Hilary Swank, Christoph Waltz join Gustavo Dudamel at the L.A. Phil after-party
Gustavo Dudamel, left, has a point to make to Hilary Swank and Herbie Hancock at the Philharmonic’s opening-night gala dinner outside Walt Disney Concert Hall.
The event: Gustavo Dudamel called the orchestras he conducted at Tuesday’s L.A. Phil opening night gala his family. “Can you imagine, to have the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra and the Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela as a family?” the L.A. Phil’s music and artistic director asked at the party following the all-Beethoven program. “It’s the best.”
The crowd: Attendees included Oscar winners Hilary Swank, Christoph Waltz and Julie Andrews; plus actors Bryce Dallas Howard of “Jurassic World”; Kate Burton of “Scandal”; Chris O’Donnell of “NCIS: Los Angeles”; William Shatner of the original “Star Trek”; Mia Maestro of “The Strain”; Matthew Lillard of “Scream”; Gael García Bernal of “Amores Perros”; and Alex Meneses of “Everybody Loves Raymond”.
Other VIPs included “Birdman” director Alejandro G. Iñárritu; Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti; Los Angeles County Supervisors Don Knabe and Sheila Kuehl; gala co-chairs Lynn Booth and Joan Hotchkis and their committee members Judy Beckmen, David Bohnett, Edye Broad, Mari Danihel, Margaret Eberhardt, Jane Eisner, Kiki Gindler, Elaine Goldsmith, Carol Colburn Grigor, Sarah Ketterer, Soraya Nazarian, Annette O’Malley, Diane Paul, Ann Ronus, Tawny Sanders, Carla Sands, Larry Schmitt, Sutton Stracke, Barbera Thornhill, John Williams, Alyce Williamson and Marilyn Ziering.
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Dallas Howard joked that she engineered her invitation to the shindig by narrating “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in July at the Hollywood Bowl. “I did ‘Midsummer’ at summer camp, and I always wanted to do something at the Hollywood Bowl. So I jumped at the opportunity and then I was invited to come here tonight.” She then added, “That was my whole strategy all along, getting the chance to come to something like this. It was a wonderful bonus.”
The program: “The Brilliance of Beethoven” featured Dudamel conducting the two orchestras in excerpts from “Egmont” and “The Creatures of Prometheus,” accompanied by various guest artists, including Waltz as narrator and dancers from the Barak Ballet. The concert concluded with “Ode to Joy” from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, sung by the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
The scene: After the confetti fell and the applause died away, men in powdered wigs and period Viennese get-ups - painted as living statues of Beethoven - welcomed gala guests into a tent beside Disney Hall. Inside, murals of Vienna decorated the walls and Patina served a classic Austrian dinner of Weiner schnitzel, spatzle and elderflower-cranberries.
Quote of note: “I had a stressful day and I rushed here,” said Swank. “I sat in my seat and I was just transported into a really beautiful place. Obviously that’s because of the conductor who is at the helm and because of Beethoven’s work. ...Of course I love movies, but music is one of the most inspirational things for me. It just moves me in a way that many of the other arts don’t.”
The numbers: More than 650 guests attended the dinner and concert, purchasing tickets priced from $2,500 and tables ranging up to $150,000. The black-tie affair raised $3.5 million for the L.A. Phil and its education programs.
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