Scene from MUSE/IQUE's "Back to Oz" at the Mark Taper Forum (Photo by Haoyuan Ren for MUSE/IQUE) Local orchestral ensemble MUSE/IQUE — whose goal is to produce accessible, live, immersive music for all — has achieved that mission with “Back to Oz” at the Mark Taper Forum. “Back to Oz” offers a polished showcase of the enduring cultural impact of “The Wizard of Oz” — from L. Frank Baum’s original 1900 novel to the 1939 MGM musical film starring Judy Garland to “The Wiz” in 197

These interviews were originally published in the Long Beach Post, a nonprofit news organization, on Jan. 22, 2026. Scene from "The Simon & Garfunkel Story," coming to Cerritos Center on Jan. 29 and 30. Photo by Timothy Norris. The Cerritos Center has two upcoming shows — “The Simon & Garfunkel Story” on Jan. 29 and 30 and “STOMP” on Feb. 4 and 5 — designed to delight fans and newbies alike through storytelling and music. Performers in both shows talked to the Long Beach Po

If you’ve ever heard Charles Lloyd on saxophone, you know there’s no one else in the world who can make it sing, speak, dance or just tickle like he does. Though Lloyd has performed with different trios and quartets over decades, sometimes on flute or other wind instrument and in different musical genres, his distinctive style always comes through — playful, soulful, surprising, delightful and spiritually transporting. For one night only at the Soka Performing Arts Center on

Having first experienced three summertime BBC Proms concerts at the Royal Albert Hall in London last year , I looked forward to attending...

Isaac Cruz (Manny) in "Adobe Punk: A Punk Rehearsal in Real Time" at Margo Albert Theatre (Photo by Rob Aft) "Adobe Punk: A Punk...

From left: Joe Ngo (Chum), Abraham Kim (Rom), Kelsey Angel Baehrens (Sothea), Jane Lui (Pou) and Tim Liu (Leng) in East West Players' "Cambodian Rock Band" (Photo by Teolindo) East West Players’ “Cambodian Rock Band” essentially tore up the stage of the David Hwang Theater in Los Angeles while wrapping up its extended run last weekend. An explosive blend of music and storytelling both humorous and harrowing, Lauren Yee’s play as directed by Chay Yew is the kind of performance

This interview was originally published in the Long Beach Post , a nonprofit news organization, on March 6, 2025. Branford Marsalis. Photo by Palma Kolansky. The Branford Marsalis Quartet is set to perform for one night only at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts on March 13. I had the privilege of speaking with Mr. Marsalis in advance of the event. Marsalis is widely regarded as jazz royalty and a master musician, his career extending into classical music recordings

Monty Alexander (Photo courtesy SCFTA) Celebrated jazz pianist Monty Alexander is performing for his 80th birthday year on Saturday, Nov....

Imagine a dynamic eight-week classical music series continuing through the warm summer months of London, England, staged at the...