Valerie-Jean Miller - Page 6

I would classify szalt Dance Company as avant-garde, eclectic, modern in approach, sound, philosophy and technique. Though not my specific style of expertise, I was fascinated by the exploration of ideas, body movement and thought processes the dancers expressed. Stephanie Zaletel is the founder of szalt (dance co.), after much experience as a dancer, rehearsal director, teacher and now choreographer. The company was formed in 2015, which purpose it was to examine the feminine psyche, that includes body memory after trauma, reaction to other people's energy and feelings, and letting free haunting memories to be able to move forward.

Presented by a brand new Production group, 4 Leaf Music Productions, in Association with Golden Performing Arts Center, and based on a 1934 Kaufman and Hart play of the same name, this musical tells the story of three friends, Franklin, Charley, and Mary, and the progressive decadence of their bonds and their dreams. The story is told in reverse. When it begins, in 1980, they're in their 40's: Franklin, is a rich, successful, conceited and confused noted songwriter; Charley, the lyricist in the duo, has cut off ties with his partner after a nervous breakdown and Mary is a lonely alcoholic still secretly in love with Franklin from when they first met, years and years ago. As we move forward in the play but backwards in time, we see how their friendships disintegrate, along with their aspirations and Franklin's many whirlwind marriages. Rewinding through the '70s and '60s, we end up in 1957, when the three of them meet for the first time, on a rooftop in the city, all hopeful young talents per-chance gathering to watch Sputnik go by in the pre-dawn sky. The song they sing, 'Our Time' ('We're the movers, we're the shapers/ the names in tomorrow's papers'), is undercut by some very keen irony, since we've already seen how it all turns out, at the beginning.

LYMAN, The Musical, is about, centrally, a person named Lyman Liri. We are first introduced to him as an adult when a lady stops to talk to him while he is selling Valencia oranges on the streets of Redlands, California. We begin to learn about both of them, and how they might even be connected, as the woman seems to recognize him, but can't recall from where or when. This is a brand new Musical that made it's El Portal debut the night I saw the performance. It is an amazing and courageous endeavor to not only put a spotlight on the homeless in our city, but to show how possible it could be that one choice, one decision could change the course of your life forever, in a flash, and this theme is explored thoroughly throughout Lyman's story.

He's out there on stage, on a raised dance platform at The Hollywood Bowl, center, downstage, in a simple T-shirt and pants, into himself, making sounds like a woodpecker, a train; a horse trotting,... maybe there are fireworks going off? Maybe gunshots, or a rapid -fire AK-47, even. The sounds are all coming from the bottom of his feet! He is like lightning with tap shoes on. Like bursts of electrical currents that make all kinds of sounds. Snap, crackle, pop, step-step, shuffle, ball-change, flap, flap, then into a tirade of tap accents too fast to count out or give a name to. GREGORY PORTER: NAT KING COLE & ME If you like classy jazz and blues, lovingly remember Nat King Cole and his style, and hearing a beautiful live orchestra playing, Gregory Porter is your man. Vince Mendoza conducts the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra with finesse and aplomb, and Gregory sings one glorious tune after another, starting out with 'Mona Lisa.' It's a sit back, relax and just enjoy it all, rest of the evening. He has a deep, rich voice, sounding very much like the great Nat King Cole and the pipes to sustain those ending notes with ease.

'Razzle Dazzle 'Em' is what Ben does, innately; it's in his blood, it's in his soul. 'Steppin' Out' signifies going beyond what you have achieved thus far. Ben Vereen is an Evolved Entity that shares his evolutional journey with us, delightedly so... on both sides!! This past Saturday evening, I had the great pleasure to see Ben Vereen perform at the Catalina Bar & Grill. When I first heard where he would be, I wondered why he chose a Jazz Club. Now I know why. Ben Vereen not only has decades of hit Broadway Shows, TV Series, Nightclub Acts, Awards and Accolades to his repertoire, but from that he has still kept his initial joy and exuberance in performing, yet taken his showmanship to another level.

This musical is one that everyone loves, but it is not an easy one to put together and do right. Tor Campbell, the Director and Choreographer, has accomplished that with an abundance of clever ideas, high energy, style, conviction and talent. The entire Cast is on top of it, feeling and selling this Broadway treasure like nobody's business! There is so much heart in this large Cast that it just spills out everywhere on stage all the way to the back of the house. Besides non-stop movement, full-out everything across the board performancewise, each Principal and each Ensemble member puts their all into it. Book and Lyrics by Tom Eyen, music by Henry Kreiger, Originally Choreographed and Directed by the great Michael Bennett.

August 5th, 2018 During the summer months at the Hollywood Bowl, it is still light out when the evening's program begins, which afforded me the chance to take a look around and peruse the patrons. It seemed a bit atypical as far as age range of most Bowl goers; a rather young and hip group. It was a very packed crowd that assembled, hosted by KCRW's Musical Director Jason Bentley, to first hear William Brittelle 's Spiritual America featuring Wye Oak and the Metropolis Ensemble and then to experience the sensation of Tu Dance Company, accompanied by Bon Iver, in 'Come Through.'

With Frank Fetta conducting the Marina del Rey Symphony and Nancy Dobbs Owen's Portrayal thru Dance of Leonard Bernstein's and Jerome Robbins' famed works, in celebration of his 100th Birthday, this marvelous concert took place at Marina del Rey's Burton Chase Park, where the ocean meets the land. There is something quite fabulous about sitting in the open air, a sea breeze blowing, a newly overcast sky, as the sun sinks past the horizon and people with picnics, dogs and children in tow, gather to hear one of the several free summer concerts, done bi-weekly, during the summer months.

On a warm summer evening, a full moon highlights and envelops the outdoor three-piece dance concert at the intriguing and wondrous Walt Disney Concert Hall. Unlike the musical concerts and programs that are normally held there, these three dance pieces were choreographed, each in a different area outside or around the exterior of the Hall's structure, and sometimes even on the structure!

Disney's Classic Film and subsequent Broadway Musical are not easy to recreate and to do justice to as well, both to the animated film version and the original stage production. Five Star Theatricals has opened this past weekend at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza/Kavli Theatre with a most lavish, charming and authentic version! I had the opportunity to speak with the Choreographer, Cheryl Baxter, of this delightful musical, and learned what it takes to be able to tackle this type of exciting but daunting project. I was not at all surprised to learn that it takes a careers'-worth of experience and dedication to be at this level.

On Friday July 13th, I witnessed the incredible performances of Misty Copeland, Isabella Boylston and Jeffrey Cirio as the lead soloists in the mesmerizing and captivating La Bayadere', at the world-renowned Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, at the Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles. ABT was presented as part of the 15th season of Gloria Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center. Thank you, Gloria, for being so generous in your love of Dance. It is a vitally important part of Los Angeles being able to appreciate Dance as one of the primary communicative Arts worth sponsoring and being available to our entire community. It is more important than ever, as, sadly, our support and funding for the Arts keeps dwindling on especially the National level.

There are few shows of this genre, i.e., cover bands, tributes to, impersonators and artists embodying a legendary character... or three or four... that have the triple-threat talent needed for these portrayals of Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley.

Barak Ballet is a formidable dance company that was created and fleshed out by Artistic Director Melissa Barak, who is a native Californian, and who has performed with the New York City Ballet and the Los Angeles Ballet Companies before forming her own Company. She trained at the Westside School of Ballet in Santa Monica beginning at the age of eight. She has performed the works of such balletic luminaries such as George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Christopher Wheeldon, Eliot Feld and Robert Garland.

Memory and Collective are the key words here. The performance is a collaboration, explored and presented from Memories of survival; old, new, brand new, collectively or individually. It is an evening of intertwining, sharing, searching, feeling, expressing and truth. It signifies also, to me, what is needed in our government structure today... a true conglomeration of all aspects to arrive at the best possible conclusion that will be of most benefit to ALL.

Lola Ohlala has assembled a little gem of a Cabaret Versatile, putting together, for the Hollywood Fringe Festival, a charming, delightful tale, filled with laughter, gorgeous girls, feathers and sparkle galore, and dancing; lots of dancing!

Lula Washington, an L. A. native from Watts, along with her husband Erwin Washington and daughter Tamica Washington Miller, have been the incumbent founders, creators, directors and choreographers of the LULA WASHINGTON DANCE THEATRE since 1980. They began with the goal to motivate, educate, inspire, challenge and enrich the lives of young people so they could become successful, productive and competitive citizens. Thirty years later, and now a major dance company all over the world, their appearance here in Los Angeles at The Ford Theatre was an incredible ensemble of dance works choreographed by a variety of talented artists, including Lula and Tamica, and performed by one of the most powerful, strong and exciting company of dancers on the planet.

??As part of the Hollywood FRINGE Festival, this tango treat, with a minimum of props and scenery, not one word spoken and a whole lot of passion and technique, Tomas Galvan and Gimena Herrera, from Argentina, tango their way into your hearts. Both Creators and the Choreographers of this piece, they take us with them on their journey of love.

BODY TRAFFIC is a well-established multi-themed contemporary dance company, made up of eight incredibly strong, amazingly agile dancers. They are known world-wide, but call Los Angeles their home. Their 3-night appearance at The Wallis Annenberg marks the conclusion of their 10th successful international tour, as well as the debut of a new work, entitled 'A Million Voices,' which is being world-premiered at their first-ever appearance at The Wallis.

Leonid Sarafanov from Kiev, Ukraine is a principal ballet dancer with the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St Petersburg, Russia and a Teatro alla Scala soloist, and was a special guest star in this dazzling one night's performance of Don Quixote at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles, playing Basilio with much flair and specificity. The company, playing two evenings in Los Angeles, presented Sleeping Beauty on Friday evening, May 18th and the lively Don Quixote for one exciting and much anticipated performance on Saturday, May 19th, at the historic Orpheum Theatre, in downtown Los Angeles.

Presented by The Brand Associates, and Curated by Jamie Nichols with much care, these performances are all totally different from one another with each dance company or artist using different elements of the Arts, combined with several forms of Dance, molding their piece using the surroundings to inspire their theme and designing the movements to work around site-specific locations.