The Theater4All’s inaugural production, written by John Epstein, Casey Morgan and T. Theresa Scarano, is presented (Oct. 2 – Oct. 17, 2026) as part of the El Portal Theatre’s 100th Anniversary season.

  With its world premiere, Crone Creed has an important relevant message, which it relentlessly presents through its compelling characters. The characters shout their message so intensely that at times it has a numbing effect.

   Alarming events follow Vita (Vivianna McCormick giving unwavering power to her role). She is an ancient time-traveler navigating a battle with her fellow band of supernatural Crones. They clash with the powerful Fallen who are in control of society. The Fallen are corrupt and they are led by Vita’s own brother Yanni (Ben Ubinas giving his menacing role a frightening familiar nightly-news feel). The Crones: Vita,  Reika (Jacquelyn Ritz), Roya (April Nixon) and Dara (Carolina Hoyos) are sworn to a creed that gives them a mission to help overcome the corruption of religion and the ruling elite of The Fallen. Avery Norris as Tessca, born into the Crones, surprises as the story unfolds. The actresses weave their magic on stage with ultra-earnest performances. Corey Dorris, Brennen Amonett, Avery Norris, and Matt Kirkwood add to the dramatic impact.

   Under Marc Morgenstern’s well-crafted direction, a chessboard is used in a unique way as a backdrop to the sinister events that unfold. And chess pieces reflect the powers of the Crones and the Fallen. Kudos to Daniel B. Chapman for scenic/projection design; Eliseo Aragon for lighting; Jonathan Flikkie, sound; Kaylee Lynora Silcocks, costumes; and composer Brandon Moore.

  Theatre4all’s founder and producing artistic director John Epstein presents Crone Creed thru Oct. 17, 2026,  on the Debbie Reynolds Main Stage at the historic El Portal Theatre, located at 5269 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood, California, in the NoHo Arts District. For tickets call 818-508-4200 or go to ElPortalTheatre.com.

For information about The El Portal’s Centennial Anniversary Gala, November 28, 2026 at 7PM, call 818-508-4200 or go to ElPortalTheatre.com.

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The location only sharpens that effect. The Museum rises directly across from the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and sits at the doorstep of USC, so the futuristic and the historic trade glances across the street. Inside, in a genuinely unusual move for a museum, actual windows — not just skylights — let you look out from the galleries onto the USC campus, the Coliseum’s rim, and the Museum’s own gardens below. Those gardens are worth wandering through in their own right: 13 verdant, landscaped acres carved out of dense urban Los Angeles, an almost startling amount of green space so close to downtown.

Inside, the curatorial philosophy is just as eclectic as the architecture. Don’t come expecting a greatest-hits survey of art history. Yes, there is a Picasso here, a Pissarro, a Van Gogh, a Renoir — but they share wall space, and equal billing, with artists most visitors will have never encountered before (certainly not in a museum setting). Almost nothing predates 1900, save for Winslow Homer and a small handful of others. There is plenty of David Hockney on offer in the voluminous gift shop, so I assume I missed that late genius’ work elsewhere in the Museum.

Old school art aficionados will be initially perturbed with the “lowbrow” art displayed, that has been dismissed for eons. Here, the curatorial mindset is that such “lowbrow” works in a conventional art-history context deserve the same reverence typically reserved for the old masters. Judging by our tour through the Lucas, I agree.

Norman Rockwell is probably the most recognizable name you’ll find here, and in this context his gift becomes newly legible: his ability to compress an entire narrative — a whole relationship, a whole moment of American life — into a single illustrated panel is genuinely remarkable when you slow down and actually study it, rather than glancing past it as “just” an old magazine cover. And a few galleries later, finding a rendering of Alfred E. Neuman — Mad magazine’s gap-toothed mascot — hanging within sight of a Picasso is the kind of juxtaposition that shouldn’t and wouldn’t work in a traditional. But it works fine here. It’s startling at first, and then, a beat later, deeply satisfying: proof the Museum means what it says about narrative art recognizing no hierarchy of taste.

Of course, there is also a healthy dose of Star Wars paraphernalia, for anyone whose inner geek needs feeding. Seeing Luke Skywalker’s actual landspeeder prop up close — dented, scuffed, visibly handled on a working set decades ago — lands as pure, uncomplicated nostalgia; the wear and tear is the point.

Given that a viable definition of “art” is “that which creates a pause for thought,” certainly the Lucas Museum complies.

The photography galleries may be the Museum’s quiet triumph. Richard Avedon’s portrait of The Beatles hangs with the kind of clarity and presence that stops foot traffic, and nearby — almost as a reward for lingering — is one of the six frames Iain Macmillan shot on Abbey Road the morning he produced what might be the most famous album cover in music history. Seeing the sequence of near-identical frames side by side makes plain just how much of that image’s power came down to a single, fleeting choice. The Museum also includes a tasty selection of Banksy, regardless of whether you exit through the gift shop.

Layout-wise, the Museum backs up its architectural promise. I can’t recall encountering a single hard corner anywhere inside; what stays with you afterward is long, flowing, curving sightlines pulling you from one gallery into the next, almost without your noticing the transition.

The Lucas Museum’s own language for its thesis: “Encompassing everything from prehistoric cave paintings to today’s screen art, the Lucas Museum explores and celebrates the power of visual storytelling to inspire individuals, give shape to beliefs and ideals, and forge community.” Having walked it, that reads less like marketing copy than an accurate description.

The inaugural exhibitions draw from the Museum’s founding collection of more than 40,000 works, including the Lucas Archives, gifted by the Museum’s founders — supplemented by additional pieces on loan. It’s an enormous foundation for a Museum just opening its doors, and on this early walkthrough, it already feels like enough material to fuel returning visits for years.

We want to come back soon to spend time in the lovely library and further explore the non-random eclectic collection. And I want to find that Hockney.

(photos by Joy Auerbach)

The post Before the Doors Officially Open: A First Look Inside the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art appeared first on Entertainment Today.

The film centers on Clara (Marisol Vallejos Montaño), a teenager in the small Quechua community of Totorani, high in the Bolivian Andes, being trained by her adoptive mother Ana (María Magdalena Sanizo) to carry on a sacred inheritance: the ancient songs midwives sing to guide women safely through childbirth. Clara has the voice and the gift for it. What she doesn’t have is the desire to spend her life in those mountains — she dreams instead of taking that same voice to the city, to a wider stage, to a version of herself Ana never imagined and isn’t sure she can bless.

That central tension — the pull of tradition against the lure of the modern city — is the film’s engine, and it’s dramatized most vividly in an amazing fish-out-of-water sequence. It’s the hinge on which the whole film turns.

The Andes themselves function as enough of a character on their own to earn a credit. Cinematographer Nicolás Wong Díaz uses the mountains as a stunning, ever-present backdrop to the widening distance between mother and daughter — vast, silent, indifferent terrain that makes the two women’s private drama feel even smaller and more urgent by comparison.

Composers Cergio Prudencio and Marcelo Guerrero contribute a score that’s subtle and completely evocative, never announcing itself, always underlining rather than overwhelming. It’s the kind of scoring work you don’t consciously notice while watching and then find yourself thinking about afterward. The film’s most poignant scenes, meanwhile, are marked by a commitment to natural lighting that gives the Andean interiors and the nighttime city streets alike an unforced, lived-in authenticity — nothing here feels lit for effect.

The editing, credited to Torrico himself alongside Irene Cajías, is similarly disciplined: very well-edited, with a rhythm that trusts silence and stillness as much as incident, which is exactly what a story this internal requires.

Sanizo and Vallejos Montaño both anchor the film with performances that earned real recognition on the festival circuit (Vallejos Montaño picked up Best Actress honors at both the Málaga and Guadalajara film festivals, with the film itself winning Best Feature at Biarritz), and it’s easy to see why: neither actress oversells a single moment, which only makes the film’s eventual emotional reckoning between mother and daughter hit that much harder.

This is a film that may slip past your radar, but it will reward you in the end.

See the trailer here.

The post The Condor Daughter: A Quiet, Powerful Reckoning Between Two Women appeared first on Entertainment Today.

Water For Elephants opened at The Pantages on Hollywood Blvd yesterday and the audience was dazzled and delighted. As the story unfolds in flashback, our narrator brings to life his memories of joining the Benzini Family Circus as its veterinarian. When the show’s animal star, a horse, has to be put down, the circus takes a chance on an aging elephant instead — a gamble that becomes the emotional center of the piece. The choreography leans hard into circus arts, with aerial and acrobatic sequences that bring to mind the gymnastics of a Cirque du Soleil production.

Connor Sullivan, Helen Krushinski, and Zachary Keller
(Photo by Matthew Murphy)

Helen Krushinski, Robert Tully, Zachary Keller, and Yves Artieres
(Photo by Matthew Murphy)

Leading the cast is Jacob Jankowski (the excellent Zacharay Keller), who boards the train only intending to depart at the next stop. He becomes the initially reluctant veterinarian who signs on, ostensibly, for his love of the animals. Or is it love of the circus’s star performer Marlena (the sparkling Helen Krushinski), who happens to be married to August, the ringmaster and owner of the show (the compelling Connor Sullivan)? The love triangle gives the book its tension, and it’s played with just enough restraint that it never tips into melodrama. The costumes (designed by David I. Reynoso) are gorgeous and colorful, and the puppetry used to portray the animals — especially the elephant — brings to mind the clever stagecraft of The Lion King: you’re never fooled into thinking the animals are real, but you feel for them anyway, which is really the whole trick. Kudos to circus designer Shana Carroll.

The cast of WATER FOR ELEPHANTS
(Photo by Matthew Murphy)

The admirable musical numbers move the story along and help define the characters; the score is by PigPen Theatre Co. and the book is by four-time Tony Award® nominee Rick Elice (Jersey Boys, Peter and the Starcatcher), all of which was developed from the novel by Sara Gruen.

This is a circus leaving home for.

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Given its central proximity to the classic Hollywood studios, it is no surprise that the Bowl has long embraced the city’s love of film. For years the “Sound of Music Sing-a-Long” has been an annual sold out event. This weekend is a three night tribute to John Williams, the prolific film composer.

Last night, with the LA Philharmonic and Pacific Chorale providing perfectly synchronized live substitutions for the lush score, we were thrown somewhat back in time to the very, very earliest days of cinema when a piano player or organist accompanied silent films.

Tom Hulce as Mozart

One couple was in full effect at The Hollywood Bowl, they could have been extras in the film

Here the original dialogue from “Amadeus” is maintained, but with seemingly impossible accuracy conductor Norman Huynh directs each musical queue perfectly. It is a wonderful experience knowing the music is being performed in front of you as the film unfolds.

The 1984 Academy Award-winning film (directed by Miloš Forman) is perfect for this presentation in the glorious Hollywood Bowl. The film’s fascinating topic is about the eponymous young musical genius, whose compositions quickly overshadow the compositions of the story’s narrator, Antonio Salieri. Mozart is played by Tom Hulce, and he received an Academy Award nomination. As evidence of his range, Hulce’s prior role was Larry Kroger in Animal House. In the role of the older and jealous composer is F. Murray Abraham, who is likewise magnificent.

“Amadeus” won eight Academy Awards. including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Actor (Abraham as Salieri), as well as Oscars for best art direction, costume design, makeup, and sound. Shot mostly in Prague, the Austrian sets and costumes are wonderful eye candy. The range of Mozart’s music is on full display in the film, rewarding the Bowl audience with a delightful evening of sound and vision.

Among the many pieces enjoyed by attendees last night, Conductor Huynh was especially effective with Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (1787) and Piano Concerto No. 15 in B-flat major (1784). In addition, the audience was treated to lush interpretations of the operas Don Giovanni (1787) and The Magic Flute (1791).

I have no doubt that Spotify or other music streaming services will show a noticeable bump of Mozart music in the next couple days.

The post “Amadeus Live” at the Hollywood Bowl appeared first on Entertainment Today.

His long-standing fascination with marching bands and choreography remains front and center. He even had the USC Marching Band do a brief introduction, which in itself contained a surprising and poignant tribute to Dolly Parton with a robust version of “9 to 5.” Byrne was almost unseen watching from the edge of the stage, undoubtedly pleased.

When Byrne took the stage, it was much like the last several times I’ve seen him: nothing touching the ground but for the musicians’ feet, although this time they were not barefoot. Each musician carried their own instruments, with several seamlessly switching instruments between songs backstage. The stage design was spartan, with only video displays on four surfaces (three walls and the floor); Byrne’s physical pallet was clean. Well chosen visuals amplified, sometimes distractingly, the underlying message of each song.

The last time I saw Byrne at the Hollywood Bowl was in 2005 with Arcade Fire and The Extra Action Marching Band from San Francisco. Then, the production was far less choreographed, providing spontaneity (especially from the latter ensemble), which elicited uncharacteristic smiles from Byrne.

More recently, after delivering a couple songs (including the opener “Heaven”) Byrne slowed the pace and delivered a monologue about how the band had taken the train up from San Diego that morning and he rode his bike from LA’s Union Station downtown to his hotel in West Hollywood, which was likely the Sunset Marquis. Given the uncharacteristically hot and humid weather, that was no small feat even for the nimble 74 year old. I once saw Byrne give a lecture in San Francisco with several city council members, the main topic of which was about bicycling and improving the bike lanes in San Francisco. Byrne took the opportunity at that lecture to do a slideshow of various interesting things he saw from his bike seat on concert tours around the globe. At the Bowl, he similarly shared a few choice photos, like a bar called Jumbo’s Clown Room.

Having warmed up the Hollywood Bowl crowd with some local color, Byrne delivered a thoroughly impressive set including tracks from his recent solo album Who Is The Sky (produced by Kid Harpoon was also worked most famously with Harry Styles). The crowd welcomed the new music (especially “I Met the Buddha at a Downtown Party”) almost enthusiastically as his earlier solo work.

The excellent lighting and use of color was almost unnoticed, which is a testament to its effectiveness as it blended seamlessly with the music and precision choreography of the band.

Not surprisingly, the crowd roared with every rendition of a Talking Heads song.

Many in the crowd, including me, were deliriously happy with stunning versions of “(Nothing but) Flowers,” “Slippery People” and “This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody).”  The crowd was whipped into a frenzy with the last three songs “Psycho Killer,” “Life During Wartime” and “Once in a Lifetime.”

Returning for an encore Byrne and his intrepid band closed with the perfect doubleheader of his perkiest solo track “Everybody’s Coming to My House” and a thundering version of the Talking Heads’ “Burning Down the House.”

It is doubtful anyone left disappointed.

XXX

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“American Beauty” set an early tone, and “Find Your People” landed just as well here as it has everywhere else I’ve caught it — a song that has aged into something like a mission statement for this act. Ellie’s turn with material from her album of psalms was gentle rather than preachy, an offering rather than a sermon, which is exactly the right register for songs built on scripture.

The married couple traded off instruments throughout, Ellie switching to mandolin and then guitar as the set called for it, while the backing band kept things loose without ever losing the thread. A duet medley found Drew and Ellie trading verses, a nice showcase of two songbooks that have grown up alongside each other.

The night’s highlight remained “Feels Like Home,” which the two sing together like it still means something to them: counterpoint vocals splitting off before folding back into those honeyed, blended harmonies that are the whole reason people assemble at Hayden Homes Amphitheater in the high desert for a Thursday night show. Drew’s solo turn on “What Would I Do Without You” — by his own admission his favorite in the catalog — was the quieter counterpart, a husband’s love letter delivered without any need for embellishment.

Some marriages don’t need the volatility to make for great music. This one just needs the harmonies.

(photos by Brad Auerbach)

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That may sound like a small thing, but anyone who maintains a lawn knows that mowing it is one of those chores that seems to consume more time than it should. You put it off, the grass gets too long, you finally find the time, and there goes an afternoon. Keeping to a strict Saturday schedule, as my Dad insisted for me when growing up, keeps things on a steady pace (until Buffalo winter sets in, and then another chore reappears…on a far less-regular basis).

With the , I was sitting at the dinner table while the lawn mower was doing the work.

Check out the 30 second video here.

When family members subsequently visited, I showed them the machine in action. Their reaction was similar. A few days later our gardener arrived for his weekly visit. He noticed that the lawn had already been cut since his previous visit and wondered why. I brought him over to see the iGarden unit.

He looked at it silently for a few moments, clearly skeptical. Then he finally said:

“Maybe I should get one of these and just sit in the truck.”

That may be the best product review I’ve heard yet.

Getting started takes some patience

Getting the iGarden up and running wasn’t completely effortless. Setting up the app and pairing it with the mower took some time, and there was a learning curve involved in understanding how the app’s piloting function works.

The piloting feature essentially allows you to guide the mower around the perimeter of your property so it can learn where it is supposed to operate. It took me a little while to get comfortable with that process, but once I got a feel for the steering and the unit’s responsiveness, I was gleefully guiding it around the outer edges of our back lawn.

I could then essentially let the mower go about its business.

That distinction is important. There is a difference between a robot lawn mower that requires you to continually intervene and one that you can set up and then largely leave alone. My initial experience with the iGarden has been much more toward the latter.

It’s not your father’s robot mower

The L AWD is a considerably more sophisticated machine than the early generation of robot lawn mowers that depended on boundary wires buried around the property.

The iGarden uses 3D LiDAR, cameras and other sensors for navigation and obstacle avoidance. It also has all-wheel drive, which allows it to handle slopes of up to 70 percent, or approximately 35 degrees, according to the manufacturer. Our house sits up a bit higher than the back lawn, and I had some trepidation. But the mower navigated the slope with ease.

My next test: the front yard

My backyard is only the beginning.

I plan to use the channel function in the app to program the mower to travel to the front yard, where I have three separate sections defined by sidewalks, the curb and the driveway.

I asked iGarden folks about exactly this kind of situation. The company says the L AWD can handle multiple areas rather than being limited to two zones. Several models on offer from the manufacturer handle up to 80 zones, but my more humble lawn only has four zones, so I can sit back and relax.

Indeed, the unit’s three year warranty provides much comfort about such innovative technology.

Where does it live?

I also wondered whether the mower could remain outdoors, moored at its charging station.

The answer is yes, although iGarden recommends a sheltered location when possible. The mower can travel between the charging station and the lawn automatically, so a garage or covered structure is ideal if you have one.

I’m considering an old doghouse as a sort of robotic garage during the mowing season. It would provide protection from the elements while still giving the mower easy access to the lawn. Once winter arrives, I’ll bring the unit to the garage. Time to start scanning Facebook Marketplace for a viable used doghouse.

Kudos to the designers for the sleek look of the iGarden L AWD. In keeping with the massive strides being taken by Chinese car makers, even a lawn mower can look cool.

The talk of robotics is becoming more pervasive. Robotics is huge behind the scenes in manufacturing and distribution; have you ever seen an Amazon warehouse or a big port?

As to homeowners, I have already written happily about my George Jetson experience when it comes to feline maintenance with a robotic kitty litter.

I am very pleased to enter the next phase: robotic lawn care. The iGarden L AWD is the ideal solution. Program it once, and sit back with your salmon dinner.

More detail here.

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