Archive for california
January 28, 2008 at 4:05 am · Filed under SLOAN, dance, california, theater, orange county, OCPAC
While I was in LA last weekend, we went out to the Orange County Performing Arts Center for dinner and a mini-tour of their facilities.
I was out of commission the last few times NYC Ballet visited OCPAC, so my only frame of reference was David’s photos and stories from when ABT was there.
The entrance to the original space is very striking, but it was really interesting to see the relatively new Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. It’s beautifully light and airy, and filled with lots of blonde wood and walls of windows. The larger space reminded me a lot of the Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center (with a few tiers of shallow seating behind and above the musicians.) We got to see this space empty, and then came back after dinner for a few songs from the evenings performance with The Crusaders.
An incredible image of Segerstrom Concert Hall ©Damian Dora.
Visit the Artec site for more photos.A smaller space there (I’m assuming it must have been the Samuell Theater) is especially interesting to me, because the size and set up is much like Irving Plaza or Bowery Ballroom. Just like those spaces, popular indie bands play there (
The Walkmen will be there at the end of February), but in this case, the space is right in the middle of a swanky cluster of theaters and unique performers. I thought that was really great.
Out on the plaza area, they currently have a beautifully striking Richard Serra sculpture. Definitely a fun detour!
Recent Posts by kristin sloan
October 25, 2007 at 9:35 pm · Filed under dance, SUSAN, environment, mobile, california
On my way home to visit the parentals the other night, I drove past a funereal procession of six fire engines. I likely imagined it, but the trucks looked and seemed extraordinarily depressed, worn and weary.
My own folks (luckily) live a fair distance away from the fire closest to them: the Orange County fire. Perhaps it is a testament to the phenomenal strength of our (now dying) winds, then, that my car was, just overnight, covered in ashes?
Recent Posts by susan kim
October 18, 2007 at 5:17 am · Filed under dance, film, MEGAN, california, the headlands, improvisation
Chloe on the left, Hallie on the right.
Heather
After the improv, Heather and I wandered around to catch a last minute glimpse of some of the artists’ work. We met Hubert Ho, a composer, and saw some curiously hypnotic video clips of hands by (I think) Ginelle Hustrulid. We also found an old Steenbeck film editing machine:
Fun, huh? That avocado green makes it extra endearing. Can you just imagine someone clipping and trimming away at film reels, tossing all the bits that don’t work out, and sticking the rest together for their masterpiece?
Recent Posts by megan kurashige
October 9, 2007 at 5:05 am · Filed under dance, SUSAN, abt, performances, california, festival, american ballet theatre, so you think you can dance
Performance Artist Mia Kio(?)
The annual Laguna Dance Festival returned to Laguna Beach this past weekend for the third year in a row. Just as in years past, I joined the motley crew of varied casts and characters in my usual capacity, helping out where help was–or, as was more often the case, hands were–needed.
The festival is proving itself to be an increasingly successful endeavour organized and presented by caDance, the brainchild of Artistic Director Jodie Gates. (Apologies to all who find me to be at all presumptuous for my last statement; I feel somehow qualified to judge because I’ve been involved (in the periphery, at least) since the first Festival two years ago.) Every year, the process becomes smoother and more streamlined. And, every year, the guest artists and dancers seem to create groups that are more and more diverse not only in origin, but also in choreography and dancing.
This year, I found myself in the audience during two performances. The first was the Gala Performance, which opened with surprise guests Heidi Groskreutz and Benji Schwimmer (both of So You Think You Can Dance fame). As can only be expected by what we saw of them on television, their performance turned out to be a flashy compilation of what must have been every single one of the partnering tricks featured on the show in the past two years. (Yes, Heidi grabbed her ankles and slid down Benji’s body, donut-style, just as Sabra did down Neil’s.)
Without intending to be at all mean, I am going to be a harsh critic: Except for one or two exceptionally inspiring pieces in the program, the Gala Performance was, for me, thoroughly disappointing. My heart nearly stopped (with sorry sorrow) multiple times during the program. (At times, I found myself willing it not to beat ever again, so that it might have to bear the torment that was most of that night’s performance.) Did I imagine it? Or did Stella Abrera–one of my favourite dancers–forget Odile’s choreography during her White Swan pas with husband Sascha Radetsky? Why on earth would Yuka Iino choose to perform a pas de deux from Stowell’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” without tights to cover her legs (which, like everyone’s tend to do, would undoubtedly become splotchy from exercise)? Why could not the Complexions dancers, with their amazing extensions and exceptional musicality not keep in synch in “Lux,” a piece otherwise rightly a luxurious work of art? And, God bless Gerry Arpino (whose “Light Rain,” when I last saw an excerpt from it, blew my mind out of its usually foggy haze and up above the clouds), but… well, what happened in the pas de deux?
Altea Nunez in Forsythe’s “In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated”
(courtesy of the Royal Ballet of Flanders)
The night was far from being a complete loss. Sascha and Stella more than redeemed themselves post-White Swan with a phenomenal rendition of Weir’s Jabula. And, simply seeing Desmond Richardson walk onto the stage is always a welcome sight for sore eyes. For me, however, that evening’s true saviours came in the form of the three guests from the Royal Ballet of Flanders: Altea Nunez, Alain Honorez and Wim Vanlessen. Together, they performed first the solo and the pas de deux from Forsythe’s “In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated.” Mmm… It was phenomenal. The first “real” (I hope that makes sense?) moment of the night.
Following the performance, there was a Gala Reception at Le Club Fantastique (a costumed Laguna Art Museum).
A (guiltily snapped) peek at the star-studded guest list.
The true star of the evening: A drag artist who took control of the catwalk in the various and distinct forms of Linda Eder’s character in “Jekyll & Hyde” and Catherine Zeta-Jones’s charcter in “Chicago.”
(I apologize for the disgraceful quality of these snapshots. My unreliable camera battery gave out on me early in the evening and so I was left to my sole remaining resource: my mobile phone.)
The next day (Sunday) Sascha Radetsky taught a master class at a local space in Laguna Beach. It’s been years since his days as being Charlie of “Center Stage,” but it’s quite obvious that he still holds the title of ballet celebrity/heartthrob in the hearts of the younger ballerinas (and, also, ballerinos?). Certainly I got the nagging feeling that many of the students were far less interested in taking class than they were in taking class from Sascha Radetsky. (I suppose, though, that that’s always part of the mentality in most master classes…?)
Sascha signs autographs for the delighted students.
Another performance followed the class. It’s a good thing I went to this one. (I was so tempted to skip it after the disappointment I had suffered the evening before.) Everything seemed to be just as it should be (and, thankfully, not as they had been on Saturday night). I of course found fault (as I always seem to) with the music being much too loud and off balance for what the speakers could handle, but the dancing was practically perfect in every way; all the glitches that I saw the night before were no longer. And what had been excellent the evening before was only better.
Rubinald Pronk and Sabra Perry of Complexions Contemporary Ballet.
On a side note, the dancers from Flanders joked that “Complexions” could perhaps change their company name to “Extensions,” as it would suit them just as well (if not better?).
Recent Posts by susan kim
September 15, 2007 at 8:45 am · Filed under tour, travel, vacation, SANDI, snow, camelot, california, broadway, alaska
Not that I’ve been missed! So many wonderful contributors have so much interesting stuff to post.
I’m all done with Camelot.Though I have had enough of playing a tambourine on a rock, the tour continues, Starring Lou Diamond Phillips and many of my good friends from the last leg, so if it comes to your city, go see!
I’m trying to get back into real life after spending so much of the last two years on tour. I miss my Camelot friends so much. I took a quick trip to Los Angeles this weekend to see the beautiful and very talented Rachel York debut her cabaret. Rachel was our beautiful Guenevere. Monica, Rachel and I were a terrible trio on tour. (and shouldn’t my name somehow be Phoebe?)
Here’s me, Monica and Rachel after her show!She was amazing.
Right after the tour my Auntie and I took an amazing vacation to Vancouver and took a 7 day cruise to Alaska. It was unbelievable. And I took hundreds of pictures, but I’ll spare you. Here are a few highlights.
The marina from the Stanley park seawall in Vancouver.
We took a helicopter and walked on a glacier. Here’s a tiny leaf frozen in the beautiful blue ice
Calving glacier in Glacier bay. We got so close, and it was one of the most amazing days.
One more glacier bay picture. I highly recommend a trip to Alaska- I want to go back and explore more. This was dream trip for my Auntie (surrogate mom) and myself.
And now… Back to the grind! Went to a few auditions and there were 300 girls there! Help! 
Recent Posts by sandi degeorge
August 20, 2007 at 8:09 pm · Filed under blogs, SUSAN, wingers, california, blogging
| 
| Susan Kim
(Erm… well. Not quite the title I was looking for, but we’ll just go with the flow this time.)
Perhaps with a similar enthusiasm but in, most definitely, a far less (and absolutely un-)Marxist way, I met up with two very good friends of this site–Jennifer and Art–to have dinner and dessert this past Saturday.
What a fun time! It was such a pleasure to spend time and chat with two people who share the same passions and interests that I hold so close to my own heart. For those who might not know, both Art and Jennifer are well-established bloggers themselves: Art shares his thoughts on (the very aptly named) Art’s Place and Jennifer collects hers on (the just as appropriately titled) nyc musings & random thoughts as well as on Saturday Matinee.
At the rate we were going, our conversation/s could very well have gone on forever into the night (and beyond?). Between the three of us, we covered everything from ballet to musical theatre to work to schools to critics to travel.
Eventually, though, we had to go our separate ways. We’ve tentative plans to meet up again. If any others in the local (Southern California) area are interested in joining us, please let us know. The more, the merrier.
Recent Posts by susan kim
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