With La Bohème, Puccini sought to write an opera in the fashionable verismo style that took as its subject everyday life and attempted to treat it in a realistic manner. While his opera dates from the mid-1890s, his source material was a series of stories written in the 1840s by Henri Murger, which depicted real [...]

Le Salon de Musiques magically transformed the fifth-floor banquet room at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion into an intimate salon space for sharing the joy of their special music on Sunday, Feb. 26.  Music Director Francois Chouchan combined Impressionists Gabriel Fauré and Francis Poulenc with an interesting variant from across the channel by English composer Sir [...]

Kathleen Turner is currently onstage at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles for the West Coast premiere of “Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass Wit of Molly Ivins.” David Esbjornson directs the one-woman show about the famous columnist and political commentator from Texas, which continues through Feb. 19.

“Red Hot Patriot” is a roaring salute to Ivins’ [...]

Beginning on Oct. 1, “Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A., 1945-1980” brings together more than 60 cultural institutions throughout Southern California to tell the story of the rise of the L.A. art scene and its impact on the art world. This colossal collaboration was initiated by the Getty Foundation, and the Getty Center has organized [...]

Maybe somewhere out on the Tartar Steppe, there is a lonesome goatherd who has not yet heard of Cirque du Soleil, but virtually everywhere else this producer of theatrical extravaganzas is rapidly becoming a fixture of 21st-century world culture. Iris is the latest offering from the Montreal-based troupe, and is the first to have a [...]

Knowing full well the celebrity and genius of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and no doubt having seen Milos Forman’s “Amadeus,” it’s probably difficult to imagine a movie where Mozart is only a very minor character, no less one overshadowed by his older sibling. But that’s just what the intriguing and exquisitely composed “Mozart’s Sister” offers.
Writer, director [...]

There is no shortage of fun things to do this summer in Los Angeles. From classic rock in the zoo to Shakespeare under the stars, this city has it all. Here are just a few ideas.
Theater at the Broad Stage
When actors we know best from TV and film turn their talents to LA stages, it’s [...]

The next great theater movement is here. African-American theater had the 1960s, Latino theater had the 1970s and, thanks to Randy Reinholz and Jean Bruce Scott, Native American theater has the 2000s. They founded Native Voices at the Autry, the only equity theater company in the country dedicated exclusively to developing and presenting works by [...]

Another bubbly bel canto bon bon is playing at LA Opera right now in the form of Il Turco in Italia, a lesser-known Rossini opera that deserves wider renown. Those seeking fresh opera fare should note that this is the debut performance of this work by the company, although this production by German director Christof [...]

In celebration of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra’s 75th anniversary season and the 50th Anniversary of Zubin Mehta’s conducting debut, the IPO and Maestro Mehta embark on an eight-concert, seven-city U.S. tour in February, which culminates with a concert and gala at Walt Disney Concert Hall on Tuesday, March 1. The program includes Haydn’s Symphony No. 96 in D major, “The [...]