BEVERLY HILLS: A mysterious group called LA on the Move has released this video more or less summing up (in song!) Beverly Hills's entertaining/frustrating fight against the Purple Line subway extension and the tunnel that will probably have to run under Beverly Hills High (the story recently hit the big leagues!). It's actually a pretty good explanation for a hoedown, even laying out the problems with the alternative stop (at Santa Monica Boulevard) that Beverly Hills wants in order to keep the tunnel out from under the school. The Beverly Hills PTA released their own, less catchy video against the tunnel a few weeks ago--they went the fearmongering route, raising the specter of methane explosions blowing up school kids. [Curbed Inbox]

An all-star cast that includes George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Kevin Bacon, Jamie Lee Curtis and John C. Reilly has been recorded by Venice-based L.A. Theatre Works performing "8," a dramatization of the legal battle in California over gay marriage.

The drama was writen by Dustin Lance Black, an Academy Award-winnng screenwriter for the 2008 film Milk and a gay rights activist, and was directed by Rob Reiner, whose directing credits include The Princess Bride, Stand by Me and This Is Spinal Tap, according to a statement from L.A. Theatre Works.

"8" is based on the legal fight against California's Proposition 8, a ballot proposition and constitutional amendment passed in 2008 by voters that recognized marriage as being only between a man and a woman. The script is based on trial transcripts and observations of the federal trial in Perry v. Schwarzeneggger that challenged Proposition 8. Black has said that he wrote the play to provide a true account of the court proceedings since video recording of the trial was not allowed.

Pitt portrays U.S. District Chief Judge Vaughn R. Walker, who ruled that Proposition 8 was unconstitutional after presiding over a 12-day public trial. Clooney, an Academy Award winner for Best Supporting Actor for 2005's Syriana, and famed actor Martin Sheen portray lead co-counsel David Boies and Theodore B. Olson.

Bacon plays Charles J. Cooper, the lead attorney for the Proposition 8 supporters and Reilly plays David Blankenhorn, founder and president of the Institute for American Values, who was called to the stand as an expert witness by proponents of Proposition 8, the statement said.

The dramatization will air on public radio stations across the United States during the week of June 9 as part of Gay Pride month in June via L.A. Theatre Works' nationally syndicted radio theater series. It is scheduled to be heard locally in Southern California on June 10 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on radio station KPFK, 90.7 FM, and will be available for streaming on demand June 9 at www.latw.org. An audiobook and digital download will be made available June 1 on iTunes, Amazon and other major retailers.

L.A. Theatre Works in March recorded the West Coast premiere of "8" at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre as part of a benefit event that raised more than $2 million for proponents of marriage equality on the federal level.

L.A. Theatre Works can be heard on the following stations: 90.7 FM KPFK in Southern California; 89.7 FM WGBH in Boston; 91.5 FM WBEZ in Chicago; 94.9 FM KUOW in Seattle and 91.1 FM KRCB in San Francisco. Check local listings for broadcast times.

Venice High School, which doubled as Rydell High School for the popular 1970s musical Grease, will be the site of an upcoming Grease-Sing-A-Long to benefit the school's alumni association.

The free event will take place June 1 on the school's football field with gates opening at 6 p.m. and the screening beginning at dusk. 

There will be food trucks, student-run booths, raffles and photo opportunities with Gunther the Gondolier. Organizers are suggesting that attendees come in their best 50s outfits with poodle skirts and leather jackets welcome.

The event will have festival seating and people should bring their own blankets and chairs.

Donations will be accepted for the Venice High School Alumni Association, which benefits the school and the alumni scholarship fund.

Two pairs of Grease-Sing-A-Long tickets for an event at the Hollywood Bowl in July also will be raffled off and the winner must be present to claim the prize.

The 1978 film starring John Travolta as badboy Danny Zuko and Olivia Newton-John as good girl Sandy Olsson was adored by the public and critics and its soundtrack was the second-best selling album that year. 

 This is the second Grease-Sing-A-Long at Venice High after one was held last year during the school's centennial celebration. The Fox show "Glee" also filmed a Grease-themed episode last year at the school.

The 1998 film American History X also was filmed at Venice High.

Avi Buffalo: “Won’t Be Around No More”

Avi Buffalo: “Good I’m Wishing”

Avi Buffalo: “How Come”

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Singer and actress Julie Andrews has listed the Brentwood house she owned with her late husband, director and screenwriter Blake Edwards , for $2.649 million. Less than a month after coming on the market, the tidy white home with gray shutters is already in escrow.

The Weekly interviewed Sambora about his latest charity work and a forthcoming solo album, and the guitarist casually mentioned that he's been keeping tabs on indie rock culture and working with Dangerbird for an album that "doesn't sound like Bon Jovi at all" and that features "lots of jamming."

Dangerbird released the debut from from Liam Gallagher's Beady Eye project, so it does have experience working with mainstream rock gods' side projects. We've reached out to the label for comment and will update with any new information about the potential release.

Does this herald a Bon Jovi revival among L.A.'s cool kids? If we start hearing "Runaway" at the Thirsty Crow on Fridays, we'll know why.

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Richie Sambora in rehab; Bon Jovi to tour without him

-- August Brown

Photo: Richie Sambora and Nikki Lund present their spring/summer 2011 fashion line White Trash on Oct. 17, 2010, in Hollywood. Credit: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times. 

Ellen K, the co-host of Ryan Seacrest's morning show on KIIS-FM (102.7), received the 2,471st star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Thursday.

Reality television personality Kris Jenner and iCarly star Miranda Cosgrove were among those joining Ellen K at the ceremony in front of the W Hollywood Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard.

"The chamber is proud to honor a radio personality who has become known nationally and around the world by keeping us informed on what is happening in the world of entertainment," said Leron Gubler, the president and chief executive officer of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, who will serve as master of ceremonies for the ceremony.

Ellen K began her radio career as an intern at a small station in Indiana, then moved to stations in San Diego and San Francisco, before joining KIIS in 1990, co-hosting its morning show with Rick Dees.

Ellen K was born at Stanford University hospital, the youngest of six children of a engineer and Ph.D., who moved the family to Indiana when he was hired by Purdue University. She later attended Purdue and was captain of its swim team and homecoming queen.

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Hello!

We are Venice Arts, a non-profit organization providing free and low-cost multimedia arts programming for youth and adults.  This summer from July 2nd - July 27th, we are holding our third annual Summer Media Arts Summer Camp!

We will be offering week long youth workshops (at our newly renovated gallery space) in filmmaking, script-writing, directing, animation, photography, comics, and multimedia art.

To enroll in our camp for free you must be low-income and provide proof of income on registration day.

If you are not low-income you can still enroll for a small fee of $325 per week.

 
Registration Info & Location:

Saturday, June 23, 2012

10am-3pm

1702 Lincoln Blvd.

Venice, CA 90291

310.578.1745 / 310.392.0846

info@venice-arts.org

Registration is by appointment only, call 310.578.1745 to make your appointment now!  Classes fill up quickly so call today!

 
Learn more by visiting our website.
http://www.venicearts.org

Live performance at Playa Elementary's "Cinco de Playa" Festival

Venice-based startup Wemo Media has introduced its new animated underwater environment called "theBlu" that is designed as a global art project and educational platform.

The digital ocean was announced Friday on the giant video billboards in New York's Times Square.

The project was inspired by the planet's oceans and serves as a digital art exhibit of ocean habitats and species. The Huffington Post reports that Wemo Media co-founder Neville Spiteri's close-up, eye-to-eye encounter with a humpback whale made him recommitted to "telling a big story about the ocean."

The underwater environment was created by some of the world's best artists and developers, including Andy Jones, an Academy Award winner for visual effects for 2009's "Avatar" and Kevin Mack, another Oscar visual effects winner for 1998's "What Dreams May Come," according to a press release from Wemo Media.

The application allows users to navigate underwater and access information about species, explore geo-located habitats, tag fish and buy species to grow a personal collection and create a unique experience. It also features photo sharing via Facebook and social activity streams.

The launch version has social exploration across eight ocean habitats, including more than 100 life forms. New habitats and species will be released monthly and 15 "ambassador" species have been sponsored by non-profits to raise awareness and funds for ocean conservation. The inaugural non-profit cause collaborators include: Mission Blue, OceanElders, Oceanic Preservation Society, Scripps Institution of Oceanography and WildAid.

"Scripps Institution of Oceanography is one of the oldest, largest, and most important centers for ocean science research, education and public service in the world, and we are proud to collaborate with the forward-thinking creators of theBlu," said Tony Haymet, director of Scripps Institution of Oceanography, a part of UC San Diego, in a statement. "This ocean-inspired project creates the opportunity to educate people around the world, raising the visibility of the ocean and its inhabitants."

Users of theBlu will be able to purchase the "ambassador" species or habitats for their virtual ocean and 25 percent of the sales proceeds will go directly to the non-profit collaborators.

"I am grateful and honored for the meaningful relationships we have established with our non-profit collaborators," Spiteri said in a statement. "theBlu reflects the very special and powerful intersection of art, technology, and social change."

The application is available for download on PCs and Mac and will be available soon on phones, tablets and smart TVs.

Wemo Media was co-founded by Spiteri and Scott Yara and is located on Rose Avenue in Venice.

As part of its commitment to young musicians, the Culver City Symphony Orchestra will showcase the talents of 12-year-old cellist Nathan Le, and 16-year-old cellist Leah Hansen at a concert this Sat. May 12 at the Veteran’s Memorial Auditorium.

Parness Concerto Competition sponsors the annual concert, and Le won the competition’s junior division, while Hansen was an intermediate division winner.

The concert, entitled, ‘A Concert of Firsts,’ will take place at 8 p.m. under the direction of Conductor Frank Fetta.

General admission to the program is $15 and $10 for members of the Westchester Symphony Society. The performance is made possible in part by the Culver City Performing Arts Grant Program with support from Sony Pictures Entertainment.

The evening’s complete program is as follows:

A Concert of Firsts

Frank Fetta - Conductor

Saint-Saëns: Concerto for Cello, No. 1, a minor, (1872), Nathan Le-Cello 

Shostakovich: Concerto for Cello, No. 1, (1959), Leah Hansen-Cello 

Beethoven: Symphony No. 1, C Major, (1800)

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Amanda and Patrick Shanley: “Clover And The Black Drink”

“Venice Acoustics” was started by Dom, a 21 year old business major and marketing minor that loves music. Dom and his partners are not looking to get paid by the musicians, they just want to help share the music of Venice and help “keep it weird”.

If your band would like to be featured on “Venice Acoustics”, email Dom by clicking here! Once your video is online, let us know and we will share it on Yo!Venice!

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