Wheeldon’s wonderful world of Shakespeare: ‘The Winter’s Tale’ for ABT at Segerstrom
Mar
24
2025
Springtime in Southern California brings big, full-evening ballets to Segerstrom Center for the Performing Arts in Costa Mesa. We last experienced Christopher Wheeldon’s work with American Ballet Theatre in his Like Water for Chocolate in 2023. Now again, the British choreographer draws inspiration from yet another literary source: a Shakespearean comedy: The Winter’s Tale in ...
Into the woods, with French movie-thriller ‘Misericordia’
It’s no news to anyone — we’ve known it since “Hansel & Gretel.” Bad things happen in the woods. To prove that that essential truth has gone unchanged since the days of Grimm’s fairy-tales, the woods are the chosen terrain in which auteur Alain Guiraudie stages the central plot turn of his latest movie, Misericordia ...
Death of a dancer: the great Christian Holder (1949-2025)
Mar
16
2025
ed. note: With permission of the author, artsmeme is very proud to republish William Whitener‘s marvelous obituary of a F.O.A.M. (Friend of Arts Meme), Christian Holder, who passed away, too soon! too soon!, at his home in London recently. How we loved this Renaissance man of the dance. Whitener’s homage, which Dance Magazine originally published ...
Road trip with Neil Young, April 17, via new doc ‘Coastal’
February 9, 2025: Neil Young performs for victims of Altadena fire at Pasadena Red Cross shelter He’s so interesting — and so worth it. He’s truly an artist of our collective lifetime. I saw him in concert in the summer of 2023 at the Greek Theatre. His show was a fascinating melange of devoted musicianship ...
In month of March, ‘A Week of French Language Cinema’!
Mar
11
2025
We all have to find our bliss anymore, don’t we. For me, it’s watching motion pictures to the sound of “la belle langue.” It’s the dulcet tone of francais in your ears — if only for a few hours. A Week of French Language Cinema, an annual West Los Angeles event of francophonia + cinemaphilia, ...
An aural ‘fountain of tears’: ‘Ainadamar,’ soon at L.A. Opera
Ainadamar, in Metropolitan Opera production, year, photo: It’s special if only because it will be conducted by Lina González-Granados, who will lead the LA Opera Orchestra premiere of the Grammy Award-winning opera Ainadamar by Argentinian composer Osvaldo Golijov. The opera, dating from 2003, traces the life and work of poet-playwright Federico García Lorca (a trouser role by mezzo-soprano Daniela Mack), ...
ABT Studio Company will ‘love you two times’ in Pepperdine showcase
Mar
7
2025
[marvelous studio footage set to The Doors, click above] ABT Studio Company, the junior company of American Ballet Theatre, is comprised of future stars of the ballet world ages 17 through 21. They hail from all over the world. Nearly 80 percent of current dancers in American Ballet Theatre are alumni of ABT Studio Company, ...