I was raised in a family that REALLY likes The Wizard of Oz.  We do not own a copy and watch it sometimes.  No, we own an old VHS, a new VHS, and a limited edition DVD that came in a Yellow Brick Road box set with a reproduced copy of the script, a book about the making of the film, and a commemorative wristwatch.  And when we come across it on television we shout to each other from the other room, " The Wizard of Oz is on!!!!" as if we have no other means by which to watch it.  As a child, The Wizard of Oz often acted as my babysitter.  I'm an only child so when my mother was cooking in the kitchen or working in another room, I'd get to watch The Wizard of Oz.  I'm fairly certain that was the genesis of my recurring chased-by-tornadoes nightmare.  We literally had a family viewing party (all 10 or so of us) at my parent's house to see if The Dark Side of the Moon really does match up (note: it totally does and it's awesome).  We're the kind of people who think it's not just normal but expected to exclaim, "How 'bout a little fire, Scarecrow!" whenever anyone lights a match. 

 

Needless to say, when I was graciously invited to attend opening night of Wicked at the  Pantages Theatre on December 1 ^st, I figured I should take my mother and make a night of it.

I left the Discover Hollywood office and met my mom at Off Vine, a little bungalow of a restaurant that is, quite literally, off Vine St.  It was adorable!  There are a million little white tables with fairy lights outside, but unfortunately it was way too cold to sit on the porch.  Luckily it was nice and toasty inside, and charmingly decorated with wreaths and lights for the holidays.

  

The New American menu is impressive, with entrees like Smoked Mozzarella and Chicken Ravioli, Braised Short Ribs, and Wild Atlantic Salmon topped with sautéed garlicky veggies.  Astoundingly-to me, anyway-they have an entire vegan section on the menu!  I tried the Pistachio Encrusted Vegan Chicken.  Much to my dismay I'm allergic to nuts, so I had to nix the pistachios.  The chicken is served with a (very) sweet mango sauce that I wished was a mango salsa instead, but it was still tasty.  I missed the saltiness of the pistachios with it, though.  The vegan garlic mashed potatoes were insanely good, and the side of green beans was seriously cooked to absolute perfection.  Mom got an off-menu special:  Tilapia, served with a chunky olive and veggie sauce, with mashed sweet potatoes and green beans.  She said the whole thing was absolute heaven.  I got a glass of Pinot Grigio ($6 for a huge pour) and Mom got a cappuccino at the end of the night that looked delish.  Oh and by the way, the bread is INSANITY and it comes with a little pot of fresh pesto that was immediately sopped up.

 
I apologize for all these terrible images,
my camera ran out of batteries and I forgot my charger
in Portland over Thanksgiving weekend!
This food was delicious though!

I want to take a separate paragraph to tell you that our waiter was incredibly sweet, funny, and seemed to genuinely care that we enjoyed our Off Vine experience.  And we did!  So thank you, kind sir.

Then it was off to the theatre!  We parked a block or two away and, as if by design, walked right over Judy Garland's star on the Vine St. Walk of Fame.

   

Just as we arrived to pick up our tickets, Anne Heche and her family stepped out of their limo, greeted by a GIGANTIC crowd of paparazzi.  I've never seen that scene in real life-it's mesmerizing.  Everyone was silent.  All you could hear was the clicking of the cameras and Heche's handler quietly saying, "Excuse us," and "Watch out."  It was actually really interesting.

  
Anne Heche on the red carpet
Image courtesy of Getty Images

Other celebs were there, including Broadway, Television and Film favorites like Molly Ringwald, Candace Cameron Bure (who I sat one seat away from!), Kevin Sorbo, Regina King, and Patrick Warburton.

And the show was absolutely spectacular.  Full disclosure: I had anticipated a little bit of cheese.  But there was NONE!  It was sweet and exciting and the songs were spectacular and catchy and sung to mind-blowing perfection.  I'm sure you all know the basis of the show, but just in case: Wicked is the story of what happened in Oz before Dorothy "dropped in."

 

Mamie Parris as Elphaba (the Wicked Witch) galumphs around the stage in true Elphaba/Wicked Witch/Elmira Gulch fashion.  She has truly transformed herself into this character.  But for how unrefined and antisocial she manages to act, Parris can still belt out a tune.  I mean, this woman is a serious showstopper.  I could not believe the notes she held, or for how long she held them.

 
Images courtesy of Broadway L.A. and the Pantages Theatre

 

Meanwhile Katie Rose Clarke flits around onstage, oftentimes stealing the scene as the sickeningly sweet and popular Glinda who you love to hate but also just love to love.  Clarke's Good Witch is a brilliant Mary Katherine Gallagher/Elle Woods lovechild: blonde, brilliant, and popular, yet spastically desperate.

 

Separately and as an onstage team, Parris and Clarke are incredible in Wicked.  The two of them, combined with the rest of the show's amazing cast, as well as the gripping story makes this a super fun, if sometimes heartbreaking, production.  GO NOW!

Off Vine is located at 6263 Leland Way, Hollywood, CA 90028
The Pantages Theatre is located at 6233 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90028
Back by popular demand, Wicked is at the Pantages Theatre through January 29.  Visit www.broadwayla.org for more information.

My friend Peter and I enjoyed a very Irish night out in Hollywood last night, and it was, in a word, epic.

The night started out at Dillon's Irish Pub, with an exorbitantly expensive Patron on the rocks for me and a super cheap pint of Guinness (or two) for Peter.  We had both eaten dinner beforehand, so we just stuck to drinks, but I took a peek at the menu.  Not much in the way of vegetarian fare, but for your average Joe, who presumably would be going to Dillon's to watch a soccer or basketball (RIP NBA) game with the dudes, there were a ton of delicious looking options.  Plus, they had a page of specials with lots of Irish dishes.  The little specials menu on the table had a page of desserts, many of which featured a whiskey caramel sauce, namely the Irish bread pudding: bread pudding, topped with vanilla bean ice cream and drizzled in whiskey caramel sauce.  Oh my God I almost had to get it, but I resisted.  Maybe next time...when I'm not saving up all my cheat days for Thanksgiving!

After we finished our drinks we walked literally two doors east to grab our tickets at the Pantages box office.  This is the second time I've been to Dillon's before going to a show at the Pantages, and both times it has been a GREAT decision.  You don't have to worry about parking all over again and, even when it is crowded (like it was the first time), Dillon's is a fun place to hang out for an hour or so.

So, what were we seeing at the Pantages that night, you ask?  RIVERDANCE.  It's back for this weekend only, on the Los Angeles leg of their farewell tour!  Fifteen years ago to the day was their opening night at the Pantages, and they're back to say goodbye to Los Angeles for good-or at least for awhile.

When I think of Riverdance one of the first things that pops into my head is a scene from arguably the best episode of Friends ever:

His legs flail about as if independent from his body!  This is a true statement.  Although the Lord of the Dance has long since retired, the new Riverdance lead, Craig Ashurst, is still incredibly impressive-not only with his footwork, but also in his ability to really work a crowd.

Peter and I both studied in the Department of World Arts and Cultures at UCLA-a department that is divided into Cultural Studies and Dance Studies.  We were both on the Cultural Studies side of the department.  Strangely enough, though, Peter is an amazing professional swing dancer.  He teaches at schools and clubs all over the city, and is seriously talented.  But neither of us had ever been to or thought about going to Riverdance before, so we sort of knew what to expect, but nothing could prepare us for the epicness of the show.

Everyone involved in Riverdance is insanely talented, but the best part of the show was how passionate and super into it they were throughout the entire performance.  Keep in mind, too, that there aren't just dancers in Riverdance; singers and a live band make up the rest of the cast.  A lone drummer (Mark Alfred) kept the beat the entire show, dancing along with the other performers between two combined drum kits.  He never missed a beat.  On the opposite side of the stage were three other musicians: a fiddler (Pat Mangan) with the fastest hands I have ever seen, a saxophonist (Dave McGauran) who had a sweet number with just him and the drummer toward the end of the show, and Matt Bashford who played the uilleann pipes and low whistles.  I know nothing about traditional Irish instruments (I have no idea how a bagpipe works), but I'm pretty sure the uilleann pipes was the instrument he played that sort of sounded like bagpipes but it was a string instrument that was controlled with something that looked like a weird, giant version of a whammy bar.  He had a solo at the very beginning of the show that was really amazing.

The musicians and dancers, including Ashurst and the female lead Caterina Coyne, really know how to keep an audience riveted.  They made eye contact with people in the audience (probably including Cloris Leachman-she was sitting in the row in front of us!!), clapped to make everyone clap along (not that the audience needed help with this), shouted, and generally looked like they were having a great time.  Not one step was missed, and they made it look like fun-rather than the intense work it surely is.  Coyne glides and bounces between the other dancers like a fawn-quickly, gracefully, and smoothly.

 

Between the intense performers, the grand music, and the broad historical range of the production, Riverdance is epic in every sense of the word.  They begin at what looks like some sort of a paganistic Stonehenge-esque location and end up in approximately 1930s Harlem.  Epic and a really fun show!  It kept everyone in the audience bouncing and clapping in their seats.  My only complaint was a strange scene that involved 5 extremely impressive dancers, but left me feeling very confused.

After intermission the audience is transported to the white-sailed ships of the 19^th century and is serenaded with a beautiful song that touches on themes of inequality.  Immediately after this song the Irish folk apparently disembark the boat and find themselves in 1840s tenement New York.  For some reason, though, Ashurst and his gang run into some African American tap dancers who, it would seem, are supposed to be from 1930s Harlem.  And they proceed to have a dance off.  The dancing is more than impressive-it's nearly inhuman!  Everyone's lightning-quick footwork and humor was definitely the audience's favorite part of the show.  But it sort of changed the number into a scene from Newsies.  On the surface it added some lightheartedness to the show, but in reality it touched on heavy racial and economic class themes that, had they been more fully fleshed out, could have been fascinating (barring the lack of historical continuity).  Unfortunately, the show just doesn't have enough time to address those very important and interesting issues.

Nevertheless, Dillon's and Riverdance were both really fun.  Peter and I are both ecstatic that we were able to go!  If you haven't seen the show yet, or honestly even if you have, you're in for a treat!

Dillon's Irish Pub is located at 6263 Hollywood Blvd. in the heart of Hollywood.

The Pantages Theatre is located at 6233 Hollywood Blvd., also in the heart of Hollywood.

Riverdance runs from November 15^th to November 20^th.  Remaining shows include: Friday at 8pm, Saturday at 2pm and 8pm, and Sunday at 1pm and 6:30pm.

It's a crisp and cloudless October night.  A full moon peaks out from behind twisted, leafless tree limbs.  Fog creeps around a bend in the road up ahead.  We park in a bustling parking lot full of smiling faces, but getting out of my car I hear shrieks amidst the distant roar of a chainsaw.  We know we shouldn't, but my boyfriend and I tentatively begin our walk toward the commotion.  The fog grows thicker and, as we sneak around the bend, it takes on a curious orange glow.  The screams get louder, the chainsaw more threatening.  Closer we walk.  Dark shadows up ahead slowly materialize.  The orange glow becomes brighter, and more lights appear.  Suddenly I am aware of faint music.  It resembles carnival music, but it's off-key and manic.  Closer we walk.  The fog begins to clear.  The screams are now deafeningly loud, and out of the corner of my eye I see a small group of people, running at full-sprint, from-what's that?  The chainsaw gets louder and louder until I realize an escaped convict is chasing after them with a chainsaw!  Although he looks much larger than they and full capable of outrunning them, he stops short, shakes the chainsaw at them, and defeated, retreats back into a dark, hillside barn.  The shrieks turn into frenzied laughter as the group runs off into the darkness.

I have just entered the grounds of the Los Angeles Haunted Hayride.

It's October, but aside from a brief rainfall last week it doesn't much feel like autumn.  Are you not quite in the Halloween spirit yet?  A trip to the Haunted Hayride at Griffith Park's Old Zoo will quickly cure what ails you.

The drive leading to the site of the Hayride on Crystal Springs Dr. (from the 5 freeway) iscreepy enough to get you in the mood for a good scare.  It's pitch black, and with all of the orange cones, construction equipment, and police tape due to the LADWP improvement project, it looks like zombies have taken over Griffith Park before you even reach the Hayride.  Clever street signs that read "Cut Off A Head" almost help calm drivers' nerves, until you remember that you're descending into a canyon full of maniacs, murderers, and freaks.

Said maniacs, murderers and freaks greet you before you even have a chance to buy your tickets.  But if you follow the lights blinking on the rooftop, tickets can be purchased at a ticket booth from a perfectly pleasant (and healthy) living human being.  After that, though, you're on your own.  Your ticket grants you entrance to the Hayride itself, the In-Between (a horrifying maze), and the Human Menagerie Sideshow which includes a hall of mirrors, a haunted merry-go-round, a magic show with Mister Wonder and his beautiful assistant, and a psychic reading with Madame April.  Not bad for $35.  ($25 if you opt out of the In-Between, but I highly recommend the full ticket.  The maze is the scariest (aka most fun!) part of the night!)

I don't want to give anything away, so I won't go into great detail about anything.  But the Hayride is awesome.  It's definitely more funny and campy than it is scary, but the blending of humor and horror is the beauty of Halloween!  I had a headache from laughing and screaming so hard after the second go-round.

 A man, fully outfitted in Levis, plaid, and a rancher's hat, drives a tractor which drags behind it a huge hay-blanketed trailer bed.  So yes, in case you had any fears, this is a  genuine Hayride.  (Bring your inhaler!)  Riders slowly creep up an incline, through lighted stone gates resembling those at the beginning of the Jurassic Park tour.  (As I'm sure you know, anything having to do with Jurassic Park is a good thing.)  Immediately the trailer bed is hit with an inordinate amount of fog, which billows out from the gates and encircles the riders.  Up ahead we encounter the ghostly visions of the Clifton twins, the daughters of Zoo Keeper Ferdinand Clifton, around whose night terrors the experience is based.  They beckon you to come play with them, and-like it or not-off you go, into their demented, childlike dreamworld.  What follows is a cast of characters whose sole purpose is to frighten riders of the Haunted Hayride.  And they do.

After the Hayride, Mathew and I enjoyed the Human Menagerie Sideshow.  Before mounting the spindly white horse skeletons on the carousel (or should I say, Carous-Hell), we watched as a ten-foot tall black scarecrow swayed through the crowd and stopped, ominously watching the ride, before gliding away into the darkness.  As Mathew and I whirled backwards on our ghostly equines, a baby, the size of a full-grown man, and looking like he had suffered third-degree burns, wore a skeleton jumpsuit and stood beside the ride.  He stuck his tongue out at me and pointed, waiting for us to exit the carousel.  When we finally did, he slowly chased us until we reached the Hall of Mirrors.  I didn't have much luck escaping to the Hall, as a dead, life-sized doll whose mouth had been stitched together cornered me in the claustrophobic space.  She finally let me go, but not before putting her nose to mine, and screaming.

We ran out of there and headed to the entrance to the In-Between-the maze.  Handsdown one of the scariest mazes I've ever been in.  It's in an old barn they've constructed, and it is pitch black.  They give you a light that somehow emits a red glow but offers your eyes no assistance.  I don't scare that easily, but when it's that dark and you just know something is around the corner, it's hard not to get goosebumps.  We made it through, but just barely.

After recuperating, we walked past the Grub Shack, which sold Children of the Popcorn, Sin' Omen Apple Rings, and the like.  It all smelled delicious.  Beyond it was Madame April's psychic reading table.  I recommend doing this either at the very beginning of the night, at the very end of the night, or at the very least during Mister Wonder's magic show (located right next to the table) so you'll have something to entertain you.  The line was not long, but it was very slow-moving.  After about 20 minutes, we gave up and decided to go on the Hayride one last time.  Worth it!

Conclusion: If you need something to jolt you into the Halloween spirit, the Los Angeles Haunted Hayride is the way to go.  It's fun, it's spooky, and there are enough murderous crazies to chase after everyone.  And they will!  Consider yourself warned.

The Los Angeles Haunted Hayride is located at 4730 Crystal Springs Ave.  The event continues Thursdays-Saturdays for the remainder of October.  Visit their website for more information.