Esa-Pekka Salonen to lead Boulez tribute in May: The best of L.A. arts this weekend
Let this postelection edition of Essential Arts double as a call to gather with our fellow citizens and experience art together, whether via a stroll through Inglewood, a contemporary performance downtown or an open rehearsal in Little Tokyo. I’m staff writer Ashley Lee, here with my colleague Jessica Gelt for all the goings-on in Los Angeles’ arts and culture scene.
Best bets: On our radar this week
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New Original Works (NOW) Festival
REDCAT’s 21st annual contemporary performance art showcase will debut nine works by L.A. artists. Each of the three weekends features a triple bill of world premieres, premiering Thursday and repeating Friday and Saturday (the last performance also will be livestreamed). This weekend’s program: Eliza Bagg, Rohan Chander and George R. Miller’s opera song cycle “7 Early Songs,†Bernard Brown’s dance performance “Sissies: Something Perfect Between Ourselves†and Meena Murugesan’s multimedia creation “Dravidian Futurities: Chapter II.†Thursdays through Saturdays, through Nov. 23. REDCAT, 631 W. 2nd St., downtown L.A. redcat.org
Inglewood Open Studios Art Walk
This year, the 15th-anniversary edition of the beloved gathering — during which art lovers can embark on free self-guided tours of artists’ studios, art gallery spaces and cultural organizations throughout the city — features the work of more than 60 artists across various mediums and also includes a fashion show, spoken-word performances, instrument making and a five-part citywide multimedia installation by Attic Portrait. Running Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m., the weekend kicks off with an opening reception for a group show at Hyde Park Plaza, 630 N. La Brea Ave., Inglewood, Friday at 5 p.m. inglewoodopenstudios.org
Democracy Sessions
The Museum of Contemporary Art and orchestral collective Wild Up host a three-day postelection hub to contemplate how civic institutions such as museums and orchestras can reinvigorate the promise of democracy through the lenses of creation and participation. It begins with a Friday evening concert — Raven Chacon’s “Compass†and “American Ledger #1,†Rachel Beetz’s “Uninterrupted Labor†and Louis Andriessen’s “Workers Union†are on the program — followed by daytime discussions, open rehearsals and installations on view Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free with online RSVP. WAREHOUSE at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, 152 N. Central Ave., Little Tokyo. moca.org
— Ashley Lee
The week ahead: A curated calendar
FRIDAY
AntÃkoni Native Voices Theatre presents this world premiere by playwright Beth Piatote, a retelling of the Greek classic “Antigone†set in the near future with a Nez Perce family at the center of political turmoil.
Through Nov. 24. Autry Museum Southwest Campus, 234 Museum Drive, Mount Washington. theautry.org
Mariah Carey With 47 days to spare, the reigning queen of holiday tunes arrives with her Christmas Time tour.
7:30 p.m. Hollywood Bowl, 2301 N. Highland Ave., Hollywood. hollywoodbowl.com
Making Mr. Right Director Susan Seidelman and actor Ann Magnuson join Vidiots for a 35mm screening of the filmmaker’s 1987 comedy, which also starred John Malkovich and Glenne Headly.
8 p.m. Eagle Theatre, 4884 Eagle Rock Blvd. vidiotsfoundation.org
To Sir With Love A concert version of a future musical being developed by Lythgoe Family Productions based on Guyanese-born author E.R. Braithwaite’s autobiography about teaching in a rough section of London (the basis for the 1967 film starring Sidney Poitier).
7:30 p.m. Friday; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; and 3 p.m. Sunday. Garry Marshall Theatre, 4252 W. Riverside Drive, Burbank. lythgoefamily.com
The Unraveling Inspired by the myth of Circe, this workshop production by the Ghost Road Company about a contemporary classics professor explores the “banishment†of women of a certain age in our own society.
7 p.m. The Getty Villa, 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades. getty.edu
SATURDAY
Aretha! Singer Sheléa teams up with the Pacific Symphony for an evening featuring the music of Aretha Franklin.
8 p.m. Segerstrom Center for the Performing Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. pacificsymphony.org
Coast Film & Music Festival The sixth annual event includes screenings, conversations, live music, art workshops and more
Through Nov. 17. Multiple venues throughout Laguna Beach. coastfilmfestival.com
The Girl Who Made the Milky Way The title character journeys into the African savanna to find her father in this play by June Carryl, inspired by Khoisan folklore.
7 p.m. Saturday; 4 p.m. Nov. 10 and 17; 2 and 7 p.m. Nov. 16. Colony Theatre, 555 N. 3rd St., Burbank. imaginetheatreca.org
SUNDAY
The Children Three aging nuclear scientists reckon with questions of social responsibility following an environmental disaster in British playwright Lucy Kirkwood’s drama.
Through Nov. 17. The Wayward Artist, 125 N. Broadway, Santa Ana. thewaywardartist.org
Great Gold Bird An immersive, site-specific “wanderplay†by Twin Alchemy in which you and your group solve an emotional mystery.
Through Nov. 20. Arlington Heights and a second location 12 miles away (transportation not provided), exact locations to be revealed. greatgoldbird.com
Culture news and the SoCal scene
Mia Farrow and Patti LuPone recently joined Times theater critic Charles McNulty to discuss their work together on a charming, hilarious play by Jen Silverman called “The Roommate†at Broadway’s Booth Theatre. Although they discuss how much they enjoy collaborating, they mention that the work often helps keep their minds off the then-upcoming election, over which they both expressed great anxiety. The women told McNulty that if Donald Trump won they planned to leave the country. Farrow already knew where: to Ireland with her kids and grandkids. “We don’t want to live in a fascist state, “ Farrow said.
A modern, no-frills production of Tennessee Williams’ classic play, “A Streetcar Named Desire,†rolled through town for six sold-out performances last week. Called “The Streetcar Project†and co-created by Lucy Owen, who plays Blanche DuBois, and director Nick Westrate, the show used a four-person cast to zero in on the nuance and cadence of Williams’ writing. McNulty caught a performance in a Venice warehouse (the show was designed for nontraditional spaces), and though he enjoyed the minimalist approach, the show reminded him that “Streetcar†is not his favorite Williams play. “I appreciated the opportunity of reexperiencing the play, though I’m not convinced by this production that ‘Streetcar’ is the everlasting masterwork it is widely assumed to be,†he wrote.
A traveling Balloon Museum has arrived in L.A. and staff writer Sonaiya Kelley wrote about six things visitors should know about the trippy, highly Instagrammable experience. The show, called “Let’s Fly,†has taken up temporary residence through March 16 in the Arts District at Ace Mission Studios. “A cross between the sensory explosion of Meow Wolf and the labyrinthine nature of an IKEA store, the experience features installations from 21 artists with avant-garde interpretations of inflatable and balloon art,†wrote Kelley.
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The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra received a $2-million gift from Emmy-winning composer Jeff Beal and his wife, Joan, to establish the Joan and Jeff Beal Fund for Living Composers. The money will be used to commission new orchestral works by entertainment industry-affiliated composers, highlighting LACO’s long-standing connection with Hollywood. The group was founded in1968 to provide an artistic outlet to industry musicians. The company’s inaugural Beal Fund-commissioned composers are Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Abels, who also has been nominated for an Emmy and a Grammy, and whose work will premiere with LACO during the 2025-26 season; and award-winning video game composer and conductor EÃmear Noone, whose piece will premiere during the orchestra’s 2026-27 season.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art added five new members to its board of trustees: Isha Ambani, David Kaplan, Wendi Murdoch, Andy Song and Maggie Tsai. The total number of voting trustees is now 58, in addition to eight people who serve as life trustees. The news arrives as the scaffolding comes down on LACMA’s new David Geffen Galleries and the museum launches headlong into the final phases of opening its redesigned campus.
The Los Angeles Philharmonic announced that conductor laureate Esa-Pekka Salonen will lead a trio of concerts next May celebrating the centennial of composer Pierre Boulez. The performances, to be held May 8, 10 and 11, will include Boulez’s solo piano “Notations†and pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard joining the orchestra for Béla Bartók’s Third Piano Concerto. Following the intermission will be Claude Debussy’s “La mer†and, for a finale, L.A. Dance Project, choreographed by Benjamin Millepied, joins the ensemble for Boulez’s “Rituel.â€
— Jessica Gelt
And last but not least
May the trailer for this apocalyptic movie musical starring Tilda Swinton and Michael Shannon bring you as much joy as it’s brought me.
— Ashley Lee
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