At the opening night performance of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at the Pierson Playhouse on June 3, the cast and its director clearly understood how to serve up the requisite broad and bawdy comedy required to make this musical succeed. “Morals tomorrow. Comedy tonight” are the show's closing lines, summing up the essence of this 1963 Tony Award-winner for best musical, co-written by Larry Gelbart (producer of television’s M*A*S*H) with lyrics and music by Stephen Sondheim. Nothing deep here. Just pure high jinks borrowing shtick from vaudeville, burlesque and elements of …
A new Getty Center exhibit features never-before-seen photos of 1933 Cuba shot by American photographer Walker Evans juxtaposed with some famous photos from Cuba’s revolutionary period. “A Revolutionary Project: Cuba from Walker Evans to Now” runs through Oct. 2 and looks at three critical periods in the island nation’s history as witnessed by photographers before, during and after the country’s 1959 revolution. “The museum’s collection of Walker Evans prints is the largest in the U.S., but until now we have not shown his photographs of Cuba,” Judith Keller, senior curator of photographs, …
”Oh, how nice it would be if we could only get through into Looking- glass House! I'm sure it's got, oh! such beautiful things in it!” --Alice, in Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll Sometimes there’s more to the art world than meets the eye. For instance, looking closer at the Topanga Canyon Gallery will reveal an intriguing mélange of contemporary artists from beyond the local community. “We attract artists from Topanga, the Valley area, the Westside and even the Palisades,” said member Robyn Feeley. “There are over 40 artists in the cooperative, with work ranging from glass and …
Operating out of the Pacific Palisades home of its owner Charlotte Sherman, the Heritage Gallery contains a unique variety of artwork depicting the social realism movement in America. “Our focus is on the art of the 1930s through the 1960s with an emphasis on American social realism and Hispanic and African American artists,” said Sherman, 86. “We were active in the civil rights movement so you’ll see a lot of African American art here.” Originally opening in 1961 on La Cienega Boulevard, Heritage Gallery is the oldest functioning gallery in Los Angeles to her knowledge, Sherman said. She …
If you think reciting ancient poetry verges on the boring, get a load of this: "Let’s get in bed now and make love. No goddess or woman has ever made me feel so overwhelmed with lust." Or this: "He leapt from the bank like a spirit from hell bent on slaughter. He struck over and over… and the river turned crimson with blood." Those lines were spoken at The Getty Villa on Saturday as part of a rich tradition dating back thousands of years. Along with 150 volunteers, I read Homer’s The Iliad in a sold-out marathon lasting more than eight hours. The unique occasion was the brainchild of The …
Barbie. Hitler. Spacemen. Little Black Sambo. Wild West Gunslingers. The Yankees. Soldiers in Iraq. Bathing Beauties. Jesus. They've all posed for photographer David Levinthal. Correction: He’s posed them. Because for over three decades, Levinthal has chosen toy soldiers, dolls, and small figurines as his primary subjects. He stages and shoots them in a way that can appear lurid, humorous, disturbing, and at times, eerily life-like. Santa Monica’s Gallery 169 recently hosted a special reception for a new exhibit showcasing his work. Levinthal was on hand to discuss his art and how he got …
Known for capturing contemporary images from the American consciousness, the Malibu-based pop artist Paul Rusconi creates works that often depict politicians, musicians, artists and professional skaters; all figures who have strongly influenced the many mediums of modern life. His latest work, “Ship Talk,” is a transition from his norm which took sail on Jan. 29 at Gallery 169 and will be running through Feb. 27 at the Santa Monica Canyon venue. “A lot of what I do is reflective of my experiences growing up,” Rusconi said. “I grew up in Santa Cruz next to the first skate park there . . . to …
Let resident artist Alex Stenzel give you a tour of his studio and his art...
For pop artist Paul Rusconi, the audience’s reaction to his work is just as part of the art as the canvas his images are created on. Take a trip he once took to the Grand Canyon. “I was standing there, looking at this amazing view, when a car load of people drove up,” the Los Angeles-based artist recalled. “Some of them got out and walked ten feet away from me. . . ‘So this is the Grand Canyon?’ asked one of them.” He said that the canyon views may have fleeted from memory, but the cynical words spoken by the tourist made a lasting impression. For Rusconi, such interplay of elements are …
