UCLA Center Gears Up for a Busy ‘98-99 Season

The North American debut of contemporary dance company Ballet Preljocaj’s “Romeo and Juliet,” appearances by seminal 20th century music artists the Kronos Quartet and pianist Terry Riley, and the New York Philharmonic’s first visit to Los Angeles since 1986 highlight the schedule for the UCLA Center for the Performing Arts 1998-1999 season.

The September-through-May season represents the center’s first full schedule back in its main performance venue, Royce Hall, which reopened in April after four years of seismic renovation following the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Some performances will also take place at Schoenberg Hall and Haines Hall.

Angelin Preljocaj’s 24-member company from France will present its sensual version of “Romeo and Juliet” Sept. 17-19; Terry Riley performs Oct. 9; the Kronos Quartet, Oct. 11; and the New York Philharmonic appears Jan. 9 under the direction of Kurt Masur.

Along with its usual wide-ranging offerings in dance, music, theater and special events, UCLA has added two new performance categories: a puppetry series and “Word of Mouth,” a series of spoken-word performances that will include a return visit from monologuist Spalding Gray with his latest work-in-progress, “Morning, Noon and Night” (April 13-18) as well as appearances by National Public Radio commentator David Sedaris (Nov. 6), interviewer Terry Gross (Feb. 21) and United States poet laureates Robert Pinsky and Robert Hass, who will take the stage together April 22.

The multimedia Puppet Theater Series, presented in association with the Jim Henson Festival of Puppet Theater and the Costen Center for Puppetry and Arts at the California Institute of Arts, features companies from around the world: South Africa’s Handspring Puppet Company, which employs original music, live actors, animation and film footage in its latest work, “Ubu and the Truth Commission,” Sept. 25-27 for ages 12 and up; and Peru’s Teatro Hugo & Ines, which creates “alien” creatures with feet, hands and elbows, also Sept. 25-27, for ages 7 and up.

Bali shadow master I Wayan Wija joins San Francisco’s Larry Reed (credited with inventing a new kind of theater using giant projected shadows) and composer-painter I Dewa Berata for Wayang Listrik/Electric Shadows, which creates a landscape of shadows on a big screen. The performance, which will take place Oct. 24, is recommended for children ages 12 and up.

In dance, other notable offerings include performances by the Mark Morris Dance Group, performing two Los Angeles premieres Oct. 9-10, and the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, coming to the center April 16-17. Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre makes its Southern California debut with “Furioso” Feb. 5-6.

The jazz season features Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette together in concert Feb. 25--Jarrett’s first public performance in several years. Also on the jazz program is America in Rhythm and Tune: The Ellington Centennial with Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and Wynton Marsalis, featuring the music of conductor Duke Ellington (March 20).

England’s Nigel Kennedy, the so-called “wild boy” of violin who has moved from classical music to rock and back again, appears in recital Nov. 21; performance artist Laurie Anderson returns Sept. 25; and performance artist Josh Kornbluth presents his “Mathematics of Change,” the autobiographical tale of his doomed first semester as a Princeton math major, Oct. 24.

And, yes, “Stomp” returns to UCLA, July 14-Aug. 2.

For schedule and ticket information: (310) 825-5202.