Officials last week unveiled a new website for the Alex Theatre that includes updated calendar features as well as new guides to local restaurants, shopping and entertainment.
The new website, www.alextheatre.org, will allow users to add events to social-networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace and receive real-time event listing notifications for events.
Alex Theatre is at 216 N. Brand Blvd.
For more information, call (818) 243-2539.
Miss Asia USA 2008 – 20th Annual Cultural Pageant – Alex Theatre – June 21, 2008
Record heat could not keep an anxious crowd of over 1400 people from filling the Alex Theatre on Saturday night to see who would be crowned Miss Asia USA 2008. Celebrating its 20th Anniversary as the premiere pageant for young Asian women in the USA, the Miss Asia USA 2008 Cultural Pageant once again played to another sold out audience. Electricity filled the air as 31 beautiful, intelligent and talented young Asian-American women proudly represented various countries from around the Asian continent. Throughout the show, they dazzled the audience and judges with their eye-popping national costumes, Scala eveningwear, Malibu Girl swimwear and evening gowns as they vied for the coveted title of Miss Asia USA 2008.
After five categories of intense competition, our distinguished panel of judges selected the stunning 26 year old Diane Yoo representing Korea to be the Queen. Inspired by her interest in diverse cultures and deeply held belief in cross-cultural unity, Diane earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from the prestigious Baylor University and also attended the Mayo Hill School of Modeling. She calls Houston, Texas home, where she is Vice-President of Business Development of JDDA Concessions Management at the Houston Intercontinental Airport. Because she believes so strongly in honoring her civic and social responsibilities, Diane dedicates herself to assisting her others through charitable work and political involvement. One of her greatest strengths is her ability to inspire and organize others to serve with her. Appointed as the Asian Community Liaison and Special Projects Director by the Houston City Council, Diane successfully organized numerous volunteer and fundraising efforts within the Korean community as well as with members of many other minority communities. She earned special honors from the Texas House of Representatives and the Houston City Council for her dedication and contributions to the Asian and other minority communities. Diane also was given recognition for her efforts to assist victims of the Hurricane Katrina Disaster working with Houston Mayor Bill White’s Command Center. Expanding her political involvement on a national level, Diane contributed towards a draft legislative bill initiated by Congressman Mike Honda of California to provide disaster relief services affecting the Asian community nationally. Currently she is a representative for the Asian American Giving Circle, a founding member of Korean Young Professionals, and a Board Member of the Korean Chamber of Commerce. When she finally had a chance to catch her breath after the pageant, Diane said; “Being crowned Miss Asia USA 2008 means so much to me because this incredible pageant represents so much that I believe in about unifying our various cultures. To serve as the Ambassador of Culture and Goodwill among all the Asian communities is an honor and welcome responsibility, and I truly look forward to fulfilling it with all my heart and dedication.” In keeping with her commitment to fulfilling this responsibility, Diane’s future plans include relocating to Los Angeles.
“The title Miss Asia USA is earned through dedication, hard work and the demonstration of self-confidence, intelligence, beauty and elegance,” according to Virgelia Villegas, President of Virgelia Productions, Inc and the producer and director of Miss Asia USA. Diane Yoo showed the judges and the audience that she has all of those qualities in abundance. We are proud to have her representing the mission of Miss Asia USA to unite the communities of the 58 countries of the Asian continent because has already proven to be an outstanding role model for young Asian women in America. Her total commitment was what impressed me the most. Even though she lives in Houston, she never missed a rehearsal or pre-pageant event. It takes that kind of dedication to earn the crown. I look forward to introducing her to all the Asian communities this coming year.”
Virgelia went on to say, “I am extremely pleased and proud of all of our wonderful delegates and I offer them my sincerest gratitude for their participation and hard work. Our 20th Anniversary was unforgettable, and we couldn’t have done it without them. The same is true for our generous sponsors, our staff and our fantastic hosts, Pilar Lastra and Hector Luis Bustamante.”
Virgelia also announced the Queen’s Court and the winners of the special recognition awards:
Brittany Chen – Miss Taiwan – 1st Runner-up
Linda Tram Nguyen – Miss Vietnam – 2nd Runner-up
Liane Valenzuela – Miss Philippines – 3rd Runner-up
Tamanno Kamiljanova – Miss Uzbekistan – 4th Runner-up
Best National Costume – Diane Yoo – Miss Korea
Miss Photogenic – Chanita Thinrat – Miss Thailand
Miss Congeniality – Ouch Chourp – Miss Cambodia
Miss Popularity – Brittany Chen – Miss Taiwan
Miss Friendship – Sophia Garsevanian – Miss Armenia
Award of Courage – Ayako Kosuge – Miss Japan
The newly crowned Miss Asia USA 2008 has already received an official invitation from the Consul General for the Republic of Korea to participate in a cultural tour of her country of heritage. Details of the official visit have not yet been finalized and will be made available in the near future.
About Miss Asia USA
Miss Asia USA, Miss Teen Asia USA and Mrs. Asia USA Pageants are the premiere Cultural Pageants presenting Asian women in the United States who trace their ancestry to the fifty-eight countries considered part of the Asian continent. The pageants offer the delegates the unique opportunity to display the cultural beauty and the sociability of the country of their heritage. Through this celebration of Beauty, Culture, Elegance and Talent Virgelia Productions, Inc aims to unite the fifty- eight countries in the Asian continent. Asian women from all over the United States gather in the name of friendly competition to vie for these coveted titles Miss Asia USA, Miss Teen Asia USA and Mrs. Asia USA. The Pageant promotes leadership, personal growth; strengthens cultural values, camaraderie and unity in diversity. Each Delegate will not only epitomize beauty and intelligence, but reflect the unity and sociability of her country. The Pageants display the rich ethnic diversity of our society and gives us a glimpse into the multitudes of cultures that surround us today. The lavish parade of the National Costumes, the grace and elegance of the Evening Gown competition and the sensational Swimsuit Competition all combine to create an atmosphere of excitement that surpasses the audience’s expectations time and time again.
26-year-old who represented Korea wins the 20th annual Miss Asia pageant at the Alex.
“It’s unity among the 58 different countries in the Asian continent,” said Virgelia Villegas, president of Virgelia Productions, which produces the event.
Jessica Mogi, a 17-year-old from Rancho Cucamonga who was representing Indonesia in the contest, said the pageant gives contestants a chance to develop their poise and public speaking skills, as well as interact with people from a variety of cultural backgrounds.
“You actually learn about different cultures,” she said.
The national costume parade was a sea of ensembles of every imaginable color, shape and style.
Diane Yoo, who was named the winner of the 2008 Miss Asia USA contest at the end of the night, started the evening off strong by winning the Best in National Costume award.
The 26-year-old Yoo, who hails from Texas and represented Korea in the show, took the stage wearing a traditional dress with an enormously full layered skirt, a wide-brimmed hat perched at a dramatic angle on her head and waving two bright pink fans at her sides.
On Friday, each contestant had exhibited her national costume for judges and also had one minute to provide a verbal description of what she was wearing.
On Saturday night, each contestant modeled in a bikini and evening gown before the judges narrowed the pool to 10 finalists.
For her evening gown, Yoo wore a shimmering blue dress that had a peacock-like train with bright blue feathers.
Seventeen-year-old Brittany Chen, who was representing Taiwan and would later be named first runner-up, wore a glimmering light blue and silver gown.
The 10 finalists were then narrowed down to five based on their answers to a variety of questions. Some of those questions got at different aspects of how the women wove their Asian cultural values into their daily lives.
The five finalists were narrowed to one winner based on their answers to the following question: If your culture did not allow you to participate in beauty pageants, would you participate anyway, and why?
Liane Valenzuela, 21, representing the Philippines, said that she would, because cultures had to adapt and change.
“I believe culture is growth,” she said.
Linda Tram Nguyen, 24, who represented Vietnam, said she would definitely participate.
“It makes us independent and strong, which young Asian women are today,” she said.
Yoo was crowned queen of the pageant after answering simply that she would be disheartened if she wasn’t able to participate and represent her culture.
All the contestants received $8,000 scholarships to the James Albert School of Cosmetology, as well as several outfits.
“The Untouchables” kicks off the series tonight with a VIP reception at 6, catered by Damon’s Steak House. The series is co-sponsored by the Downtown Glendale Merchants Assn. and Massage Envy Spa.
“We’re very, very excited about it,” said Helen McDonagh, owner of Massage Envy Spa and merchants association board member. “It’s important the first film is a success to create momentum so the rest of the season is a success.”
The merchants association started talking in the spring about doing events that bring the public to downtown Glendale mid-week during the summer, she said.
“With the Americana opening, we want some focus on the downtown area,” McDonagh said.
Proceeds from the first film will go to the Glendale Police Foundation’s Community Police Partnerships Unit to raise money for equipment to help patrol the downtown area in a more environmentally friendly way with bicycles and Segway self-balancing scooters, McDonagh said
“As merchants, we feel that having a police presence in the downtown area will help keep it safe,” she said. “And bicycles and Segways make them more accessible to the area instead of patrol cars.”
By getting the police out of their vehicles, the merchants are hoping the alternative transportation will save on gasoline and the environment and keep police officers physically fit, McDonagh said.
“I think it is a blessing, truly, for the association to be willing to do that, and we are very, very grateful as a [community policing] unit, and as the Police Department,” Glendale Police Lt. Gary Montecuollo said of the Community Services Bureau, which oversees the downtown policing efforts. “The partnership is what makes community policing work.”
The next film in the series, “American Graffiti” on July 30, will raise funds for Glendale Kiwanis Club’s Ducks 4 Kids program and Glendale Arts, a new organization that runs the Alex Theatre and brings all the city’s arts organizations under one umbrella, McDonagh said.
The film series was a way the Alex Theatre could partner with the merchants association, said Elissa Glickman, director of marketing and resource development for the Alex Theatre.
“We saw this as a good way to partner with the local businesses, as well as raise some seed money for the new organization,” she said.
The merchants association has been trying to use events such as this to market the mid-Brand business district, Glickman said.
The Downtown Dash, summer concerts and other events help to bring people back to the boulevard and shows off its major anchor, the Alex Theatre, she added.
“And it’s a way to give back to the charities that give back to our community,” she said.
“All the charities work hard and do great work in the community, but these are some of the charities we work closely with on an ongoing basis.”
“Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” on Aug. 20 will benefit Glendale Healthy Kids and the Glendale Arts program, McDonagh said.
Proceeds from “The Great Race” on Sept. 17 will benefit the Glendale’s Relay for Life and Glendale Arts, she said.
The merchants association and Massage Envy Spa are raising $10,000 through sponsorships to pay for the film rental, Alex rental and projectionist, so that all proceeds from ticket sales will go to the causes, McDonagh said.
Sponsors are still needed to donate money, and in exchange the merchants association will give them exposure by projecting slides advertising their businesses on the screen before the movie starts, McDonagh said.
And Massage Envy Spa is offering everyone who buys a VIP ticket a 30-minute massage gift card, she said.
For more information on sponsorships, call McDonagh at (323) 620-2835.
“Of course, publicity is the most important thing in this business,” she said.
Glendale Arts will create a website containing a master calendar for arts events happening in greater Glendale, said Barry McComb, executive director of the Alex Theatre, and who will lead Glendale Arts. The calendar would include everything from gallery exhibits to performing arts events at local schools, he said.
The website will also contain links to local artists’ Web pages, and maps to art venues around the city.
“Really, the primary purpose of Glendale Arts will be to serve as a clearinghouse between the Glendale arts community and arts consumers,” McComb said.
The website will hopefully pique residents’ interests in art performances or groups that may not have known about before, said Vince Takas, the president of the Glendale Art Assn., a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting art appreciation.
“They will expand arts across the board in Glendale,” Takas said.
For the Glendale Art Assn. in particular, the new organization might drive new members their way, or perhaps consumers interested in purchasing artwork, Takas said.
Glendale Arts also plans to develop an online, centralized ticketing system for citywide arts events on the organization’s website, McComb said. People will be able to purchase tickets online to any local art event that was listed on the master arts calendar, he said.
“We would become kind of like the Ticketmaster of Glendale,” he said.
By centralizing arts ticketing in this way, participating arts organizations could save money by not running their own ticketing services, and expose potential audience members to a wider range of arts events, McComb said.
Farther down the line, Glendale Arts would like to establish ticket kiosks around the city where people could purchase tickets to arts events, he added.
The website won’t be transferred to Glendale Arts until July, and will be under development for several months, he said.
Tim Dietlein, an owner and producer of Glendale Centre Theatre, hadn’t yet looked into the role Glendale Arts will play in the city, but he supports the notion of collecting arts information in one place. Ticket kiosks around the city would also be a great asset, he said.
Even though building up the art scene in Glendale could have the effect of increasing competition among existing art venues in the city, Dietlein said he would welcome more local arts businesses.
“Good art promotes good art,” he said. “Good theater promotes good theater.”
The structure of Glendale Arts will also allow the organization to access new sources of revenue for the Alex Theatre and other arts programs, McComb said.
Because the governing board won’t be a city commission, board members will have greater leeway to donate money to the organization, and will be better positioned to apply for certain grants.
“The real growth for us is going to be in the area of contributed income,” he said.
The city’s Redevelopment Agency voted unanimously on Tuesday to approve the creation of Glendale Arts, a private nonprofit organization charged with overseeing the operation of the Alex Theatre and promoting the arts around Glendale. The board of directors of the new nonprofit will replace the Alex Regional Theatre Board, the city commission that currently governs the historic theater.
Glendale Arts was conceived as a way to make the Alex Theatre more financially sustainable by opening it up to new revenue sources, and as a way to foster the Glendale arts community, according to the city officials.
“I think this will be very helpful for the artists especially,” said Gayane Galstyan, manager of Harvest Gallery, a Brand Boulevard gallery that exhibits contemporary work, mainly by local artists.
On May 13, 2008, the Glendale City Council, acting as the Redevelopment Agency, approved the formal creation of Glendale Arts, a new non-profit arts organization that will operate the Alex Theatre and help to coordinate resources among local artists and arts organizations.
Glendale Arts, formerly known as the Glendale Arts Alliance, was born out of a 2007 internal assessment of the Alex Theatre’s business operations model. The assessment concluded, that while the Alex Regional Theatre (ART) Board has significantly increased earned income through the rental of the Alex Theatre, it has been less effective in raising contributed income through donations, grants, and fundraisers. That, coupled with the anticipated elimination of the Theatre’s annual subsidy from the Redevelopment Agency in 2015, caused the ART Board develop a plan to cultivate new sources of revenue, both contributed and earned.
“The ART Board came to the conclusion that in order to be responsible stewards of the Alex Theatre, they needed focus on the long-term financial opportunities that were available and aside from earned income those were limited,” stated Barry McComb, the Theatre’s Executive Director and primary architect of Glendale Arts. “Over the last few years, the Theatre increased its earned income by more than 121%, but the reality is that even with this steady increase in income there is a ceiling and the Theatre just couldn’t survive without assistance from the Redevelopment Agency.”
“Additionally, as an arts non-profit, we saw a distinct gap in how artists, arts organizations, businesses and government entities communicate with one another,” continued McComb. “The ART Board saw Glendale Arts as a way to bridge the communications gap, expand opportunities for artists and arts organizations and ensure the long-term financial health of the Alex Theatre.”
“The community has been very supportive,” he stated. “We held several, well attended, community forums back in February and time, after time, we were told that the City needed an organization like Glendale Arts. At the core of Glendale Arts is collaboration and we are pleased to say that we have already established some key partnerships even before the organization was officially approved by the GRA,” he concluded.
One early alliance has been with the Glendale Art Association.
“The Glendale Art Association had been looking for someone to take the lead in coordinating the City’s arts resources for some time,” said Vincent Takas, President of the Glendale Art Association. “I met with Barry (McComb) to discuss the new organization and how it would impact the Glendale Art Association – after all Glendale Arts Alliance and Glendale Arts Association had the potential to confuse some people – and before I knew it, he agreed to change the organization’s name to Glendale Arts and I agreed to give the new organization Glendale Arts Association’s URL, www.glendalearts.org. It was a win-win for everyone, especially for Glendale.”
Glendale Arts expects to begin operations starting July 1, 2008.
About Glendale Arts
Glendale Arts is a private 501(c) (3) nonprofit umbrella arts management organization with a primary purpose of operating the Alex Theatre as a performing arts and entertainment center through a management contract with the GRA. In collaboration with local arts organizations, and artists, Glendale Arts will also develop and maintain programs throughout the greater Glendale area in performing arts, visual arts, and arts leaning in an effort to nurture a strong and vibrant arts community.
Glendale Arts believes that a great city is defined by its arts and envisions a supportive environment that encourages and values all artistic disciplines and believes that the arts are an essential ingredient for a vibrant, creative, and economically healthy community.
Media Contact:
Elissa Glickman
(p) 818.243-2611 ext. 14
(c) 323.309.3093
(e) eglickman@alextheatre.org
The spotlight will be directed at local artists
Assemblyman Paul Krekorian is poised to turn cameras on several youngsters during FilmFest 43.
By Ryan Vaillancourt
Glendale News Press
The prospect of a dwindling California entertainment industry at the hands of runaway production is especially daunting for Assemblyman Paul Krekorian since the local economies in his district, which includes Glendale and Burbank, lean heavily on film and television.
As part of his effort to combat the economic problem, Krekorian chairs a select legislative committee on preserving the state entertainment industry, and he’s pushing policy measures that would crack down on intellectual property theft.
But on Friday night at the Alex Theatre, Krekorian’s focus will turn to a distinctly more local initiative, free from policy speak and complex legislative analysis.
Instead of lobbying legislators, Krekorian will showcase the work of dozens of local students who have made short films for Filmfest 43, a film festival featuring submissions from young filmmakers attending high schools throughout the 43rd Assembly District.
“I thought the film festival would be an opportunity to both give high school kids an opportunity to have an outlet to demonstrate their creative talents and also to encourage them to consider careers in this area so we can continue to foster the entertainment industry workforce in Southern California,” Krekorian said.
A number of major studios are sponsoring the event, including Disney, Warner Bros, NBC-Universal, Sony Pictures and Paramount.
And judges include Mike Petros, associate professor of television at Glendale Community College; Dug Ward, an adjunct faculty member at UCLA’s Animation Workshop and a former animator for Fox’s “King of the Hill”; and Robert Peterson, who chairs the graduate film program at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena.
The call for entry prompted more than 100 submissions, including one from Clark Magnet High School sophomore Michael Aloyan, 15, who says he sees the festival as a career opportunity.
“I’m nervous to find out if we got [accepted] or not, but it’s a pretty big deal because there’s going to be all those studio execs there, and because, you know, this is the career field that I want to go into,” Michael said.
Submissions include short narratives like Michael’s “Yesterday,” which follows a young man’s memories of love, in reverse.
“Reflection,” a silent film by John Burroughs High School junior Anna Tschetter, traces a young woman’s eerie encounter with her apparent doppelganger that moves into her house and wins her parents’ hearts.
Others include student Susan Bryant’s documentary of the Clark Magnet High School robotics team and a short Claymation love story by Ella Nepales, a student at Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy.
“We hope to see some of these young filmmakers perhaps have their name in lights in years soon to come,” he said.
The festival starts 6:30 p.m. Friday at Alex Theatre.
The event is open to the public, and admission is free.
To RSVP for free tickets, call Krekorian’s district office at (818) 240-6330.
Glendale News Press
May 10, 2008
The Alex may get grant aid
City is considering forming a nonprofit organization to run theater, making it eligible for funds.
By Jason Wells
Published: Last Updated Friday, May 9, 2008 10:31 PM PDT
CITY HALL — The city and the Alex Theatre’s governing board want to create a new nonprofit organization that would operate the historic venue, bring it to self-sufficiency and promote cultural arts citywide.
Under the proposed structure, the Alex Regional Theatre Board would be reformed into a private nonprofit umbrella arts management organization called Glendale Arts.
The new structure would allow the nonprofit to continue collecting from traditional revenue sources, like ticket sales and rental fees, while taking advantage of more grant and foundation funding opportunities that come with being a nonprofit organization, city officials said.
“We’re really looking to position ourselves as the voice of the arts community on the private side,” said Barry McComb, executive director of the Alex Regional Theatre Board.
A major part of that will be to compile the city’s arts resources under one domain, where residents and visitors can access the information — calendars, events, locations, performances — in one place, under one “brand.”
The creation of an arts “clearing house” would also lead to a guild of volunteers that, under Glendale Arts, could be assigned and be shared among member organizations, McComb said.
The Alex Theatre, in addition to being a major venue, also has plans to extend its box office ticketing capabilities to other arts organizations, which not only consolidates business operations for them, but produces another revenue source for the theater, McComb said.
Additional revenue and business ventures will play a major role in the mission and direction of Glendale Arts, formerly known as the Glendale Arts Alliance, since the current $415,000 annual subsidy from the Redevelopment Agency ends in 2015, city officials said.
The relationship between economic independence and benevolent arts promotion on behalf of Glendale Arts should be symbiotic as the city continues to push for more cultural arts options, Arts and Culture Commissioner Steven Lee said.
“We need a strong arts organization like Glendale Arts to help build a strong infrastructure that we can help nurture,” Lee said. “We are working with them hand in hand.”
Many of the commissioners attended the public Glendale Arts scoping meetings, in which community members gave input on how they wanted some of the city’s cultural deficiencies addressed through the new organization, including more government subsidies, venues and gallery space.
And in January, the commission voted to form a temporary three-member subcommittee to work more closely with city strategic arts planning efforts.
But the municipal arts movement was dealt a setback in April, when the city’s first community services coordinator, Eve Rappoport, left to take a position with the city of Torrance.
Her job was to increase the visibility of city arts and cultural programs, and to serve as the liaison between the arts commission and Glendale’s stock of artists and venues.
In the process, she provided about 95% of the commission’s resources through project management and coordination, Lee said. The position is still vacant.
It is that hobbled progress that continues to frustrate one of the biggest cultural arts proponents on the City Council, Mayor John Drayman said.
While the Glendale Arts proposal would certainly help in unifying the arts movement, real progress in expanding cultural venues, such as a first-class museum or more gallery space, won’t happen until the city fully devotes its financial and organizational muscle behind the effort, he said.
Historically, the city has pointed to struggling nonprofits and playhouses to stoke Glendale’s arts image, but “that is not enough,” Drayman said.
Supporting the formation of an umbrella arts organization may be a step in the right direction, but “that is not a city arts program, and we need that,” he said.
An Arts & Economic Prosperity study, sponsored by Americans for the Arts, found that in 2005 the nonprofit arts and culture community in Glendale was a $12.7-million industry, generating 357 full-time jobs and $1.5 million in local and state tax revenue.
Without laying the groundwork for expansion of that industry, surrounding communities will capture the growth and leave Glendale behind, Drayman said.
And in that vein, the city and Alex Theatre, through Glendale Arts, are intrinsically tied, McComb said.
“At our core is collaboration,” he said. “We’re not looking to be on that island out there by ourselves.”
The Redevelopment Agency, in its dual role as the City Council, will consider the final proposal at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday in City Council Chambers, 613 E. Broadway.
Sneak Preview’ will pay tribute to the Alex Theatre as it parades through Pasadena on Jan. 1.
The float design has sailed through the city review process with rave reviews, garnering unanimous support from the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Commission on April 2.
Before approving the design, the Glendale Rose Float Assn. presented the City Council with a $45,000 check to cover half the cost of last year’s award-winning entry, “Bon Voyage.”
C.L. Keedy III, president of the Executive Committee of the Tournament of Roses Assn., also officially presented the council with the Mayor’s Trophy for the “most outstanding city entry” in the 2008 parade.
The entry, which featured a suspended 1930s-era biplane taking off from the city’s historic Grand Central Air Terminal, was the latest in a string of major awards for Glendale’s participation in the event that receives worldwide media attention.
Glendale’s 2009 entry will be its 95th, making the city the second-longest-standing participant in the parade’s history, said George Chapjian, director of the Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department.
The parade theme for 2009 is “Hats Off to Entertainment,” a theme that finally allowed the rose float committee to incorporate the Alex Theatre, a Glendale landmark, into its float design, said Bill Lofthouse, president of Phoenix Decorating Co., a float decoration and design firm the city has used for years.
While the “Sneak Preview” float is expected to cost $94,000 this year — a slight increase to cover the cost of a mechanical hinge to bend the theater spire for safe travel — the investment has not gone unnoticed, contributing to the high-quality designs that over the years have earned the city 50 major awards, city officials said.
And without the financial investment from cities like Glendale, Keedy said, “the Rose Parade would not be the worldwide event that it is today.”
Work on the 2009 float’s steel frame began soon after the sound endorsement from the parks commission, and eventually will be ready for the volunteer flower “planting” that every year draws dozens of community members.
Volunteer decorators last year logged 3,294 hours gluing the flowers to the float in painstaking detail, said Sean Bersell, vice president of the rose float association.
“So it’s a major undertaking,” he told the council.
The next Rose Parade takes place in Pasadena on Jan. 1.
To be called “Sneak Preview,” the 35-foot-long float will feature a scene set in the glamour era of 1930s and ’40s Hollywood and the movie premieres that took place at the iconic theater on Brand Boulevard.
A white, stretch convertible limousine is parked in front of the Alex — complete with its 22-foot-high spire — with skylights and plenty of flowers.
Alex Theatre-released classics like “National Velvet,” starring Elizabeth Taylor, and “Going My Way,” with Bing Crosby, will be featured on the marquee.
Remembering the dead: Armenian Genocide commemoration at the Alex urges people to look forward, with an eye to the past.
By Jason Wells
Glendale News Press
Published: Last Updated Thursday, April 24, 2008 10:32 PM PDT
Armenia’s past collided with its future Thursday night on a stage, in a theater, in Glendale.
The more than 1,300 people who attended the city’s event at the Alex Theatre commemorating the 93rd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide were confronted with a classic herald to the Eurasian country’s tragic past through operatic overtures, while at the same time challenged to maintain the momentum for international recognition of the genocide.
More than 1.5 million Armenians lost their lives between 1915 and 1918 in the former Ottoman Empire through either outright killings or forced migration. Turkey’s government has refused to acknowledge the genocide, contending the deaths occurred during a civil conflict.
Keynote speaker Carla Garapedian — who directed “Screamers,” a documentary on the band System of a Down as it toured to raise awareness of modern genocide — said the stateside diaspora had a duty to hold politicians accountable and keep pressure on Congress to pass a resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide.
“We need to raise the bar for politicians who are making foreign policy in our names,” she told the audience.
“We must ask the hard questions, because if we don’t, who will?”
The genocide resolution, despite gaining a key endorsement from the House Foreign Affairs Committee and obtaining signatures from 212 co-sponsors, hasn’t been brought for a full vote by the House amid fears there isn’t quite enough congressional support to ensure its passage. Many congressional representatives are wary of damaging relations with Turkey, which is considered to be a strategic military partner.
Even with the resolution’s pause, Armenian leaders say the amount of international attention it has generated has helped keep the spotlight on their efforts, which in of itself is considered progress.
Mayor John Drayman in his address to the audience said it was an “understated disgrace” that Congress has so far refused to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide as historic fact.
Inside the Alex Theatre, Garapedian’s calls for unity in support of the genocide’s recognition, which dozens of governments have already done, were a part of a larger picture of activism mixed with commemoration. Pro-Armenian demonstrators protested Thursday outside the Turkish embassy in Los Angeles, while thousands of Armenians marched in Hollywood to commemorate the genocide’s anniversary.
But while Armenians will always look on the first genocidal event of the 20th Century with horror, organizers of Thursday’s program at the Alex wanted to show that “it’s not about crying anymore.”
“We’re beyond that,” said Jacob Parseghian, a member of the organizing committee who through Artists For Kids produced the artistic program, which saw world-renowned tenor Gegham Grigorian perform two classic operatic solos against a 25-member orchestra.
Before the display of Armenia’s classic cultural heritage on stage, Councilman Ara Najarian, chairman of the organizing committee, assured the world that even in looking to the future for progress, the Armenian community had not forgotten the mass killings, and never would.
“We have not forgotten what we went through,” he said. “We have not forgotten the genocide.”
JASON WELLS covers City Hall. He may be reached at (818) 637-3235 or by e-mail at jason.wells@latimes.com.