Patti LuPone
Carpenter Performing Arts Center6200 Atherton St., Los Angeles 90815
Patti LuPone brings Songs from a Hat, an unscripted evening of showstoppers drawn from slips of paper in her top hat. The three-time Tony Award winner chooses from her best-known and personal favorite songs, with Scott Wittman directing and Joseph Thalken as music director.
The New York Times' Maureen Dowd has called LuPone “a genuine Golden Age Broadway star,” writing that she carries an “electric current” that makes an audience feel personally addressed.
Named for pop duo and alumni Karen and Richard Carpenter, this 1,054-seat concert hall pairs the acoustics and sightlines of a premier civic theater with the welcoming ease of a campus arts hub. Visitors arrive early through a curved glass facade to browse a permanent lobby showcase of original instruments, gold records, and memorabilia before taking reserved tiered seats. The stage accommodates everything from touring jazz ensembles and symphonies to Broadway musicals by resident company Musical Theatre West, along with an occasional cabaret setup where small tables and chairs move directly onto the stage floor behind the main curtain. Light refreshments and beverages are available in the lobby to enjoy before showtime, and while the focused, listening-room atmosphere commands rapt attention throughout performances, the surrounding East Long Beach neighborhood offers plenty of casual dining just off the freeway.