Garage Theater Provides Refreshing Alternative To Conventional Stage

We've all heard of garage bands, but to most of us the term garage theater is a new one. That is the name of the theater company formed by CSULB alumni and playwright Jamie Sweet in 1996. The first show was, you guessed it, in a garage. A garage in Costa Mesa, to be exact. His first official play, "Egg Man," became very popular for the short two nights it ran, and marked the beginning of Sweet's career as a playwright.
Sweet learned everything he knows about the theater and the stage during his academic career at Orange Coast College. The drama department there was student-run, and thus allowed him a hands-on approach to acting, directing, and writing.
Sweet met up with other, like minded people at Orange Coast College, and that group transfered from there to Cal State University, Long Beach.
The Garage Theater Company was born out of this group of playwrights who wanted to produce and perform "art that spoke to them, whether it sold tickets or not" according to an article in the Press-Telegram.
The Garage is now located at 7th street in Long Beach, and has been releasing roughly two original plays per season since 2005, many of them penned by Sweet and fellow playwright/actor Amy-Louise Sebellius.

Art Theatre Of Long Beach Newly Renovated

The Art Theatre Of Long Beach, deemed one of the top five independent, or "indie", movie theaters in Los Angeles, has recently recieved a much needed restoration from the inside out.

Originally unveiled under the name "The Carter Theatre" in 1924, it had everything you'd expect from a theater of the silent movie era, right down to the pipe organ and orchestra pit. At first it looked something like Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood.

After the '33 earthquake, the theater was remodeled in 1934 in the "art-deco" style popular at that time. It was again remodeled in 1947, with additions like a wider marquee, and given the new name, "The Art Theatre."

This year, it has been restored to the original "art-deco" specifications, with the addition of some modern amenities. The original blueprints were used as a guide, and new sound and visual equipment has been installed. The two storefronts that flanked the theater on either side have been converted into a wine and a coffee bar. The interior and exterior alike appear to have been painstakingly reconstructed with a minute attention to detail.

New Exhibits At The Torrance Art Museum

There are three new exhibits currently on display at the Torrance Art Museum, located in the Civic Center right next to the library, police station, and local theater.
Every day from 11 to 5 the museum is open for the public to come observe. All three artists are local, that is to say from the south bay area, and all the works on display fall into the category of abstract art.
The three artists featured at the moment are Marco Casentini, Mary Pichette, and Eric Johnson, each with a different take on abstract art.
Casentini's section, entitled "Have A Nice Day," is a collage of his very colorful paint-on-glass, Piccasso-esque works against a colorful background the artist painted himself to accentuate the feel of the paintings. The bright, vibrant colors he uses in his pieces are meant to invoke a happy, easygoing feel that Casentini feels is characteristic of his California experience.
Pichette's paintings center more around using the shadows that occur in nature to create an "organic abstraction" affect. She believes that nature functions as a kind of catalyst for her artistic process. Her section in the museum is fittingly called "Building Into Shadows."
Johnson's medium is perhaps the most eccentric of the three, because he works almost entirely with polyester resin cast into different shapes. His main work on display at the museum takes the appearance of a gaint ear of corn, and is called "The Maize Project." It is made of over 300 individual cast resin "kernels," which contain mementos and keepsakes from different people. Some of these people Johnson knew, but others simply felt moved to donate their personal items to be a part of the Maize Project. A row of pictures is posted on the wall of everyone who donated something to the project.