The Music Center's Mark Taper Forum

Slinging razor guitars, thundering drums, and an anti-hero named Johnny. Not the prelude of typical entries in the canon of musical theatre. But these elements herald a groundbreaking American musical all the same: with the burning passion of characters who yearn for something more, songs bursting with emotion, and a story that dares you to feel and celebrate and hope.

The music of Green Day and the lyrics of lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong captured the zeitgeist of a generation with its Grammy Award®-winning multi-platinum album. American Idiot puts those raw emotions front and center in a highly theatrical and thoroughly satisfying rock opera that burns up the stage.

Urban Bush Women, the groundbreaking dance company known for amplifying underrepresented voices and unheard stories of Black women+, marks its 40^th anniversary with the West Coast premiere of SCAT!… The Complex Lives of Al & Dot, Dot & Al Zollar. This vibrant, dance-driven jazz club experience, inspired by founder Jawole Willa Jo Zollar’s childhood in Kansas City’s Black neighborhoods, follows a family’s journey through the Great Migration and the realities of life in 1940s America. With live music by Craig Harris and a cast of electrifying performers, SCAT! pays tribute to the joy, resilience and rich legacy of Black floor shows. Presented in association with Center Theatre Group.

Conceived, Directed, & Co-Choreographed by: Jawole Willa Jo Zollar
Co-Choreographed by: Vincent Thomas
Original Music Composed: Craig Harris
Dramaturgy by: Talvin Wilks
Assistant Director & Associate Producer: Cheri Stokes

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.

“This is a pianist with an abundance of ‘style and idea’: both virtuoso command and individuality of voice." (Gramophone). The unrivaled Uzbek performer returns to LA for an evening of Ravel, Prokofiev, and Uzbek composer Dilorom Saidaminova, which Abduraimov recorded in his recent critically acclaimed album, Shadows of My Ancestors.

Experience the arts in your local community! Our Arts Grown L.A. program brings Music Center Performing Artists to communities and libraries all over L.A. County.

Slinging razor guitars, thundering drums, and an anti-hero named Johnny. Not the prelude of typical entries in the canon of musical theatre. But these elements herald a groundbreaking American musical all the same: with the burning passion of characters who yearn for something more, songs bursting with emotion, and a story that dares you to feel and celebrate and hope.

The music of Green Day and the lyrics of lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong captured the zeitgeist of a generation with its Grammy Award®-winning multi-platinum album. American Idiot puts those raw emotions front and center in a highly theatrical and thoroughly satisfying rock opera that burns up the stage.

Step into the ultimate gaming event at Night Games, a weekend where the world of indie games takes center stage under the stars. Compete in action-packed multiplayer games, perfect your solo strategies, or simply enjoy the excitement as players go head-to-head. This one-of-a-kind experience brings gaming enthusiasts together for a celebration of creative gameplay and the innovative spirit of independent developers. Join us for an unforgettable night filled with immersive gaming, competition and discovery. 

Our new-music marathon, which is included in your Green Umbrella package, offers 12 hours of pop-up performances in every corner of Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Ellen Reid curates the 2024 marathon that explores the musical movement of field recordings with bold ideas, cutting-edge performees, plus local food trucks and craft beers that make this a can’t miss party!

Noon to Midnight is part of PST ART: Art & Science Collide. PST ART is presented by Getty. For more information, please visit pst.art.

The multi-talented Joe Hisaishi has composed more than 100 film scores and is best known as the musical mind behind nearly all of famed Japanese animation director Hayao Miyazaki’s films with Studio Ghibli, earning him widespread recognition and admiration for his scores’ beloved and enduring status. As a composer for the concert hall, Hisaishi’s musical voice is even more ambitious and distinct, honoring Japanese music traditions while drawing inspiration in everything from western symphonic tradition, jazz, pop to electronic, new age, and minimalism. LA Phil harpist Emmanuel Ceysson gives the world premiere of Hisaishi’s Harp Concerto under the composer’s baton, and Hisaishi further explores his love of the instrument with his Adagio for Strings and Two Harps on Thursday and Sunday. Hisaishi then brings out the orchestral colors in Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, which conjures its own Ghibli-esque sense of wonder by conjuring imagery of whimsical characters and surreal scenes.

Concerts in the Thursday 2 subscription series are generously supported by the Otis Booth Foundation.

Capping off the LA Phil’s daylong new-music fest, Noon to Midnight, Grant Gershon leads the LA Phil New Music Group in Doug Aitken’s Lightscape, which offers a film and music journey through Los Angeles.

Noon to Midnight is part of PST ART: Art & Science Collide. PST ART is presented by Getty. For more information, please visit pst.art.

Slinging razor guitars, thundering drums, and an anti-hero named Johnny. Not the prelude of typical entries in the canon of musical theatre. But these elements herald a groundbreaking American musical all the same: with the burning passion of characters who yearn for something more, songs bursting with emotion, and a story that dares you to feel and celebrate and hope.

The music of Green Day and the lyrics of lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong captured the zeitgeist of a generation with its Grammy Award®-winning multi-platinum album. American Idiot puts those raw emotions front and center in a highly theatrical and thoroughly satisfying rock opera that burns up the stage.

Slinging razor guitars, thundering drums, and an anti-hero named Johnny. Not the prelude of typical entries in the canon of musical theatre. But these elements herald a groundbreaking American musical all the same: with the burning passion of characters who yearn for something more, songs bursting with emotion, and a story that dares you to feel and celebrate and hope.

The music of Green Day and the lyrics of lead singer Billie Joe Armstrong captured the zeitgeist of a generation with its Grammy Award®-winning multi-platinum album. American Idiot puts those raw emotions front and center in a highly theatrical and thoroughly satisfying rock opera that burns up the stage.

Two feuding families rule Verona, with the Montagues and Capulets each determined to write their victory in blood. A chance meeting between Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet sparks a forbidden romance. But it wouldn’t be a Shakespearean tragedy without...well...tragedy.

Famed Venezuelan conductor Domingo Hindoyan and our very own Resident Conductor Lina González-Granados lead Gounod’s romantic score, studded with one gorgeous love duet after another. Rising stars Amina Edris and Duke Kim make their house debuts as opera’s favorite star-crossed lovers, with Justin Austin in his company debut as Mercutio and company favorite Craig Colclough as Lord Capulet. Enter a sensuous, elegant world of vengeful duels and young love as this fan favorite returns to LA Opera for the first time since 2011.