HAPPY’S VALENTINE’S DAY to my readers! Wishing you a day filled with love, art, and music! All Photography© 2016 Leticia Marie Sanchez Cultural escapade at the Getty Center Cultural Cocktail Hour® is a registered Trademark
read moreWhen even the sculptures take selfies, you know that we are in trouble! What would Michelangelo say? by Leticia Marie Sanchez Kudos to these artists for providing a snapshot into today’s culture. Lines of tourists crowd Florence’s esteemed Uffizi Gallery, not necessarily to take the time to observe the art, but rather to take a quick selfie with Botticelli’s Birth of Venus before rushing onto the next Instagrammable moment. Today many individuals walk by masterpieces because they are too busy staring at their cellphones or getting ready for a closeup. Based on Bertel Thorvaldsen’s “Eve Holding an Apple,” “The Immortalization of Self” by Jana Cruder and Matthew La Penta captures today’s self-obsessed culture with cheeky precision. CCH selects this work as the most timely at LA Art Show this week. Narcissistic statue seen at LA Art Show 2016
read moreCultural Cocktail Hour End-of-January Highlights The end-of-January’s LA Cultural recipe includes: an Explosion of art, an Infusion of Impressionism, and a Shot of Verdi- Enjoy! Cultural Cocktail Hour® is a registered Trademark LA Art Show January 27 – 31 http://www.laartshow.com The Artist’s Garden: American Impressionism and the Garden Movement Jan 23 – May 09 Huntington Library. 1151 Oxford Road. San Marino, CA 91108. http://www.huntington.org Philip Leslie Hale (1865-1931), The Crimson Rambler, ca. 1908, oil on canvas, 25 1/4 x 30 3/16 in. Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Joseph E. Temple Fund. Verdi Requiem: Los Angeles Master Chorale Sat. Jan. 30th, 2 pm; Sun. Jan. 31, 7 pm Grant Gershon, conductor; Amber Wagner, soprano Michelle DeYoung, mezzo soprano; Issachah Savage, tenor Morris Robinson, bass; Walt Disney Concert Hall.. 111 S. Grand Avenue LA, CA 90012. www.lamc.org Photo credit: Jamie Pham
read morePassport to the Human Soul: LA Master Chorale’s Made in LA By Leticia Marie Sanchez LA Master Chorale’s Made in LA provided audiences with a passport to the human soul. The diverse program not only allowed concertgoers to experience distinct cultures, but also transported them on a journey to understand the human condition in all its complexity: solitude, pain, love and redemption. Prior to the concert, LA Master Chorale’s Artistic Director, Grant Gershon announced that in light of the recent tragic current events, the concert was a “response to nihilism;” the evening’s program was dedicated to “victims of hate around the world.” Made in LA opened with Morten Lauridsen’s Ave Maria, an uplifting antidote to violence, a work of art that brings us closer to celestial realm. The piece invokes the Virgin Mary, a figure who symbolizes one who has transcended
read moreThe latest Cultural Cocktail recipe includes the music of the incomparable Morten Lauridsen and a splash of dance inspired by the color blue! Cultural Cocktail Hour® is a registered Trademark Los Angeles Master Chorale: “Made in L.A.” Sunday, November 15th 7 pm Grant Gershon, conductor; Subla, featuring Guru Danny Kalanduyan; Lisa Edwards, piano; 62 Singers. Morten Lauridsen, Ave Maria; Jeff Beal, The Salvage Men (U.S. Premiere) Nilo Alcala Mangá Pakalagián (World Premiere) with Subla, featuring Guru Danny Kalanduyan; Paul Chihara Ave Maria/Scarborough Fair (World Premiere);Dale Trumbore, The Whole Sea in Motion; Matthew Brown, Another Lullaby for Insomniacs; Moira Smiley, In the Desert With You (World Premiere);Shawn Kirchner Memorare; Walt Disney Concert Hall. 111 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90012 www.lamc.org Photo Source: Ken Hively Out of the Blue Sat. November 21 6:00 pm Dance Performance Free with admission Norton Simon. 411
read moreThe latest Cultural Cocktail recipe includes a Mozart-Marimba mixer, a dash of the Renaissance, and a splash of free art in Pasadena- Enjoy! Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra: Mozart to Marimba Jeffrey Kahane, conductor; Richard Goode, piano; Wade Culbreath, marimba; TIMO ANDRES Word of Mouth (West Coast premiere); MOZART Piano Concerto No. 18 in B-flat major; EMMANUEL SÉJOURNÉ Concerto for Marimba and String; HAYDN Symphony No. 88 in G major, Hob. I:88; Saturday, October 17, 2015, 8 pm Alex Theatre, Glendale Sunday, October 18, 2015, 7 pm, Royce Hall, UCLA www.laco.org Eat, Drink, & Be Merry: Food in the Middle Ages and Renaissance October 13, 2015 –January 3, 2016 Getty Center 1200 Getty Center Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90049 www.getty.edu/ Art Night Pasadena: Friday Oct. 9th 6-9p.m. More than a dozen participating venues include: Boston Court, Norton Simon Museum, Pasadena Museum of History, and Kidpsace http://www.artnightpasadena.org
read moreGreek Tragedy in the city of Angels By Leticia Marie Sanchez Intense. Riveting. Pulsing with life from beginning to end. During a time when the heartbreaking plight of fleeing refugees has garnered global headlines, the struggles of Medea and her family could not feel more timely. Playwright Luis Alfaro has successfully adapted Euripides’ Greek tragedy with “Mojada: A Medea in Los Angeles.” Now playing at the Getty Villa, the classic work is set among Mexican immigrants in contemporary Boyle Heights. Together with Director Jessica Kubzansky, Alfaro has created a play that is unnerving and powerful. The desperation of his characters is palpable. During the scene when the family emigrates to the United States, violence and atrocities are committed against them. Watching the characters onstage, caged like animals during their journey, we squirm. We want to look away. But
read moreA Touch of the Blues By Leticia Marie Sanchez This week two complementary exhibitions opened at the Norton Simon Museum of Art: Fragonard’s Enterprise: the Artist and the Literature of Travel and the Revolution of the Palette. Although both exhibitions proved stunning (and sublimely curated) this review will focus on the Revolution of the Palette, an exhibition that reveals the power of color, specifically the color blue. This vivid exhibition sheds light on the nuances of different shades of blue paint, providing insight about their historical origins. Did you know that ultramarine was derived from Lapis Lazuli, a rare semiprecious gemstone mined almost exclusively in Afghanistan in the 6th century and imported to Europe through Venice? The expensive true blue ultramarine can be viewed in the sumptuous cloth in Paul Liégeois’ Still Life, Mid 17th Century. Paul Liegeois French,
read moreBy Leticia Marie Sanchez This week’s feature may seem a bit off the beaten path for the Vivaldi-loving readers of Cultural Cocktail Hour. Warning: if you’re expecting a white-gloved, chamomile-tea sipping Agatha Christie Murder on the Orient Express, you’re in for a huge surprise. Instead, the boisterous atmosphere feels like Sherlock and Watson at a local pub, laughing uproariously with their comrades as a hapless victim gets assassinated during a game of darts. Held at Hollywood’s Next Door Lounge, “The Hollywoodland Murder” re-creates a movie premiere about a dark subject matter: the Black Dahlia murder. This dinner party proves raucous and racy. The highlight of the production is undoubtedly the talented cast of actors. Witty, engaging, and hilarious, their sense of spontaneity steals the show. Zingers fly in this performance, both between the actors themselves and in their interaction with
read moreThe latest Cultural Cocktail recipe includes a dash of Degas, an infusion of artists in their natural habitats, & a smooth stirring of secret walks in LA Enjoy! Degas: “Russian Dancers” and the Art of Pastel. Getty Center. 1200 Getty Center Drive. LA, CA. 90049. (310) 440-7300 http://www.getty.edu/ Venice Artblock Open Studios June 7th 11-6pm Visit 60 Open Artist Studios: Free & Open to the Public. For info, see the website of artist Melissa Herrington http://www.melissaherrington.com/ as well as http://www.veniceartblock.com/ Secret Walks: A Walking Guide to the Hidden Trails of Los Angeles by Charles Fleming. Santa Monica Press. CCH has selected this non-fiction guide as a delightful weekend companion for exploring our city; this guidebook not only presents innovative walks in LA but also describes the colorful characters behind the landmarks: controversial Water Engineer William Mulholland, convicted murderer
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