Why Lauren Yee's ‘Cambodian Rock Band' hits home: L.A. arts and culture this weekend
How were so many of these arts organizations able to reach these historically underserved audiences? That's thanks to Rithy Hanh and Pita Huot of the Khmer Alumni Assn., a volunteer nonprofit based out of Long Beach, which has the largest concentration of Cambodians of any city outside of Cambodia. Yee met Hanh in 2015 while doing research for the play, which included Hanh's comprehensive tour of Long Beach's Cambodia Town.
'Theater is not something common in our community — not a lot of people know about it and not a lot of people attend,' Hanh, who was born in a refugee camp where he lived for 11 years during the Cambodian genocide, told The Times. 'But Lauren told me, 'This play is for the community, and I want people from the Cambodian community to be able to access it.' '
When the show played Costa Mesa, San Diego, Berkeley, Seattle, Honolulu, New York, Washington, D.C., Houston and Ashland, Ore., Hanh and Huot worked behind the scenes with each of the theaters to make their productions accessible to their local Cambodian populations. They connected with local organizations and temples, negotiating for hundreds of discounted tickets and arranging transportation for hours-long trips; a more welcoming experience was facilitated by speaking to visitors in Khmer at the theater, offering them a snack or dessert from a local vendor and even assuring the parents of students about the show's content advisories.
The two haven't done these time-consuming, cross-country efforts for pay, but for their love of the show and their community. 'It was the first time got to see the people in our community pre-genocide, just living there,' said Huot, who was born and raised in Long Beach, of the play. 'For most people, my parents included, it's hard for them to talk about what happened, and in the play, here it is, right in front of us. We have a lot of cultural community events that involve food and dance and things, but there's never been anything like this for us. We wanted the Cambodian communities outside of Long Beach to experience it too.'
Over 20% of tickets for the play's East West Players run, which continues through March 9, are significantly subsidized and specifically reserved for Khmer audiences. Yee has noticed that, when a performance has lots of viewers of Cambodian descent, 'you get laughs at things that are more insider, like jokes related to the Thai and Cambodian communities,' she told The Times. 'And the intergenerational stuff hits more especially with elders in the room.'
The playwright sees Hanh and Huot's 'Cambodian Rock Band' undertaking as a teachable moment to theaters nationwide. 'The community outreach we've been able to achieve is because of Rithy and Pita, because they know how to connect with their communities all over the country, understand their needs and translate those needs to the theaters,' said Yee.
'There are so many theaters out there that have a robust marketing department, but they may not necessarily have a person who does community outreach specifically, and it's a missed opportunity that just makes things complicated and, to be honest, sometimes frustrating,' she added. 'Yes, a lot of theaters are unused to this work, but it's the real deal and worth doing early. Grow your audiences, don't just market at them.'
I'm Times staff writer Ashley Lee, here with my colleague Jessica Gelt for this expanded edition of the Essential Arts newsletter:
Batsheva Dance CompanyThe repertoire troupe is making its Music Center debut with the U.S. premiere of 'Momo,' a bold exploration of masculinity, vulnerability and identity. Conceived by choreographer Ohad Naharin with former Batsheva dancer Ariel Cohen and members of the company itself, the 70-minute piece is performed to a soundtrack from Laurie Anderson and Kronos Quartet's album 'Landfall,' with additional music by Philip Glass, Arca and Maxim Waratt. Performances are Friday and Saturday evening, as well as Sunday afternoon. Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., Downtown. musiccenter.org
'Four Women in Red'In Laura Shamas' new play, four Native American women search for missing friends and relatives in the face of apathetic sheriffs and dwindling clues — an onstage premise rooted in the real-life crisis of missing murdered Indigenous women in the U.S. Delayed a month due to losses by members of the cast and the creative team to the devastating wildfires, the world-premiere production — directed by Jeanette Harrison, and starring Carolyn Dunn, Harriette Feliz, Zoey Reyes and Jehnean Washington — opens tonight and runs through March 23. Victory Theatre Center, 3326 W. Victory Blvd., Burbank. thevictorytheatrecenter.org
'ARTISTS for LOSS Angeles'Arcane Space presents a three-weekend benefit exhibition featuring works from over 40 artists who have united in support of their fellow creatives that lost their homes, studios and artwork to last month's fires. All proceeds from purchases go directly to Grief and Hope, which aims to raise $1 million in direct support to artists and art workers. The exhibition, which opens tonight, runs Thursdays through Sundays, from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., until March 2. Arcane Space, 324 Sunset Ave, Unit G, Venice. arcanespacela.com
— Ashley Lee
FRIDAYAmerican Cinematheque's Nitrate Film Festival This year's series includes four midcentury classics, 'Portrait of Jennie' (1948), 'Meet Me in St. Louis' (1944), 'Gone to Earth' (1950) and 'Rope' (1948), plus the early talkie ' The Unholy Three' (1930).Through Feb. 23. Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Blvd. americancinematheque.com
Dance at the Odyssey The festival closes with 'Clay Collective,' created by Gheremi Clay.8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. Odyssey Theatre Ensemble, 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd. odysseytheatre.com
In Praise of Love Mezzanine film presents the West Coast premiere of the 4k restoration of the 2001 Jean-Luc Godard film, a cinematic diptych, one part shot in Paris on black-and-white 35 mm film, the other captures the Brittany coast in hyper-saturated digital video.8 p.m. 2220 Arts + Archives, 2220 Beverly Blvd. mezzaninefilm.com
Jersey Boys Musical Theatre West presents the hit jukebox musical about the rise of the 1960s pop-rock group the Four Seasons.Through March 2. Carpenter Performing Arts Center, 6200 E. Atherton St., Long Beach. musical.org
Master Class Tim Dang directs Terrence McNally's Tony-winning drama with Joan Almedilla as Maria Callas.Through March 9. Sierra Madre Playhouse, 87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre. sierramadreplayhouse.org
Party Girl Parker Posey stars in director Daisy von Scherler Mayer's 1995 ode to Manhattan club kids (followed by a post-screening dance party at Vidiots).7:30 p.m. Eagle Theatre, 4884 Eagle Rock Blvd., Eagle Rock. vidiotsfoundation.org
Retrospect: 50 Years at the Norton Simon Museum The one-time Pasadena Art Museum marks a half-century since it combined its collection with that of the industrialist and philanthropist and adopted his name.Through Jan. 12, 2026. Norton Simon Museum, 411 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena. nortonsimon.org
Tyler, the Creator The musical force and fashion innovator brings Chromakopia: The World Tour to L.A. with guests Lil Yachty and Paris Texas.7:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Feb. 21. Crypto.com Arena, 1111 S. Figueroa St., downtown L.A. cryptoarena.com
Vertigo A new 70 mm print of Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 masterpiece, starring James Stewart and Kim Novak gets a one-week run.Through Feb. 20. The Vista, 4473 Sunset Dr., Los Feliz. vistatheaterhollywood.com
Watermarks Playwright Abbott Alexander's surreal fantasy pits the manager of the world's most famous gift-card shop against his one and only customer.Through Feb. 23. Theatre West, 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. W. theatrewest.org
White Scripps Ranch Theatre presents James Ijames comedy about privilege in the art world.Through March 9. Legler Benbough Theatre, 9783 Avenue of Nations, San Diego. scrippsranchtheatre.org
Wild at Heart The Academy screens David Lynch's 1990 adaptation of the Barry Gifford novel, starring Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern, in 35 mm.7:30 p.m. Academy Museum, 6067 Wilshire Blvd. academymuseum.org
SATURDAYAdrian Dunn's Resurrection The recording of a live album features the Adrian Dunn Singers and Rize Orchestra performing the world premiere of Dunn's 'Mass,' a tribute to Jackie Robinson, plus spirituals, jazz and hip-hop favorites.7 p.m. Colburn School, Zipper Hall, 200 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. colburnschool.edu/
At War With Ourselves — 400 Years of You Kronos Quartet joins Grammy Award-winning choral ensemble Tonality to perform a modern-day song cycle with lyrics by poet Nikky Finney (who also narrates) exploring race relations, social justice and civil rights in 21st century America.7:30 p.m. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. thewallis.org
Black Hole — Trilogy and Triathlon Brooklyn-based arts collective Tribe performs the final part of Shamel Pitts' 'Black Series' triptych in this multidisciplinary production informed by Afrofuturism.8 p.m. Glorya Kaufman Dance Theater, UCLA Kaufman Hall, 120 Westwood Plaza. cap.ucla.edu
California Road Trip Panoramic and close-up dual projection film provides a tour of the state's most scenic and varied landscapes and biomes, including Death Valley, Big Sur, Joshua Tree, the California Redwoods and Mt. Whitney.Reopens Saturday. The Autry Museum in Griffith Park, 4700 Western Heritage Way. theautry.org
Dvořák Cello Concerto Brett Mitchell conducts the Pasadena Pops and cellist Mark Kosower in a program that also includes 'Wotan's Farewell' by Wagner and Bartók's 'Concerto for Orchestra.'2 and 8 p.m. Ambassador Auditorium, 131 S. St. John Ave., Pasadena. pasadenasymphony-pops.org
End of Times Therapy World premiere of Solange Castro's play set in post-apocalypse 2040 L.A. benefits the effort to save the playhouse's main stage that was destroyed last year.7:30 p.m. Saturday and Feb. 22; 4 p.m. Feb. 16 and 23. Santa Monica Playhouse, 1211 4th St., Santa Monica. showclix.com
Impressionists: Pintscher + Debussy + DeYoung A Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra program inspired by la belle epoque Paris features music by Ravel, Berlioz, Debussy and Fauré, with chanteuse Michelle DeYoung and conductor Matthias Pintscher.7:30 p.m. Saturday. Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale; 4 p.m. Feb. 16. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. laco.org
El Relicario de los Animales Mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton leads Long Beach Opera's indoor-outdoor production of Pauline Oliveros' 1979 work. 7:30 p.m. Saturday; 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Heritage Square Museum, 3800 Homer St., Montecito Heights. longbeachopera.org
There Are Fairies at the Bottom of Our Garden A new work by writer-performer John Fleck is part of the Thresholds of Invention performance series.8 p.m. Saturday and March 1. Odyssey Theatre, 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd. odysseytheatre.com
Welcome Back Topanga Community Gathering A day of healing featuring a tree-planting ceremony, theater activities for all ages, a tribute to emergency responders and a marketplace with sales benefiting families and businesses impacted by the Palisades fire. Free admission.11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum, 1419 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga. theatricum.com
SUNDAYBlack History Recital African Americans for L.A. Opera and the Ebell present soprano Thalia Moore and pianist Alonso Malik Pirio.Noon. The Ebell, Sunroom, 3rd floor, 741 S. Lucerne Blvd. ebellofla.org
Tschabalala Self The artist explores the concept of a constructed self and the construction of femininity with new paintings and sculpture in the exhibition 'Dream Girl.'Through April 26. Jeffrey Deitch, 7000 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles. deitch.com
Times theater critic Charles McNulty attended opening night of Larissa FastHorse's farce 'Fake It Until You Make It,' and wondered how much funnier the show would have been if it had opened when it was originally scheduled in 2023, prior to the Mark Taper Forum's 16-month-closure closure due to Center Theatre Group's financial woes. The fast-paced play, filled with physical comedy, takes aim at identity politics using an office housing several nonprofit organizations devoted to advancing Native American causes. With the Trump administration's current attack on DEI, speculates McNulty, the show takes on different, darker hues.
'The Great Yes, the Great No,' is not simply a wonderful title, writes Times classical music critic Mark Swed of a new chamber opera by South Africa's William Kentridge, it is a magnificent show. Full stop. Swed calls the show, which had its West Coast premiere at the Wallis in Beverly Hills, one of Kentridge's 'most astonishing works.' He continues, 'Concept, direction, set and costume design, projections, video, text, music, choreography and performances by a vast company of singers, dancers, actors and equally vast creative team — all simply great.'
McNulty weighed in on another farce across town at Geffen Playhouse: A revival of Michael Frayn's 'Noises Off,' which is a co-production with Steppenwolf Theatre Company. As a genre, McNulty writes, farce is experiencing a rush of new popularity, but Frayn's show represents 'the gold standard of the form.' The action takes place onstage and, most amusingly, backstage, during the disastrous production of a sex comedy called 'Nothing On.' McNulty notes, 'In imagining a theatrical bomb for the ages, Frayn wrote an indelible crowd-pleaser for the modern repertory.'
President Trump cemented control of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts after a newly appointed board of Trump allies voted Wednesday to make him chairman and fired the center's longtime president, Deborah F. Rutter. The coup came less than a week after Trump announced his intention to take over the center in a post on his social media platform Truth Social. Prominent figures associated with the organization promptly resigned from their posts including treasurer Shonda Rhimes and artistic advisor Renée Fleming.
Los Angeles Opera unveiled its 40th anniversary season earlier this week. The 2025-26 offerings will mark music director James Conlon's final season — his 20th with the company. Mainstage productions at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion include the company premiere of Leonard Bernstein's 'West Side Story,' starring Gabriella Reyes and Duke Kim; a revival of Herbert Ross' 1993 production of Giacomo Puccini's 'La Bohème'; a revival of Philip Glass' 'Akhnaten,' starring John Holiday; a revival of Verdi's hilarious 'Falstaff,' starring Craig Colclough; and Mozart's 'The Magic Flute,' staged by Barrie Kosky and Suzanne Andrade, and starring bass Kwangchul Youn in his company debut as Sarastro.
California for the Arts announced a new $12.5 million grant program called the Performing Arts Equitable Payroll Fund, which opens for applications on Monday, March 10, at 9 a.m. The program is funded by the State of California and administered by the California Office of the Small Business Advocate with the goal of reimbursing small nonprofit arts organizations for employee payroll — potentially supporting up to 20,000 full-time, part-time and seasonal employment opportunities each year.
The Broad announced a special exhibition, 'Jeffrey Gibson: the space in which to place me.' Scheduled to run from May 10 through Sept. 28, the show is adapted from work that Gibson presented as the first Indigenous artist to have a solo exhibition in the American Pavilion during the 2024 Venice Biennale. The exhibition also marks Gibson's first solo museum presentation in Southern California.
— Jessica Gelt
A fascinating read and watch: How the CIA used jazz greats as cover for a 1961 coup in Africa.
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I am also working with some young artists on a photography exhibition in November. And I'm reading the latest version of the book I wrote with Christophe Bataille [The Elimination: A Survivor of the Khmer Rouge Confronts His Past and the Commandant of the Killing Fields], which takes time. Do you expect your next film will be similar to your latest, , and a continuation of your past work or quite different, like , in which animals enslave humans in a takedown of totalitarianism, surveillance and excessive capitalism? I don't know. That one was different, talking about capitalism, the environment, etc. I have always mixed things up between work on the Khmer Rouge and also other work. But it was a choice that I put more time on the Khmer Rouge work. But now it's maybe the last 10 years or 15 years of my life. I don't want to be that director who still shoots at 100 years. That's really crazy. Maybe I wish to enjoy cinema more now. I'm teaching, too. 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It's not the same on your TV screen. But can cinema repair the world or can it save the world? No, we cannot save the world. We need to save ourselves. You are a role model for various filmmakers. Do you have any cinema role models, or anybody who you feel influenced your work a lot? Many, many, many. I knew the cinema when I was very young, because my neighbor was a filmmaker. But I was a child, so I was not prepared to make films. When I went to cinema school here in France, I knew nothing about cinema history. But they gave us an ID card so that we could go watch films for free. So I spent a lot of time in theaters to discover film, and they also had a videotape library. I watched Andrei Tarkovsky and started watching a lot of Russian cinema. I also love the great work of [Kenji] Mizoguchi, [Akira] Kurosawa and, of course, [Ingmar] Bergman and [Aki] Kaurismäki and [Krzysztof] Kieś maybe the best one for me is [the late low-budget French filmmaker] Chris Marker. 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New York Times
04-08-2025
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He Survived the Khmer Rouge and Built a Musical Legacy
Soeung Chetra, a high school student in rural Cambodia, practices a centuries-old musical art form: singing improvised ballads while plucking a Cambodian lute known as the chapei dang veng. Like other Cambodian chapei players, he was inspired by Kong Nay, a master who died last year at 80. 'I want to be as famous as him,' Soeung Chetra, 16, said outside his family's wooden stilt house. Few Cambodian artists of Kong Nay's generation survived the horrors of the Khmer Rouge, the regime that ruled the country from 1975 to 1979, created a nationwide system of forced labor camps and killed up to a quarter of the population. Fewer still spent decades building a legacy. Kong Nay, who was blind, raised the chapei's profile by teaching young protégés and performing melancholic ballads at home and abroad. One of his last projects, a collaboration with a Cambodian rapper, exposed a new generation of Cambodians to their country's traditional music. 'People say he's the Ray Charles of Cambodia, but some people don't like that,' said Song Seng, a nonprofit administrator who introduced Kong Nay to some of his first students. Ray Charles, his admirers say, is the Kong Nay of America. Kong Nay was born on March 15, 1944, near the Gulf of Thailand as one of 10 children, according to his son Kong Boran, 39. His parents were rice farmers, and he lost his eyesight after contracting an illness during childhood. As a teenager, he asked his uncle to teach him the chapei, a two-stringed instrument played in traditional Khmer ensembles or to accompany ballads. 'How can I teach you if you can't see?' his uncle asked, according to his son. 'Just play and I'll try to remember,' Kong Nay said. He later earned a reputation for his playing. It would save his life when the Khmer Rouge guards in his work camp asked him to sing propaganda, his son said in an interview. Khmer Rouge soldiers planned to kill him, Kong Nay told The Guardian in 2007. But before they could, Vietnamese soldiers invaded Cambodia and ousted the regime. Kong Nay returned to his hometown, where he played chapei at weddings and ceremonies. He and his wife, Tat Chan, who survives him, had 11 children. He moved to Phnom Penh, the capital, in the early 1990s, and his profile grew on the strength of his plaintive voice, witty improvisations and commanding presence. One of his best-known songs is a lullaby for a lover. Please understand my loving heartIn spite of living in our tiny hut, doorless, with holes in the wallEven though sometimes we eat rice with only fish sauceYou're always here with me His songs often conveyed moral lessons or social commentary. One gave tips for avoiding the coronavirus. Another said that while young people were once ignorant but respectful, they were now smarter but more mischievous. Chapei music is 'not just about telling old folk tales,' he told an audience in New York City in 2013. 'It can be used to tell stories with educational messages, and also to critique activities in society that are wrong.' Over the years, Kong Nay taught dozens of students, including Savy Ouch, his partner on the 2007 album 'Mekong Delta Blues.' Another student, Pich Sarath, now leads a chapei group that has trained dozens more. 'Kong Nay is a role model for other chapei players,' some of whom use chapei music to sing about social problems like drunken driving, Pich Sarath said in an interview. Soeung Chetra, the teenage chapei prodigy, didn't study directly with Kong Nay. But he watches YouTube videos of the master and covers his songs, including 'Dancing in a Circle,' which deals with romance and longing. Kong Nay's success made the chapei appealing to younger players, said Soeung Chetra, who has more than 100,000 followers on TikTok and was the subject of an admiring profile last year in the Phnom Penh Post newspaper. 'I want to spread chapei playing to the world, and I don't want it to get lost,' he said. Kong Nay's career showed that traditional music doesn't have to be consigned to the past, said Catherine Grant, a music researcher in Australia. 'He is uniquely Cambodian and the instrument, in representing him, is a source of cultural pride,' she said. That pride was clearly displayed in 'Time to Rise,' a song Kong Nay recorded with the Cambodian rapper VannDa in 2021. It celebrates Khmer heritage, including musicians who disappeared under Khmer Rouge rule. The music video opens with Kong Nay plucking ominous notes on his chapei in the darkened galleries of Cambodia's national museum. As an infectious beat rises, he invokes his own legacy. To the male and female artistsWho seek to fulfill their dreamsGo forth and open the newChapter of the treasured artsInherited from me, Kong Nay The video has been viewed more than 130 million times on YouTube. A few weeks after Kong Nay's death, VannDa paid homage to him when he performed the song at the 2024 Paris Olympics. I said time to riseTime is pricelessRise beyond the sky like master Kong NayWho rose beyond the stars Sun Narin contributed reporting.
