Drag queens performing to Dolly Parton help a girl who is plus-sized navigate a local beauty pageant in an upcoming Netflix film. “Dumplin’,” releasing Friday on Netflix, follows Willowdean (Danielle Macdonald), a high school girl who signs up for a pageant to prove to her mom, Rosie (Jennifer Aniston), that the institution is shallow. Alumnus […]
Category Archives: Arts
Chadwick Boseman, Lupita Nyong’o, Angela Basset discuss ‘Black Panther’ at Hammer
Clearly, the “Black Panther” hype will not die anytime soon. Tuesday night, ardent fans attended the Hammer Museum’s special screening of the film, followed by a panel discussion featuring actors Chadwick Boseman, Lupita Nyong’o and Angela Bassett. “Black Panther” is one of ten films chosen for the 2018 MoMA Contenders series, which aims to highlight […]
Authors Elizabeth Gilbert and Cheryl Strayed discuss writing motivations at panel
Personal journeys lie behind the Hollywood hype for memoirs “Eat, Pray, Love” and “Wild.” Before their major motion picture adaptations came the life stories of authors Elizabeth Gilbert and Cheryl Strayed. These stories were explored Sunday evening at Royce Hall during a panel discussion organized by UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance as a […]
Satirical play portrays two polar opposite political views to urge tolerance
The black-and-white checkerboard stage floor in “The Mineola Twins” represents its lead characters’ inability to see the world in shades of gray, said Molly Livingston. Livingston, a fourth-year theater student and one of the lead actresses, said the play focuses on the dangers of absolute opinions and seeing the world in black and white. The […]
Ensemble ties social, political issues from the past and present into performance
African rhythms, political protest and harmonizing voices all made their mark in Royce Hall on Friday evening. The Center for the Art of Performance at UCLA welcomed Sweet Honey In The Rock, a female singing ensemble accompanied by light instrumentation, for the group’s 45th anniversary on Friday at Royce Hall. It performed for nearly 2 […]
Album review: The 1975’s new album explores personal struggles, offers comfort to listener
The 1975 is finally living in the present. With its computer-driven influences, the band’s third studio album, “A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships,” hit radio waves Friday. As its first release since 2016, the album features 15 diverse and head-turning songs that vary from auto-tuned dance anthems to stripped-back acoustic tracks that delve into lead […]
Chicano musician to discuss issues of identity and inclusivity in LA at book talk
In 1974, Rubén Guevara found himself climbing the steps of centuries-old Mayan pyramids in Palenque, Mexico. The Los Angeles native did not know then that the trip to connect with his ancestral roots would help him embrace his Chicano identity, which later became a monumental influence on his musical career, he said. Guevara, a Chicano […]