Review Rundown: Two Very Different Dinners In Los Angeles
Downtown’s Vibiana is a circus with Neal Fraser’s food in the center ring, while in San Monica there’s an Onam party by way of New Zealand
This week we’re LA focused with two events on opposites sides of town. Okay, technically Santa Monica isn’t LA, but even my Santa Monica friends get confused about that sometimes. (Some wondered why they couldn’t vote for mayor!) In any case our theme this week is FOOD, as both shows feature it in rather different ways.
Sidebar: Welcome to The Low Pandemic
Since I’m mostly talking to LA right now: folks — we’re in a SURGE at the moment. Please be extra mindful. If you’re like me you know a bunch of folks who are sick and possibly even some who have been hospitalized. We may be emotionally over the pandemic, but it isn’t done with us. Odds are a citywide mask mandate is coming back, and if that doesn’t do the trick we could see indoor dining and bars get scaled back as well. This is not a drill.
I’m starting to think of 2020–21 as “The High Pandemic,” 21 into 22 as “The Middle Pandemic” and what we have now as “The Low Pandemic.” With “post pandemic” being in the future. The distance being dependant on us. Like: it’s not over until we learn our lesson. Like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day.
To patrons: make your assessments as you will, but I encourage you to remember that masking protects others if you happen to be carrying and not know it yet (if ever).
To creators: masking guests lowers the odds of an outbreak amongst them, your cast and crew, and you as well. We’ve learned a lot about how to reduce risk, and you know what’s less fun than wearing a mask? Wondering if your friends are in the hospital and that’s why you haven’t heard from them in days. (They were. They made it back. But yeah, you can tell my tone has changed.) — Noah Nelson, Publisher.
Last week’s Rundown, the one with the cowboys & pirates? It’s right here.
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Revive LA -Vau de Vire Entertainment.
$190; Los Angeles; Through July 24
In the famous words of Cole Porter, “Anything Goes” at this lavish, raucous soiree in a former cathedral in downtown Los Angeles. Through enchanting music and sinfully delectable food, this sacrilegious circus transports you to a time past prohibition, but before underwire bras, to revive your senses by playfully exploring the line between sinners and saints.
The prologue is in a courtyard of fantasy, with cocktails from Tequila Herradura and tempting passed hors d’oeuvres, including from a mermaid serving scallops. Graceful contortionists, a tantalizing sharp-shooter, and incredible live jazz music sets the tone for an exciting night.
And then the real show begins. As you enter a church, a bouquet of stunning visuals and sounds unfolds as you’re welcomed by a beautiful chorus and glimpses of burlesque performers. Featuring acts you might expect to see in Cirque du Soleil or America’s Got Talent, the cast displays a perfect blend of humor, skill and talent, all complimented by an eclectic live band.
Three long banquet tables double as runways for the talented cast to bring the show to life, while you enjoy a 4-course feast created by chef Neal Fraser of Redbird. Gluten-free and vegan options are available, but this reporter enjoyed what was one of the most perfectly cooked steaks she’s ever eaten (assuming you like medium rare, which I do!)
Be advised this show is 18+ for adult themes and language. Highly recommended for date nights, girls nights, or for anyone who wants to get dressed up in their 1920s best and live their Great Gatsby fantasy, while dining on some gourmet food.
— Briana Roecks, Los Angeles Correspondent
Ed. Note: be advised, and it should be obvious from the write-up, but this event involves dining indoors.
Mrs. Krishnan’s Party — Indian ink theatre company & BroadStage
$45- 65; Santa Monica. CA; through July 24
Theatre is a weird little miracle. Forging a group of strangers into a community, albeit be a temporary one. This is implicit in every show but in Mrs. Krishnan’s Party the implicit is made explicit. The personalities and stories of some of our fellow theatergoers used to pepper the lives of our two characters.
Structurally speaking Mrs. Krishnan’s Party is a two hander set in the back of a convenience store owned by the titular Mrs. Krishnan (Kalyani Nagarajan). Her border, James (Justin Rogers), has invited all of us the audience to an Onam party in the back of the store. James, for the record, doesn’t totally understand Onam but thinks the idea of bringing people together for a festival celebration is a great idea. Mrs. K, for her part, doesn’t even know what her wayward border is up to. Our presence is a total surprise, and at first not a welcome one.
Of course, there wouldn’t be much of a show if we were kicked out in the first few minutes, and what unfolds over the hour-plus time of the show is a story about the families we make and lose, and the way that the simple rites — like making a feast for the gathered — can bind us into something more than our little atomic pods.
What’s great about the show is that it’s not just about this, but it does this. On the night I went the couple that was brought up to help with the cooking — yes, really and we got to take some home at the end — had a touching story of their own that was revealed by Nagarajan’s in character questioning. As it was revealed, you could see it take the actor aback in a sweet way, struggling a bit to navigate the line between where her character would empathize and where the act of make believe might actually ruin the moment. These delicate moments of heightened reality are what make live theatre such a worthwhile pursuit on both sides of the creator and audience line, and the structure that New Zealand’s Indian Ink theatre company has provided with Mrs. Krishnan’s Party pulls them up quite efficiently.
Of course, there were also some folks in the audience who didn’t quite know when to stop trying to pull focus, which is the danger when “you’re a partygoer” is your assigned role. Some people think that gives them carte blanche to preen, and, well, I guess that’s who they are at heart: someone who thinks they’re more entertaining than the professionals. Congratulations, we see you, and we judge you boring.
Annoying party guests aside: Mrs. Krishnan’s Party is quite the joy, and the company has been touring this around the world. If it should happen to alight in your neck of the woods it’s worth popping in.
A quick note on Covid safety: I was VERY pleased to see that BroadStage was enforcing a mask mandate on the audience. Yes, there were a couple of people who were sloppy as we picked up our to-go containers of rice and dal at the close but no more so than what you’d find on a trip to the grocery store. As LA is in a surge at the moment, and vaccine potency has waned in the face of the current variant, this level of protection is important for the audience and the artists alike.
— Noah Nelson, Publisher
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