Udofia is planning a nine-play cycle about the Ufot family who are at the center of these plays. (Is Udofia the female equivalent to August Wilson?) A portmanteau is a large trunk or suitcase.

In Her Portmanteau, a mother and one of her daughters are living in America and have been for quite some time. When a second daughter arrives for a visit, the bond between family members and how distance and time recalibrate relationships are examined. This is the third play in the still unfinished cycle. The first two are Sojurners (the origin story), and runboyrun.  Her Portmanteau is timely in that this drama reveals the positive side of being  an immigrant.

In this production of Her Portmanteau the cast features Joyce Guy, Omozé Idehenre and Délé Ogundiran. Gregg T. Daniel directs.

The post Her Portmanteau appeared first on Cultural Attaché.

Through the use of color-blind casting, Michetti says his goal is to “strip away decades of Southern gothic gauze to reveal striking themes of class, race, and gender—reinvigorating the classic which shocked audiences in its debut 70 years ago. By placing the iconic 1940s-era Blanche within an entirely contemporary and multicultural environment, this 21st century production highlights the timeless relevance of this play for our divided America.”

Jaimi Page plays Blanche, Desean Kevin Terry plays Stanley, Maya Lynne Robinson plays Stella and Luis Kelly-Duarte plays Mitch.

In the play Blanche says, “I don’t want realism, I want magic.” Will this production offer realism? Magic? Both? Something else? Who knows. But this certainly will be an interesting production.

The post A Streetcar Named Desire appeared first on Cultural Attaché.

Sandoval Jazz Weekend – The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts

January 26-28

Arturo Sandoval plays the trumpet, the piano and composes. This Cuban-American musician has 10 Grammy Awards, a Presidential Medal of Freedom and an Emmy Award…so far. For this weekend he is presenting some of the best young musicians he’s found amongst his world travels. He will also be headlining a sold out concert on Saturday night. If you were at the Hollywood Bowl for last summer’s La La Land in Concert events, he played the solo during the dream ballet sequence at those concerts. For more details, I’ll let Sandoval explain it himself:

Candide – LA Opera at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion

January 27 – February 18

This opera/operetta/musical (depending on when composer Leonard Bernstein talked about it) was not amongst his greatest successes. Nonetheless, in it he gave the world the lovely “Glitter and Be Gay” and “Make Your Garden Grow.” Of course, there’s also the overture which you can hear by click on the video just below. Kelsey Grammer and Christine Ebersole star in this production at LA Opera. Francesca Zambello directs and James Conlon conducts the orchestra. This production is part of the worldwide celebration of the 100th anniversary of Leonard Bernstein’s birth.

The Operatic American Playwright – Boston Court Performing Arts Center

January 27th

This one night only concert features works from opera that were based on or inspired by the work of American playwrights. There will also be some popular songs reflective of the period as well. The event is timed to coincide with a new production of Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire that Boston Court will be presenting started February 15th. Soprano Amanda Squitieri, accompanied by Mark Robson on the piano, will explore a range of women created by not just by Williams, but also Lanford Wilson, Arthur Miller and others. A pre-performance chat will take place at 7:15 PM.

Herbie Hancock in Concert – Walt Disney Concert Hall

January 27th

Even though there are absolutely no details about what Herbie Hancock and his quartet will be performing, does it matter? The jazz legend, who serves as the Creative Chair for Jazz at the LA Philharmonic, has 14 Grammy Awards and has worked with such giants as Miles Davis, Oscar Peterson and Chick Corea. He also has an Academy Award for his work on ‘Round Midnight. Joining Hancock are Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, James Genus on bass, Terrace Martin on keyboards and sax and Elena Pinderhughes on flute and vocals.

The post This Weekend in LA (January 26-28) appeared first on Cultural Attaché.