8 Stories
Oedipus sings the blues “The Gospel at Colonus” at the Getty Villa by Bondo Wyszpolski Whatever else one may think about “The Gospel at Colonus,” the reinterpretation of “Oedipus at Colonus,” it’s hard to deny that this is an innovative production. Furthermore — and it’s being performed through Sept. 30 at the outdoor amphitheater in […]
Trouble in the kingdom “Oedipus” at the Getty Villa by Bondo Wyszpolski It’s a story as old as the hills, but as presented by Deaf West Theatre and directed by Jenny Koons, who also adapted this ancient treasure, “Oedipus” springs to life in a way we assuredly have not seen before. That’s because the narrative […]
In the court of the crimson king “Persia: Ancient Iran and the Classical World” at the Getty Villa by Bondo Wyszpolski The more you learn, the less you know. We’ve all heard of Caligula, Claudius, Nero, Hadrian, and Marcus Aurrelius, but most of us, I assume, will scratch our pates at the mention of Arsaces, […]
Once upon a time and far away “Mesopotamia: Civilization,” closed before it opened at the Getty Villa I want you to read this, and weep. Among the hundreds of art events or exhibitions that have not happened this year and may not happen at all, “Mesopotamia: Civilization Begins” is one of the most prominent. It […]
Getting off on the wrong foot “The Heal” is under the open skies at the Getty Villa If you’re going to retitle “Philoctetes,” the drama that Sophocles wrote in 409 BC, “The Heal” is a better choice than most because it loudly suggests “heel,” which not only refers to the back part of your foot […]
Back to the beginning Originals meet the replicas in the Getty Villa’s “Buried by Vesuvius” Few of us will have the experience of digging a well in our backyard which leads to the unearthing of an entire seaside estate. But that’s sort of what happened in 1750 when well diggers were stopped by an exquisite […]
Poking the brain, but forgetting the heart “Plato in L.A.: Contemporary Artists’ Vision” at the Getty Villa – a review Why Plato? If Western philosophy is a drainage canal, Plato sits at the source and what he has deposited flows down the long meandering stream, to be joined by the conceptual droppings of Saint Augustine, […]