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Norwood Bar & Lounge
By Sara Allison
The Norwood Bar & Lounge has a great sense of presence when you enter, but more so, you may recognize the historic marquee from film and television spanning Hollywood's heyday. This unique luxury lounge provides a haven for local patrons to let loose, watch the big game, enjoy top-notch karaoke, DJs and more.
You feel as if you are sitting in the middle of an A-List Hollywood establishment as you absorb the ambiance in vintage history. Owner Rene Veloz Jr. re-created Norwood Bar & Lounge as a safe, inviting place for couples and professionals to come hang out. He prides himself on being an accommodating host at a party every night and on taking care of the small details, which shows. From the doorman outside every night to the fresh flowers within, this bar feels comfortable and inviting. A place to revisit time and time again. Everything about the inside of Norwood Bar has clean lines. The speakers are recessed into the wall, there's no wiring to be seen and the space is very open. Black leather seating lines the walls, and large mirrors and paintings grace the interior. The open layout also encourages patrons to interact and have a good time.
The Norwood Inn sign outside is made from an original font and has been welcoming guests since the bar first opened in 1961. That's one of the reasons Rene didn't change the name, but he did make some twists and turns to the interior. However, he cleverly integrated the original dark wood bar structure, complete with the glow and integrity of its haunting past. Rene estimates that the original shelves and glass that remain in the antique bar are about 20 years old.
The specialty drink menu offers what Rene feels makes Norwood Bar unique. He bases much of his distinctive menu on seasonal fruits. At various parts of the year, mojito flavors might be lime, orange, or raspberry. The strawberry mojitos and the citrus and mint flavors are blended perfectly. The presentation is a work of art, with three large pieces of strawberry, fresh green mint and a perfect wedge of lime on top. The bar also offers a variety of exquisite martinis, a far cry from Jack Daniels night at a local sports bar.
A must have is the Lei Lani Volcano, which combines Cruzan Rum, Triple sec, simple syrup, guava, pineapple and fresh squeezed lime. The drink looked and tasted sweet and refreshing. Rene has also been known to go hot, by adding jalapeño to a drink to spice it up. A beer with fresh lime, hot sauce, and Clamato is offered as well. (Specialty drink prices start at a very reasonable $8.)
Rene has recently expanded the bar's event hosting by offering a bartending service for parties and special occasions. On Sunday nights, the Norwood Bar & Lounge hosts a karaoke night, but things are a bit different here as singers front a live rock band!
Norwood Bar & Lounge hosts many occasions, including one of their biggest annual celebrations, Mardi gras, which is next Tuesday, February 24! The bar will have a special celebration for St. Patrick's Day as well. Happy hours are every day from 5 to 7pm, with specials nightly. DJs spin beginning at 10pm on Wednesdays through Saturdays. And ladies get half price specialty drinks every Tuesday.
Norwood Bar & Lounge opens at 5pm daily (4pm on Fridays), and is located at: 16200 Nordhoff St, North Hills, CA, 91343 (cross street is Woodley) - For more information about the bar or private parties, call: 818-920-4574 Norwood Bar is on My Space at: www.myspace.com/norwoodbar
WORLD PREMIERE OF "MINSKY'S " AT THE AHMANSON
By Tony Reverditto
Minsky's - The New Musical Comedy is set in the burlesque world of New York City in 1930 and is laced with bawdy comedians and dazzling chorus girls.
Billy Minsky once was the "King of Burlesque" reigning over the world of his famous strip palace (played with charm, humor and passion by Christopher Fitzgerald. Like many Americans, he is frustrated because the depression is keeping customers away. He is way in the red, desperately searching for a way to rebuild his audience and keep the cast and crew from winding up on the streets. He decides to hit his Father (Philip Hoffman) up for a loan. Dad bites, but under the condition that he put his homely, lifeless sister Buela into the legs and laughs show, (Rachel Dratch- Saturday Night Live fame does get the laughs with her hilarious portrayal). Minsky must push the limits and pull out all of the stops (or pasties) in order to fill the theatre. News travels fast and does not sit well with heartless city official, Randolph Sumner, (George Wendt, best known as Norm from Cheers) and he orders the cops to close the place down.
Before the club actually gets raided, Minsky visits his shrink and an event occurs that he's not prepared for. . . falling in love. And hard he falls for the sheltered and moralistic, Mary Sumner and vice-versa (played by the lovely and talented songbird, Katharine Leonard). But, Minsky's "unsavory" lifestyle comes between them, and there is one comical twist after another.
Special mention must be given to the ultra-talented, all-star Minsky Girls, (Megan Nicole Arnoldy, Roxane Barlow, Jennifer Bowles, Jennifer Frankel, Sabra Lewis, Ariel Reid & Angie Schworer, Sarrah Strimel) for they are sugar and spice and everything nice. They pull off (pun intended) the demanding risqué choreography, the energetic songs, and the quick costume and wig changes with ease-Vavoom. The rest of the ensemble take on multiple roles and work it big time from the opening number to final curtain.
Directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw with perfection from the opening number "Workin' Hot" through the well-oiled tap piece "Tap Happy" to the closing number "Nothing Lasts Forever". Thanks to the witty book by Bob Martin and the other members of this dream team which include, Musical Director and Vocal Arrangements by Phil Reno, Music by Charles Strouse ("Bye, Bye Birdie," "Annie," "Applause") and lyrics by Susan Birkenhead ("Jelly's Last Jam" and "Triumph of Love"). Orchestrations are by Doug Besterman and Music Arrangements by Glen Kelly. Phenomenal Scenic Design by Anna Louizos and stunningly beautiful Costume Design by Gregg Barnes. Lighting Design by Ken Billington, and Sound Design by Acme Sound Partners. The entire production crew deserves recognition for presenting some of the smoothest and most amazing scene changes that I have ever seen.
The rest of the talented cast all pull off some laughs and feature, Kevin Cahoon, John Cariani, Beth Leavel, Gerry Vichi, Paul Vogt Nathan Balser, Kirsten Bracken, Linda Griffin, Blake Hammond, Stacey Todd Holt, Marc Kessler, Matt Loehr, Jeffrey Schecter, Charlie Sutton, Jennifer Werner and Patrick Wetzel.
"Minsky's" cleverly written by Bob Martin is presented in association with MGM On Stage, led by Darcie Denkert and Dean Stolber. "Minsky's" is based on the Bud Yorkin - Norman Lear production "The Night They Raided Minsky's" originally written by Arnold Shulman, Sidney Michael and Norman Lear, from the book by Rowland Barber,
According to Artistic Director, Michael Ritchie, "The story based on the 1968 film The Night They Raided Minsky's, (starring Jason Robards and Britt Ekland) is a bit different. There was a production planned almost 10 years ago that, even though initially on track and even announced to premiere as part of the Ahmanson's 1999-2000 season, it didn't happen. Now happily resurrected, it illustrates that musicals are not just written, produced and then take their place in the canon … the birth of a new show can be a long, laborious process that finds its happy ending based on timing and happenstance alone". It was well worth the wait.
Runs through March 1, 2009
Ahmanson Theatre at the Music Center, 135 N. Grand Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90012, Located at North Grand Ave and West Temple Street
Box Office - (213) 628-2772
www.CenterTheatreGroup.org.
Tickets can also be purchased in person at the box office.
For the deaf community, TDD
(213) 680-4017 for tickets and information
Brad Rounds
By Deirdre Loy
So you want to be a rockstar? Well here is a young man who has his head on straight and is making all the right moves toward success. Valley Scene Magazine recently caught up with Brad Rounds to talk about his band Ottis and also his much-anticipated solo debut in Los Angeles. Originally from San Luis Obispo County, Rounds, at twenty-three years old, has been singing and writing tunes since the age of seven. He says he started in choirs and musicals, but the popular rock of those days quickly inspired him to pursue a more edgy path to success and at the age of twelve he decided to learn guitar.
Rounds moved to the Los Angeles area about three years ago to further his musical career as well as receive a degree from California State University, Northridge (CSUN). At Cal State Northridge he is a music industries major, studying opera performance, as well as jazz, classical and pop styles. Nowadays, Rounds is well versed in several instruments, which he puts to much use while creating his solo work. In the very near future he will be graduating with a bachelors in the arts and when asked if he would consider more schooling in the future he said that studio engineering is a field of interest worth learning more about-he has already begun the process of developing his own recording studio, Brad Rounds Sound Studio, which is temporarily geared toward vocal performers, including much rap and hip-hop. He also works for a company called Radio Express that specializes in creating prerecorded shows of Top 40 artists to be played in foreign markets including Africa and Portugal, where he has interviewed Disturbed, Locos Por Juana, and Thursday.
Rounds is currently the singer for a group called Ottis, where he met brothers Chris and Mike Walcher while auditioning for their previous band. Rounds says they started a new project together on the spot and wrote their first song that night. A year and a half later, they have an EP titled "Lifeless Tragedy" and have gathered a substantial fan base within high school crowds. While Ottis is focusing on finishing their set and preparing for shows, Rounds is also working on a new solo album which features his talents on all instruments to follow his first album which came out in 2003 called Lines Blurred and Confused. Rounds stated that he is trying to create a new type of music with this album: "I call it Indie-Atmospheric Pop-Rock."
He has worked with several professionals-namely Puddle of Mudd drummer on a track titled "Change These Times," and Stephan Villanueva of Castle Studios. Rounds as a solo act, as well as the band Ottis, have appeared five times on a new show just coming out on VH1 called Celebrity Sober House-this led to other projects including a pilot titled You Don't Know Dick, starring Andy Dick, where they played "Falling Apart." Influences and inspiration for Rounds include "British post rock" (groups like the Verve), experimenting with interesting time signatures, as well as older Jimmy Eat World for the "clarity", Death Cab for Cutie, U2, Coldplay, and Snow Patrol. Rounds finds pieces from successful artists and extracts the ideas he likes, and then with a unique inventiveness, puts together new mixes of sounds and genres.
Rounds has had a relative amount of success that leads us to ask what he hopes to do in the future. It goes without saying that the unsigned acts of Ottis, as well as Rounds' solo material would inevitably liked to be picked up by a label. As a songwriter, Rounds would love to write tunes for other musical acts. Building up the Brad Rounds Sounds Studio is an immediate work in progress, where he hopes to help other musicians by providing sound engineering and recording space.
The Los Angeles market has been kind to Rounds in his first few years here and he has taken advantage of the many opportunities that have arisen. With a strong singing voice, solid writing skills, and a very appealing grace in his features, Rounds should have no problem making a success of his music and talents. Soon you will be able to catch him playing out with his solo act as well as the group Ottis. Check them out at myspace.com/ ottissound and Brad Rounds at myspace.com/bradrounds. Rounds' solo EP "Lights" is available on iTunes.