November at REDCAT

REDCAT

Walter Carter in a spacesuit, taken by Ralph Lemon.

By Penny Orloff

A brief overview of the work on exhibit at the Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater.

Playing a vital role in artistic experimentation, discovery, conversation, and the evolution of contemporary culture, REDCAT gives regional artists the creative support they need to achieve national and international stature. Additionally, each season the organization presents new work by world-famous artists, in one of the most flexible and technologically advanced presentation spaces in the world. This month, REDCAT demonstrates its mission through unique collaborative dance, theatre, and gallery presentations.

Ralph Lemon

As Artistic Director of Cross Performance, a company dedicated to the creation of cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary performance and presentation, Ralph Lemon has danced with some of the most prestigious companies in the United States. As a choreographer, his work has been acknowledged by numerous awards, including an NEA choreographic fellowship.

Juxtaposing projections, video imagery, and fearless physical feats by his six-member dance ensemble, Lemon's multimedia work, "How Can You Stay in the House All Day and Not Go Anywhere," receives its L.A. premiere at REDCAT for five performances, November 10th through 14th. Lemon calls the piece "a speculative fiction epic," drawing equally from myth and cold reality, bridging the personal and the universal, to remind us of "the special, ordinary, and inspiring human commonality of how one lives a life."

The project is funded in part through the a Herb Alpert Foundation Award in the Arts, a fellowship program supporting cutting-edge creators in the fields of dance, film/video, music, theater, and visual arts.

In addition to the performances, Choreographers in Mentorship Exchange in Southern California (CHIME) presents "Ralph Lemon in Conversation," a free event open to the public at REDCAT, on November 14th at 1:30 pm. This event features Lemon in conversation with Margaret Jenkins. A mentorship program for professional choreographers, CHIME is a project of the Margaret Jenkins Dance Company that provides grants and cost-free studio time to explore how artists can learn from one another. As a choreographer, teacher, mentor, and the designer of unique community-based dance programs, Margaret Jenkins has created over 75 works for her own company, as well as resident companies in the US and Europe.

Venlo

Also at REDCAT this month, the unpredictable Dutch theater ensemble, Wunderbaum, premieres its new theatrical event, "Venlo," in five performances from November 17th through the 21st. The piece was developed during Wunderbaum's recent three-week residency at REDCAT, in collaboration with Los Angeles artists from a variety of disciplines.

As an arts collective comprising actors, designers, writers, musicians, photographers, and filmmakers, Wunderbaum is known throughout the world for intelligence, humor, political commentary, and intense theatricality. "We feel strongly connected to the environment in which to work," says a spokesman for the group, "and our work is driven by the energy released between our personalities and the outside world."

Wunderbaum created "Venlo" partly through inspiration provided by their recent series of interactive events, including town hall-type meetings that disintegrated into beer-soaked romps, decorous conversations that became raging debates, and public art unveilings which ignited cultural stand-offs. The LA Times has called them "fresh and original… political and raw." The work is funded in part through the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs' Cultural Exchange International Program.

Not Only Time: Zhang Peili and Zhu Jia

Currently in the REDCAT Gallery through November 21st is a free exhibit, "Not Only Time: Zhang Peili and Zhu Jia." Part of the generation that experienced the results of the Cultural Purge, the Tiananmen Massacre, and the 1989 Chinese Avant-Garde exhibition that was closed by state authorities, artists Zhang Peili and Zhu Jia have explored video and photography to understand and reflect the many changes in contemporary China.

Both artists were trained in drawing and oil painting. Zhang graduated from China Academy of Art, Hangzhou, in 1984, and Zhu from Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing, in 1988. However, their similar use of video as a medium to challenge social mores, rampant development, authoritarian and oppressive politics, and cultural values provided the impetus for this two-person exhibit. The artists explore themes of a changing world landscape characterized by a near-universal honoring of the individual, as the 21st century brings what they believe to be a loss of the innocence and idealism that permeated Chinese culture for centuries. Zhang and Zhu show new works created for this exhibition alongside their past work, in the first presentation of both artists' work in Los Angeles.

For tickets, call the REDCAT box office at 213-237-2800, or visit redcat.org, Seating is unreserved, and late seating is not guaranteed. REDCAT is at 631 West 2nd Street at the corner of Hope, inside the Walt Disney Concert Hall Complex. Parking is available in the Disney Hall parking garage for $9 after 5 pm.

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