June 13, 2014
Treat Dad to Food, Films, Festivals & a Classic Car Ride w/ Root Beer

  

This Sunday is Father's Day! Make it extra special and memorable by doing fun activities with dear old Dad or take him out to events he'll enjoy (and the whole family too). It's an action-packed weekend and a lot of outside-of-the-box things to do for Dad or anyone.

 

 

FATHER FOODIE: A way to your Dad's heart is through his stomach and these are delicious.
FATHER FESTIVE: Get dear old Dad off the Barcalounger and into some fabulous festivals.

 

FATHER FUN: If Dad is the creative type, then he'll go wild over these artsy offerings.


FATHER FIT: Get your Dad feeling fine by doing something physical and fascinating.


Lear Theatricum TAKE YOUR PICK: WINNER'S CHOICE THEATER GIVEAWAYS: We are giving away 4 pairs of tickets to see either "Lear" on Sunday, June 22 or "All's Well That Ends Well" on Saturday, June 21 at The Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum in Topanga Canyon. 

Ellen Geer takes on the title role of Lear in a new production that sees the title figure divide her kingdom and test the loyalty of her three sons. Shakespeare's sublime poetry infuses this towering tragedy, a tale of madness, tyranny, loyalty and love.

In "All's Well..." The orphaned daughter of a famous physician, Helena heals the king and wins the right to marry the man she loves - a count above her station. But no one is prepared for the severity and ruthlessness of Bertram's rejection of Helena as his royally-decreed wife, nor with the lengths Helena is prepared to go to in order to win his love.

Discover Theatricum Botanicum's spectacular outdoor amphitheater nestled in the heart of Topanga Canyon. Theatricum has been named "One of the 50 Coolest Places in Los Angeles" by Buzz magazine, "One of Southern California's most beguiling theater experiences" by Sunset, and "Best Theater in the Woods" by the LA Weekly. Join them this summer as Theatricum celebrates the Bard's 450th Birthday with an All-Shakespeare Season. This is truly one of the summer theater companies you don't want to miss! 

Email us at [email protected] and let us know which show you would like to see. You can leave it open too or go for broke and enter for both as this giveaway is a hot one.
 

 

MORE:

 

EVEN MORE: Some things are always fun to do... Check out our Places to Go Anytime and Things To Do pages for plenty of ideas that are available on a regular basis.

  • KIDS STUFF - Shows, activities, teas and more for families with toddlers, tykes and teens.
  • FESTIVALS - There's always something to celebrate in almost every neighborhood.
  • FILM - This is the time of year where outdoor films are the hottest happenings.

See what's going on all month on the JUNE CALENDAR  

  HorzLine

 Find more? Check out our Editor's Picks selected at the start of every week.  

  

DiscountsDISCOUNTS - there are some really good ones right now. From whale watching to kids shows to festivals... entertain yourself at a discount. All at very reasonable prices. Even better, most of the discounts offered are direct from the event/activity producers and do not involve additional fees to receive the discount.

  

TIP OF THE ICEBERG: you'll find lots more events and other things to do near you - on our neighborhood and regional calendar links at the bottom of all Eye Spy LA web pages.


Have a Happy Weekend!

 
"The Human Spirit" at the Odyssey Has A Lot of Heart
by M.R. Hunter

The Human Spirit

 

Nelson Mandela's death earlier this year elicited a worldwide outpouring of genuine admiration for a revolutionary but peaceful leader who after being imprisoned for 27 years, went on to become the first president of South Africa and championed tirelessly for a transition from a racially divided apartheid country to one working for progressive change. For all that Mandela was able to achieve, the roots of prejudice, fear, hate and political corruption are still ever present in the embittered colonized African countries. While it may seem another world away, the people still struggling to mend the fences and bloodshed after half a century of tyranny continues to affect us all.  

 

This is Carole Eglash-Kosoff's primary mission with her play "The Human Spirit" based on her nonfiction book published in 2010 recounting the unlikely heroes of four women who banded together to make a difference in the community. These women nicknamed the "Mamas" comprised of two segregated locals (the charming Allison Reeves and exquisite singer Rea Segoati), a South African nun (Zuri Alexander) and a white Jewish sympathizer (Lisa Dobbyn). They invited great risk to ensure medication, basic essentials and food were reaching those who were in most desperate need of them and due to apartheid, were the ones least able to have access. Their journey and refusal to acquiesce under pressure, imprisonment and physical harm captures the enduring strength of compassion and fearlessness in the worst of times...


HorzLine

LACMA's World of Color - Expressionism, Mobiles, California, Futbol and the Metropolis by M.R. Hunter

LACMA Expressionism

Bringing together some of the greatest painters of the early 20th century from Bonnard, C�zanne, Gauguin, Marc, Matisse to lesser notable names as Cuno Amiet, Heinrich Campendonk, and Edouard Vuillard along with a smattering of rare pieces by van Gogh into its recent exhibit running through September 14, one can see the fluidity of the expressionist movement and how it related from the work itself to the artists themselves in an open dialogue.
 
 
The impressive exhibit follows a semi-chronological/semi-national timeline with the Parisian influence upfront peppered with the German persuasion. It's a glittering array of treasures with an imposing introduction by Vuillard's "A Walk in the Vineyard" cast in pastels with a verdant textile-like foreground. Moving through the period, a maturity and inventive play with color and form underlies the presentation. Flourishes of Impressionism are seen in the earlier French artists from the outset, making way to Fauvisim and Bauhaus evidenced by German artists Kandinsky and Klee... 



HorzLine

"Backyard" Isn't for Pussies at Atwater Village Theater
by M.R. Hunter

Backyard

Let me open with a disclaimer: this show has copious amounts of violent and graphic situations, sex and comedy. In short, it's a real winner for those who have a high tolerance for gore. For sensitive audiences who can't stand the sight of blood, self-inflicted pain, or oral copulation, I recommend you see something else. "Backyard" isn't for pussies. That being said upfront, I will now tender my review to everyone who, like me, enjoys a theatrical brawl, KO style.

Mickey Birnbaum's examination of backyard wrestling has less to do with the realities of this teenage pastime and instead uses the topic as a symbol of society's penchant for anger, disillusionment and peacocking. In a lower middle class suburb on the border of Mexico near San Diego, a family "earns their blood" when they practice and stage a recorded wrestling match complete with ridiculous characters: The Destroyer, King of Tears, Hellgirl, The Traveler, The Mantis, and Komodo Dragon. The premise sounds a bit shaky and at times the storyline wanes from the absurd to the gratuitous to the downright silly but Birnbaum manages to always up the ante just when it seems nothing more could possibly be explored in this serrated cut vein dramedy.

In lesser hands, the script would still entertain but it could pose as a dangerous enterprise for any less capable theater company or actor lacking health insurance. The toll and demand on the ensemble is extraordinarily high as they whip around, belly flop, whack, kick, and pummel and grapple each other on a padded floor or the occasional pinball ricochet against a mattress. There are moments when the choreography hugs dangerously close to being too real but this cast proves sturdy and flexible enough to take the blows like champions. This alone is almost worth the price of admission, but the jaw-dropping humor and colorful characters combined gives this play real heft beyond shock value alone. Is it shocking? Oh, yes, and exhilarating...
 

HorzLine

Eyestrology: Happy Birthday Gemini! by Cici Psy-Chic

Psychic Reader Dog For the month of 5/21/14-6/21/14
 
Happy birthday to these celebrity June Gemini's: Morgan Freeman (6/1), Justin Long (6/2), Anderson Cooper (6/3), Angelina Jolie (6/4), Mark Wahlberg (6/5), Robert Englund (6/6), Prince (6/7), Joan Rivers (6/8), Johnny Depp (6/9), Kate Upton (6/10), Shia LaBeouf (6/11), Ella Joyce (6/12), Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen (6/13), Donald Trump (6/14), Ice Cube (6/15), Abby Elliott (6/16), Venus Williams (6/17), Blake Shelton (6/18), Paula Abdul (6/19), Nicole Kidman (6/20), Prince William (6/21)
 
Although summer is upon us and most of us would like to be out catching the rays by dashing off to the beach, many signs will be feeling introspective and homebound in the next few weeks. Choose events and activities that stimulate the mind and lift the spirit but be prepared to cozy up with a Kindle or simply wile away the day in PJ's. There is a good opportunity for weekend trips, meeting new people or positive changes in career towards mid-June but for now take it easy. Use this time to plan, reorient or address anything requiring resolution and a sense of peace...
 

HorzLine

 

ABOUT EYE SPY LA
 

Eye Spy LA has been the online Local's Guide to L.A. since 2003. Content is written, edited and maintained by locals and focuses on local and nearby events and the local creative community.

 

Editorial policy: Eye Spy LA editorials are stories written about places, entertainment and events that we go to. The opinions are those of our editorial staff and the writer of the piece. Calendar listings are ads posted by the people producing events and activities in the local area. Each week we pick and recommend events and other things to do based on our experience or sometimes because they look particularly unusual, unique or in some other way interesting. We do not recommend them based on any fees they may or may not have paid us for advertising.

 

You'll always find the latest events & activities plus commentary about where we've been at eyespyLA.com - updated daily. 

 

Andrea Kirk, publisher ([email protected])

 

Eye Spy L.A. EYE SPY LA CONTRIBUTORS:

 

M.R. Hunter - editorial and reviews

Mark Share - reviews

Kelly Hargraves - dance and reviews

Leena Deneroff - food adventures

Charles Phoenix - retro slide of the week