Live from the Hollywood Bowl

Encore number at Fantasia - Hollywood Bowl, August 21, 2011

I was invited last night to attend a concert at the Hollywood Bowl, one of the most beautiful spots in Los Angeles, if not the country. The mountains ring the arena, and the ridge line over the top always reminds me of something from a Fellini film -- I almost expect a line of singing and dancing people to rise up over it and toward us. As the sun sets, the air gets cooler and cooler until you need to put a sweater on, and when the music begins it feels as if you've left one of the country's largest cities for some kind of alternate universe. The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra played music along with the old movie Fantasia, which had been beautifully restored. I confess that when my friend invited me, I wasn't excited. I'm not that into Fantasia. Can I tell you that the night was fantastic? Not only was the food delicious -- we sat in a little box and ate Caesar salad, tomato salad, smoked salmon salad and whoopie pies -- but the music, live, alongside the beautiful images was magical. The conductor led us through the history of Walt Disney's work on the movie and the incredible amount of artistry that was required pre-computer animation. He also showed a short film that Disney collaborated on with Salvador Dali that combined the sensibilities of the two artists -- at the end of it, the four of us sat with our mouths open. The music alone was worth the entire night: