Nicole Farhadian, the 5-year-old daughter of Kari Rundolph, a regular reader of the Santa Monica Daily Press, has won this week’s mystery photo contest. The photo is a dish on top of the Santa Monica Courthouse. Rudolph has won a gift certificate to Izzy’s Deli. Check out Monday’s edition for the next mystery photo contest.
See BRIEFS, page 7 PROP LL, from page 1 Man,” with a Santa Monica High School Performing Arts production-ensemble of more than 200, including cast, full orchestra, chorale and marching band.
Meredith Wilson’s “The Music Man” plays March 3, 4, 5 and 12 in Barnum Hall, the Art-Moderne landmark that has recently undergone an $8.1 million renovation on the Santa Monica High School campus. “’The Music Man’ is a completely wonderful play, with a history of delighting audiences for more than a generation,” said Dr. Frank X. Ford, SMCLO’s artistic director and director of the show. “But Samohi’s production will be even more compelling.
“It’s a unique opportunity to bring together the highly acclaimed band, orchestra, choral, and theatre programs,” Ford added.
Brett Fisher, SMCLO producer and managing director, serves as the show’s musical director and orchestra conductor, putting to use 10 year’s worth of skills with the baton.
“It’s a privilege to conduct such a large ensemble of enthusiastic young performers — the largest in my career,” said Fisher, a Samohi alum, who has been a Broadway rehearsal conductor in New York. “Top-flight professional companies rarely attempt productions on this scale, and these students have been eager for this challenge.”
‘The Music Man’ previews Thursday, March 3 at 7 p.m. and opens Friday, March 4 at 8 p.m. Additional performances are Saturday, March 5 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. and Saturday, March 12 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 ($15 for the preview).
Tickets for all remaining ‘05 season productions — including group discounts — are available on campus, 601 Pico Blvd. in Santa Monica, at the SMCLO box office in the Humanities Center Theater; by phone at (310) 458-5939, or on the Internet at www.smclo.org.
The SMCLO, a sponsored educational activity of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, serves as a partner to Samohi’s Theatre Arts Program, enhancing the student experience through mentoring by alumni and theatre professionals and developing productions for the Humanities Center and Barnum Hall stages.
The SMCLO/Samohi season also features bonus productions of Edward Albee’s searing drama, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” playing May 19-28, and the selected one-act comedies of David Ives, playing June 3 and 4, both in the Humanities Center Theater. Tickets are $10-15.
“My Fair Lady,” the grandest of the Lerner and Loewe musicals, gives the season a grand finale — an SMCLO production featuring talented alumni, working professionals, and accomplished high school students. “My Fair Lady” runs July 14- 30. Tickets are $15-30. Embassy Hotel’s history on display beach town by providing an elegant and luxurious living environment, according to historians.
In the late 1920s, multi-story apartment hotels were in vogue in Santa Monica. They were built to accommodate long-staying summer visitors. As people began to settle permanently in Southern California, a demand for year-round housing developed. Typical of such luxury residential hotels are The Embassy, The Sovereign and The Charmont, which were built north of Wilshire Boulevard a few blocks from the ocean.
The Embassy Hotel Apartments, 1001 Third St., was designed by Arthur E. Harvey who also designed several notable buildings in Los Angeles. It is remarkably intact with the addition of a penthouse being the only major alteration to the exterior, estimated to be constructed in the 1930s, according to officials. The Embassy now houses long-term residents as well as temporary visitors.
The Embassy is built in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, characterized by red clay tile roof covering, prominent arches, smooth stucco exterior, and an asymmetrical façade. Other traits include decorative wrought iron and pierced window grilles, cornice ornamentation, cantilevered and corbelled balconies, and lushly landscaped main courtyard and fountain. Like the other apartment hotels, it has elegant exterior ornamentation, courtyards, fountains, gracious lobby, and extensive architectural detailing, including the band of shields at its roof line, officials said.
At the beginning of the meeting, there will be a tour of some of the Embassy rooms from 1:30 to 2:15 p.m. The annual meeting, which is open to Santa Monica Conservancy members only, will include a report on the state of the conservancy and election of board of directors, followed by a brief discussion on Spanish Colonial Revival architecture in 1920s Southern California by Ken Breisch, adjunct associate professor director of the historic preservation program, at the USC School of Architecture. Paid parking is available in a lot at 233 Wilshire Blvd., and in parking structure No. 9 on Fourth Street, south of Wilshire Boulevard.
To join the conservancy, which costs $25, or to make a reservation, call (310) 458-0399 or e-mail to
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 1, 2005. Read the original PDF.