All the better for it
Hard times broaden the area arts scene’s focus on the important things in life
08/26/2010
Economic gloom, drawn-out wars and an America fiercely divided over issues of race, immigration, civil rights and social justice — it goes without saying that these are at best uncertain times.
But it is in moments of crisis that society is most in need of the arts, not to escape our troubles but to examine who we are, where we’ve been and what we believe in.
As Boston Court Executive Director Michael Seel asserts in this week’s guest column on page 10, there’s no denying that hard times have had their impact on local artists and arts organizations, but Pasadena’s creative community has been and continues to be very much up to the challenge of cultural leadership.
It only follows that this year’s Fall Arts Preview is as rich as in years past, showing there’s still plenty of inspiration to go around.
- In the especially diverse realm of dance, Carl Kozlowski finds displays of high art and opportunities for participatory expression in no short supply.
- Jana J. Monji reports much to see and do in the world of visual art, with three local museums promising new insight into the continued relevance of printmaking in an increasingly digital world.
- Contributing Music Editor Bliss writes that musicians and music venues are managing to do more with less, the show very much going on with an eclectic variety of area concerts and festivals to look forward to in the coming months.
- Justin Chapman finds strong signs of life in literature with the much-anticipated release of Mark Twain’s memoirs and the Huntington’s Charles Bukowski retrospective, along with numerous other local book events.
- The coming resurrection of the Pasadena Playhouse and pending Pasadena relocation of A Noise Within headline Jana Monji’s assessment of the area theater scene, which meanwhile boasts no shortage of promising stage productions.
If there’s one thing to take from this issue’s sampling of the fall season, it’s that art is very much alive and Pasadena is all the better for it.
— Joe Piasecki
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