Local Artists, Scientists Set for Special Events Alongside The Old Globe's PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE

By: Feb. 13, 2017
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The Old Globe's revival of Steve Martin's clever and crowd-pleasing comedy hit Picasso at the Lapin Agile is playing February 4 - March 12, 2017, on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. In partnership with Balboa Park institutions, local artists, and scientists, the run of the production will feature a number of special events that explore and engage with the play's legendary figures, Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein, and amplify the intersection of art and science found onstage.

This is the third Martin work in three seasons at the Globe, following 2014's world premiere musical Bright Star, which went on to Broadway and five Tony Award nominations, and last year's twice-extended world premiere comedy Meteor Shower. Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein directs, continuing the pair's long creative relationship that started in the 1990s with WASP and Other Plays and The Underpants. Tickets start at $59.00 (all $29.00 tickets are sold out) and are on sale now.

Paris, 1904: The Lapin Agile, beloved watering hole to struggling artists and would-be geniuses, welcomes two soon-to-be legends for one extraordinary night. Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein, whose egos are as big as their intellects, spar with the regulars and each other about art, science, inspiration, love, and the promise of the 20th century. Throw into this mix a mysterious visitor with a penchant for blue suede shoes, and you're in for a brilliant and witty evening in the theatre.

The stellar cast includes Philippe Bowgen (Pablo Picasso), Donald Faison (Freddy), Kevin Hafso-Koppman (Visitor), Liza Lapira (Suzanne, Countess, Female Admirer), Hal Linden (Gaston), Justin Long (Albert Einstein), Ron Orbach (Sagot), Marcel Spears (Charles Dabernow Schmendiman), and Luna Vélez (Germaine). The creative team includes John Lee Beatty (Scenic Design), Katherine Roth (Costume Design), Russell H. Champa (Lighting Design), Lindsay Jones (Original Music and Sound Design), David Huber (Vocal Coach), Caparelliotis Casting (Casting), and Anjee Nero (Production Stage Manager).

Below are some of the additional events taking place during the run of Picasso at the Lapin Agile:

· POST-SHOW FORUMS: Tuesdays, February 14 and 21, and Wednesday, March 1, 2017.
Join us after the show for an informal and enlightening question-and-answer session with cast members. Get the inside story on creating a character and putting together a professional production. FREE.

· BEHIND THE LEGENDS: Wednesday, February 15, 2017, at 6:00 p.m.
Get to know Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein in a whole new way! Join the leaders of Balboa Park's preeminent art and science organizations to explore the connections between these iconic figures of the early 20th century. Roxana Velásquez (Maruja Baldwin Executive Director of The San Diego Museum of Art) and Dr. Steven Snyder (Chief Executive Officer of the Fleet Science Center) will provide brief introductions to the lives and works of Picasso and Einstein, then participate in a joint question-and-answer session to explore the points of connection between these two great revolutionary minds. FREE at The Old Globe and open to the public. www.rhfleet.org; www.sdmart.org

· Interactive Art Installation THE JOURNEY: Friday, February 16 - Sunday, February 19, 2017.
A reflective, interactive experience destined for Burning Man 2017. The Journey is an expression of the chromosomal double-helix that is part of all life on Earth. This project will come alive as an ultra-sensory torus sculpture encouraging contemplation, interface, relationship, and wonder. Through music, lighting, design, and responsive technology, The Journey will allow participants to work individually or in collaboration to actively change the immediate experience within and around the installation. FREE on The Old Globe's Copley Plaza. www.thejourneyproject.org; www.facebook.com/TheJourneyProject2017; www.instagram.com/thejourneyproject2017

· BRUSHES AND BEAKERS: Wednesday, March 8, 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.
In conjunction with the Fleet Science Center, this fun private event facilitated by Wine & Canvas will partner a scientist and a painting instructor to help people create science-inspired art. Daubing, drinking, and mingling at this painting workshop will be Old Globe Arts Engagement community partners and their guests, Picasso at the Lapin Agile ticket holders, and San Diego Festival of Science & Engineering partners and their guests. Other Wine & Canvas events will occur in conjunction with the San Diego Festival of Science & Engineering, March 4-14. www.wineandcanvas.com; www.lovestemsd.org

· TWO SCIENTISTS SPECIAL EDITION: A SCIENTIST AND AN ARTIST WALK INTO A BAR: Thursday, March 9, details TBA.
An artistic variant on the popular community program by the Fleet Science Center, Two Scientists Walk Into a Bar-where local scientists join folks for a beer and good conversation in a local bar-gets a special twist when an artist is added to the mix! Join them, and ask them anything you want! For this special edition, the Fleet is partnering with the San Diego Art Institute, with some of the artists and scientists drawn from SDAI's May exhibition, Extra-Ordinary Collusion: Art & Science Collaboration. www.rhfleet.org/events/two-scientists-walk-bar

Background information and biographies of participants:

Dr. Steven Snyder is the Chief Executive Officer of the Fleet Science Center in San Diego. Since taking on the role in 2013, he has brought ambitious science experiences to San Diego, like ILLUSION, which made its North American premiere at the Fleet, and Taping Shape, which opened in 2016. He expanded the Fleet Inquiry Institute to teach the inquiry method of science learning to more than 1,000 local educators a year. Most significantly, Snyder redefined the Fleet's role, taking it from a science center in Balboa Park to a community organization dedicated to helping all San Diegans achieve their place in our shared scientific future. To that end, he brought science into the community with unexpected programs like Two Scientists Walk Into a Bar, which brings 50 scientists to 25 bars all over San Diego County every quarter. And he launched 52 Weeks of Science, which leverages the wealth of local science and technology resources to bring science events directly to neighborhoods. Snyder graduated from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and received his Ph.D. in Physics in 1996 at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan.

Roxana Velásquez is the Maruja Baldwin Executive Director of The San Diego Museum of Art. As a passionate advocate for the arts, Ms. Velásquez has focused on fostering cross-cultural dialogues within the San Diego community as well as nationally and internationally. Throughout her professional career, she has organized many high-profile exhibitions in her capacity as the Executive Director of the Museo Nacional de San Carlos, Museo Nacional de Arte (MUNAL), the Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City, and currently with The San Diego Museum of Art. In all held leadership positions, Ms. Velásquez elevated each respective institution to international recognition. As the Executive Director of The San Diego Museum of Art, she has increased the institution's holding with the donation of works of art by world-renowned artists including Francisco de Zurbarán's Saint Francis in Prayer in a Grotto, 1655, and Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida's On the Seashore, Valencia, 1908. During Ms. Velásquez's tenure, the Museum has acquired 920 works of art through donations and gifts. High-level exhibitions and loans from the Museum's collection travel continuously around the world, reinforcing cultural exchange while at the same time raising the global recognition of the institution. Under the guidance of Ms. Velásquez, the Museum has successfully collaborated with local peer institutions including the San Diego Symphony, the San Diego Youth Symphony, and the University of California, San Diego. In addition to ongoing public and educational programs and bilingual initiatives, Ms. Velásquez has embraced innovation by bringing technology to the Museum's galleries. This includes a new mobile app and tours, audio tours, and telepresence guides (robots controlled remotely from a desktop computer) that allow people to "beam" in from around the world to explore the Museum. Ms. Velásquez further participated in new information-exchange programs, including presenting at the first TEDx event staged simultaneously in two countries with speakers presenting in San Diego, California, and Tijuana, Baja California. Ms. Velásquez has been distinguished by the King of Spain with the Cross of Isabel la Católica for outstanding cultural projects of Spanish art organized in Mexico (2007). The Belgian government awarded her with the prestigious decoration of the Knight of the Order of the Crown for cross-cultural relations between Belgium and Mexico (2014).

The Journey was created by Dan Reeves (aka Sparkplug), who graduated from San Diego State University with a B.F.A. in Sculpture in 2005 with a focus on utilizing wood, metal, and clay. He has been making ever larger structures since graduating, usually focusing on wood. He is co-owner of Mid Century, a furniture store in San Diego where he works to restore and refurbish furniture on a daily basis. He previously went to Burning Man in 2010 and 2011 with the Lollipop Guild, where he created a spin-art bike for others to make art on the playa. For 2017, he will bring a large-scale, climbable, interactive structure to Burning Man. The Journey is presented as an expression of the chromosomal double-helix that is part of all life on Earth. This project comes alive as an ultra-sensory sculpture that encourages contemplation, interface, relationship, and wonder. Through music, lighting, design, and responsive technology, The Journey allows participants to work individually or in collaboration to actively change the immediate experience within and around the installation. It is intended to be a moveable project that will have a life of community interaction beyond the 2017 Burning Man experience.

The San Diego Festival of Science & Engineering is a 10-day educational experience including interactive demonstrations, hands-on activities, and dynamic speakers to engage kids and families in all that encompasses STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). The week kicks off with its largest event, EXPO Day, on March 4, 2017 at Petco Park. EXPO Day is free and open to the public. Hundreds of community businesses and organizations will participate in EXPO Day, in addition to over 60 programs and events that will follow throughout the week across San Diego County. More than 75,000 kids, parents, teachers, industry leaders, and community members are anticipated to attend during Festival Week. www.lovestemsd.org.

Weather on Steroids: The Art of Climate Change exhibition currently on view at the La Jolla Historical Society through May 21. lajollahistory.org/exhibitions/current-exhibitions.

Judit Hersko is an installation artist who works in the intersection of art and science and collaborates with scientists on visualizing climate change science through art. In 2008 she received a grant from the National Science Foundation Antarctic Artists & Writers Program and spent six weeks in Antarctica. Her work has been featured in numerous exhibitions nationally and internationally, including at the Venice Biennale, where she represented her native Hungary in 1997. Hersko is a Professor in the School of Arts at California State University San Marcos, where she has initiated the Art and Science Project.

Alexander (Sasha) Gershunov, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego Research Meteorologist in Climate, Atmospheric Science, and Physical Oceanography (CASPO). Gershunov's research focuses on interrelated aspects of weather, climate, and society. His professional interests include understanding the links between regional weather extremes and large-scale climate variability and change; long-range climate prediction; the atmospheric water cycle; precipitation and drought; heat waves; cold snaps; marine layer clouds; atmospheric rivers; Santa Ana winds; extreme weather; climate impacts on wildfire, energy, ecosystems, water resources, and public health; climate influence on society; and human influence on climate. Gershunov is affiliated with various organizations focused on regionally relevant climate research benefitting society, ranging from education to resource management. He has authored over 50 peer-reviewed research articles in professional journals as well as various other documents for decision-makers and the public. He enjoys working with colleagues and friends across borders and disciplines. He has most recently co-organized Weather on Steroids; The Art of Climate Change.

Single tickets to Picasso at the Lapin Agile start at $59.00 (all $29.00 tickets are sold out) and can be purchased online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE [234-5623], or by visiting the Box Office at 1363 Old Globe Way in Balboa Park. Discounts are available for full-time students, patrons 29 years of age and under, seniors, military members, and groups of 10 or more. Performances began on Saturday, February 4 and continue through March 12, 2017. Performance times: Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:00 p.m., Thursday and Friday at 8:00 p.m., Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. There will be an additional matinee performance on Wednesday, March 1 at 2:00 p.m. and no matinee performance on Saturday, March 4.

The Tony Award-winning Old Globe is one of the country's leading professional regional theatres and has stood as San Diego's flagship arts institution for over 80 years. Under the leadership of Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 15 productions of classic, contemporary, and new works on its three Balboa Park stages: the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the 600-seat Old Globe Theatre and the 250-seat Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, both part of The Old Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center, and the 605-seat outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre, home of its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people attend Globe productions annually and participate in the theatre's artistic and arts engagement programs. Numerous world premieres such as the 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Bright Star, Allegiance, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and the annual holiday musical Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to enjoy highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theatres across the country.

Photo Credit: Jim Cox



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