Locavore dance descends on downtown; flamenco adds fire to the season in Silverlake; mountain dance in the Arts District; an ecclectic take on a holiday favorite in Glendale; a delayed dance tour arrives in Inglewood; a sandy cirque in Santa Monica; the link to this season’s Nutcrackers, plus more SoCal dance this week, and a peek at next week.
Live This Week
Did they leave anything out?
Taking an unorthodox, even eccentric approach to the holiday classic, LA Unbound returns with it’s The Nutcracker Unbound, infusing the format with everything except classical ballet. The party scene boasts musical theater and jazz, the battle scene combatants are tap dancers, the snow waltz is contemporary ballet, and the Sugar Plum Fairy combines contemporary ballet with hip hop. The Arabian dance employs belly dance while the Chinese dance is Chinese classical and folk dance. Join the fun at. Glendale Community College, Mainstay Theatre,1601 E. Mountain St., Glendale; Sat., Dec. 21, 2 & 5 pm. $27.05-$38.05. https://29564.danceticketing.com/r/events/
LA Unbound. Photo courtesy of the artists
A flamenco gift
A stalwart supporter and frequent performer in the long-running Flamenco Forever, master guitarist and singer Antonio Triana has assembled a special team of dancers, singers, and musicians for Noche en Triana: Holiday Edition. Dancers include Vanessa Acosta, Wendy Castellanos, and Cristina Hall, joined by singer Reyes Barrios, percussionist Johnny Sandoval, and, of course, Triana singing and on guitar. The return of this valued series to its home venue is a welcome gift for the season. Fountain Theatre, 5060 Fountain Ave., Silverlake; Sun., Dec. 22, 8 pm, $40-$50, $35 seniors, $25 students. https://www.fountaintheatre.com/
Forever Flamenco’s Cristina Hall. Photo by Alain Scherer
Misplaced or Lost?
Continuing their fertile relationship as resident choreographers with LA Dance Project, Bobbie Jene Smith and Or Schraiber present their latest, a full evening work, The Missing Mountain. Expect intricate, physical interactions from LADP’s superb dancers. After last weekend’s sell out shows, two more shows have been added. LA Dance Project Studios, 2245 E. Washington Blvd., downtown Arts District; Thurs.-Fri., Dec. 19-20, 8 pm, $45, $30 student/senior https://ci.ovationtix.com/35353/production/1171001
LA Dance Project – Daphne Fernberger and Lorrin Brubaker – Photo by Josh Rose
Free show (and free parking) from LA County
Dance groups reflecting SoCal’s diversity share the stage with musicians and singing groups for the 65th annual LA County Holiday Celebration. The dance groups include Afro Peruvian Experience, Ballet Folklórico de Esperanza, Hālau Hula Keali’i o Nālani, Joya Kazi Entertainment, Kim Eung Hwa & Korean Dance Academy, Martha L. Z. Pamintuan & Long Beach City College, Reverb Tap Company, Straight Up Abilities, Victory Praise Dancers, and Yaya Dance Academy. Info on the groups and approximate performance times at the website. The show and parking are free. Those unable to go downtown can watch the live show can watch on PBS (plus several televised and stream encores with info on the website).
Yaya Dance Academy. Photo by LKS Studio
Star dancing
A popular and established presence on Dancing With the Stars, Derek Hough and his wife Hayley Erbert Hough had just begun a 2023 holiday tour when her sudden, life-threatening health issues led to the tour’s cancellation. This year the tour is back on, with both Hough’s and a cadre of dancers taking on genres including flamenco, hip hop, jazz, modern, and all sorts of ballroom dance in Dance for the Holidays. YouTube Theater, 1101 Stadium Dr., Inglewood; Sat., Dec. 21, 8 pm, $40-$196. Also at Fox Performing Arts Center, 3801 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside; Fri., Dec. 27, 7 pm, $64-$332. https://www.derekhough.com/
Derek Hough. Photo courtesy of the artist
Back on the Beach
The grand daddy of all the cirques, Cirque du Soleil, returns with its signature tent and the show Kooza, brimming with acrobats and clowns. The two month run ends in early January. Still time to catch the show, maybe a holiday gift? Under the Big Top at Santa Monica Pier, 1550 Pacific Coast Hwy., Santa Monica; thru Sun., Jan. 5, $58-$344. Details on the many dates and times at the website. https://www.cirquedusoleil.com/kooza
Cirque du Soleil. Photo courtesy of the artists
Cancellation noted
The Electric Lodge in Venice announced cancellation of the dance, music and performance event Holiday Spark 2024 scheduled for this weekend.
Catch the Last of This Season’s Nutcrackers
A comprehensive round up of Nutcracker ballets and inventive versions throughout SoCal at: https://www.ladancechronicle.com/and-the-nuts-have-it/
New York City Ballet’s Mira Nadon guesting with Inland Pacific Ballet’s “Nutcrcker.” Photo by Erin Baiano
A Peek at Next Week
Dec. 27 to Jan. 2, 2025 (2025 already?)
Lula Washington Dance Theatre –Kwanzaa at Lula Washington Dance Theatre, 3773 Crenshaw Blvd., Crenshaw; Sat., Dec. 28, 1, 4 & 5 pm, $35, $20 students/seniors, $10 children under five years, Sat., Dec. 28, noon, $250. https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/6500423
Lula Washington Dance Theatre. Photo by Clay
Salute to Vienna New Year’s Concert at Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Dr., Costa Mesa; Sat., Dec. 28, 3 pm, $55.37-$157.07. https://www.scfta.org/ Also at Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown; Sun., Dec. 29, 2:30 pm, $65-$155. https://my.laphil.com/en/syos2/performance/9986
Featured image: Reverb Tap Company – photo by Timothy Norris
Ann Haskins Blog appears at CulturalDaily.com
