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17th Annual Newport Beach Film Fest – German Spotlight

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onebreath

17th ANNUAL NEWPORT BEACH FILM FESTIVAL TO SHOWCASE AN EXCLUSIVE SCREENING OF GERMAN CINEMA

In a couple of weeks it’s time for the annual Newport Beach Film Festival (NBFF). A Festival that brings to Orange County the best of classic and contemporary filmmaking from around the world. This year the Festival will run from April 21st – April 28th and will spotlight over 350 films from around the world.

On Tuesday, April 26th, 2016 the NBFF will present its German Spotlight, an evening celebration of German cinema and culture. The event will feature the Regional Premiere of the highly anticipated German film, One Breath (Ein Atem) followed by a festive post-screening reception. The film centers on a greek nanny and a career-driven mother in Frankfurt who collide in this thrilling drama from German director Christian Zübert. When a child disappears the two women are forced to confront their fears and responsibilities. One Breath (Ein Atem) (In German with English subtitles.) is directed by Christian Zübert and stars Chara Mata Giannatou, Jördis Triebel, Benjamin Sadler, Apostolis Totsikas and Nike Maria Vassil.

The German Spotlight film will screen on Tuesday, April 26th 2016 at 8:15 p.m. at Starlight Triangle Cinemas (1870 Harbor Boulevard in Costa Mesa, CA 92627). The post-screening celebration will take place at 10:00 p.m. at Design Within Reach – SOCO (3303 Hyland Ave, Costa Mesa, CA 92626). The evening will include several of Orange County’s top restaurants serving signature tastings, multiple DJs, live entertainment, a special performance by Orange County Aerial Arts, hosted bar by Stella Artois Beer, and Tito’s Handmade Vodka.

Admission to the German Spotlight film One Breath and the post-screening party is $45.00. Post-screening party only is $25.00/ Film screening only is $20.00.   CaliforniaGermans readers enjoy a $5 discount with a special promo code:  GERMAN2016

For ticket information and updates visit www.NewportBeachFilmFest.com 

 

 

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“Performance in Which Hopefully Nothing Happens” – Dutch Theatre Group in OC

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The “Performance in Which Hopefully Nothing Happens” at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts last weekend was a real treat for children and grown-ups alike. In times where the Wii and other video games have taken over our children’s leisure time, it is so important to have their minds and imagination stimulated with something more creative.

That’s exactly what Theatergroep MAX from the Netherlands did. Inventive, absurd and fantastic at times, “Performance in Which Hopefully Nothing Happens” was great modern theater that played with the audience’s minds, made it laugh over clever absurd funny scenes while playfully demonstrating what a performance actually consists of! 

The actors brilliantly incorporated elements of Pantomime and Comedy and with a witty play of words kept the audience engaged. Their scene of having the various parts of a performance appear as different people, from the ‘previous moment’ person to the ‘next moment’ guy and the ‘dead moment’ was hilarious, with the interview of the ‘little detail’ being the absolute highlight. Comicly funny the ‘little detail’ was being interviewed with a microphone, but all the audience could really see was the actor Roger holding the microphone pointed towards a little round spot that was illuminated by his flashlight. That’s where the little detail supposedly was on stage and spoke, but it was just too small for the audience to see with bare eyes…The children were bursting in laughter. The audience loved it.

Playing with the audience’s mind and making illusion reality was at its best, when one actor suddenly seemed to play hide and seek with his alter ego, and in the end after desperately trying to find himself,  suggested, that he must have lost himself.

By inviting Theatergroep MAX from the Netherlands, Segerstrom Center for the Arts has put on an excellent show making sure that theater goers of the next generation are trained to watch something more challenging than only mainstream theatre. Too bad that this award winnig show was available for the general public only for two days.  I will for sure be on the look out for their next performance in the coming season. 

“Performance in Which Hopefully Nothing Happens” -A real treat for eyes, ears and mind!

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 More to read:

Daily Pilot: http://articles.dailypilot.com/2011-05-12/news/tn-dpt-0513-happs-20110512_1_theater-group-silliness-godot

http://dutchperformingartsevents.blogspot.com/2011/04/ipay-dutch-youth-theater-consortium_21.html

http://www.nashvilleparent.com/theater-reviews/tpacs-family-field-trip-is-a-hoot-saturday-may-7

Alexander Calder at OCMA

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The Orange County Museum of Art is well worth a visit these days. Alexander Calder and Contemporary Art: Form, Balance, Joy opened on April 10th and features quite an impressive number of pieces (about 30) by famous American Sculptor Alexander Calder, the master and inventor of mobiles as an art form.

“When Alexander Calder first invented the mobile, he ushered in a new form of sculpture, using free-moving parts to create a flowing kinetic work of art” (What is Kinetic Sculpture? ) Born into a family of well known artists, his father and grandfather were sculptors, and his mother a painter, Alexander Calder did his first piece of art at the age of four in 1902 – a clay elephant. Later on he studied electrical engineering before he dedicated himself completely to his art. Inspired by Mondrian and Juan Miro, while spending time in Paris, his work features bold colors and geometric shapes. 

All his work radiates flow and harmony and walking the exhibition at OCMA is an absolute joy to the eye and our senses of esthetics. Parts of the show include also other artists’ work who, inspired by Calder, tried a similar style. Martin Boyce was my favorite and in my opinion comes closest to the union of esthetics and form as exemplified by Calder.

Great for kids is the experiment room (visitors studio) right next to the reception area.  “Organized by the Education Department, … it is a participatory space for all ages to explore the artistic process. This interactive room offers opportunities to engage … through unique activities for thinking, looking, listening, touching, creating and playing…” (OCMA.net)

Visit OCMA for Mother’s Day tomorrow. All galleries will be open for free from 11am to 5pm.  A special program for children will be offering several attractions from story book readings of “Calder’s Circus” to special Mother Day crafts.

Orange County Museum of Art (OCMA)  at 850 San Clemente Drive
Newport Beach, California 92660

Phone | 949-759-1122
Admissions Desk: ext. 243

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Fernando Botero at the Bowers Museum

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Hooked on Botero

My first introduction to Fernando Botero was in Tuscany many, many years ago. Traveling Tuscany with my Italian friends in my twenties we stopped at a medieval castle in the middle of the soft Tuscan hills. There nestled within this magical medieval scenery were Botero’s impressive sculptures and sensual paintings of his voluminous figures he is so famously known for.  This first impression of Botero never left me and I still have a vivid memory of this day.Fernando Botero

Many years later, in fact about six years ago, my husband, son and I were visiting Venice and while touring the canals on one of the ‘Taxi” boats, I was realizing these enormous parts of some big sculpture on a passing boat.  Taken by surprise I was trying to get a closer look at them and realized with joy and excitement that these had to be part of a Botero sculpture. Shortly after we found out that Venice in fact was getting ready for a huge show of Botero sculptures throughout the city. This show with Venice as a fantastic backdrop left unforgetable memories.

Fernando Botero

How thrilled was I to find out that the Bowers Museum is presenting a major retrospective of this Latin American artist right now. The show opened on September 12 and will run through December 06, 2009. Many of the 100 paintings , sculptures and drawings on view have never been seen in public. It’s a great exhibit, well put together and giving an overview from Botero’s very early works to his recent ones. I will defenitely go and visit again.  

Tickets are $12 for adults. Free Entrance is offered on every first Sunday of the month!

Latin American Art Lovers can enjoy another exhibit at the Bowers as well: “Latitude” shows works by Frieda Kahlo, Diego Rivera, Roberto Matta, Jesus Soto, Rufino Tamayo and many more. 

BOWERS MUSEUM
2002 N.MAIN STREET
SANTA ANA, CA 92706

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