“A cut above.” “Razor-sharp thriller.” “A slice of life in seamy London.” After more than 40 years, all the puns about “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” have been used. Stephen Sondheim’s masterpiece is onstage now at Moorpark College, and all of those puns apply to the school’s ambitious production. The challenges inherent in “Sweeney”—operatic singing, the difficult […]
On the Town
5-Star shines light on Sun jam
THEATER REVIEW /// ‘Million Dollar Quartet’On Tuesday, Dec. 4, 1956, a chance meeting in a recording studio in Memphis resulted in a landmark event in rock ’n’ roll history. The incident was instigated by Sun Records owner/producer Sam Phillips, who wanted a follow-up hit for Carl Perkins’ rockabilly classic “Blue Suede Shoes.” With the young dynamo Jerry Lee Lewis sitting in on piano, Phillips was […]
Artist showings at Gardens of World
The Gardens of the World is re-opening its Resource Center as a venue where local artists can exhibit their works at 2001 Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks. Owned and operated by the Hogan Family Foundation, Inc., the 4.5-acre cultural garden is free to the public. In addition, the Gardens of the World Resource Center will display the artwork of the […]
A Gilbert and Sullivan classic goes steampunk
THEATER REVIEW /// ‘The Mikado’Since its premiere 139 years ago, Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Mikado” has become one of the most popular and important light operettas of all time. The satire of 19th century British institutions features several songs that have flourished outside the context of the show, including “Willow, Titwillow,” “A Wandering Minstrel I” and “The Flowers That Bloom in the Spring.” But […]
Fans of beloved TV series are in for a big treat with 3-day Simi festival
Their house was little, but the influence of the Ingalls family remains gigantic. The 1880s-era adventures of this pioneer family were first chronicled in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s bestselling books in the 1930s and ’40s. New generations of fans began discovering the Ingalls when the “Little House on the Prairie” TV series debuted in 1974. Five decades later, the series—filmed in […]
Play is searing indictment of antisemitism in the South
THEATER REVIEW /// ‘Parade’It’s been over a 100 years since Mary Phagan, a 13-year-old Atlanta pencil factory worker, was horrifically murdered. Leo Frank, the Jewish man who managed the factory, was convicted of the crime and sentenced to death. Though his sentence was later commuted to life by the Georgia governor, an antisemitic mob kidnapped Frank from jail and lynched him. Today, many […]
WHS choir goes back in time
It’s been a while since we checked in with Westlake High School’s choir program so we thought we’d see what its acclaimed show ensemble, A Class Act, was up to this semester. In its pre-pandemic phase, ACA performed tightly arranged themed medleys of songs with the members of the choir decked out in rented glitzy uniform/dance costumes. Today, choir director […]
Soulful gospel and R&B tunes
CONCERT REVIEW /// Blind Boys of AlabamaAn enthusiastic audience at the Kavli Theatre on Feb. 8 clapped and shouted, bobbed and bounced, and were altogether thrilled by the Blind Boys of Alabama, the venerable vocal group that has blended blues, gospel and R&B since the first members formed in 1939. Over their long career, which started at the Alabama Institute for the Negro Deaf and Blind […]
Follow the yellow brick road to an excellent, enchanting adventure
THEATER REVIEW /// ‘The Wizard of Oz’Theater presents stunning visuals and fine singing and acting
The plot in “The Wizard of Oz” has been jokingly reduced to “two women fight to the death over a pair of shoes,” but to millions of fans around the world, “Oz” is an almost sacred subject. The classic 1939 film is so embedded in our collective psyches that anyone from 8 to 80 can tick off its most memorable […]