Pictures speak 'A Thousand Words'

There's painting, sculpture and a bunch of short plays. Also a bar, fair trade chocolate and a big bowl of Chex Mix. Now playing at Art Share L.A., "A Thousand Words" is an inviting, if erratic, conversation between nine writers and nine downtown artists. Each playwright riffs off one artist's work -- which includes everything from commemorative urns to replicas of Mesopotamian antiquities. The resulting theater feels like a wander round a gallery: Some items demand attention, others don't register.

June 20, 2008