Westside Ballet of Santa Monica presents 'Masters of Movement: Ballet through the Centuries'-a richly varied program of classical, neoclassical, and contemporary works showcasing the range and talent of the nonprofit company's pre-professional dancers, alumni, and guest artists-on Memorial Day weekend at the Eli and Edythe Broad Stage in Santa Monica.
Since the start of the pandemic, Cerise Jacobs and her activist opera company, White Snake Projects, have been developing a trilogy of virtual operas revolving around populations disproportionately affected by COVID-19: essential workers, the incarcerated, and survivors of intimate partner violence.
Galvanized by the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May of 2020, Cerise Jacobs and her activist opera company, White Snake Projects, developed the virtual opera Death by Life – exploring the intersection of systemic racism and mass incarceration with texts written by incarcerated writers and their families and a score by five Black composers – to stand as a monument of support for the Black Lives Matter movement.
Melisa Tien s SWELL to Premiere Online at HERE
Created by 26 artist-collaborators, Swell weaves together ten original, new music compositions by ten composers.by BWW News Desk
Playwright, lyricist, and librettist Melisa Tien is the creator and producer of the upcoming live, online song cycle Swell, presented by HERE from March 17-21, 2021. This contemporary work about immigrants and children of immigrants, written by immigrants and children of immigrants, is directed by Elena Araoz with music direction by Tian Hui Ng. Right now, the U.S. feels like it s on the brink of so many things - politically, economically, socially. Immigrant stories, especially ones that humanize the people they re about, help highlight those who are often left behind when, for example, a medical disaster happens. Swell reminds us these are real people, simply trying to make their way, like everyone else, Melisa said of the piece s subject and timeliness.