Page 50 - 2022-2023 Travel Guide to California

PERFORMING ARTS
ENCORE! ENCORE!
All around California, performance is a passion
HOLLYWOOD BOWL
The Hollywood Bowl dates back to
1922 and is home to the Hollywood
Bowl Orchestra and summer home
for the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Hundreds of musical events are held
every year in this amphitheater with
its signature band shell, where a
capacity of 17,500 people can gather
beneath the famous Hollywood sign
on the hill beyond.
Celebrating 100 years, 2022 pays
tribute to this incredible legacy with
special concerts and a free day-long
festival. (hollywoodbowl.com)
Performance is the lifeblood of the arts,
especially in California. From the Bar-
bary Coast docks to the Paramount
studio lots, drama, dance and music have
always been an indelible part of the “Left
Coast” spirit. The state’s scores of concert
halls, symphony orchestras, theaters, jazz
clubs, dance companies, comedy troupes,
cabarets, operas and fringe festivals lay
waste to the notion of spending a quiet
evening (or even an afternoon) at home. A
full accounting is impossible, but here are
some suggestions to consider.
Regional Theaters
Los Angeles, not surprisingly, supports
dozens of outstanding theater companies—
such as Open Fist, Actors Co-op, diverse
Cornerstone and Blank Theatre (which
48 2022-23 TRAVEL GUIDE TO CALIFORNIA
BY LAURIE WEED
hosts the annual Young Playwrights Fes-
tival). The city’s star attraction is the Center
Theatre Group, with everything from top-
shelf classics to cutting-edge solo
performances on three stages: the Mark
Taper Forum, the Kirk Douglas Theatre and
the Ahmanson Theatre.
San Francisco’s legendary American Con-
servatory Theater (A.C.T.), Magic Theatre
and Z Space are just a few of the city’s
beloved native companies—not to mention
the politically charged San Francisco Mime
Troupe. For solo performance, check out
both Intersection for the Arts and The
Marsh, which has locations in San Francisco
and Berkeley. A terrific addition to the Bay
Area theater scene is We Players, “con-
necting people with place through
site-integrated theatre.”
Across the Bay Bridge, Berkeley Reper-
tory Theatre continues its tradition of
inspired experimentation. And don’t
overlook “Cal Shakes”—the California
Shakespeare Company—with its gorgeous
open-air venue in the Orinda hills.