525,600 Minutes of Measuring Up

Rent @ Hollywood Bowl 

 

How does RENT, a 14 year long standing rock musical sensation with an all star Bohemian cast, light up Hollywood Bowl's stage? For starters, it's definitely a unique Broadway show that brings in a lot of flash, crash, and crazy performances from better than average actors and actresses. Compared to the movie, the live show was a lot more hectic and the average RENT Newb might be lost in the scuffle of quick jabs and one sentence sinkers. The plot is rather complicated, especially in the beginning with so many characters that all live within the one block radius of the Lower East Side slums of transients, vagabonds, artists, and aspiring wannabes.  Despite the complicated plot, the energy on stage sustains the interest and allows us to get lost in the spirit of sing songs rather than analyzing the plot. Compared to the movie Rent, the play's enthusiasm for LA Bohemia is more lucid and unsurpassed by other versions, allowing for die hard Rent Fans to cheer, sing along, and laugh to the rhythm and lyrics.

What makes this show rather fascinating is that it juxtaposes the macabre with the lighthearted matter of fact ease throughout the play's tempo. Take the aspiring rocker nostalgic for his ex girlfriend who died of AIDS and longing to write that great "One Song Glory" before the "virus takes over, glory". Ironically, he falls for a heroin addict moonlight dancer, who seduces him through "lighting her candle". This is all set within the context of a HIV ridden community, when they confess to each other that they are HIV positive along with their homosexual, bisexual, and straight support group friends.

For the sober person, this is one hell of a "far out" ride--take Maureen's protest against corporate housing take over. In her solo, "Over the Moon", between talks of suckling milk from cow and a "suicidal Mickey Mouse", I was already lost in space. I guess it takes a few liberal La Vie Boheme conspirators and thinkers to get the inside joke. As for me, I am just fascinated by the dichotomy of love and lust, freedom and entrapment, the beautiful and the ugly all in packaged in hues of rainbow colors and catchy hooks. This is really one think outside of the box Broadway show--maybe so far out, you'd look back only to find the box looking like a dot in space.

  Transportation buses will take you to and from Hollywood Bowl. Just check your local metro bus stations.

  Parking $16 Stacked Parking. 10-20 minutes wait after the show is over.  Highland Ave on a Sunday evening @11:30pm

Technorati Tags: Rent,Hollywood Bowl,Bohemian

It's that Ole Town Flavor

Old Town Pasadena
Location: Old Town Parking, Map, and Directions
Entertainment Value: Outdoor Shopping, Architectural Aesthetics, Downtown Stroll for the Bourgeois lifestyle
Entertainment Cost: Window shopping= free; Other shopping= varies

Food Cost: Varies from restaurant to restaurant (see Old Town Pasadena Eats)

Sure, the beauty of the arches, the villas, the earth tone hues plastered on brick buildings tickle our visual senses, and sure, the fancy selections displayed behind windows of vintage shops, boutiques, specialities stores, and namebrand stores encapsulates us, but what really draws both travelers and locals to this rich city is the food. They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But here in Old Town, the food is a worth a thousand miles...of traveling saved that is!  Just imagine a place where all the best cuisines from around the world are readily available in a two mile radius.  There are 113+ restaurants in a 21 block district, where centuries of regional traditions are refined, like wine, to become today's modern dining experience--this is the place where "fusion" cuisine, a relatively modern phenomenon, thrives freely like foxtails in a prairie.

                                                                                                            

In what other two mile block could you find so many ethnic foods in one place: Tibetian, French-Belgian, Mezzbaan Indian, Italian, British, Spanish, Japanese, Mexican, Chinese, Equadorian, American, Thai, Peruvian, Vietnamese, Argentinian, Afgani, all waiting for your patronage? From regional tastes like Barc elona, New York Deli, Philly's Best, Seattle's Cafe, Sonoma's Dish Bistro and Bar, to Fusion restaurants like Chinese-Japanese's Wokano, French-Belgian's Quadrupel Brasserie, California-European's Greenstreet Tavern, French-Italian's Dish Bistro and Bar, and Chinese-American's 54 Holly Restaurant to specialty eateries like Green Earth Vegan Cuisine, Cafe Alibi, and Le Pain Quotidien. Thirsty? How about tea from Tea Rose Garden, Scarlet Tea Room, Bird Pick Tea and Herb, Chado Tea Room, or boba drinks? Or what about beer from 72 North, Lucky Baldwin's Pub, or perhaps wine from Vertical Wine Bistro, Red White and Bluezz, POP Champagne and Dessert Bar. And speaking of desserts, how about Violet's Cakes? Tutti Gelati's italian icecream? Rocket Fizz Soda pop? Fondue from Melting Pot? Creme de la Crepe? Dot's Cupcakes?  You get my drift? With so many selections, it's like picking candy from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. It's a food savant's library of exploration.

We headed to Mi Piace to celebrate our friends,  iana and Joseph's, engagement. The Italian place was packed with people waiting. Luckily we had made reservations and was seated almost immediately (make sure all your party is present. They will not seat you otherwise). We ordered pastas and antipastas, we ordered champagne to celebrate, but what makes this swinger's lounge a titillating pursuit is the delectable desserts. The tiramisu, soaked in Brandy, and baked in the finest technologies available, just melts into the palate after a fine Italian entree. We also tried the creme brulee. Magnifico! With the caramelized flame torched outer layering covering the lightly battered creme like frozen ice over a lake, it is a mouth watering delight to polish off a meal fit for The Council of Ministers. Now that's powerful!