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Hollywood Bowl Celebrates 90
With 90 Stories In 90 Days
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The Hollywood Bowl is able to tell its own story through the Bowl’s outstanding history. To celebrate its 90th season a piece of Bowl history will be posted every day starting Monday, June 13 until the start of the 2011 season.
Through the Depression, World War II, near-financial ruin in the 1950s, the flower-power 60s and beyond, the Hollywood Bowl has offered its patrons a chance to escape their busy lives and join fellow music lovers in an amazing variety of classical, rock, pop and jazz concerts. And it’s been doing that every summer for 90 seasons.
Now that’s the Bowl’s story and in a mere nine days the Bowl is done telling its story and would like for bowl fans, patrons, longtime ticketholders and Bowl newcomers to share their most memorable experiences at this one-of-a-kind venue nestled in the Hollywood Hills by posting stories on the Bowl’s website. http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/story/
Every Monday of the 2011 Bowl season a theme will be provided which highlights one of the many unique attributes patrons experience when going to a concert at the Bowl. Whether the story is about food, fun, dancing or dollar seats, the Bowl is seeking to solicit various stories and will be picking the best one to feature as a “Story of the Week.” The winning story in the Story of the Week gallery will be featured on their website and Facebook page for all Bowl fans to enjoy.
Just to reflect on a small portion of Bowl history in 1921 the Los Angeles Philharmonic first played at the Hollywood Bowl at an Easter Sunrise Service, which inaugurated the first official Hollywood Bowl season, called “Symphonies Under the Stars,” in July of 1922. The Hollywood Bowl has since had the privilege to be the summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic ever since.
In 1919 William Andrews Clark, Jr founded the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The Philharmonic has risen to international prominence under the guidance of ten distinguished musical directors, the most recent of whom is Gustavo Dudamel. Virtually every classical soloist and conductor has appeared at the Hollywood Bowl. Violinist Jascha Heifetz made his debut at the Bowl in 1931, conductor Zubin Mehta in 1961, and Gustavo Dudamel made his U.S. debut at the Bowl in 2005.
Funding the Bowl’s first concert season in 1922 was truly unique community effort. Cardboard banks were distributed everywhere to raise “pennies for the Bowl.” Society events brought in larger donations from the more affluent. The Proceeds from a pre-season production of Bizet’s Carmen paid for the amphitheatre’s first seats.
So start sorting through your Bowl memories and dust off those old photos from your Bowl experiences because the Hollywood Bowl will start accepting story submissions June 13th. If you have yet to experience a Hollywood Bowl concert make sure to check out the upcoming concerts during this remarkable 90th season filled with talent you won’t want to miss.