Pure, Unadulterated Joy

.@RealHughJackman THE MAN. THE MUSIC. THE SHOW. WORLD TOUR Got your tickets yet?

If you're a fan of Academy Award®-nominated, Golden Globe- and Tony Award-winning performer, Hugh Jackman, and his performance in The Greatest Showman, Les Miserable  and more from Broadway and film, then you will be happy to learn that he announced his first world tour this past November called  The Man. The Music. The Show while accompanied by a live orchestra.  

In casee you missed his appearance announcing this World Tour, here's Hugh on the Today Show this past December.

The Man. The Music. The Show. will visit the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas Saturday, July 13, 2019 with numerous other dates for his world tour listed below.  The tour is produced by AEG Presents, TED-Dainty, and Robert Fox.  Here's some of what you can expect as a reminder:

Following a run in the UK and Europe, the 22-city North American leg will begin Tuesday, June 18th at Toyota Center in Houston, TX, with stops in Chicago, Toronto, Boston, Las Vegas, and New York, with two shows at Madison Square Garden, as well as two performances at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

Tickets for the North American shows went on sale Friday, December 7th at 10 AM local time at HughJackmanTheShow.com.  A limited number of exclusive VIP packages were available. These exclusive offers can include an amazing selection of reserved-seated tickets, custom merchandise (designed exclusively for package purchasers) and much more.  For more information please visit HughJackmanTheShow.com.

Hugh Jackman has made an impression on audiences of all ages with his multi-hyphenate career persona, as successful on stage in front of live crowds as he is on film. From his award-winning turn on Broadway as the 1970s singer/songwriter Peter Allen, to his metal claw-wielding Wolverine in the blockbuster X-Men franchise, Jackman has proven to be one of the most versatile actors of our time.

Jackman garnered his first Academy Award® nomination, for Best Actor, for his performance in Tom Hooper’s Les Misérables, based on the popular stage show created from Victor Hugo’s famous novel of the same name. Jackman’s standout performance as protagonist Jean Valjean also earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Comedy/Musical, as well as Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award® nominations, for both Best Ensemble and Best Male Actor in a Leading Role, and a BAFTA Award nomination. Most recently, he was nominated for his role as P.T. Barnum in The Greatest Showman. Sales for the soundtrack to the film have broken records the world over and reached multi-platinum status in many countries including the UK and America.

HUGH JACKMAN – THE MAN. THE MUSIC. THE SHOW

 

Date	Venue	Market
Tuesday, June 18	Toyota Center	Houston
Wednesday, June 19	American Airlines Center	Dallas
Friday, June 21	United Center	Chicago
Saturday, June 22	Xcel Energy Center	St. Paul
Monday, June 24	Little Caesars Arena	Detroit
Tuesday, June 25	Scotiabank Arena	Toronto
Thursday, June 27	TD Garden	Boston
Friday, June 28	Madison Square Garden*	New York City
Saturday, June 29	Madison Square Garden*	New York City
Sunday, June 30	Wells Fargo Center	Philadelphia
Monday, July 1	Capital One Arena	Washington DC
Wednesday, July 3	State Farm Arena	Atlanta
Friday, July 5	Amalie Arena	Tampa
Saturday, July 6	BB&T Center	Sunrise
Wednesday, July 10	Pepsi Center	Denver
Thursday, July 11	Vivint Smart Home Arena	Salt Lake City
Saturday, July 13	MGM Grand Garden Arena	Las Vegas
Sunday, July 14	Gila River Arena	Glendale
Tuesday, July 16	Valley View Casino Center	San Diego
Wednesday, July 17	SAP Center at San Jose	San Jose
Friday, July 19	Hollywood Bowl	Los Angeles +
Saturday, July 20	Hollywood Bowl	Los Angeles +

 

*tickets for the Madison Square Garden shows went on sale Monday, December 10^th at 10 AM local

+ The on-sale date for the Hollywood Bowl shows will be announced soon

About AEG Presents

AEG Presents is one of the world’s largest live music companies.  The company is dedicated to all aspects of live contemporary music performances, including producing and promoting global concert tours, regional music events and world-renowned festivals.  AEG Presents operates in North America, Europe and Asia with 15 regional offices. Touring artists include Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry, Elton John, Celine Dion, Kenny Chesney and more. The festival roster includes the iconic Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Stagecoach, Desert Trip, Firefly, Hangout, and British Summertime at Hyde Park, totaling more than 40. The company owns, manages or exclusively promotes in more than 75 clubs and theaters worldwide, including Agora Theatre, Cleveland; Forest Hills Stadium and Webster Hall, New York; Shrine Auditorium and The Fonda, Los Angeles and Eventim Apollo, London. AEG presents more than 12,000 shows annually and conducts business under such globally renowned brands as AEG Presents, Goldenvoice, The Bowery Presents, Concerts West, Messina Touring Group, Marshall Arts LTD, and Madison House Presents.  For more information visit www.aegpresents.com.

About TEG-DAINTY

TEG-DAINTY produces and promotes shows across Australia and New Zealand, South East Asia and South Africa. Tours include Guns N Roses, Katy Perry, Phil Collins, Michael Bublé, Bon Jovi, Eminem, Queen and Adam Lambert, Paul McCartney, Rolling Stones, George Michael, U2, Yusuf (Cat Stevens), Neil Diamond, Tony Bennett, Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Hugh Jackman, Oprah Winfrey and many more. Sports entertainment, Live Events include World Wrestling Entertainment. Theatrical Productions and investments include Jersey Boys, Mamma Mia!, Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays, Hairspray the Musical, The Rocky Horror Show. For more information visithttp://www.tegdainty.com.

About Robert Fox Ltd

Robert Fox has produced over sixty shows in the West End, Broadway and Australia. He produced Hugh Jackman in the musical The Boy From Oz about Australian entertainer Peter Allen on Broadway, as well as the Australian Arena tour of the same show. He also produced Hugh Jackman’s Back on Broadway and Broadway to Oz. Other productions include David Bowie’s Lazarus, Skylight, The Audience, God of Carnage, The Breath of Life, Another Country, The Blue Room, The Lady in the Van, Chess. Film and TV credits include Netflix’s The Crown, The Hours, Atonement, Iris, Notes on a Scandal. For more information visit www.robertfoxlimited.com.

About MGM Grand Garden Arena

The MGM Grand Garden Arena is home to concerts, championship boxing and premier sporting and special events. The Arena offers comfortable seating for as many as 16,800 with excellent sightlines and state-of-the-art acoustics, lighting and sound. Prominent events to date have included world championship fights between Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson as well as Floyd Mayweather vs. Canelo Alvarez as well as Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquaio; and concerts by The Rolling Stones, Madonna, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Bette Midler, George Strait, Justin Timberlake, Beyonce, U2, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Coldplay, Alicia Keys, Jimmy Buffett and the Barbra Streisand Millennium Concert. The MGM Grand Garden Arena also has been home to annual events including the Academy of Country Music Awards, the Billboard Music Awards, iHeartRadio Music Festival, Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Championship and Frozen Fury NHL pre-season games hosted by the Los Angeles Kings.

 

The Wife - resound the battle cry - We are women, hear us roar! #writers #writing #women #Woke

By Joy A. Kennelly

As I sit in the WGA Library, surrounded by people reading scripts, tapping away on their computers, in a completely silent (for a change) area that is entirely focused on writers and writing, it seems fitting to write the review of The Wife that's been spinning around my head ever since I watched the "Explosive" performance by Glenn Close, an actress, and person I have admired for many years. 

In case you're not aware of what The Wife is about, here's the official trailer. 

It appears Sony Pictures Classics has taken over the international film elegance that once was the stronghold of the Weinstein Company and I'm excited to watch even more after the cinematic treat this film was on so many levels. My first thought watching this film was of so many women I've seen over the years who sublimate their own creative desires to "serve" their husbands, a role I never have desired, or seen myself doing.

Ever.

(Which is probably why I'm single, but there have to be other kinds of marriages out there that don't require this, right?:)

However, I also have seen this with men who remain married to women they would rather than not be married to because they don't want to deal with the divorce aftermath and their marriages die a miserable death as a result of this passive killing of a life they once vowed in front of their friends, family, and God, to love, cherish and honor, or whatever their vows were.

I wish all those couples would watch this film and see the intense fury and result of burying their own desires and the cost it ultimately takes on the marriage, their lives, and their family's lives. I think it applies to any relationship or life choice where you don't anticipate all the other ramifications you'll experience by going with the flow, ignoring your own desires and figuring it's the best you can expect in life.

I met a young woman today who chose to place her 2nd child in an open adoption to preserve her own life and the life of her older child from an abusive relationship. That life choice has had unexpected ramifications on her eldest daughter that no one would have anticipated, but this birth mother is handling her decision and open adoption with grace, empathy, courage while seeking wisdom from others who have had a similar life choice, like me and many of the others she's interviewing in her quest for truth in her own adoption experience.

Then there's a man I met online who confessed he's secretly married to a woman he has claimed is merely his baby mama (my terms, not his.:) and his fear of divorcing her because he's tired of divorce, he has young children with this woman and it's a risk when you're a public figure on what will be accepted, private and more. Who knows if this person was even real, but the dialog we had seemed very honest and vulnerable. I pray for him and his marriage and hope he finds his way. I just can't be with married men and for my sake, wish he wasn't, but can't wish for his marriage to end either.

That's for God and him to decide.

But I digress. The Wife resonated with me on so many levels because as a writer, I've felt blocked for the last few years and haven't felt like expressing anything because my life was in such turmoil it wouldn't have come out cohesively or been believed.

However, writers must write as the film so eloquently explains and it was heartbreaking to see this character give up her dream of writing to be with a man who was so weak and self-indulgent and cowardly he couldn't acknowledge her, even when he had a major platform to do so. I loved watching the dynamic of the husband and wife grow and evolve as Glenn Close recognizes that her husband will not ever recognize her beyond what he'd done over the years. I don't want to ruin this film because I truly believe you must see it and experience it to feel the full visceral blow to the gut this film delivers.

The setting is stunningly majestic and unique which makes it even more awe-inspiring. The insidious biographer, played by Christian Slater, is cloying, manipulative, and like the snake in the Garden of Eden tempting and taunting Glenn's character to crack and admit something she has kept hidden for years. She refuses to take the bait, but then the son is enticed and beguiled in an ever-tightening web of unraveling that ultimately brings about the demise of the callow, arrogant, fool of a man who believes he is actually worthy of all the acclaim by virtue he has convinced himself of this for the entire 40 years of their marriage.

The fact that their marriage is based on an illicit affair and ruined one woman's life is only the start of what apparently became a pattern of a man who has such low self-worth he needs extra validation to prove himself worthy of all the outside critical acclaim for "his" work.

That he has the gall to act like he's a superior writer to his son is beyond belief, especially when the content of the son's prose is revealed. That the father doesn't see the obvious relationship that is staring him in the face in written form as his own husband/wife relationship is even more of an example of what a failed writer he truly is because most writers I know and enjoy reading are the most observant, critically thinking, interesting people I've ever met.

Most CEO's read voraciously and are well-versed on a variety of topics, although they do tend to have their favorite topics. It's probably why I resonate with leaders most. I like intelligent, funny, warm-hearted men who think for themselves and are willing to take a stand, no matter how unpopular. 

This movie brought up so much for me because I feel the past few years I was relegated to the coat carrying wife role by virtue of the tech culture refusing to accept women on an even playing field and always relegating females in tech to beauty or fashion or sex type roles, rather than worthy leaders of building profitable businesses that will develop other businesses and leaders in the process.

This film awoke something in me that has lain dormant since leaving the tech industry, but like Glenn's character has slowly been awakening to the fact I'm worthy of a life I choose.

A desire for more. A desire to go after what I want again. A desire to be seen. To be heard and to receive credit where credit is due. It's why it's hard to listen to my Dad when I know he still believes the 1950's adage that I won't survive in this world unless I take some stupid job and just keep my head down and do what it takes to get by.

I'm sorry, but like Glenn's character, I'm over just getting by. I'm over just surviving. I need a change and as these new days of 2019 roll around I realize I'm feeling more and more clear on what I will and will not accept in my life, my living conditions, my career, and my family.

And it feels good.

The Wife may be seen by some as a cry for help, but I see it also as a warrior cry ready for a battle that won't be stifled, put down, condescended to, or repressed any longer. I highly recommend seeing this film if you're in need of a major kick in the butt to get your life together and take control of what's important. 

Because if you don't walk away from Glenn Close's performance moved, changed and enlightened, I don't know what will do so. She's an amazing actress and completely deserved her Golden Globe which I am so glad was given to her because I would not have heard of the film otherwise. Unfortunately, it appears many others are unaware as well since the matinee film I attended only had 5 people  in the auditorium.

That's why I'm encouraging you to take the time to go see this film and support Glenn Close because you will be so glad you've seen her brilliant performance come Oscar time. This is actually one Oscars I wish I could attend because there's so many amazing films being recognized and artist's performances I thoroughly enjoyed it would be a pleasure to see this up close and in person. I would love to be able to tell Glenn Close I championed her cause or tell Lady Gaga how moved I was by her performance and music. Or tell Bradley Cooper he was robbed.:)

However, it will probably not happen so for now, I will tell the world my thoughts as I am prone to do, in writing. And if you're still reading my writing after all these years away, thank you. I promise to write more. I have a lot more to say and feel like I'm just getting started again. So I leave you with this song by Pink as it exemplifies the spirit with which I write this and share my thoughts with you musically...

 

Or this version if you prefer:

 

Have a good one. Happy Saturday.

 

Photo L.A. Announces Participating Galleries Opening Night Preview To Honor #JoAnnCallis and to Benefit Venice Arts on Thursday, January 31, 2019

Photo L.A. Announces Participating Galleries

 

Opening Night Preview

To Honor Jo Ann Callis and

to Benefit Venice Arts

on Thursday, January 31, 2019

 

Jo Ann Callis, Untitled, From Early Color Portfolio, Circa 1976 Image courtesy of the artist and RoseGallery

 

Collect + Connect We know what you're thinking, "Been there, done that." We're happy to tell you that Photo L.A. is an entirely different experience. We're bringing the best of the photography world to your doorstep with a collaborative platform that links dealers and collectors with a gamut of galleries from around the globe.

PHOTO L.A. cultivates connections between industry elite and up-and-coming talent alike. Presenting a roster of 55-60 local and international galleries and dealers, collectives, leading nonprofits, art schools, and global booksellers. The 2019 edition will also feature renowned lectures, round table discussions, special installations, and docent tours by leaders in the industry, such as Weston Naef, Curator Emeritus, J. Paul Getty Museum, Department of Photographs; Ryan Linkof, Curator of Film at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art; and Paul Martineau, Associate Curator in the Department of Photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum.   FOODLAB will provide a gourmet organic market & cafe featuring sandwiches, salads, fresh juices and gourmet treats. A full espresso bar will be provided by Cafe Demitasse.   The ticket prices for PHOTO LA are Available HERE: Advance Day Tickets - $20 Advance Weekend Pass - $30 Advance Student/Senior Ticket - $15 Advance Student/Senior Weekend Pass - $25   On site tickets: Day Ticket - $25 Weekend Pass - $40 Student/Senior Day Ticket - $20 Student/Senior Weekend Pass - $35   Gold Pass - $450 (Opening Night, entire weekend and all Photo L.A. and FOCUS Photo L.A. programming)     PHOTO L.A. Private Vernissage: Thursday, January 31, 2019: 5pm-6pm   Opening Night Preview: Benefiting Venice Arts Thursday, January 31, 2019: 6pm-9pm   Public Hours: Friday, February 1, 2019: 11am - 8pm Saturday, February 2, 2019: 11am - 8pm Sunday, February 3, 2019: 11am - 4pm   Barker Hangar 3021 Airport Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90405