Spanning all genres, UCLA Live unveils their 2008-2009 Season featuring an eclectic, yet visionary collection of artists. Artistic director, David Sefton announced the nine-month season, which will run from October 1, 2008 to June 20, 2009. Consisting of 94 performances, the upcoming season will feature, dance, spoken word, family, organ, classical, jazz,, world, folk, roots and electronica artists. To say UCLA Live’s upcoming schedule is diverse is an understatement.
One of the nation’s most daring and influential performing arts presenters, UCLA Live has been hailed by Performances magazine as “the region’s most multicultural arts institution,” with programming recognized as “a dynamic and eclectic collection of events” by the Financial Times. “We love the eclectic lineup at UCLA Live,” raved National Geographic Traveler. “The performing arts series based at the university’s Royce Hall presents a global mix of traditional and cutting-edge attractions.”
The 08/09 season features performers from countries including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, Ireland, Germany, England, Hungary, India, Iran, Israel, Morocco, Nigeria, Peru, Russia, Serbia, Spain and the United States.
In its new season, UCLA Live will host World, North American, United States, West Coast and Southern California premieres, with four U.S. exclusives, three West Coast debuts and three co-commissioned works.
“The new season represents absolutely the best work out in the world right now,” says Sefton. “For the seventh annual International Theatre Festival, five of the six events have never been seen in the United States and four are entirely exclusive to UCLA Live.”
Among the most highly anticipated offerings is UCLA Live’s flagship seventh annual International Theatre Festival, sponsored by Yahoo!, presenting the U.S. debut of Australian-born writer-director Barrie Kosky in his powerful adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”; the West Coast debut of Ireland’s internationally acclaimed Druid Theatre Company in Tony Award-winning founder-director Garry Hynes’ double-bill of John Millington Synge’s masterpieces, “Playboy of the Western World” and “The Shadow of the Glen”; and the return of Berlin’s Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz in its second-ever visit to the U.S. in Anton Chekhov’s “Ivanov,” directed by Dimiter Gotscheff.
UCLA Live co-commissioned works by two artists returning to the Festival including the Los Angeles performance debut of Canadian director-auteur Robert Lepage with his company Ex Machina in the North American premiere of “The Blue Dragon,” and English director-performer Andrew Dawson in the U.S. exclusives of “Quatre Mains” and “Space Panorama,” both intimate narratives told simply through the dexterity of the human hands. A third co-commissioned work features the return to UCLA Live of L.A.’s own David Roussève and his outstanding company in a new piece of shattering dance theater, “Saudade.”
“There are events that you will never see again, such as Hal Willner and McCabe’s anniversary concerts,” explains Sefton. “The new season also includes old friends Andrew Dawson, Volksbühne, Labèque sisters, Kronos Quartet, and some new names to UCLA Live such as Barrie Kosky and Sidi Larbi, legendary creative talents Edward Albee, Werner Herzog and Césaria Évora, and a couple from my past — trust me, you do not want to miss Goran Bregovic!”
Events will be presented at UCLA campus stages including Royce Hall, UCLA Live’s historic main performance venue, as well as Freud Playhouse, Macgowan Little Theater and Schoenberg Hall.
Series and Choose-Your-Own subscriptions consist of multiple events sold at a discount when applicable, and are on sale now. Single tickets go on sale July 23 (July 14 for current subscribers and RCC members). Tickets may be purchased online at www.uclalive.org, by phone at 310-825-2101, in person at the UCLA Central Ticket Office at the southwest corner of the James West Alumni Center, and at all Ticketmaster outlets.
2008/09 SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
UCLA Live’s Seventh International Theatre Festival
A world-class range of classic and original work with many exclusives, debuts and premieres, UCLA Live’s seventh annual International Theatre Festival runs October 1 through December 18.
The Festival opens in with the U.S. debut of Australian writer-director Barrie Kosky’s haunting adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart,” featuring a riveting solo performance by actor-singer Martin Niedermair and original live music by Kosky. (Oct. 1–5)
Ireland’s distinguished Druid Theatre Company, led by Tony Award-winning founder-director Garry Hynes, makes its U.S. debut in two one-act dramas by John Millington Synge, “The Playboy of the Western World” and “The Shadow of the Glen.” (Oct. 14–18)
A U.S. exclusive, choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s new work, “Myth,” produced in association with Antwerp’s Toneelhuis theatre collective, blurs the line between dance, theater, music and art in a mix of Pina Bausch and Hieronymous Bosch. (Oct. 17–18) (Also on Dance series)
Visionary Québécois director-actor Robert Lepage will make his L.A. performance debut with his company Ex Machina in the North American premiere of “The Blue Dragon,” which follows the ongoing story of Pierre Lamontagne, the central figure in Lapage’s award-winning masterpiece “The Dragons’ Trilogy.” (Nov. 12–22)
Berlin’s Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz, among the most prominent and revolutionary theater establishments of the past century, returns in the U.S. exclusive of Anton Chekhov’s “Ivanov” with Bulgarian-born director Dimiter Gotscheff, in collaboration with the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles. In German with English supertitles. (Dec. 3–7)
English director-performer Andrew Dawson returns in the U.S. exclusives of two acclaimed original works: “Space Panorama,” a hypnotic solo recreation of the Apollo 11 moon landing using only Dawson’s hands, accompanied by Shostakovich’s 10th Symphony; and “Quatre Mains,” a wordless, intimate dance for four hands set against a diverse soundtrack ranging from Britten to The Jazz Passengers, co-commissioned by UCLA Live with fabrik, Potsdam. (Dec. 17–21)
Jazz
The great legends of America’s quintessential art form converge in this series, offering an adventurous spectrum of music that will appeal to jazz enthusiasts and heretics alike.
* Grammy-winning saxophonist Branford Marsalis joins forces with Filharmonia Brasileira, conducted by Gil Jardim, in a musical celebration commemorating the 50th anniversary of the death of Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos. The program will feature works for saxophone and orchestra by Villa-Lobos and his friend, French composer Darius Milhaud. (Oct. 10)
* Celebrating its impressive legacy, the Blue Note 70th Anniversary tour features an all-star lineup led by Blue Note Records artist and pianist, Bill Charlap with Peter Bernstein, Ravi Coltrane, Lewis Nash, Nicholas Payton, Peter Washington & Steve Wilson. The all-star ensemble will explore classic tunes by Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk, Horace Silver, Herbie Hancock, Lee Morgan, Wayne Shorter and many others. (Jan. 22)
* Memphis-born jazz trumpeter Jon Hassell, the creator of a style dubbed “Fourth World” — an ethereal, realistic blend of ancient and digital, composed and improvised, and Eastern and Western — will be joined by his band Maarifa Street in an alchemy of global fusion. The evening opens with Tunisian vocalist and oud player Dhafer Youssef. (Feb. 13)
* Since first performing together with the Miles Davis band nearly 40 years ago, Chick Corea and John McLaughlin have become giants in their own right, redefining the boundaries of music with their explosive jazz-rock fusion. These icons will be joined by three of the most accomplished contemporary jazz players of our time in their Five Peace Band. (March 19)
Roots and Popular Music
This series rocks with shades of folk, rockabilly and blues, as legends of the genre perform in a stellar combination of rare appearances, unique multi-artist celebrations and reunion concerts.
* McCabe’s 50th Anniversary: A Living History of Music honors Santa Monica’s McCabe’s Guitar Shop in an all-star concert with Jackson Browne, Richard Thompson, Odetta, David Lindley, Jennifer Warnes, The Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Ricky Jay and many other special guests who have contributed to the iconic cultural institution. (Oct. 2)
* From record producer Hal Willner comes the West Coast premiere of “Stay Awake: The Official 20th Century Anniversary Concert” celebrating Willner’s historic compilation of music from the vintage Disney Songbook by an eclectic range of artists from Suzanne Vega and Los Lobos to Ringo Starr and Bonnie Raitt. The soon-to-be-announced lineup will include many of the album’s original performers in this one-time-only event. (Oct. 30)
* Ten-time Grammy-winner Linda Ronstadt will reunite with the world-famous Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano in “A Romantic Evening in Old Mexico,” highlighting songs from her best-selling albums “Canciones de Mi Padre” and “Más Canciones.” The dance troupe, Ballet Folklorico Paso del Norte, will also perform to the classic Mexican ranchera music. (Nov. 6)
* A founder of the seminal krautrock group Ash Ra Tempel and true innovator of electronica, German guitarist Manuel Göttsching stars in the world premiere performance of his 1975 album, “Inventions for Electric Guitar,” played for the first time on four guitars, as it was originally intended. This transcendent, interstellar music will be followed by Göttsching’s solo performance, in a California premiere, of his 1984 masterpiece “E2-E4.” (March 7)
* Irish folk-rock fusion group Moving Hearts, one of Ireland’s most influential bands, has reunited after nearly two decades and brings its inimitable musical blend of traditional Irish folk, rock, and jazz to Royce Hall for a rare and eagerly anticipated performance. (March 17)
* Two-time Grammy nominee Monica Mancini has appeared as a concert performer with major orchestras worldwide and recorded with artists from Placido Domingo to Quincy Jones. The daughter of famed film composer Henry Mancini and the singer Ginny Mancini, Monica and her band come to Royce Hall with a program of American classics. (March 21)
Organ Series
UCLA Live presents three diverse programs showcasing the historic Skinner pipe organ, an integral part of Royce Hall’s legacy for more than 75 years. Supported by The Ahmanson Foundation Endowment for Organ Programming.
*Dubbed “The Maverick Organist” by The New York Times, Cameron Carpenter is known for his intensely personal, often flamboyant performances and repertoire spanning the organ and piano literature, featuring original compositions, film scores (especially from Japanese animé), and improvisations influenced by folk songs, jazz, disco and pop. (Oct. 26)
*Organist Tom Trenney accompanies one of the great comedies of the silent film era, Harold Lloyd’s “Speedy” (1928), in the popular family event, Royce Hall Organ & Film. Shot on location in Manhattan and featuring shots of the old Yankee Stadium and Coney Island’s Luna Park, Lloyd’s last silent film is packed with brilliant sight gags and includes a cameo by baseball legend Babe Ruth. Co-presented with the UCLA Film & Television Archive. (Jan. 31) (Also on Family series)
• Award-winning German organist Christoph Bull and special guests celebrate the 10th
anniversary of “organica” in a multimedia concert that demonstrates the creative expanse of the Royce Hall organ in a unique, original program. (April 5)
Dance
Showcasing emerging and established contemporary dance companies from around the world, UCLA Live’s Dance series kicks off in October with Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui/Toneelhuis and concludes in May 2009 with the highly anticipated return of Ballet Preljocaj.
* Internationally renowned Argentinean dancer Guillermina Quiroga and her company return to the U.S. in their first North American tour, “Tango, Historias Breves,” featuring Quiroga, her partner Claudio Villagra, three couples and the group Los Cosos de al Lao led by conductor and bandoneon player Gustavo Paglia. (Feb. 4–5)
* Founded in 1964 with the personal assistance of Martha Graham, Batsheva Dance Company returns to UCLA Live under the direction of Israeli dancer-choreographer Ohad Naharin in “Max,” performed by 10 dancers to original music by Maxim Waratt. (Feb. 28–March 1)
* L.A.’s own David Roussève and his troupe REALITY present a piece of shattering dance theater co-commissioned by UCLA Live, “Saudade” (named after the Portuguese expression), a mosaic of character monologues told from a uniquely southern, African American perspective set to contemporary and traditional Fado recordings. (April 1–5)
* French-born Albanian Angelin Preljocaj and his Ballet Preljocaj take on one of classical music’s cultural landmarks, Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons” in a fantastical interpretation bursting with color, playful energy and magic, featuring the set design of renowned French sculptor Fabrice Hyber. (May 1–2)
World Music
* Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart, Indian tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, Nigerian talking drum virtuoso Sikiru Adepoju and legendary Latin percussionist Giovanni Hidalgo join forces in The Global Drum Project, performing works from the group’s eponymous 2007 album of tranced-out grooves, elegant electronic programming and hypnotic tuned percussion. (Oct. 9)
* Grammy Award-winning vocalist Césaria Évora, one of the world’s most celebrated artists, returns to Royce Hall to perform the breezy, minor key ballads of her native Cape Verde including songs from her latest album “Rogamar,” a soulful and joyous celebration of the sea. (Oct. 11)
* Peru’s Tania Libertad, one of today’s most significant Latin American artists, returns to UCLA Live in an evening of Afro-Peruvian roots music joined by the Portuguese singer Lura, who brings an exciting new street-wise sensibility and urban sensuality to the Cape Verdean music first made famous by Césaria Évora. (Oct. 25)
* The leading purveyors of Hungary’s wildly popular tanchez (“dance house”) movement and foremost interpreters of traditional eastern European folk music, Muzsikás, led by the legendary vocalist Marta Sebestyén, joins the world renowned Takács Quartet in an exploration of the gypsy roots in Bartók’s music. (Nov. 21)
* Hailing from Morocco’s Rif Mountains, the Master Musicians of Jajouka have performed their ancient, trance-inducing music on collaborations with musicians from Ornette Coleman to Talvin Singh. Led by Bachir Attar, whose family has passed down the group’s traditions for generations, this all-male ensemble features 15 rhaita players and five drummers. (Feb. 6)
* With their irresistibly eclectic mix of gospel, punk, Arab, African and Balkan rhythms steeped in Eastern European Jewish traditions, The Klezmatics are world-renowned klezmer superstars, perpetually reinventing and revitalizing this traditional genre to create exuberantly modern dance music. (March 5)
* Performing works from their upcoming recording, “The Silent City,” Grammy-nominated Iranian musician-composer Kayhan Kalhor and members of the genre-bending string quartet Brooklyn Rider create a boundless musical exploration, both ancient and contemporary, bridging traditions between Persia and the West. (April 4)
* Hailed by The New York Times as “the best piano duet in front of an audience today,” France’s Katia and Marielle Labèque will be joined by the premier female flamenco vocalist of her generation, Catalonian singer Mayte Martin in a program including works from their new collaborative recording “De Fuego y de Agua,” featuring renditions of Spanish classics. April 8
* Following sold-out Royce Hall appearances in 2004 and 2007, Mexican American singer Lila Downs returns to UCLA Live to perform her electrifying, cross-cultural blend of Mexican roots music, in which blues and jazz cohabitate with rap and ranchera, and honky-tonk swings alongside romantic boleros. (April 9)
* Son of Nigerian music legend Fela Kuti, saxophonist and vocalist Seun Kuti leads his father’s original 20-piece band, the legendary Egypt 80, in an explosive dance party featuring the Kuti family’s signature Afro-beat magic and social consciousness laced with a contemporary mix of urban funk, soulful grooves and hip-hop rhythms. The concert will feature music from the group’s 2008 self-titled CD, as well as Fela Kuti classics. (April 18)
* Created by multi-award-winning musician David Bridie from the Australian band Not Drowning Waving, Sing Sing — a Papua New Guinea expression for “large musical gathering” — mixes traditional and contemporary sounds in a unique visual and musical journey through the vast physical and cultural landscapes from the forests of Papua New Guinea to the deserts of Australia. (May 7)
* With a lively ensemble that includes a Serbian gypsy band, a 12-piece classical string orchestra, a fifteen-man choir, an electric guitarist and rock drummer, and one gypsy and two Bulgarian female vocalists, Goran Bregovic Wedding and Funeral Orchestra is perhaps the largest, most diverse and most irresistible world music group to hit the Royce Hall stage. (June 19–20)
Classical
The most respected classical musicians converge in this stunning series, featuring a mix of monumental orchestras, dazzling soloists and eclectic chamber ensembles.
* Kronos Quartet, one of the most celebrated and influential ensembles of our time, presents the Southern California premiere of “Awakening: A Musical Meditation on the Anniversary of 9/11,” commemorating the events of that day with music from more than a dozen nations — including Uzbekistan, Germany, Iran, Sweden, Iraq and the United States — to create a rich tapestry of global voices. (Oct. 3)
* In its Royce Hall debut, Israel’s Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, with music director and conductor Leon Botstein and Grammy-nominated violinist Robert McDuffie, explores the American Jewish diaspora in a program including Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess suite,” Bernstein’s Symphony No. 2 (“The Age of Anxiety”), and Copland’s Symphony No. 3. (Oct. 28)
* Returning to Royce Hall by popular demand, world-renowned pianist Lang Lang, dubbed by the New York Times as “the hottest artist on the classical music planet,” will perform works by Mozart, Schumann and Liszt with traditional Chinese selections from his 2006 album “Dragon Songs.” (Nov. 1)
* Creating the perfect musical dialogue, celebrated Russian duo Nikolaï Lugansky, hailed as the next great Russian pianist, and Vadim Repin, regarded as one of today’s leading violinists, make their UCLA Live debut in a program of sonatas by Debussy, Prokofiev and Beethoven. Nov. 8
* In its 45th and final season, the legendary Guarneri String Quartet joins with fellow Marlboro Music Festival alumni, the Johannes String Quartet in a program featuring three Los Angeles premieres including an octet by William Bolcom and new quartets by Derek Bermel and the L.A. Philharmonic’s Esa-Pekka Salonen, as well as Mendelssohn’s “Glorious” Octet. (Nov. 22)
* Conductor-pianist Philippe Entremont, among the most recorded artists of all time, joins the renowned Munich Symphony Orchestra for a spectacular Royce Hall debut in a program featuring Wagner’s “Siegfried Idyll,” Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 2 in C minor and a Mozart piano concerto. Supported by E. Nakamichi Foundation. (Feb. 21.)
* One of America’s top music festivals, Musicians from Marlboro introduces the rising stars of the classical genre to audiences worldwide, presenting Lily Francis and Soovin Kim on violin, Rebecca Albers and Maurycy Banaszek on viola and Earl Lee on cello performing works by Beethoven and Zoltán Kodály. (March 6)
Spoken Word
The words and wisdom of today’s most influential literary figures and cultural pundits are highlighted in a series of rare appearances and pairings. All events include a Q&A with the speakers.
* Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, poet and critic John Updike, one of the world’s greatest living writers, makes a rare appearance at UCLA Live’s Royce Hall on the heels of his latest release “The Widows of Eastwick,” a sequel to his blockbuster 1984 novel, “The Witches of Eastwick.” (Nov. 13)
* Three-time Pulitzer Prize-winner Edward Albee makes his Royce Hall debut in a fascinating discussion about the power of the arts as a catalyst for change, exploring charged topics such as government repression, censorship in the arts and cultural literacy. (Feb. 7)
* In a UCLA Live exclusive event, visionary director Werner Herzog appears in a discussion moderated by the New York Public Library’s Paul Höldengraber, followed by the cine-concert “Requiem for a Dying Planet,” an assemblage featuring Herzog’s documentaries, “The Wild Blue Yonder” and “The White Diamonds” set to an original live score. (Feb. 20)
* Dr. Oliver Sacks, one of the great medical writers and storytellers of our time, has entertained, inspired and transformed our understanding of the human mind by transporting us into the uncanny worlds of his neurological patients, who through countless acts of creativity, large and small, teach us much about being human. (April 23)
* Author, radio star and retired elf David Sedaris returns to Royce Hall in another hilarious evening featuring new work, conversation and readings culled from his latest collection of essays, “When You Are Engulfed in Flames,” and many best-selling books including “Me Talk Pretty One Day” and “Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. “(April 29)
Family
A fresh, fun and family-friendly mix of events for generations to enjoy together.
* A 2007 Grammy Award winner for “Best Musical Album for Children,” Dan Zanes, his Brooklyn-based band and special guests present a very special concert celebrating the sounds and colors of Los Angeles and its “indigenous” music, from hip-hop to classic Disney tunes, in a rollicking, all-ages dance party. (March 14–15)
* Britain’s Hoipolloi has its West Coast premiere in “My Uncle Arly,” filled with music, clowning and Edward Lear’s best-loved characters in a gloriously giggly world where easels become birds, hats fly and where we meet the pobble who has no toes and the dong with the luminous nose. Presented in association with WebPlay, an international arts education charity. (March 27–29)
UCLA Live is an internationally acclaimed producer and presenter of music, dance, theater and spoken word, bringing hundreds of outstanding and provocative artists to Los Angeles each year. From the ancient to the modern, the local to the global, and the underground to the world- renowned, UCLA Live is committed to supporting the development of new and existing work by both major and emerging artists.
