COUNTERPUNCH LETTERS : Experiencing L.A. Fest

The L.A. Festival is an idea who time has come. And gone. As enjoyable as the last three festivals have been, the basic formula simply has too many shortcomings to serve a city as diverse as L.A.

The festival attempts to cram a seemingly infinite number of events into a two-week period. Anyone interested in attending more than one or two performances has to drop everything else. Events generally have runs of just a few days. By the time the reviews appear or the word of mouth gets around, the performers have packed their bags. The festival’s grand scale creates a logistic nightmare that makes it impossible to bring the festival off more than once every few years--not enough to build the sort of momentum needed to develop audiences.

I’m not suggesting the festival be abolished. I’m questioning whether there isn’t some way to transform it into something that presents outstanding international dance and theater for longer runs on an ongoing basis. Imagine a theater complex in which, on any given night you might choose among three or four theater companies from around the globe. Creating this “Los Angeles Festival Theater” is not as far-fetched as it sounds--at least not if the same public and private backers of past festivals were willing to refocus their commitments.

Los Angeles needs a theater district. A Festival Theater would would draw the crowds at first; other theaters, featuring local companies would help bring them back. Audiences would benefit, and so would local theater companies, who charge that the festivals until now have hurt rather than helped their business.

WILLIAM HACKFORD

Los Angeles