang of the Philippines to life in Bloodletting (onstage at the Kirk Douglas Theatre March 29 – April 8, 2018 as part of Block Party). Alvarez has described the aswang as a Filipino witch, but there are many different variations....

What’s an Aswang, Anyway?

Entering its 26th year, Playwrights’ Arena is the only theatre company that continues to exclusively produce and promote Los Angeles playwrights.

A Filipino American Los Angeles Story

Costume designer Raquel Barreto had a unique opportunity to dive headfirst into the work of a playwright she loves when Center Theatre Group tapped her to design both Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue at the Kirk Douglas Theatre (onstage January 27 – February 25, 2018) and Water by the Spoonful at the Mark Taper Forum (onstage January 31 – March 11,...

Costume Designer Raquel Barreto Talks All Things Elliot Trilogy

The cast members of Elliot, A Soldier’s Fugue (onstage at the Kirk Douglas Theatre through February 25, 2018) took time out from their performance schedule to discuss their inspiration, the wonder of playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes, and the joy of working with this company and crew....

The Cast of 'Elliot, A Soldier's Fugue' Opens Up