The Brief

There’s a lot of fan service out there for theater buffs this December, whether it’s heading to the movies for a sing-a-long of Wicked (I mean, come on, if you’re a Broadway person you’ve already seen it once at least, or will have by the end of Thanksgiving weekend), booking your tickets to Once Upon A Mattress with the incredible Sutton Foster at the Ahmanson, or seeking out some of the hidden gems in the local theater scene — and I promise this holiday season, those are plentiful.

We’ve put together a short list of some of the best things to take your friends, family, or just yourself to in the coming weeks.

Some people say L.A. isn’t a theater town, but I beg to differ! A ticket to any of these shows would make a great holiday or December birthday gift and you’ll support the arts at the same time.

It’s All Your Fault, Tyler Price 

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of seeing one of those gems, It’s All Your Fault, Tyler Price, at the Hudson Backstage Theater in Hollywood. The musical is ambitious and punches well above its black box theater weight, telling the story of a family whose daughter Lucy has epilepsy. The family’s struggles are seen through the eyes of their middle school-aged son, Jackson, who stages a musical following a bullying incident at school.

Reminiscent of recent hits like Dear Evan Hansen and Next to Normal, Tyler Price has serious Broadway power behind it in the form of director and co-writer Kristin Hanggi (Rock of Ages). Catch it before it wraps on Dec. 15.

Cat Kid Comic Club: The Musical

(

Jeremy Daniel

)

If you have a 7- to 10-year-old in your life, you’re probably only too familiar with the phenomenon that is Cat Kid Comic Club (and its erstwhile companion, Dog Man). After the success of last season’s Dog Man: The Musical at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City, the TheaterWorksUSA crew is back with Cat Kid Comic Club: The Musical, which teaches kids about imagination and creativity through Dav Pilkey’s popular characters. I took my favorite 10-year-old who is a fan of the books, and he gave it a glowing review but thought kids younger than him would like it even more. It’s on until Jan. 5.

Once Upon a Mattress

(

Joan Marcus

)

It’s not every day that we get the original Broadway cast members in L.A. for a touring production. This December, we get a double bill for the revival of Once Upon a Mattress, with Sutton Foster (Anything Goes, The Music Man) and Michael Urie (whom I last saw in Buyer and Cellar at the Taper back in 2014) on stage for the better part of a month in Once Upon a Mattress. The fun retelling of The Princess and the Pea was praised during its NYC run, particularly the “zany” energy between Foster and Urie, says the NY Times. It plays at the Ahmanson Dec. 10 through Jan. 5.

Back to the Future: The Musical

(

Matthew Murphy, Evan Zimmerman

)

Great Scott! Perfect for kids and '80s-nostalgic adults alike, the Broadway tour of Back to the Future: The Musical is playing at the Pantages through Dec. 1 and then heads south to Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa from Dec. 26 through Jan. 5.

I saw the show in London last fall and while it sticks mostly to the film’s story (and avid fans will definitely sit there and point out all the overlaps and differences for you), it thrives on its breaks from the movie with some truly out-there numbers that had me dancing in my seat. And I won’t spoil it, but the special effects rival a ride at Universal Studios.

La Cage Aux Folles

(

Jeff Lorch

)

The hottest drag club in town is the Pasadena Playhouse — at least until the delightful production of Jerry Herman and Harvey Fierstein’s modern classic La Cage Aux Folles closes on Dec. 15. Starring Cheyenne Jackson (Call Me Kat, American Horror Story: Apocalypse) and Kevin Cahoon (Shucked!), this show is the serotonin hit we all need this fall.

New Works Festival

One of my favorite theater events of the year is the New Works Fest at IAMA Theatre Company in Atwater Village, running from Dec. 5-15. Showcasing new plays by local talent, this year’s crop features readings of several new plays including Hit Machine (or True Wes) by IAMA favorite Jonathan Caren and Chloe Hung’s Care Less.

Fiddler on the Roof

(

Jason Niedle

/

TETHOS

)

And get in while you can — Jason Alexander (Seinfeld, The Producers) takes his last bow as Teyve in Fiddler on the Roof at La Mirada on Dec. 1. Taking on the role originated by Zero Mostel on Broadway, Alexander steps in as the village elder, seeing his Jewish family through hardship, change, and love in rural Anatevka. Fun fact: Fiddler was the first musical I ever saw (I was 7), so let’s say it’s good for all ages!

Waiting for Godot

Just the mention of Waiting for Godot can elicit a strong reaction. People either remember reading the tragicomic Beckett play in school fondly and appreciate its long-lasting cultural relevance or they groan at the memory of making it through, finding it tedious. While a challenging play for sure, this production at the Geffen in Westwood has been getting great reviews and stars Aasaf Mandvi (Ghosts) and Rainn Wilson (The Office) as Estragon and Vladimir through Dec. 21.

Wicked

If you haven’t gotten your fill of Wicked at the movies, the Broadway version is coming to the Pantages starting Dec. 4. Go see it and be that person comparing every scene and difference from the stage to film.

The Lythgoe Family's Panto franchise

One of my favorite things about holiday time in England is the ubiquitous tradition of going to see a pantomime. Every neighborhood puts on their own version of a twisted fairy tale, with tropes that have withstood the test of time. Here in L.A., we have one of our very own each year — and this year, two! — produced by Lythgoe Family Panto. Peter Pan & Tinkerbell is on at the Scherr Forum Theater in Thousand Oaks from Dec. 13 to Dec. 29, and Rapunzel’s Holiday Wish stars Sally Struthers at Laguna Playhouse Dec. 7 through 29.

Pacific Overtures

(

Teolindo

)

East West Players just extended the run of their latest, Pacific Overtures, through Dec. 8, so you have a few more chances to catch the Sondheim musical at the Asian-American theater company’s home stage in Little Tokyo. The vintage 1976 show may not be Sondheim’s most well-known, but the musical, about Japan's westernization following a period of isolationism, was the first to play at East West Players back in 1979. This iteration features well-reviewed performances from West End vet Jon Jon Briones (The Reciter) and Gedde Watanabe.

Kooza

(

Cirque Du Soleil

)

Cirque du Soleil is always a crowd-pleaser. The Canadian acrobats’ latest, Kooza, is on here under the big top at the Santa Monica Pier through Jan. 5.

BATSU

The Bourbon Room is curated exquisitely. If there’s a quirky show promoted there, I will always try to see it, and this December is no exception. BATSU is a Japanese game show- slash-theater-slash-improv event that will make its L.A. debut with five performances at the Hollywood venue next month. Playbill videographer Ethan Treiman called the experience, which premiered at Edinburgh Fringe “maybe my favorite thing I’ve ever seen.” Count me in.

Christmas and beyond

For more traditional holiday fare on stage, there’s a wealth of Christmas delights, from the sublime to the silly. Debbie Allen Dance is putting on Hot Chocolate Nutcracker in Redondo Beach, A Noise Within is doing A Christmas Carol, the L.A. Ballet also has the Nutcracker on and the American Ballet Theatre will visit Segerstrom with their version of the Tchaikovsky holiday classic as well. If you haven’t had enough of Clara and the Mouse King, Bob Baker’s Marionette Theatre is putting on a charming show at Sierra Madre Playhouse. On the comedy side, Bob’s Holiday Office Party is at the Odyssey and the musical White Christmas is in Simi Valley. Plus, don’t miss the annual L.A. County Holiday Celebration with a wide range of free performances at the Music Center on Christmas Eve.

And as we head into the new year, the theater scene only gets better. Keep an eye out for the new Larissa Fasthorse play Fake it Till You Make It at the Taper, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Pantages, and Sondheim’s final show Old Friends premiering in a pre-Broadway run at the Ahmanson with Broadway superstars Bernadette Peters and Lea Salonga.

Sign up for the Best Things To Do newsletter to get your twice-weekly dose of events in L.A.

Some government funding streams for L.A. County’s public health system are drying up, and officials are turning to private philanthropy to fill the gap.

A new privately funded foundation launched Thursday to strengthen public health services after $50 million in federal, state and local funding cuts to the county’s Department of Public Health since early last year.

“It is really a hard day for our community when we have to ask for private donations to fund a public good, but unfortunately, we've lost too much money to not take this important step,” said Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.

In February, the county’s Public Health Department closed seven clinics, with six remaining open. About half of the patients seen in those clinics are uninsured, according to county officials. The department also cut hundreds of staff positions.

Ferrer is on the board of the new foundation, The Fund for Advancing Public Health LA, which held its first meeting Thursday.

She said the fund will help the county maintain its basic public health infrastructure, including disease prevention, health promotion, environmental health, and emergency response efforts.

Other board members include several health insurance executives, as well as actors Sean Penn and Danny Trejo. Board member Saree Kayne of the R&S Kayne Foundation pledged $150,000 to the fund Thursday. Kayne said she hopes the donation encourages others to give.

The foundation aims to raise $2 million this year.

More cuts expected

L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell said it’s crucial to have an alternative funding stream to protect services for the county's most vulnerable residents.

“We are saving public health,” Mitchell said. “This fund represents a new approach, one that brings together government philanthropy in the private sector to invest in community-based solutions, protect vulnerable populations, and strengthen our public health infrastructure.”

Officials say more public health cuts are coming, through the federal budget law known as the "Big Beautiful Bill," which slashes funding for Medi-Cal.

The county Department of Public Health anticipates losing up to $300 million in revenue over the next three years because of the federal budget bill and other potential funding freezes. Federal funding accounts for almost 50% of the public health budget, according to county officials.

Mitchell also led an effort to put a half-percent county sales tax increase to fund public health on the June ballot.

If approved by voters, that proposal, known as Measure ER, is expected to raise about $1 billion a year for county safety net health services, including about $100 million for the public health department.

Board members

The Fund for Advancing Public Health LA announced its founding board of directors, which includes:

• Dr. Barbara Ferrer, LA County Department of Public Health director
• Debbie I. Chang, Blue Shield of California Foundation CEO
• Sean Penn, actor and co-founder of Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE)
• Martha Santana-Chin, LA Care Health Plan CEO
• Saree Kayne, R&S Kayne Foundation CEO
• Danny Trejo, actor and restaurateur
• Jarrett Barrios, an executive at the American Red Cross
• Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith, Charles R. Drew University College of Medicine Dean
• Kristin McCowan, an executive at the Los Angeles Dodgers

The Rose Bowl in Pasadena may be a centenarian, but it’s holding up pretty well as it continues to host events on its way to a starring role in the LA28 Olympics.

But before it can host the soccer final, it needs fixes, especially to the infrastructure serving the bathrooms and drinking fountains. Fears of a toilet backup while in the world’s spotlight led Rep. Laura Friedman to seek federal funds for upgrades. On Thursday she announced she secured just over $1 million.

“Two years from now, athletes around the world are going to compete for gold right where we are standing. This is not the time to find out whether or not these pipes are up to the task,” Friedman said.

The planned work, she added, will lead to improved water flow capacity and water drainage, eliminating the risk of backups and emergency maintenance.

The funds came from the House of Representatives Interior and Environment subcommittee. The fixes, an official said, will be completed by the LA28 Olympics.

The funds, however, are a drop in the bucket when it comes to what’s needed to make needed improvements to the Pasadena venue.

Officials, including (left to right) Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation President Dedan Brozino, Deputy Fire Chief of the City of Pasadena Tim Sell, Congresswoman Laura Friedman, and Rose Bowl Stadium CEO Jens Weiden announced infrastructure funding for the 103-year old Rose Bowl.

(

Adolfo Guzman-Lopez/LAist

)

“Over the  next 20 years there's about $200 million that we need to put in and that's everything from updating light fixtures to updating gas, water, wastewater lines, etc.,” said Dedan Brozino,  president of the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation, the nonprofit that supports the Rose Bowl stadium's preservation and enhancement.

Getting venues ready will be expensive

The money is a much-needed win at a time when elected officials in city, county, state and federal offices have been struggling to find the funds to get L.A.-area venues ready for the global Olympic stage in two years.

The entrance to a men's bathroom at the Rose Bowl.

(

Adolfo Guzman-Lopez/LAist

)

A $360 million proposal to spruce up asphalt in parking lots around Exposition Park won’t be done in time for the Olympics, as originally planned. Meanwhile, just up the street, there’s concern that a $2.6 billion expansion of the L.A. Convention Center, which is hosting Olympic wrestling, fencing and judo in 2028 won’t be ready for the Olympics.

Additionally, to save money, LA28 organizers moved Olympic diving to the Rose Bowl complex last year because it has two Olympic-sized pools, while the Exposition Park complex doesn't and would need expensive upgrades.

Topline:

About the chick: The chick hatched March 14. The zoo opened its Cape vulture enclosure in February 2025 after years of planning to encourage the birds to roost and nest, welcoming a new breeding pair that year. When it grows to be an adult, it’ll have a wingspan of 8 1/2 feet.

About the enclosure: The L.A. Zoo said it spent years developing the vulture habitat, which was designed to mimic the vultures’ natural environment in South Africa and nearby countries. Dominick Dorsa II, the zoo’s director of animal care, said in a statement the successful hatching is “a testament to the design and construction” of the habitat.

How to see the chick: You can’t for the time being. Zoo officials are keeping it away from visitors until the chick matures, though you can still see adult Cape vultures at the zoo’s enclosure.

Though visitors will have to wait until the chick matures to see it in the enclosure, you can still take in the impressive eight and a half foot wingspan of the adult Cape vultures.

(

Courtesy Jamie Pham/L.A. Zoo

)

What zoo officials are saying: “Welcoming a Cape vulture chick is a thrilling moment for our team and a beacon of hope for African vultures,” the L.A. Zoo’s curator of birds Rose Legato said in a statement. “Vultures are one of nature's most misunderstood marvels, and I cannot wait for our guests to eventually watch this chick grow and learn just how vital they are to our ecosystems.”

About the species: Cape vultures are listed as a vulnerable species due to human activities and encroachment. According to the L.A. Zoo, African vultures are more closely related to eagles and hawks than vultures native to the Americas, like the zoo's California condors that hatched last year.

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

What should have been a celebration for formerly incarcerated youth completing a reentry program at the Boyle Heights Arts Conservatory (BHAC) last week instead ended with seven students and two staff members detained by the Los Angeles Police Department, according to witnesses. 

Now, nearly a week later, BHAC staff and city officials are demanding answers from the LAPD, with some accusing officers of racial profiling. 

According to the LAPD, officers observed a large group gathered on the corner of Cesar E. Chavez Avenue and Mott Street around 4:16 p.m. on March 26. Authorities then requested backup for what they described as “a large group surrounding officers,” LAPD Public Information Officer Tony Im said. 

The group, classified by police as an “aggressive gang group,” consisted of seven 18-year-old students from the BHAC’s Bridge Academy Movement (BAM) program and two BHAC staff members.

The BAM program pays formerly incarcerated youth to complete 200-250 hours in media and visual arts training to prepare them for creative careers. That day, students were set to showcase their work at the BAM program graduation for families and community members. 

Rene Weber, a teaching artist at the BHAC, had been with the students setting up for the ceremony minutes before the incident occurred. 

According to Weber, the students had gone to coffee across the street at Milpa Kitchen as they often did, when staff were alerted that they were being detained. 

Weber said he arrived to find students and a staff member pressed against the wall in handcuffs. 

Video from the scene, taken by a staff member at the BHAC, shows multiple officers surrounding the group. At one point, an officer orders a person to “get on the wall” and displays a stun gun.  

“No, none of that, these are kids right here,” the staff member replies.

Another staff member, Teotl Veliz, recorded a large police response.  

“I counted 12 cop cars, that’s at least 25 cops, and they had a helicopter,” Veliz said. “It was just so comedic, tragically comedic, that it was on their graduation day too.”

Officers established a perimeter with yellow tape along the side of Ashley’s Beauty Salon as local business owners and witnesses gathered around the students. 

“I was just incredibly disappointed in LAPD… because it became so apparent to everybody, all at the same time, that it was racial profiling and nothing else,” Veliz said.

Weber said officers gave shifting explanations for the stop at the scene, including blocking the sidewalk and possible underage vaping. After Weber told the officers that all of the students were 18, they said they would investigate whether the group had any gang affiliation. 

Police have not responded to questions about what led officers to believe that the group was gang-affiliated. 

Weber recalled pleading with the officers to let the group go and explaining to them that they worked across the street. Community members and local business owners also stepped in to vouch for the students. 

“Our job is to help them gain a new perspective on life,” Weber said. “They’re coming out of juvenile detention and they’re turning their lives around. We can do our part in keeping them off the streets and keeping them doing better but what does it mean if they’re going to be profiled and treated exactly the same way?” 

In total, seven 18-year-old students and two staff members were detained. BHAC staff said one student and one staff member were taken to Hollenbeck Community Police Station and released less than two hours later after advocacy from community members and Councilmember Ysabel Jurado.

The incident ultimately resulted in an infraction for smoking a cannabis e-vape on a public sidewalk, according to a photo of the infraction shared with the Beat. LAPD did not provide details about the people taken to Hollenbeck Station or the infraction. 

The graduation ceremony was cancelled that night and is expected to be rescheduled in April. 

“Graduation should be a moment of pride and possibility — not fear,” Jurado said in a statement. “I’m seeking answers about what occurred, and this underscores the need for stronger relationships between law enforcement and community organizations so moments like these are protected, not disrupted.”

Carmelita Ramirez‑Sanchez, the conservatory’s executive director, said she was grateful to the community and Jurado for advocating for the students’ release. Jurado met her at Hollenbeck Station within 20 minutes of being alerted to the incident, she said. 

“They had store owners, señoras, barbers, that ran out and were trying to explain to the police who our kids were,” Ramirez‑Sanchez said. 

Still, she said the incident tarnished what should have been a joyous celebration.

“I imagine that what this does is derail this entire idea that you can be an active participant in your own restorative growth,” she said.