Hollywood Weekend

There are two things I absolutely love in the summer: the Hollywood Bowl...and the Hollywood Bowl. Going there became a tradition during high school where I'd go with friends to catch movie screenings, operas, orchestra pieces, and concerts. For those unfamiliar with the Hollywood Bowl, it's a huge outdoor amphitheater that is open to the public in the summer for fabulous concerts and outdoor events.

The best part of the bowl occurs prior to the show: you get to wine and dine outdoors and "picnic" before the show begins. People bring picnic baskets filled with wine, cheese, salads, etc. and picnic outdoors on the numerous picnic tables available throughout the bowl grounds.

I attended my first bowl concert of the summer this past weekend, which also happened to be opening night where inductions into the bowl hall of fame take place. This year's inductees included Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Josh Groban. Other performers included past inductees: Roger Daltrey, Angélique Kidjo, Frederica von Stade, John Williams, and Trisha Yearwood.

Please note that I went solely for Josh Groban. Those who know me know that I'd probably stalk him if I knew where he lived. Or jump up on stage if I had the chance. Or empty my 401K account to get front row seats to his concert. His voice is AMAAAAAAZING. Amazing, I tell 'ya! But alas, I had to settle for seeing him from afar. The bowl has awesome acoustics though, so any seat, no matter how far away, has perfect sound. Below are some pictures from my weekend (click on the photos for larger viewing).

The bowl in all it's glory:


Trisha Yearwood


Dame Kiri Te Kanawa


Josh Groban (i.e., my future husband)


The evening ended with a fireworks spectacular to John Williams' Star Wars' score, perhaps his more famous and widely recognized piece.


I also managed to record some video of the performances of Josh Groban and Roger Daltrey. I will post those tomorrow.