The Music Center's Mark Taper Forum
Opened in 1967, the Mark Taper Forum (Taper) is The Music Center’s smallest and most intimate theatre and was designed for the production of dramas and experimental theater. It was named for S. Mark Taper, a prominent real estate developer, banker and philanthropist. The venue is the ideal stage for dramatic plays and productions by Center Theatre Group and has received virtually every theatrical award including a special Tony for theatrical excellence, which was awarded in 1977.
A circular building that measures 140 feet in diameter, the Forum rises from a reflecting pool. The upper 27 feet of the Forum cantilevers out from the base, which is covered in dark, split-face granite blocks. The dark granite mirrors that of The Music Center's Dorothy Chandler Pavilion across Jerry Moss Plaza.
The Taper’s drum-like structure features a 378-foot-long cast concrete relief mural in an abstract pattern that encircles the theatre and suggests the movements of the performing arts. Designed by sculptor Jacques Overhoff, the relief is a repeating pattern that is seven panels in width with seven repeats, for a total of 49 panels; the artist chose seven panels as the width so the eye would never be able to see the repeating pattern given the circular shape of the building. Inside the Taper, the entrance features a 60-foot wall, created by designer Tony Duquette, called “Curved Wall”, which is composed of 50,800 abalone shell tiles.
Featuring a thrust stage that juts out into the audience, the theatre’s 736 seats are arranged in a semi-circle in classical amphitheater style, surrounding three sides of the stage. This design gives audiences the opportunity to view the performance from a variety of perspectives. As such, the theatre does not feature either a stage arch or curtain.
The Music Center oversaw a $30 million renovation of the Taper interior from 2007–2008 to upgrade its technical capabilities and audience amenities while maintaining the structural integrity of the original design. Award-winning architectural and design firm, Rios Clementi Hale Studios (now known as Rios), led the theatre’s architectural renovation.
As part of their work, the architects doubled the size of the lobby area, enhanced the abalone wall with recessed lighting and added a new main refreshment area. In addition, the lobby now includes mirrored columns a metal mesh wall covering called Cascade Coil Drapery, decorative terrazzo flooring and a raised ceiling and floor. By raising the lobby floor, the architects provided audiences with access to the theatre directly from Jerry Moss Plaza.
Featured at the Mark Taper Forum
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Wed Jan 29 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 6:30 PM
Center Theatre Group Fake It Until You Make It
Mark Taper Forum
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Nativ...Show More
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Native American perspectives on contemporary life and will be the first Native American writer to have a mainstage production on the Mark Taper Forum stage. A member of the Sicangu Lakota Nation, and author of the Broadway comedy, The Thanksgiving Play, FastHorse’s new work shines a hilarious light on ‘shifters’ who exist in a world of self-determined identity. This thought-provoking comic play asks what happens when you don’t believe you are the race you want to be? Change it! Fake It Until You Make It takes an absurd look at what defines who we are, and the lengths some people will go through to change it.
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Wed May 28 8:00 PM
Sun Jul 06 1:00 PM
Center Theatre Group Hamlet
Mark Taper Forum
It’s been a half a century since Hamlet was produced at the Taper and next season Tony Award® nominated visionary, Robert O’Hara, who directed the landmark box office hit Slave Play, returns to stage one of the most famous tales ...Show More
It’s been a half a century since Hamlet was produced at the Taper and next season Tony Award® nominated visionary, Robert O’Hara, who directed the landmark box office hit Slave Play, returns to stage one of the most famous tales ever told.
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Thu Feb 20 8:00 PM
Sun Feb 23 2:00 PM
LA Phil Gustavo Conducts Mahler’s Journey
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Mahler has been a specialty and obsession throughout Gustavo Dudamel’s career, and in the opening weekend of the Mahler Grooves Festival, Dudamel curates and conducts a selection of the composer’s music in Mahler’s Journey. He opens with two excer...Show More
Mahler has been a specialty and obsession throughout Gustavo Dudamel’s career, and in the opening weekend of the Mahler Grooves Festival, Dudamel curates and conducts a selection of the composer’s music in Mahler’s Journey. He opens with two excerpts from Mahler’s First and Tenth symphonies that frame the composer’s life. Blumine was the second movement from Symphony No. 1, which was removed after a few performances but rediscovered in the 1960s and appreciated for its rapturous trumpet and melancholy oboe. The Adagio from Symphony No. 10 similarly found a new life and was published after Mahler’s death. The unfinished sketches were written during personal crisis and brim with anguish and pain that is expressed through harmonic language that straddles the Romantic era and the 20th century.
Des Knaben Wunderhorn (The Boy’s Magic Horn) is based on a collection of German poetry of the same name that was influential to Mahler and other Romantics. Two dozen of the poems are set to music that with the help of baritone Simon Keenlyside explores stories of love, loss, and the supernatural.
Concerts in the Thursday 2 subscription series are generously supported by the Otis Booth Foundation.
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Sat Feb 08 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 1:00 PM
Center Theatre Group Steven Sondheim's Old Friends
Ahmanson Theatre
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners B...Show More
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga. Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends comes to Broadway from London’s West End, where it sold out in a matter of hours, earned a bevy of five-star raves and was hailed by The Times as "unmissable musical theatre."
Center Theatre Group will present the North American premiere of Old Friends at the Ahmanson Theatre in advance of the Broadway premiere at the Manhattan Theatre Club on March 25, 2025.
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Sat Feb 08 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 1:00 PM
Center Theatre Group Steven Sondheim's Old Friends
Ahmanson Theatre
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners B...Show More
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga. Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends comes to Broadway from London’s West End, where it sold out in a matter of hours, earned a bevy of five-star raves and was hailed by The Times as "unmissable musical theatre."
Center Theatre Group will present the North American premiere of Old Friends at the Ahmanson Theatre in advance of the Broadway premiere at the Manhattan Theatre Club on March 25, 2025.
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Sat Nov 23 1:00 PM
Sun Feb 23 1:00 PM
A TMC Arts Program: Digital Innovation Initiative The Music Center Presents: IndieCade in Residence
Jerry Moss Plaza
Discover the vibrant world of IndieCade in Residence on Jerry Moss Plaza! Explore award-winning indie games, engage with captivating interactive experiences and immerse yourself in the creativity of independent developers.
Discover the vibrant world of IndieCade in Residence on Jerry Moss Plaza! Explore award-winning indie games, engage with captivating interactive experiences and immerse yourself in the creativity of independent developers.
Show LessFree
Learn MoreFree
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Sat Feb 08 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 1:00 PM
Center Theatre Group Steven Sondheim's Old Friends
Ahmanson Theatre
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners B...Show More
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga. Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends comes to Broadway from London’s West End, where it sold out in a matter of hours, earned a bevy of five-star raves and was hailed by The Times as "unmissable musical theatre."
Center Theatre Group will present the North American premiere of Old Friends at the Ahmanson Theatre in advance of the Broadway premiere at the Manhattan Theatre Club on March 25, 2025.
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Thu Feb 27 8:00 PM
Sat Mar 01 2:00 PM
LA Phil Dudamel Leads Song of the Night
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Gustavo Dudamel describes Mahler’s Seventh as “a symphony of everything: from chaos to glory, sarcasm to tenderness, from a funeral march to a seductive tango. It is a cosmic symphony of perfect construction and galactic emotional scope.” At the c...Show More
Gustavo Dudamel describes Mahler’s Seventh as “a symphony of everything: from chaos to glory, sarcasm to tenderness, from a funeral march to a seductive tango. It is a cosmic symphony of perfect construction and galactic emotional scope.” At the core of this monumental and expansive opus are two movements built on the tradition of Nachtmusik or “Night Music” whose moodiness and introspection have earned the symphony the nickname “Song of the Night.” For the first time ever, Dudamel leads the Los Angeles Philharmonic in the colossal journey of Mahler’s Seventh.
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Sat Feb 08 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 1:00 PM
Center Theatre Group Steven Sondheim's Old Friends
Ahmanson Theatre
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners B...Show More
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga. Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends comes to Broadway from London’s West End, where it sold out in a matter of hours, earned a bevy of five-star raves and was hailed by The Times as "unmissable musical theatre."
Center Theatre Group will present the North American premiere of Old Friends at the Ahmanson Theatre in advance of the Broadway premiere at the Manhattan Theatre Club on March 25, 2025.
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Wed Jan 29 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 6:30 PM
Center Theatre Group Fake It Until You Make It
Mark Taper Forum
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Nativ...Show More
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Native American perspectives on contemporary life and will be the first Native American writer to have a mainstage production on the Mark Taper Forum stage. A member of the Sicangu Lakota Nation, and author of the Broadway comedy, The Thanksgiving Play, FastHorse’s new work shines a hilarious light on ‘shifters’ who exist in a world of self-determined identity. This thought-provoking comic play asks what happens when you don’t believe you are the race you want to be? Change it! Fake It Until You Make It takes an absurd look at what defines who we are, and the lengths some people will go through to change it.
Show Less -
Sat Feb 08 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 1:00 PM
Center Theatre Group Steven Sondheim's Old Friends
Ahmanson Theatre
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners B...Show More
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga. Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends comes to Broadway from London’s West End, where it sold out in a matter of hours, earned a bevy of five-star raves and was hailed by The Times as "unmissable musical theatre."
Center Theatre Group will present the North American premiere of Old Friends at the Ahmanson Theatre in advance of the Broadway premiere at the Manhattan Theatre Club on March 25, 2025.
Show Less -
Wed Jan 29 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 6:30 PM
Center Theatre Group Fake It Until You Make It
Mark Taper Forum
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Nativ...Show More
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Native American perspectives on contemporary life and will be the first Native American writer to have a mainstage production on the Mark Taper Forum stage. A member of the Sicangu Lakota Nation, and author of the Broadway comedy, The Thanksgiving Play, FastHorse’s new work shines a hilarious light on ‘shifters’ who exist in a world of self-determined identity. This thought-provoking comic play asks what happens when you don’t believe you are the race you want to be? Change it! Fake It Until You Make It takes an absurd look at what defines who we are, and the lengths some people will go through to change it.
Show Less -
Wed Jan 29 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 6:30 PM
Center Theatre Group Fake It Until You Make It
Mark Taper Forum
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Nativ...Show More
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Native American perspectives on contemporary life and will be the first Native American writer to have a mainstage production on the Mark Taper Forum stage. A member of the Sicangu Lakota Nation, and author of the Broadway comedy, The Thanksgiving Play, FastHorse’s new work shines a hilarious light on ‘shifters’ who exist in a world of self-determined identity. This thought-provoking comic play asks what happens when you don’t believe you are the race you want to be? Change it! Fake It Until You Make It takes an absurd look at what defines who we are, and the lengths some people will go through to change it.
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Sun Mar 02 12:00 PM
LA Phil Mahlerthon: Part One
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Youth ensembles from across Los Angeles celebrate Gustav Mahler’s legacy with a marathon of his music.
Youth ensembles from across Los Angeles celebrate Gustav Mahler’s legacy with a marathon of his music.
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Sun Mar 02 5:00 PM
LA Phil Mahlerthon: Part Two
Walt Disney Concert Hall
University ensembles from across Los Angeles celebrate Gustav Mahler’s legacy with a marathon of his music.
University ensembles from across Los Angeles celebrate Gustav Mahler’s legacy with a marathon of his music.
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Sat Feb 08 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 1:00 PM
Center Theatre Group Steven Sondheim's Old Friends
Ahmanson Theatre
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners B...Show More
Celebrate one of Broadway’s true icons with this legendary theatrical event! Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends is an irresistible celebration to the master himself, with a company headlined by none other than Tony Award® winners Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga. Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends comes to Broadway from London’s West End, where it sold out in a matter of hours, earned a bevy of five-star raves and was hailed by The Times as "unmissable musical theatre."
Center Theatre Group will present the North American premiere of Old Friends at the Ahmanson Theatre in advance of the Broadway premiere at the Manhattan Theatre Club on March 25, 2025.
Show Less -
Wed Jan 29 8:00 PM
Sun Mar 09 6:30 PM
Center Theatre Group Fake It Until You Make It
Mark Taper Forum
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Nativ...Show More
A bold world premiere comedy from Los Angeles-based playwright, Larissa FastHorse, about being whoever you want to be, even when it’s not who you are. FastHorse is a critically acclaimed writer who focuses her keen sense of satire to examine Native American perspectives on contemporary life and will be the first Native American writer to have a mainstage production on the Mark Taper Forum stage. A member of the Sicangu Lakota Nation, and author of the Broadway comedy, The Thanksgiving Play, FastHorse’s new work shines a hilarious light on ‘shifters’ who exist in a world of self-determined identity. This thought-provoking comic play asks what happens when you don’t believe you are the race you want to be? Change it! Fake It Until You Make It takes an absurd look at what defines who we are, and the lengths some people will go through to change it.
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Tour The Music Center Campus
Free tours are available of all The Music Center's theaters.