Ford Amphitheatre Gears Up for Season

Two new sources will provide information about the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre’s “Summer Nights at the Ford” series. On Wednesday, Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky activated a 30-foot-high electronic billboard on the grounds of the theater, located in Cahuenga Pass near the Hollywood Bowl. The billboard will beam information to motorists on the Hollywood Freeway about the series’ fourth season, which runs from June 14 to Sept. 1, featuring 38 performances by 22 Los Angeles area arts organizations at the outdoor theater.

“Summer Nights” also has gone online with a new Web site address: https://www.co.la.ca.us/arts. The Web site address is included in the billboard message.

The billboard represents part of a multiyear, $2-million capital improvement program at the 76-year-old facility, which is owned and operated by the county. This season, the county plans to begin construction on an elevator to carry patrons from ground to theater level. The county also will continue to provide a subsidized parking shuttle from a free, non-stacked parking area at Hanna-Barbera, 1.8 miles north of the theater, inaugurated last year. The shuttle costs $1 per person.

This season will feature for the first time events sponsored by organizations from the area’s Korean and Filipino communities. They include the Festival of Philippine Arts and Culture: an evening performance June 28 featuring the West Coast debut of Ballet Philippines of Manila; the Society of Heritage Performers/Korean Classical Music and Dance, presenting “Our Nori” (Our Song), a morning performance for families July 13; and the Asian Youth Arts Festival, presented by Kultura Philippine Folk Arts in another morning performance geared to a family audience on June 29. The Asian Youth Arts Festival will feature a sampling of the cultural arts of China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, the Philippines and Thailand, all performed by youngsters.

Other performers new to the Ford season are Argie Music Productions presenting “A Grand Night of Latin-Jazz” (Aug. 10); East L.A. Classic Theatre presenting a one-hour adaptation of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” (Aug. 10, morning); North Wind Quintet in “Classic Fun!,” an introduction to wind instruments for families (Aug. 17, morning); and Pasadena Shakespeare Company in a family version of “Romeo and Juliet” (Aug. 31, morning).

Season debuts include the first Los Angeles appearance of the Blue Note All-Star Band (Aug. 3), to be included as part of Jazz Pilgrimage ‘96, which also features the Ernie Watts Trio and vocalist Carmen Lundy; and Jazzantiqua Dance and Music Ensemble (Aug. 17), in its first Ford presentation, performing the premiere of “Odysseus Suite,” a full-length jazz ballet adapted from Homer’s “Odyssey” by choreographer Pat Taylor and composer Mark Shelby, with featured guest artists Winifred R. Harris and Le Ballet de Kouman Kele West African Dancers and Drummers.

Two local dance troupes will present premieres of new works: On Aug. 25, Danza Floricanto/USA will present artistic director Gema Sandoval’s “Boleros-Recuerdos de Una Morena” (Memories of a Dark Girl) narrated by Mexican actress Angelica Aragon, who appeared in the recent movie “A Walk in the Clouds.” Naomi Goldberg’s Los Angeles Modern Dance and Ballet company will present an evening-long program titled “Love and Death” on July 13 and 14. The piece was choreographed by Goldberg to popular songs of the ‘30s and ‘40s, as well as medieval music by Hildegard of Bingen and others. Vocalists Cameron Silver and Karen Benjamin are also featured as a live combo.

* Evening tickets are $15-$25; one-hour family events are $7. Call THEATIX, (213) 466-1767. Ford hotline: (213) 974-1396.