MUSE/IQUE Announces 2024 Six Concert Season

MUSE/IQUE announces its 2024 season: “Make Some Noise: Music and Stories of American Defiance and Hope”; six concerts that celebrate transformative American artists and thinkers who rejected norms and limitations to forge a new and better future. 

The season opens March 15, 16 and 17 with “Magic Hour in Los Angeles: America's Cultural Renaissance of 1974” at the Mark Taper Forum at the Music Center, a first-time association with Center Theatre Group.
 
MUSE/IQUE Artistic and Music Director Rachael Worby said, “When artists and thinkers make loud choices and take bold stances, they teach us that nothing is impossible.” MUSE/IQUE starts the season by exploring 1974 Los Angeles, which saw an explosion of creativity in film, television, and popular music. 

Later in the season, MUSE/IQUE will examine how Ed Sullivan transformed American culture one Sunday night at a time (April 30-May 1); how Bob Dylan challenged the music establishment at the Newport Folk Festival with an electric guitar (June 22-23); how Rodgers and Hammerstein invented the modern musical with “Oklahoma!” (July 26-27-28); when The Moulin Rouge opened in 1955 as the first integrated hotel in the United States (August 27-28, September 4-5); and finally, how Abraham Lincoln turned to music for comfort, encouragement and hope (October 16-17-20). This season is a celebration of the people, the stories and the music that moved America.

Each concert cycle is performed at various Los Angeles sites including The Huntington, Skirball Cultural, Center, The Wallis, and Pasadena Memorial Park. Reservations for the March 15-16-17 performance “Magic Hour 1974” are now open for members. For those new to MUSE/IQUE please visit muse-ique.com to learn about attending MUSE/IQUE events and to explore membership plans.

 
MUSE/IQUE 2024 Season Concerts

 
Magic Hour in Los Angeles: America's Cultural Renaissance of 1974
Friday, March 15; Saturday, March 16; Sunday, March 17 at the Mark Taper Forum
The Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles CA 90012
In association with Center Theatre Group
 
1974 in Los Angeles was, in a word, magic. At a time when Americans began breaking free from post-war conformity, the city that outsiders once considered glitzy and superficial emerged as the unlikely cultural epicenter for exponential creativity and blossoming self-expression and awakening. From this “Magic Hour,” sprung forth not only groundbreaking works of art from film, television, and recording studios alike, but also the idea that it is often art and pop culture that leads our way forward. Join MUSE/IQUE and Artistic & Music Director Rachael Worby for our soaring season opener as we celebrate the creative heavy hitters who transformed our city and the year that crowned Los Angeles the cultural capital of the world.
 
Really Big Show: How Ed Sullivan Changed America Every Sunday Night
Tuesday,  April 30 and Wednesday, May 1 at 7:30 pm at The Huntington
Outside at The Huntington, 1151 Oxford Rd, San Marino, CA 91108
Sunday, May 5 at 7:30 pm at Skirball Cultural Center
Indoors at Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049
 
Every Sunday Night, in front of a live studio audience, Ed Sullivan promised millions of Americans gathered around televisions in their living rooms a “really big show.” Beginning in the late 1940s and enduring for another 21 years, The Ed Sullivan Show was the ultimate primetime, must-watch variety show; a show that broke the mold and turned a revolving door of top-notch dancers, singers, bands, comedians, and a variety of entertainers into overnight sensations. But the true magic was how The Ed Sullivan Show was the way its on-air talent reflected the true diversity of the American public; Ed welcomed guests regardless of their race, ethnicity, or nationality when it was exceedingly unpopular and difficult to do so. The Ed Sullivan Show held up a mirror to America and reflected the possibility of a more hopeful and harmonious future. Join MUSE/IQUE and Artistic & Music Director Rachael Worby for a “really big shoo”—as Ed’s impersonators would lovingly pronounce it!—that celebrates how Ed Sullivan shook up the system and reached into living rooms across the country and into our hearts, minds, and imaginations. 
 
The Judas of Folk: Dylan Plugs In
Open House: June 22 and 23 at Pasadena Memorial Park
85 E. Holly Street, Pasadena CA 91103
Tuesday, June 25 and Wednesday, June 26 at Skirball Cultural Center
Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049
 
It was outrageous. It was audacious. It was electric. When Bob Dylan plugged in his guitar for an electric set at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965, he changed the conversation about the rules of music and art forever. With his stunning “betrayal” in Newport, Dylan challenged the conventions of folk and propelled the genre into thrilling new territory. Join MUSE/IQUE and Artistic & Music Director Rachael Worby as we trace the progression of folk music from its traditional roots to its role as the music of movements and protests; to Dylan’s bold swing, and beyond. 
 
Plenty of Heart, Plenty of Hope: The Making of Oklahoma! and the Modern Musical
Friday, July 26; Saturday, July 27; Sunday, July 28 at The Wallis
The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts
9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills CA 90210
 
Oklahoma! was undoubtedly the first of its kind. In the early 1940s, it was unconceivable to combine the complex storytelling of the typical stage play with the music and movement of traditional musicals. All of that changed when composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein joined forces for what would be the very first of many legendary collaborations. Their provocative, unprecedented musical dared to tackle darker themes and serious subject matter all while capturing the hopeful, resilient spirit of the nation. With its ambitious dream ballet sequence and stirring musical motifs, Oklahoma! broke and rewrote all the rules for what was possible on Broadway. Join MUSE/IQUE and Artstic & Music Artistic Rachael Worby for the dazzling story behind Oklahoma! and how its enduring legacy inspires us to dream differently.
 
Freedom at The Moulin Rouge: A Las Vegas Civil Rights Story
Tuesday,  August 27 and Wednesday, August 28 at 7:30 pm at The Huntington
Outside at The Huntington, 1151 Oxford Rd, San Marino, CA 91108
Wednesday, September 4 at 7:30 pm and Thursday, September 5 at Skirball Cultural Center
Indoors at Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049
 
For one short year in 1955, The Moulin Rouge Hotel and Casino had its name up in neon lights. MUSE/IQUE and Artistic & Music Director Rachael Worby present Freedom at The Moulin Rouge, the incredible, under-told story of the first-ever fully integrated hotel and casino in the country. Located just off The Strip in Las Vegas, which catered exclusively to white guests, The Moulin Rouge was a miraculous, vibrant place where people of all backgrounds could come together to relax, gamble, and, of course, dance ‘til dawn. Attracting a who’s-who of late-night patrons, including Nat King Cole, Sammy Davis Jr., Harry Belafonte and Lena Horne, as well as Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, and Marlene Dietrich, The Moulin Rouge sparked a new vision of people living, working, and making art together. Join us as we explore how, in a place that reflects the very best and very worst of America, The Moulin Rouge became a symbol for a community that ignited a movement and left an everlasting mark on Las Vegas that reverberates today.
 
Indivisible: The Glory of Lincoln's Musical Soul
Wednesday, October 16 and Thursday, October 17 at 7:30 pm at The Huntington
Outside at The Huntington, 1151 Oxford Rd, San Marino, CA 91108
Sunday, October 20 at 7:30 pm and Thursday, September 5 at Skirball Cultural Center
Indoors at Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N Sepulveda Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049
 
In dark and uncertain times, music has always given us the courage of conviction. With much of his presidency plagued by war and civil unrest, Abraham Lincoln often turned to music for comfort, encouragement, and hope. Though he neither sang nor played an instrument, Lincoln once said: “Listening to melody, every man becomes his own poet, and measures the depth of his own nature.” Join MUSE/IQUE and Artistic Director Rachael Worby for our invigorating season finale, where we examine the impact of music on Lincoln’s soul. This triumphant performance celebrates the power of art to unite us and inspire us to keep marching forward. 

MUSE/IQUE revival productions celebrate some of our favorite past curations and programs. We revisit these stories with the goal of bringing them to a wider audience. Versions of this production were first presented in 2015 and 2023. 
 
Season After Party: Major Donor Thank You Celebration
November 2024 | Location TBD
This event is our thank you to the major donors that give at the $5,000 level and above and make it possible for our programs to be affordable and accessible at all.
 
We're reimagining one of our members' most beloved MUSE/IQUE performances, “Tapestry at 50,” as we return to Los Angeles in the 1970s. In 1971, Carole King moved from New York to the City of Angels to change the course of her career. Instead, she changed the world. From “You’ve Got a Friend” to “Where You Lead” and “I Feel the Earth Move” to “Natural Woman,” Tapestry changed the musical landscape for singer-songwriters and became a quintessential piece of Los Angeles’s musical history that paved the way for the cultural explosion of 1974.

 
Over the past decade, MUSE/IQUE has curated and presented unexpected live music adventures that shake loose the customs, norms and barriers of the traditional concert-going experience. MUSE/IQUE has never had a formal concert hall - the city is the venue - and no set genres or styles of performance are emphasized. Instead, cross-genre, multidisciplinary performances are placed in iconic community locales.
 
Led by Founder and Artistic and Music Director Rachael Worby, MUSE/IQUE is a member-supported, nonprofit performing arts organization making radically engaging live music experiences accessible for all. Built on a tradition of community and collaboration, we create events that feature an eclectic mix of artists and artistic disciplines in unconventional locations – spaces where art typically does not happen. MUSE/IQUE was founded by Artistic Director Rachael Worby to upend the misconception that the performing arts are elitist, unapproachable, and, frankly, dull! MUSE/IQUE’s mission is to build empathy and expand imaginations through transformative live events and strong partnerships with fellow nonprofit organizations in Pasadena and the greater Los Angeles area.
 
In addition to its live public performances, MUSE/IQUE’S OFF STAGE brings intimate, interactive events for 18 community partner organizations. Each on-site event gives participants a curated experience based on programmatic themes of our upcoming performances, and features guest artists direct from the MUSE/IQUE stage. Led by MUSE/IQUE staff, these events explore self-expression, encourage self-confidence and engage imaginations through music. Partners include Ability First, Academy of Music for the Blind, California School of the Arts - San Gabriel Valley, Five Acres, Hathaway/Sycamores, Hillsides, Jazz Hands for Autism, Learning Works, Mindful Veterans Project, Pasadena Senior Center, Performing Arts For All, Professional Child Development Center, Rose Bowl Aquatics Center, Union Station Homeless Services, Urban Compass, Villa Esperanza School, Villa Esperanza Adult Day Program, and Youth Emerging Stronger.
 
Presenting performances at landmark locations, MUSE/IQUE goes beyond the concert hall and into the community with spectacularly intimate performances that combine music, movement, and ideas from a diverse range of genres. MUSE/IQUE’s artistic collective consists of top musicians from the worlds of jazz, rock, blues, gospel, and more, along with today’s best singers, dancers, and thinkers. Together with an enthusiastic and growing audience base, these artists reimagine the possibilities for the live music experience. Founded in 2011, MUSE/IQUE is a membership driven organization presenting six major public events each year as well as a wide range of education and community engagement programs.

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