Venice ~ CA

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Blood Brothers (Thru Nov 23) @ Whitefire Theater ~ 13500 Ventura Blvd. Sherman Oaks, CA 91423

Blood Brothers, the musical by Willy Russell, currently playing at the Whitefire Theatre on Ventura Blvd., could not have had a more timely resurrection. It is a story that explores the desperate choices people make when they are faced with financial ultimatums, plagued by the limits and fears of their own superstitions, and burdened by secrets buried in their hearts. Those secrets that, had they only been released, would have provided the abundance and freedom they longed for.

Starring Pamela Taylor as Mrs. Johnstone, the role originated by Stephanie Lawrence on Broadway in 1993, Blood Brothers, under the direction of Bryan Rasmussen, is set in South Central L.A., as opposed to the original setting in Liverpool, England. Two twins, Mickey (Eduardo Enrikez) and Eddie (Ryan Nealy), are separated shortly after birth by their single mother, Mrs. Johnstone (Taylor), who already has more seeds than the Jolie-Pitt’s. In order to lessen the suffering of her existing brood and generously build a wealthy couple into a complete family, Mrs. Johnstone keeps one child, while her reproductively challenged, but rich boss, Mrs. Lyons (Judy Norton), takes the other. I wonder if it ever crossed Mrs. Lyons’ mind to just give her struggling employee a raise instead of snatching a child. Nevertheless, this life-changing decision plagues both women with an eternity of guilt and deception that is ultimately defeated by the ‘blood-tie’ between the two twins, who struggle their way to the fatal truth. In the number ‘Shoes upon the Table,’ their tragic resolution is foreshadowed by the ominous folk-superstition of a pair of new shoes placed on a tabletop.

Rasmussen’s choice to cast two actors with different ethnicities as the twins is a clear nod to a North American audience. The chemistry between the two brothers on stage and the urgency of Taylor’s performance are what bring the show together. The two principle actors, Enrikez and Nealy, give fantastic performances; ranging from childhood playmates to young adults who struggle with their identities in the face of socio-economic boundaries. Enrikez gradually delivers an honest soul whose character becomes swallowed by the unbearable guilt of not being, or having, enough. They are joined by Sita Young, fresh from New York, who plays Linda, the love interest that indirectly turns the twins against each other. Young is nuanced, specific, grounded, coy, and brazen at the same time. She may be”‘young,” but her acting is seasoned.

Some of the musical interludes in between scenes give the show a near soap-opera atmosphere, and costumes could have been more contrasting, especially between the rich and poor folk. Taylor gives a heartbreaking performance in ‘Easy Terms.’ Other musical strengths are “Long Sunday Afternoon,” “I’m Not Saying a Word,” (Nealy and Young) and the company finale “Tell Me It’s Not True.” The show, running through November 23^rd, is nearly three hours long with one fifteen-minute intermission and Act II runs smoother than Act I, which could use some tightening in the staging for the Narrator (Gil Darnell) who comes in and out of the action, as a shadow of the human conscience.

Blood Brothers is more than relevant to the questions this country is coming around to asking itself after its 40-year shopping spree. Amid the world’s current economic crisis and the daily political farce that threatens our reality, somedays it seems we live in the Twilight Zone. What happens when superstition belies reason? Where we are plagued by our beliefs and forget our convictions? What happens when we become mired in so much material suffering that we can not see what we are actually giving up? And who is to say what each of us would do if we were in another’s shoes? At least keep them off the table.

- Review by Asian Taco Chick

Day of the Dead takes on a new meaning this year for the community of East Los Angeles as its residents prepare to celebrate not just the commemoration of their dearly departed but probably the last weekend-long festival at Self Help Graphics’ current location.

“When last we left our embattled arts activists at Self Help Graphics, they were on the verge of eviction from their longtime headquarters in East L.A. Even some true believers were ready to count out the struggling community-based institution that has been a beacon for Chicano art for almost four decades.

But the group is still alive and kicking as it prepares for its biggest event of the year, the Day of the Dead on Nov. 2, with a display of colorful altars, a procession and a concert. The group’s legendary print shop remains active too, with an exhibition of political posters that opened Friday in collaboration with Farmlab, the experimental arts complex that is hosting the show at its gallery north of downtown, and La Casa del Túnel, a new Tijuana gallery located in a house once used by drug dealers to cover a border tunnel for smuggling.

Self Help’s barrio spirit of perseverance is what earned it a reputation for nurturing great art on a shoestring. Showing it can survive despite adversity serves its cause much better than complaining about the nuns who sold the building the nonprofit had occupied rent-free for decades.” Click here for the full LA Times article and here for the full schedule of events.

The downtown crowd can hit the 7th Festival de la Gente, a community festival and fine arts exhibit followed by a Masquerade Ball for those lucky enough to have hit number 21. Go to www.festivaldelagente.org for more info.

Also worthy of mention is Plaza de la Raza’s Saturday event where you can catch altar-maker Ofelia Esparza’s first solo exhibit at the Plaza’s Boathouse Gallery. Click here for more info.

With the Holidays right around the corner, the Day of the Dead celebrations are also a great place to find unique gifts by our talented local musicians, writers and artists.

Andrew Bynum signed a 4 year, $58m contract today, just a week after his 21st birthday (video above), where he made it rain using $1 bills.

Los Angeles ~ CA

The Lakers are 1-0 after last night’s opener with the Blazers (above, photo by spackletoe)

The following is a guest post by Kurt at Forum Blue and Gold:

Team Name: Los Angeles Lakers
Last Year’s Record: 57-25
Key Loss: Ronny Turiaf
Key Additions: Getting Andrew Bynum and Trevor Ariza healthy, Josh Powell

1. What Significant Moves were made during the off-season? There weren’t any earth-shaking ones — and there shouldn’t have been. Yes, Ronny Turiaf is now dancing in the Bay Area, and his energy will be missed. But, with the current Laker lineup, Turiaf would have been playing 12 to 15 minutes a game at best, and that is a role that Josh Powell can fill admirably (at a better price). Bottom line, this is a team that went to the finals last year without its starting center and a key defensive player off the bench, and still took a peaking Celtics team to six games. What this team needed was a summer to get healthy, then a preseason (and, really, a regular season) to get everyone on the same page. There was no need for a big move.

2. What are the team’s biggest strengths? Depth, and the versatility that depth provides. This team is 10 deep with guys that could start a lot of places in the league — Lamar Odom is coming off the bench, name another team where that would happen?

That depth provides three advantages. One, the Lakers will win a lot of games because the second unit will outplay other team’s second unit. The Lakers “Bench Mob” led by Jordan Farmar, Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza come in and change the pace, running and being aggressive on defense. Just like a baseball pitcher, that change of pace can be hard to handle. The Lakers are going to stretch a lot of leads out at the start of the first and fourth quarters.

Second, the depth means that when the inevitable injuries come (hopefully nothing as serious as last year), the Lakers are better positioned than most to weather that storm and keep winning. (Although, as last year showed, the Lakers need their key players ready for the playoffs.)

Third and finally, it allows Phil Jackson, the master of lineup tinkering (he so loves to do that, even in May), a lot of matchup options every night. For example, here’s clear example is that I expect to see a lot of: Looking at the tall and long starting lineup for the Lakers, other teams will try to counter by going small. Do that and Jackson can either just try to pound you inside with the size, or put in a lineup like Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic, Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom (or Trevor Ariza) and Pau Gasol (or Andrew Bynum) and match the quickness using five guys that can run the floor with you and beat you that way. Jackson has a versatile roster that allows him to match and counter just about anything you throw at the Lakers.
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