So Cal Arts & Entertainment
![SCR’s “La Havana Madrid,” Chance Theater’s “Rent”](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Rent004-1000x675.jpg)
SCR’s “La Havana Madrid,” Chance Theater’s “Rent”
I’ve found two ways to stay cool in the hip sense if not the literal this past weekend. “La Havana Madrid,” an entertainment that celebrates Latin American music and culture, is a delightful way to spend a summer evening (through August 4 at Mission San Juan...
read more![Roaring ‘20s recalled with Nazimova at Theatre West, silent “Casanova” and “Justine” on Blu-ray](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Garden-of-Alla-8x12-1-1080x675.jpg)
Roaring ‘20s recalled with Nazimova at Theatre West, silent “Casanova” and “Justine” on Blu-ray
“I am what the public demands of me,” says the stylishly-clad figure silhouetted against the flickering images on the screen behind her. Only to lament moments later, “People don’t know who I am.” 100 years have passed since the heyday of Alla Nazimova, but the...
read more![Shirley Temple and W.C. Fields gems on Blu-ray](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Little-Miss-Marker-blu-ray-copy-576x675.jpg)
Shirley Temple and W.C. Fields gems on Blu-ray
The guy who created “Guys and Dolls” was a literary legend who had a tremendous influence on Hollywood and the movies. One of the best pictures based on his fanciful stories made a star of the curly-headed six-year-old moppet who played the title role, though she...
read more![“Chicago” in Costa Mesa, “In My Bones” in Long Beach](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/ChicagoTour25th_8190_KatieFriedenAndCompany-Credit-Jeremy-Daniel-1080x675.jpg)
“Chicago” in Costa Mesa, “In My Bones” in Long Beach
Give ‘em the old razzle dazzle, that’s the name of the game. The 25th Anniversary Tour of “Chicago,” which touched down Tuesday at Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa—where it continues through Sunday, May 21—proved anew Bob Fosse’s long shadow hangs over the...
read more![“Coleman ’72” and “avaaz” at SCR, Panndora’s curtain call](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Panndora-Productions-1080x675.jpeg)
“Coleman ’72” and “avaaz” at SCR, Panndora’s curtain call
It’s curtains for Panndora Productions. Karen Wray and Sonja Berggren, aka The Panndora Girls, are calling it a night at the end of this season—their 20th year of producing new plays. They’re not finished just yet, though. Their swan song, “In My Bones,” written by...
read more![Vidiots Redux, TCM Classic Festival, Film Fest Petaluma](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/American-Graffiti-Richard-Dreyfuss-Candy-Clark-TCMCFF-2023-1080x675.jpeg)
Vidiots Redux, TCM Classic Festival, Film Fest Petaluma
Remember Vidiots, the alternative Los Angeles video store? The popular shop (which operated in Santa Monica from 1985 to 2017) and non-profit film organization has reinvented itself and relocated to the Northeast L.A. hood of Eagle Rock. It opens the doors to its new...
read more![TCM Classic Film Festival returns, “Walter Paisley” continues](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/bye-bye-birdie.jpeg)
TCM Classic Film Festival returns, “Walter Paisley” continues
Where can you see vintage movies on the big screen today, the way they were meant to be seen? Alas, far too few places. The 2023 TCM Classic Film Festival, where movies are shown as they were originally intended, returns to Hollywood April 13-16. The fabled legacy of...
read more![“Walter Paisley” at La Mirada, “Little Foxes” at SCR](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Walter-Paisley-copy-1080x675.png)
“Walter Paisley” at La Mirada, “Little Foxes” at SCR
Chances are you’ve never heard of Paisley—Walter, that is—much less have any idea what he may or may not have accomplished of late. Don’t worry, no one else has either. All that’s about to change, however, as something that’s been described as “a beatnik horror comedy...
read more![Passion projects spotlight comedians, cartoon voices, Jolson and Polanski](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Lame-Brains-Lunatics-2-copy.png)
Passion projects spotlight comedians, cartoon voices, Jolson and Polanski
The pandemic seems to be generating more passion projects than ever, books willed into existence by their creators in spite of all odds. One such book is “The Compleat Beau Geste” by Frank Thompson, the author of two books on film director William Wellman and a noted...
read more![“Voodoo Macbeth” on Blu-ray, “Appropriate” at SCR](http://jordanryoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Voodoo-Macbeth-copy-2.jpg)
“Voodoo Macbeth” on Blu-ray, “Appropriate” at SCR
Harlem, October 1935. The scene opens on Rose McClendon as Lady Macbeth, rehearsing the “screw your courage to the sticking place” scene from “The Scottish Play.” She asks 20-year-old wunderkind Orson Welles to direct their Negro Theatre Unit production. He turns them...
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