Essential Arts & Culture: Reconsidering intermission, design per the NRA, L.A.'s last adult cinemas
It’s a hot one, but thankfully we have plenty of cool reads. This includes an essay that looks at the purpose of intermission, another that looks at how architecture is presented by the National Rifle Assn. and a report on how a gospel musical came to be. Plus, interesting fact: Adult theaters in L.A. are now practically extinct. I’m Carolina A. Miranda, staff writer at the Los Angeles Times, with all the culture news you will ever need:
About that intermission
Times theater critic Charles McNulty looks at the state of intermission â€" a long-held theatergoing convention that is a) being phased out because of the shorter lengths of some contemporary plays or b) overused by playwrights who too often pad plays that could use a little judicious editing. He’s never against a good epic, “less isn’t always more,†he writes. “But more for the sake of more,†he adds, “is invariably a trudge.†Los Angeles Times
More theater news
Danny Feldman is the new producing director at the Pasadena Playhouse, and Times contributor Lisa Fung profiles the theater’s second-youngest artisti c director in 100 years. Feldman, who has worked at the Labyrinth Theater Company in New York, brings a lot of energy to the job. But he faces myriad challenges â€" such as the fallout from the theater’s 2010 bankruptcy and following in the footsteps of longtime artistic director Sheldon Epps. Feldman is optimistic, however. “I came in Day 1 and said, ‘Here’s my situation and now let’s build.’†Los Angeles Times
Times reporter Deborah Vankin chatted with BeBe Winans, of the Winans gospel clan, about the new musical “Born for This,†which tells the story of how Winans and his sister, CeCe Winans, catapulted to fame on Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker’s “The PTL Show.†Among the various interesting tidbits: It was crooner Roberta Flack who nudged BeBe to write the musical, whic h soon begins previews at the Broad Stage. Los Angeles Times
Plus: Contributor Steve Appleford profiles actor Denis Arndt, who is appearing opposite Mary-Louise Parker in “Heisenberg†at the Mark Taper Forum through Aug. 6. (The actor received his first Tony nomination for the role at the age of 77.) And Philip Brandes reviews Bekah Brunstetter’s new dramedy, “The Cake,†which stars Debra Jo Rupp as a conservative Christian baker who must come to terms with her ideals when asked to bake a cake for a lesbian marriage.
Architecture in the NRA film
Times architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne looks at the way in which art and architecture is employed in a minute-long video recently released by the National Rifle Assn. The video, notes Hawthorne, features buildings designed by architects who are Jewish or foreign-born. He also looks at how Modernism and cosmopolitanism remains a bogeyman for a certain conservative set (an ideology that has been reinforced by Hollywood portrayals). “The target is cities themselves,†he writes, “the free thinking they represent and everyone who chooses to live in them.†Los Angeles Times
Hobby Lobby and the smuggled artifacts
The craft giant Hobby Lobby has agreed to turn over more than 5,500 ancient artifacts smuggled out of Iraq and pay a $3-million settlement after federal prosecutors filed a civil complaint against the company in Brooklyn. The company, in a statement, said it relied on intermediaries who, “in hindsight, did not understand the correct wa y to document and ship these items.†But Times columnist Michael Hiltzik points out that officials at the company had been warned by experts that the purchases were problematic. Los Angeles Times
The last (porn) picture shows
Los Angeles used to have dozens of adult theaters. Now it has only two: Studs and the Tiki. As I report this week: “They sit at opposite ends of Santa Monica Boulevard â€" the former in West Hollywood, the latter in East Hollywood, framing the city in an unseen porno-magnetic field.†I visited these cinematic relics in the company of L.A. painter Zak Smith for a story that is about adult cinemas but also Southern California urbanism and shifts in technology. (At least, that’s what I’m telling my mom.) Get comfortable. Relax. Enjoy the show. Los Angeles Times
Museum doings
I write about a resplendent pink lowrider currently on view at the Petersen Automotive Museum â€" along with its piñata twin, crafted by Las Vegas artist Justin Favela. Los Angeles Times
I also hit the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in the company of Guadalupe Rosales, who is known for her Instagram â€" @veterans_and_rucas â€" an archive of Chicano youth. As an artist-in-residence at LACMA, she is taking over the museum’s Instagram account. To mark the occasion, we decided to chat in images. Los Angeles Times
Surf’s up
A group show organized by Amy Yao looks at that righteous point where art and surfing intersect â€" touching on surf culture and history, as well as environmental concerns. The show, which opens Friday at a Malibu pop-up space, includes a mix of pieces by Billy Al Bengston, Jeff Ho, Stanya Kahn, Margaret Kilgallen, Barry McGee, Roe Etheridge and Tin Ojeda among many others. And speaking of Billy Al Bengston, the artist is just one of the subjects captured by the camera of the late actor and devoted photographer Dennis Hopper. An exhibition of his photos opens Saturday at Kohn Gallery. Notes on these shows and more arts listings are in my weekly Datebook. Los Angeles Times
Arty books
Deborah Vankin has a photo-laden piece on the new coffee-table tome “50 Years of Rolling Stone,†which gathers the magazine’s photography, while Times arts editor Craig Nakano pages through “Queer Threads: Crafting Identity and Community,†which looks at the ways in which craft has been employed to explore queer identity. Good stuff.
Speaking of books…
I just finished listening to the audiobook version of Trevor Noah’s memoir, “Born a Crime.†It came out late last year, but I can’t recommend it enough. First of all, the Daily Show host reads the book himself and he knows his way around a good impersonation. Second, it’s not only a stirring memoir, it’s a thoughtful examinatio n of the role played by language, culture and race in quotidian and political life. You can find an audio preview here. Plus, Michiko Kakutani reviewed it. An engaging, funny listen for a summer roadtrip. New York Times
In other news…
â€" Filmmaker Ava DuVernay and Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Hilton Als will be honored at the Hammer Museum’s Gala in the Garden this fall. Looking forward to receiving my engraved invitation, Hammer friends. ;-) Los Angeles Times
â€" Sort of related: Hilton Als writes about photographer Diane Arbus. New York Review of Books
â€" A review of ancient artifacts in the collection of the Mexican Museum in San Francisco has turned up a trove of fakes. Only 83 of 2,000 artifacts could be verified as being worth of museum display. Ouch. San Francisco Chronicle
â€" The Museum of Modern Art has added a 1968 Fiat to its permanent collection. Automobile
â€" Architect Mark Hogan writes that plans put forth by Rem Koolhaas’ firm OMA to redo Buffalo’s Albright-Knox Art Gallery, designed by Gordon Bunshaft, would mangle an architectural “pearl.†Curbed
â€" America Meredith on why it matters if artist Jimmie Durham, who recently had a retrospective at the Hammer Museum, is not Cherokee. Artnet
â€" Josh Kun writes on how photographer Richard Misrach’s series “The Writing on the Wall†serves as a chronicle of California hate. New Yorker
â€" A pair of insightful pieces on Documenta, from critics Holland Cotter and Ben Davis. New York Times, Artnet
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