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Theater

From stage to street, theater has been a way for people to express their innermost thoughts and emotions. See how this long-lasting art form has changed over time and how it mirrors society's innermost questions.

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A black and white photo shows a woman with short hair wearing a T-shirt standing outside in a grove of trees holding a large horizontal poster that reads "Paul Robeson Players" and "Dedicated to Theatrical Excellence" with an illustration of comedy and tragedy theater masks in the center.
Compton's award-winning Paul Robeson Players was once one of the longest-running Black theater companies in Los Angeles.
Puppet of 10-Yr-Old Syrian Refugee, Little Amal, Learns ASL
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Little Amal, a 12-ft-tall puppet of a Syrian refugee, learns ASL with Deaf West Theatre.
Empty red velvet chairs | Felix Mooneeram / Unsplash
From personalized poetry readings to guided ritual-making, theater is able to collapse physical space and create intensely personal experiences.
Broadside for Teatro Principal, Los Angeles, printed by Imprenta Jalisco, Boyle Heights, 1929 January 10. | University of Southern California Libraries, Workman and Temple Family Homestead Museum Collection, 1830-1930
There was a time that Los Angeles powered a lively Hispanic vaudeville scene, and its legacy still lives on in many performers today.
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Need a laugh? Watch Episode 2 of Culture Clash’s Totally Fake Latino News, featuring Speedy Gonzales, La Vacuna Azul and the Barrio Logan homies. 
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Need a laugh? Watch Episode 1 of Culture Clash’s Totally Fake Latino News, featuring Speedy Gonzales, Dolores Huerta, Nacho Libre, Coyote Barney, luchadores battling coronavirus and much more.
The Wallis Studio Ensemble presents Fairyland Foibles, featuring (top row L-R) Ella M Joseph, Kendell Byrd, Tiana Randall Quant; (middle row L-R) Trecey Dory, Kelvin Morales, Alexander Sheldon; (bottom row L-R) Marlena Becker, Siera Williams | M. Dahm
“Fairyland Foibles” presented by the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, lets the audience play a part in shaping the narrative of each 15-20 minute episode.
Clockwise from top left: Ann James, Tamara Perry, LeVanna Atkinson-Williams and Yolanda Snowball in “Water.” | Skylight Theatre Company
Skylight Theatre in Los Feliz found a way around the quarantine. It’s staging 10-minute plays on Zoom instead of on stage.
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"Illuminating the Chandelier" was a Zoom-specific live performance inspired by Clarice Lispector's novel "The Chandelier," about a woman living in isolation.
Helder Guimarães in the Geffen Stayhouse production of The Present, directed by Frank Marshall. | Geffen Playhouse
Extended thrice, “The Present” at the Geffen Playhouse could be described as live theater that comes to you, but some might call it enhanced television. 
Frank Lawson in "Until, Until, Until..." | Courtesy of Edgar Arceneaux and Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects
“Until, Until, Until…” revisits Ronald Reagan’s televised inaugural gala in 1981, when celebrated Broadway and television actor Ben Vereen paid tribute to vaudeville great, Bert Williams. The performance nearly cost Vereen his career.
Rialto Theatre | Thomas Hawk/Flickr/Creative Commons
The historic Rialto Theatre in Pasadena was once a prized community venue but in recent years has faced neglect. The Mosaic Church has leased the space causing community members to worry the theater will no longer be used for non-religious arts events.
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