Xaque Gruber

In the basement of Casita Del Campo, a Mexican Restaurant in Silver Lake, you'll find The Cavern Club, a haven of some of Los Angeles' most creative, colorful, underground theatre including the return of the wonderfully warped musical adaptation of the 1980s cult film The Legend Of Billie Jean, which...

Mozart once described the pipe organ, "the king of instruments." Well, there are pipe organs, and then there is the masterpiece of sound and design that is the Walt Disney Concert Hall pipe organ. Unorthodox as it is unforgettable, Los Angeles' premiere performance organ is the subject of a compelling...

Los Angeles, you are in for a treat. Follies, the 1971 landmark musical that collected seven Tony Awards, takes Los Angeles' Ahmanson Theatre by storm -- direct from Broadway, and bigger and better than ever.

James Goldman's haunting book...

In the shadows of Norma Desmond-era Hollywood, just 49 steps south of James Caan's star on the Walk of Fame, is a vestige of Tinseltown's long-vanished Golden Era bar scene. Passing through the black curtain, you adjust your eyes to the dimly lit, art deco interior, and enter the legendary,...

"A turkey sandwich doesn't have to be just a turkey sandwich." So says Esther Cynmon Linsmayer, executive chef, and co-owner of Food + Lab, a café and gourmet marketplace with an emphasis on using the finest ingredients to create some of the most memorable, and tasty, sandwiches, salads, soups, and...

There's nothing more inspiring than an artist spearheading a creative project grassroots-style, digging deep into their soul (and their savings), to achieve a not-to-be-missed payoff. Such is the case with Babar Peerzada, and his labor of love, a stellar revival of The Elephant Man running each weekend through May 6...

In the 84-year history of the Academy Awards, only four women have been nominated for Best Director. Only four! And only one (Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker) has won. So how many female director members are there in the Director's Guild of America? I called the DGA, and they...

A female friend recently said to me, "Sexism in the entertainment industry is so prevalent that most people are blind to it, and barely notice it anymore." This friend has been a Hollywood insider for decades, and Emmy nominated for her writing -- twice. Among her observations: "Not one show...

With 2012 marking the 90th birthday of Judy Garland, it feels entirely appropriate to rediscover the music and legacy of Hollywood's Golden Age songbird. And lucky for us, there's a special way to celebrate, as West Hollywood's French Market Showroom opens its doors every Friday and Saturday night with acclaimed...

Back in 2010, actress Kenyetta Lethridge wrote a 10 minute piece for a short play festival. The play didn't get in, but Lethridge knew she had the seed of something powerful, and developed it over the next year until a successful run was had in her home city of Los...

Whether you remember them as the women who played with Prince in The Revolution or as a pop duo or as the Emmy winning composers of Nurse Jackie, Heroes, Crossing Jordan, and now, the new FOX series, Touch, the innovative musical force that is Wendy & Lisa is...

Sitting down over a cup of black coffee with 27-year-old Norwegian Director Hallvar Witzo, whose Tuba Atlantic is an Academy Award nominee for Best Live Action Short Film, he beams with homeland pride as he points out "Norway went to the North and South Poles first."

And his homeland is...

This year's Academy Awards reunites Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady) with Glenn Close (Albert Nobbs) for the third time in the Best Performance By An Actress in a Leading Role category. The first time they faced off for Oscar was 1988. The prize went to Cher in Moonstruck, but the...

In theatres now for all you Oscar purists (of which I'm one) are the Oscar-nominated animated, live action, and documentary short films -- the best mini-movies of the year according to the Academy. Get a leg up on winning the office pool by checking out these unrated programs.

This...