photo credit: City of West Hollywood / Jon Viscott

CALEB ALEXANDER

Vocal Expression Across the Ages

Pop-up operatic vocal music performance with amplified accompaniment at 8800 Holloway Drive

“Vocal Expression Across the Ages” is a vocal exploration of five centuries of Western operatic vocal music spanning from the 1620s to the 2020s. The music selected covers each century in the development of the genre. Composers featured include Monteverdi, Handel, Donizetti, Weill, and the artist with a culminating pastiche of the other works. Audiences will not be invited to the performance locations to avoid crowds gathering and to abide with health safety standards.

“This music is very important to me because of how it enriches the soul and I look forward to sharing it with the people of West Hollywood during this difficult time.” – Caleb Alexander

Natural storyteller and internationally acclaimed singer, composer, guitarist, actor, and writer, Caleb Alexander is an artist recently based out of Los Angeles, California. Caleb uses his classical performance background along with movements in world music to explore new ideas in the arts. 

IG: @calebmalexander96

photo credit: City of West Hollywood / Jon Viscott

BROCKUS PROJECT DANCE COMPANY

Drive-By

Pop-up dance performances in the back of a pick-up truck

“Drive By” is an artistic response to our social isolation with COVID-19. BrockusRED will present 6 pop-up contemporary dance performances from the back of a pick-up truck at select locations around the city. Two dancers will perform, one at a time, in the truck cab for 5-10 minutes, then move to another location where the show will repeat. Audiences will not be invited to the performance locations to avoid crowds gathering and to abide with health safety standards. 

Since 1994, BrockusRED has been a strong advocate of social justice and inclusion for all. Their work focuses on engaging as many people as they can in the healing power of art and they dance anywhere for everyone. They are supporting local artists creativity and helping connect community to art. As an organization, BrockusRED coordinates the Los Angeles Dance Festival, supports other charities with funds from their annual Dance/Back production, and they teach across LA County working with underprivileged students to bring joy and power into their lives.

IG: @brockusreddanceco

http://deborah-brockus.squarespace.com/

Photographs of the performance will be shared soon!

RAEANNE CHANELLE

Twenty-Seven

Three rhythmic poems presented virtually: Leverage, Hello World, What Does it Mean To Create Art From a Distance

RaeAnne Chanelle presents three spoken poetry performances created while social distancing. The series of work is titled “Twenty-Seven” and includes “Leverage,” “Thru,” and “What Does It Mean To Create Art From A Distance.” The poems exemplify angel number 27 and symbolize duality, humanitarianism, wisdom, and the soul’s evolution. The artist notes, “beyond these poems, if it is guidance that you are seeking, it is everywhere around you…see: Twenty-Seven.” The artist invites the community to participate in a brief survey on her website after viewing the performance.

RaeAnne Chanelle specializes in rhythmic poems and has performed at several different open mics and poetry readings. She founded her organization TheForeverS7even in 2016. In 2020 she launched The Forever S7even website, www.theforevers7even.com, as an extension of her self-published book titled “The Forever S7even” (2017). The book features over 14 different artists. She plans to establish a non-profit Foundation to provide free resources to underprivileged communities.

IG: #TheForeverS7even

www.theforevers7even.com

	photo credit: City of West Hollywood / Jon Viscott

ARI DeSANO

#FakeMusical

An amplified performance of songs and vaudevillian comedy at the traffic triangle on Santa Monica Boulevard at Doheny Drive 

Written by Ari Desano

Performers include Odious Ari, Carolina Hoyos, Alan Ishii, Ian MacKinnon, Qlint Steinhauser, and Travis Woods

Set design by Joey Jenkins

“#FakeMusical” is a musical pop-up carnival with street musicians, led by 103-year old Vaudevillian, Odious Ari (Ari DeSano), who acts as a carnival barker/emcee and general nag. The performance includes song, dance, ukulele and accordion. The premise of the musical is: a CEO villain who owns a monopoly and town (Walmazon) has polluted the air. He realizes he can make money by selling bottled air to the people he has poisoned! Turns out, it helps to have money to keep from wheezing (sound familiar?). The townspeople face all kinds of exploitation and have a lack of access to healthcare, low wages, and insurmountable debt. Can they change things for the better if they all work together to create their own musical? Audiences will not be invited to the performance location to avoid crowds gathering and to abide with health safety standards.

Ari DeSano has lived in West Hollywood since 2003 and has found it a fantastic place to create art. DeSano performed in several City productions including Summer Sounds concert series (2010), Midsummer Afternoon’s Queer Wedding Reception (2014), This is Your Life! Produced by Apt 3F (2014), and the Stuart Timmons’ West Hollywood LGBT History Tour as part of the One City One Pride LGBTQ Arts Festival (2017). 

IG: @odious_ari

http://odiousari.com/

LISA KENNER GRISSOM, MINITA GANDHI, WESLEY MIDDLETON

History Is Now

5 short documentary films

History is Now is a series of short films that captures the stories of five (5) unsung West Hollywood heroes who are working to support themselves and their communities during these extraordinary times. In the midst of the current struggle for racial justice, a global pandemic, and an economic crisis, these are the stories you may have overlooked, but need to know. History is Now is aiming to capture history as it happens, while celebrating West Hollywood’s uniquely diverse, resilient culture. Through intimate and candid interviews, the artists seek to amplify unheard voices at an undeniably pivotal moment, because history is happening...right now.

History Is Now highlights the diverse and cross-generational culture of West Hollywood through five contrasting perspectives who are all experiencing this moment in a unique way that reflects their class, race, ethnicity, sexuality, and gender identity as well as their passions, commitments, past experiences, and visions for the future. 

• Flo, the owner of an iconic beauty salon, is as fearless in her commitment to the Black Lives Matter movement as she is in her leadership of her business and her devotion to the West Hollywood community;
• Becky, Jamie, Sivia, and Carla, are the deeply committed and unflinchingly honest staff and board president of a West Hollywood-born nonprofit, Being Alive, that has been helping people living with HIV and AIDS since 1986;
• Taylor, is a young entrepreneur from New Jersey who is embracing the opportunity to shift her vegan glitter company from selling at massive music festivals to serving the community at socially distanced, community-based pop-ups;
• Raisa, is a ballroom-dancing powerhouse and pillar of West Hollywood’s Russian Jewish senior community who is unflaggingly optimistic about the future even as she mourns the current closure of her “alma mater,” Plummer Park;
• Greg & Michelle, are a creative, business savvy couple, who launched their new upscale barber truck, The Barber Truck, business on the eve of the pandemic and then transformed it through an ingenious, socially-conscious collaboration with West Hollywood’s Employees Only.

Lisa Kenner Grissom is a third-generation Russian Jewish playwright and producer whose work explores complex social truths through intimate relationships. Minita Gandhi is a first-generation, Indian-American woman whose artivism blends truth and magical realism. Wesley Middleton is a queer playwright and producer whose work uses unconventional language and fairytale tropes to explore themes of gender identity, bullying, social media obsession, and the struggle for creative expression. As three women writers, their personal and/or cultural histories have often been silenced, and they feel it is vital to amplify narratives that are often drowned out by capitalism, sensational media, and celebrity culture. They have come together to give voice to this group of West Hollywood residents, workers, and activists who are living the history of this moment, in this unique city.  

IG: @history_isnow

https://www.historyisnow.me/

	photo credit: City of West Hollywood / Jon Viscott

THE LA OPERABABES 

Pop-up acapella operatic vocal performance on the steps of the West Hollywood Library  

The LA OperaBabes (Lauren Carter and Angela Molineux) will present timeless opera melodies through an outdoor, pop-up, acapella performance on the steps of West Hollywood Library. Relying solely on their voices (without accompaniment) and magical, famous opera melodies, they will deliver an inclusive, inspiring, and healing performance to facilitate a heart and soul energetic connection with the audience. The LA OperaBabes will inspire, connect, and lift the spirits of one of the most diverse and vibrant cultural communities in the country with beautiful classical pieces and the stunning visual of two young opera singers in an urban environment. Audiences will not be invited to the performance location to avoid crowds gathering and to abide with health safety standards.

Canadian singer/songwriter, Angela Molineux and American singer/songwriter, Lauren Carter are classically trained sopranos with international recording and performance careers who serendipitously met as neighbors in West Hollywood. Aware of the incredible healing and uplifting benefits of classical music, the two wild sopranos decided to join forces during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic to sing acapella duets from their shared balcony; thus, the LA Opera Babes was born!  

IG: @thelaoperababes 

thelaoperababes.com

ANDREW PUTSCHOEGL

Together, Apart

Virtual photography exhibition

When Los Angeles went on lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic, Andrew Putschoegl felt the need to do something to channel his creative energy into something positive. Photographing people stuck at home and sharing those images with the world as a way for the artist to express connection, even while distanced, and is his way of shining a bit of light into dark times. “Together, Apart,” a photographic series featuring LA County residents at their homes during the pandemic, illustrates a sense of community and togetherness. The artist photographed 10 West Hollywood residents and interviewed them about their experiences during this time to include in the series.

Andrew Putschoegl is a gay man living and working in Los Angeles as a filmmaker. His work includes narrative and documentary projects across myriad subjects and platforms. While this is his first public art project, he has experience working with the City in creating multiple videos in collaboration with the LGBT Center. He also created The Stay Proud Project (2018) to draw attention to the importance of documenting and preserving LGBTQ history for future generations.

IG: @togetherapartphotos  

https://ninjagoldfish.com/

	Arkady
	Bruce
	Chip
	Enoch
	Ernesto
	Geoffrey
	Habiba
	Jared and Zach
	Joe and Luna
	Liana and Masha
	Liz, Victor and Steven
	Maxwell
	Meghan
	Michael, Roger, Zoe, Alexander, and Dexter
	Raj
	Scott, Anne and Amélie
	Toni and Sigh
	Verena

photo credit: City of West Hollywood / Jon Viscott

STEVEN RAHBANY

Masks Across Weho

Fabric, twine

Temporary installation on Santa Monica Boulevard at Palm Avenue

October 4 – 12

“Masks Across Weho” is a site-specific installation of larger than life, handmade, fabric face masks installed on trees in West Hollywood. Inspired by yarn bombing, this project will bring bright and colorful patterns to contrast against the trees and heighten awareness to West Hollywood residents and visitors of the need for community-wide mask use in the pandemic. Each mask will have an #artfuldistancing tag on it to spread awareness of the exhibition. This project focuses on the social contracts we’ve made as a collective to combat COVID-19 through social distancing, connecting tactile materials to the natural world, and highlighting the nature that often goes unnoticed.

Steven Rahbany is an American artist who lives and works in West Hollywood. His work explores queer identity, memory and social issues through the lens of a queer millennial. He navigates connections between the suppression of the inner self, and the subconscious social constructs in which we all participate. Rahbany’s work has been exhibited in group and solo shows around the country, at galleries such as The Houston Contemporary Art Museum, The Los Angeles Center for Photography, Agora Art Gallery in New York, and The California African American Museum. He received his BFA from the University of Southern California.

IG: @stevenrahbany

https://rahbanyart.com/

LINDA RAVENSWOOD

History Lesson (2020) - The Grandfather; Dragsville; West Hollywood Map; Map Poem

Performance poetry, hybrid text, video 

History Lesson (2020) includes four performance poems comprising painting, poetry, experimental map making, performance art, character study, and hybrid text sourced in quarantine in 2020.  Source material includes Fray Bernardino y Tlacuilo’s Florentine Codex, Art Speigelman’s Maus, The Collected Lynda Barry, The Collected Douglas Kearney, Claudia Rankine’s Citizen, Linda Ravenswood’s The Journals of Marsha P. Johnson, Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, Mel Welles Dragsville, and researches from The Los Angeles Times, The Advocate, LA Pride, The WeHo Times, The New York Times and others.

Storykeeper, Poet, Performance Artist, and Arts Advocate, Linda Ravenswood is a Los Angeles native and 7th generation school teacher. Linda is the founder and EIC of The Los Angeles Press (thelosangelespress.com). Current projects include Melrose Poetry Bureau, Project 1521 (LACMA, 2021), Asylum Arts Mapping Project, a book for Hinchas Press, and collaborations with The Poetry Society of New York, Get Lit and The LAPL. Her book rock waves / sloe drags is forthcoming from Eyewear London in 2021.

IG: @thelosangelespress

https://thelosangelespress.com

photo credit: City of West Hollywood / Jon Viscott

CK REED

Distanced Palms

Three Murals at 8224 Sunset Blvd

"Distanced Palms" is a set of three murals that are symbolic and designed to encourage continued social distancing to protect ourselves and our neighbors. The artist hopes the murals will remind the West Hollywood community that while distancing may be hard, it is out of love and respect for each other and our city. The artwork reflects the bright, vibrant energy of West Hollywood and is intended to lift our spirts while spreading a message of care. The artist is especially excited about the mural’s location on the Sunset Strip because it brings up nostalgic memories about her first visit to Los Angeles.

Claire Katherine “CK” Reed is a Los Angeles based set decorator, graphic designer and artist.  She has a BFA in textile design from Savannah College of Art and Design and has worked in fashion and interior design. Upon moving to Los Angeles in 2013, she became a freelance designer and entered the film industry as a set decorator. She has painted murals in Hollywood and also creates street signs promoting positive messages in her own neighborhood of Los Feliz. She cares a lot for her neighbors and is involved with local board meetings as well as contributing her graphic design skills.

IG: @c.k_reed

http://www.ckreed.com/

WAYNE SMITH AND PAUL DEL VECCHIO

Standing Room Only!

Two, 20-minute vocal performances presented virtually

“Standing Room Only!” features husbands Wayne Smith and Paul Del Vecchio, long time West Hollywood residents (34 years), singing a concert of big band music including Benny Goodman, Bing Cosby, the Andrews Sisters, Glenn Miller, and more.

Wayne Smith and Paul Del Vecchio are seasoned Broadway entertainers. Wayne has sung in Musical Comedy, Opera and Cabaret in San Francisco, New York and Paris. Paul's credits include David Merrick's "42nd St.", Gershwin's "Crazy For You" and tapping in the film "Tap" starring Gregory Hines. Paul and Wayne have been singing onstage together for over 40 years. Since they retired professionally three years ago, they have been singing big band concerts for assisted living facilities all over Los Angeles. Last year we sang 60 big band concerts and note “We sing because we believe in the healing power of music and love to watch hearts and eyes light up when we perform.”

IG: @delsmithioproductions

http://www.delsmithioproductions.com/

TWO BUTTON BRASS

LGBTQ+ Composers in Classical Music

Brass ensemble musical performances

Internationally-touring, Los Angeles-based brass chamber ensemble, Two Button Brass, presents a Tour de Force of musical masterworks written exclusively by LGBTQ+ composers in classical music. These works represent the resilience of the human spirit in the face of great turmoil - both internally and externally. This curated program features: the music of Swan Lake, by Russian romanticist Pytor Tchaikovsky, Broadway’s classic score of Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story, and an original piece by the Grammy and Pulitzer Prize-winning contemporary composer, Jennifer Higdon, plus many more. Please join us virtually for our showcase: Music of LGBTQ+ Composers in Classical Music.

Two Button Brass, a 5-person chamber ensemble, was formed on the University of Southern California, Thornton School of Music campus where each of its five members met during their graduate work. The group came together to form a group that emphasized fostering musical connections that will help form the next generation and reach new audiences unfamiliar with classical music and brass quintet repertoire. Two Button Brass offsets the cost of their shows through private donations, grants, and partnerships with non-profit organizations. Two Button Brass’ mission is to build a bridge from the concert hall to the community through accessible, innovative performances and masterclasses in the Greater Los Angeles area.

IG: @twobuttonbrass

https://www.twobuttonbrass.com/

VICTOR YATES

Death Sentence

Spoken word performance and live Q&A with Brian Sonia Wallace

Spoken word by Victor Yates, videographer Anthony Casto

Death Sentence is a spoken word performance commenting on Blackness, police violence, queerness, and survival. The Black queer political art performance artists hope to help audience members work through and heal from the trauma of police brutality against Black bodies. Victor Yates, spoken word artist, will use performative techniques, body paint, and symbols of violence to heighten tension in the performance as he speaks an original poem containing the last words of Black people murdered by the police. The performance will be recorded and presented on the city’s website with a Q&A session with the artist to provide context for the performance and shape the conversation surrounding police violence. 

Victor Yates is a writer and storyteller. He works as a freelance writer for a local L.A.-based LGBTQ+ quarterly publication. He also directed his first documentary film two years ago and is in the final stages of editing the film. He is currently working on his second novel. His first novel won the Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Debut Fiction. 

IG: @writervicyates

	photo credit: City of West Hollywood / Jon Viscott

SARAH ZUCKER 

Now More Than Ever 

This Art Work will exist in two formats: an AR face filter designed by the artist for use on Instagram and Facebook and two :64 second videos for the digital billboards at 8410 Sunset Boulevard and 9039 Sunset Boulevard. SEE BELOW FOR HOW TO DOWNLOAD THE FILTER

“Now More Than Ever” is an interactive virtual sculpture commemorating the absurd uniformity and accidental profundity of corporate messaging in the time of COVID-19. “Now More Than Ever” is a time for looking at the Past looking at the Future. “Now More Than Ever” we must reflect on where we’ve been to see where we’re going. “Now More Than Ever” we get to see which structures and practices no longer serve us through a social elimination diet. “Now More Than Ever” is a time for revolution and regeneration.  

Through the appropriation of pandemic-era brandspeak, “Now More Than Ever” we can take a critical – and perhaps humorous – look at our society. The retrofuturistic aesthetic of this project aims to invoke the liminality of our present moment. The artist mixes vintage analog techniques with cutting edge augmented reality (AR) technology to evoke the strange sense of being in-between days, left only with our Memories and our Wonder at what’s yet to come.   

The community is invited to interact with the face filter to add their own meaning to the project. Participants will be able to generate videos with the AR face filter for use on their own social media accounts. After the filter has been available for one month, the artist will edit available user-submitted videos into a compilation as documentation of the project. If you would like to submit a video for consideration of inclusion in the final compilation, please DM it to @thesarahshow or email it to thesarahshow@gmail.com by October 31st. 

Sarah Zucker is an artist and writer based in Los Angeles. Her work merges the gorgeous and grotesque through humor, psychedelia, mysticism, and the interplay of cutting edge + obsolete technologies. She works across mediums, specializing in mixing digital and analog video techniques and the use of VHS. She incorporates elements of performance, drawing, photography and collage into her interdimensional rainbow transmissions. YoMeryl, her art + animation studio with partner Bronwyn Lundberg, created two previous projects for the City of West Hollywood including “The Kicks of Route 66” mural (2016) and “The City of Creative Delights” digital mural (2017). Other clients and publications include: Super Deluxe, Giphy, The Brooklyn Museum, AMC, MTV, Universal Music Group, The Center for Disease Control, NowThis, Tumblr Creatrs, Into, HuffPost and more. She holds a BA in Theater/Creative Writing for the Media from Northwestern, and an MFA in Dramatic Writing from NYU. She is a Jeopardy! Champion. 

IG: @thesarahshow

http://www.sarahzucker.com

HOW TO DOWNLOAD THE FACE FILTER:

For Instagram: The face filter can be found under the highlights section of the artist's instagram profile (@thesarahshow).

For Facebook: The face filter can be found at https://www.facebook.com/fbcameraeffects/tryit/728476134400017/