Ann Haskins

Built in 1929, the historic Miles Memorial Playhouse is a hidden gem not far from Santa Monica's busy Third Street Promenade. Exposed wooden beams, decorative ironwork and an inviting fireplace adorn the theater's interior, which during the winter hosts intimate performances under the banner Fireside at the Miles. It's cozy......

L.A.'s pop-up dance festivals offer an opportunity to savor small samples from different dance companies without committing a whole evening to one troupe. Noelle Andressen and her Rubans Rouges (Red Ribbons) Dance Company host Awakenings and Beginnings, a new entry on the local festival scene, showcasing 10 SoCal troupes for......

At last summer's Santa Cruz Fringe Festival, L.A.-based Nugent Dance performed Yes Is Not Passive and Other Stories six times and received six standing ovations. SoCal gets a chance to see what brought Fringe Festival audiences to their feet as choreographer Stephanie Nugent and her troupe reprise the evening-length exploration......

Some cultures are absorbed with ringing out the end of the year, while others are more concerned that the new year begin in a propitious manner. The latter is the focus of Hirokazu Kosaka, artistic director of the Japan America Cultural and Community Center and curator of Kotohajime: The First......

In Austria, the Neujahrskonzert is so much more than a New Year's concert. With a live audience braving the cold, an additional 1.3 million watch the annual broadcast that features the Vienna Philharmonic and Vienna Opera Ballet performing in the ornate environs of one of Vienna's grand palaces dating from......