Upcoming Shows

2024/2025 SEASON

2024/2025 SEASON BROCHURE

THE WALLIS DELIVERS: AN EVENING TO BENEFIT WILDFIRE RECOVERY

MARTÍN + SCHUMANN + PRICE

Traverse the musical landscape of America from African American spirituals to soothing melodies by familiar friends. Witness the mainstage debut of NPR’s Lara Downes, showcasing the ravishing harmonies and breathtaking melodies of Price’s Piano Concerto. Welcome back Jaime Martín as he leads the orchestra in Schumann’s definitive second symphony.

JOHN WATERS' BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION: THE NAKED TRUTH

Ok, John Waters is finally coming clean, so to speak, and his all-new, secret-sharing, one-man crackpot comedy show dares to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the filthy truth. It’s an endless bag of trans-gressive and hetero-non-aggressive twisted tales that will warm the dark little hearts of non-binary brats all over the world. Over-sharing? You bet. Too much information? Maybe so, but airing his dirty laundry makes Waters feel clean. He’ll talk to you straight even when he’s definitely not.

MUSE/IQUE: WELCOME TO THE DREAM FACTORY

Oklahoma! was undoubtedly the first of its kind. In the early 1940s, Rodgers & Hammerstein did the then-inconceivable: they combined the complex storytelling of the typical stage play with the music and movement of traditional musicals. Oklahoma! broke and rewrote all the rules for what was possible on Broadway and opened the door for decades of revolutionary musicals yet to come.

STEPHEN SCHWARTZ HOSTS: SONGS FROM THE CUTTING ROOM FLOOR

In the pursuit of excellence, sometimes you have to kill your darlings. Have you ever wondered if there are songs written for your favorite shows that just didn’t make the cut? Come hear an evening of intimate performances and stories about those songs by the composers that wrote them. It’ll give you an even deeper appreciation for all the difficult decisions that are made on the way to a perfect musical – even when it means sacrificing a spectacular song.

STEPHEN SCHWARTZ HOSTS: THE ASCAP FOUNDATION MUSICAL THEATRE WORKSHOP

The ASCAP Foundation presents a unique double bill of new musicals. Be the first to experience these new works before they have their initial productions as we celebrate the next generation of our ASCAP family. The ASCAP Foundation Musical Theatre Workshop alumni Roslyn Catracchia and Peter Seibert will present an excerpt of their new musical Piney Needlesmith and the Road Less Traveled. For our second show of the evening, Julian Hornik, Khiyon Hursey, and Mark Sonnenblick will present selections from their new musical Weekend, based on the cult classic film. Following each presentation, the legendary Stephen Schwartz will host a roundtable discussion with the writers and other masters of the craft.

MARTÍN + BEETHOVEN

LACO’s orchestral season @ The Wallis roars to a close with remarkable milestones made by music history’s most beloved and unsung heroes. Be inspired by Farrenc’s symphonic triumph and her fight for equality. Revel in Beethoven’s heroic Egmont Overture and his towering Violin Concerto, commanded by Radulović in his much-anticipated return with Music Director Jaime Martín at the podium.

PEPPERLAND

Mark Morris, hailed as “the most successful and influential choreographer alive, and indisputably the most musical” (New York Times) returns to Los Angeles with Pepperland, a unique tribute to the 50th Anniversary of The Beatles’ groundbreaking album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, accompanied live by an unprecedented chamber music ensemble of voice, soprano saxophone, two keyboards, theremin, and percussion.

MOBLEY + VIVALDI

Meditate on sorrow, forgiveness, and the divine feminine as countertenor Mobley interprets Vivaldi’s rendition of Stabat Mater. Stroll through England in good company with songs by Purcell and Dowland before hearing Handel’s Eternal Source of Light Divine, written for Queen Anne’s birthday in 1713. Baroque trumpet features throughout, including a commissioned double concerto.

HENRY MANCINI AT 100

Scott Dunn Orchestra returns for its inaugural performance of the its series with Henry Mancini at 100 - a Celebration of the Man and his Music. Proclaiming the genius of Henry Mancini as composer and songwriter, the evening will feature Mancini’s scoring and songs from Touch of Evil, Peter Gunn, Mr. Lucky, The Pink Panther, Two for the Road, Hatari!, Victor/Victoria, Days of Wine and Roses, Breakfast at Tiffany’s and other Mancini masterpieces.

PUT YOUR GUNS DOWN

Making their Wallis debut, GRAMMY-award winning vocal choir Tonality combines melodic harmonies to present concerts on themes of social justice in hopes to catalyze empathy and community activism. Put Your Guns Down discusses issues related to gun violence in the United States. Some of the selections will discuss mass shootings, police brutality, the effects on victims, school shootings, and suicide prevention. The concert also focuses on an active sense of peace as we come together to find solutions toward the epidemic of gun violence in this country. This evening’s performance will feature the world premiere of Alexander Lloyd Blake’s Running From, Running To: A Musical Reflection on Ahmaud Arbery.

PACIFIC JAZZ ORCHESTRA: ANAT COHEN & TIERNEY SUTTON

The Wallis is proud to welcome back the Pacific Jazz Orchestra, fresh from their inaugural season, this 40-piece orchestra is not one to be missed. Featuring powerhouse musicians the evenings’ program effortlessly combines a diverse range of styles, genres, and backgrounds. 

MARTÍN + BACH

Music Director Jaime Martín leads the complete J.S. Bach Orchestral Suites. Dazzling in virtuosity and nuanced in structure, these monuments of the canon are an absolute must for any music lover. Martín will guide you through this exhilarating adventure in counterpoint and harmony, ending the LACO season in style.

SUMMER FAMILY FEST

The Wallis continues its beloved FREE outdoor Family Fest events for families and young audiences around The Wallis’ beautiful campus. Food trucks and concessions will be available!

JOSHUA GUERRERO

The final installment of LA Opera and The Wallis recital series features Joshua Guerrero, one of LA Opera’s greatest success stories. Guerrero began his career with the company, quickly graduating to the leading tenor roles in Moby-Dick, Macbeth and The Ghosts of Versailles. Hailed as one of OperaWire's "Top 11 Singers of 2023," he now stars in the world's major opera houses. 

GATHERINGS

L.A. Dance Project and The Wallis present Gatherings, a triple-bill program showcasing interdisciplinary collaborations in dance, music, and visual art. The evening features Triade, a signature repertory work from LADP Artistic Director Benjamin Millepied, created as a tribute to his mentor, the visionary choreographer and artist Jerome Robbins; Quartet for Five, a critically acclaimed work by 2022-2024 LADP Artists-in-Residence Bobbi Jene Smith and Or Schraiber; and Sleepwalker’s Encyclopedia, from choreographer and former New York City Ballet Principal DancerJanie Taylor, with set design by American painter Benjamin Styer. The program opens with Anthem, a site-specific piece also by Janie Taylor featuring dancers from the Trudl Zipper Dance Institute at the Colburn School performing alongside LADP dancers.

MARTÍN + ALTSTAEDT + SCHUMANN

LACO opens its 2025/26 season with a concert of classics led by the masterful Jaime Martín. “The Hen” symphony sets the stage with Haydn’s characteristic wit and drama, followed by the Los Angeles debut of acclaimed cellist Nicolas Altstaedt performing Schumann’s lyrical Cello Concerto. Finally, fate comes knocking at the door with the four iconic notes of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5—the brilliant motif that launched music history into a powerful new beginning. 

MARTÍN + HAMELIN + BRAHMS

Our picture of the Romantic era becomes more complete as we spotlight a composer long deserving of wider attention. Louise Farrenc’s Symphony No. 2 reveals a voice shaped by but distinct from her male contemporaries. Pianist Marc-André Hamelin joins Music Director Jaime Martín to conjure the tempestuous beauty of Brahms’s First Piano Concerto, a beloved work that foreshadows his future symphonic brilliance. In tandem, the two pieces offer a thrilling exploration of Romanticism’s expressive power.

HILDEGARD

The year is 1147, and abbess Hildegard von Bingen has begun transcribing her visions of God, at the risk of excommunication. She enlists Richardis von Stade to illustrate these visions, and the two women quickly develop a partnership that awakens them creatively, spiritually, and—troublingly—romantically. Their sacred work faces upheaval when Hildegard’s superior forbids her and her fellow nuns from making music, threatening her standing within the Church. This highly anticipated world premiere marks LA Opera's 17th innovative collaboration with the pioneering Beth Morrison Projects, hailed as “a driving force behind America’s thriving opera scene” (Financial Times). Based on the writings of visionary, composer, and polymath, Hildegard examines the tension between spiritual calling and human constraint. With a libretto by Sarah Kirkland Snider—who is praised by The Washington Post as one of the “Top 35 Female Composers in Classical Music”—and immersive visual projection design by Deborah Johnson, captures the struggle of two gifted women determined to make their voices heard in a world that sought their silence.

THE HOLLYWOOD MODERNISTS

The Hollywood Modernists - the Second Golden Age of Film Scoring celebrates the influence of American and European modernism on composers Aaron Copland, Bernard Herrmann, Elmer Bernstein, Alex North, and Leonard Rosenman with music from the iconic films To Kill A Mockingbird, North by Northwest, A Streetcar Named Desire, and Rebel Without a Cause. 

A BRAHMSIAN AFFAIR

In this intimate salon concert, two string sextets lay bare the aftershocks of heartbreak. These works ache with nostalgia, their rich textures shaped by an ensemble of pairs: two violins, two violas, two cellos. Subtly, Brahms embeds his beloved’s name into the music itself—a secret farewell. The concert is led by Director of Chamber Music Margaret Batjer.

BEN BLISS

The second installment of LA Opera and The Wallis recital series showcases two-time GRAMMY winning bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green, named “the real showstopper” by The New York Times. Fresh from his triumphant starring turns in the Metropolitan Opera’s acclaimed productions of Champion and Fire Shut Up In My Bones and as Wotan in the LA Philharmonic’s Das Rheingold, this magnetic, fast-rising bass-baritone makes his first LA Opera and The Wallis appearance, joined by pianist Adam Nielsen.

RICHARD GOOD PLAYS MOZART

An evening of musical dialogue unfolds as pianist Richard Goode partners with LACO’s Director of Chamber Music Margaret Batjer. Schumann, writing during one of his fragile yet fervent creative periods, pours a restless inner dialogue into his First Violin Sonata. Mozart’s Piano Quartet in E-flat major is deceptively light; beneath its polished exterior lies a young composer subtly introducing risk into a genre not yet ready for it. Finally, Beethoven’s septet, beloved almost to the point of cliché, feels like a manifesto for community—music that celebrates the ensemble as a metaphor for how individual voices might coexist, challenge, and complete one another.

MONSTERS, MURDERS, SPIES, AND SPACE

Join the Scott Dunn Orchestra on this deep dive into the iconic films of the 70’s such as Star Wars, The Godfather (I&II), Chinatown, The Sting, Diamonds are Forever, Chinatown, Taxi Driver, and Murder on the Orient Express. The evening will feature music by Jerry Goldsmith, Michel Legrand, Marvin Hamlisch, David Shire, Richard Rodney Bennett, John Barry, Nina Rota, and John Williams during this concert of Hollywood’s third musical Golden Age.

A GRAND BAROQUE SALON

Harpsichordist Pierre Hantaï masterfully draws us into a world of Baroque opulence. The selected works highlight the era’s elegance and ingenuity, beginning with the dramatic sweep of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s Symphony in B-minor and the virtuosic interplay of his father Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5. The second half shifts the lens to France, where Leclair’s D major Concerto balances restraint and expressiveness. Rameau—ever the dramatist—draws back the curtain on the theatrical imagination of the French Baroque, where mythology and human complexity intertwine.

MARTÍN + SAY + BEETHOVEN

On Valentine’s weekend, LACO offers a tale of passion and intrigue, told through Fauré’s hauntingly beautiful score to the play Pelléas et Mélisande. The evening begins with a jolt of the contemporary: the world premiere of Michael Abels’s Concerto for Orchestra, bursting with Abels’s characteristic energy and color. Award-winning performer Fazil Say closes the program with Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto, where Classical restraint gives way to Romantic turbulence—a work that, even after two centuries, still feels urgent and unsettled.

FAUST + SOUSA + MENDELSSOHN

Guest conductor Dinis Sousa leads a program of transformation and artistry, bridging tradition and innovation. LACO Composer-in-Residence Huang Ruo makes his much-anticipated debut with The Tipping Point, a meditation on nature’s beauty and fragility. Violinist Isabelle Faust, celebrated for her profound interpretations, brings lyricism and depth to Schumann’s soul-stirring Violin Concerto. The journey concludes with the radiant energy of Mendelssohn’s “Italian” Symphony, a vibrant celebration of life and movement.

MARTÍN + MARWOOD + MOZART

This program lives in the glow of Classical clarity and modern invention. Music Director Jaime Martín guides LACO through Mozart’s vibrant “Haffner” symphony and Tchaikovsky’s “Mozartiana” suite—a set of loving transfigurations that recast Mozart’s style through the lush textures of the late 19th century. The concert also includes a new voice: Christopher Cerrone’s Double Concerto, featuring violinist Anthony Marwood and cellist Coleman Itzkoff.

FROM HELL TO HOLLYWOOD

Scott Dunn and his orchestra explore the music and influence on Hollywood of European émigré composers in the 1930’s forced to flee from the Nazi's. This concert will feature music by Max Steiner (director of RKO’s and later Warner Bros), Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Franz Waxman, Friedrich Hollaender, Dmitri TIomikin, Bronislau Kaper, Hanns Eisler, Erich Zeisl and others from such films as Gone with the Wind, King Kong, The Adventures of Robin Hood, Sunset Blvd, Rear Window, High Noon, Sabrina, Mutiny on the Bounty, and others. Dunn’s program will also consider the influence of Arnold Schoenberg (and the Schoenberg family) on an entire generation of film composers, including David Raksin and Leonard Rosenman.  

BAROQUE IN BLOOM

This program explores the Baroque era’s power to ignite the senses and stir the imagination. Soprano Amanda Forsythe brings expressive nuance to Handel’s arias and Bach’s glowing “Wedding Cantata”. Director of Chamber Music Margaret Batjer leads the ensemble through Vivaldi’s shadowy La Notte and Biber’s Battalia—a theatrical experiment where clashing keys and rhythms evoke chaos and conflict. Telemann’s Don Quixote closes the concert, turning Cervantes’s wandering knight into a series of sharply drawn musical vignettes.