The Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center, located on the Cal State Long Beach campus, unveiled its 26th season this week, welcoming back audiences with music, dance, comedy and speaking performances.
Like all area theatres, the center had to close in March 2020 due to health restrictions caused by the pandemic.
“With the reopening of the Carpenter Center, we’re thrilled to once again share the magic and energy of live performance with our arts community,” Executive Director Megan Kline Crockett said in a statement.
Among the performers scheduled to grace the center’s stage during its 2021-2022 season are musicians David Burnham, Allan Harris, Igudesman & Joo, Storm Large and Branford Marsalis; comedian Paula Poundstone; writer Anne Lamott; and dance troupes A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, Les Ballets Trockadero and MOMIX.
For the December holidays, composer and conductor David Sneed will lead a cast of musicians and vocalists in original arrangements of memorable holiday scores.
And jazz pianist and composer David Benoit will present Vince Guaraldi holiday tunes from the classic “A Charlie Brown Christmas” television show, along with other favorites. He will be joined by up-and-coming jazz vocalist Courtney Fortune.
“We’ve invited back some of our favorite performers along with exceptional artists new to our stage who embody our commitment to celebrate the joy, wonder and diversity of the performing arts,” Crockett said.
First up on the schedule is jazz saxophonist Marsalis on Nov. 6, with “an evening of dazzling virtuosity, heartfelt ballads and telepathic improvisations with his famed quartet,” as the Carpenter Center notes.
Vocalist Large then performs on Nov. 10 and 11, the first of the center’s intimate Cabaret series of single-artist performances—which has patrons seated at tables on the stage—showcasing, as the center describes, Large’s “sultry and subversive renditions of jazz standards, Broadway showstoppers and classic anthems, illuminating them in a gorgeous new hue.”
Then it’s onto comedy with Paula Poundstone from NPR’s radio show, “Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me!” on Dec. 11. After the two December holiday shows, music, dance and other performances continue at the theatre from January through May 2022.
The Carpenter Center’s full 2021-2022 schedule, along with tickets, artist links and other information, can be accessed through its website at carpenterarts.org.
The box office will open for in-person ticket purchases on Oct. 1 and can be reached at (562) 985-7000 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mondays through Fridays. The theatre is located at 6200 E. Atherton St. on the CSULB campus.
To protect its artists and crews during the ongoing pandemic, the Carpenter Center asks patrons to show proof of vaccination before entering the venue and wear masks during performances.
