At the mausoleum's Memorial Terrace, which is filled with works of art by the two Italian Renaissance masters, plaster-cast replicas of Michelangelo's sculptures, "La Pieta" and "The Medici Madonna," stand in the hall before a stained-glass window reproduction of Da Vinci's "The Last Supper."
The artists, who were playfully bickering throughout the show, did not seem as serious as he thought they would be, Glenn said.
"I guess they'd be more emotional in real life," he said.
Professional actor Pablo Marz, 54, who opened the show as Michelangelo, said he knows the Italian Renaissance painter well. He has been playing Michelangelo for the Forest Lawn event for the last 15 years.
"It's a great gig," he said. "Forest Lawn treats me very well and I love inspiring the kids."
Marz takes his acting cues from research and biographies of the artist, he said. He also does an Italian accent.
Carl Weintraub, 60, has been playing Da Vinci for about seven years. He reads a passage about the artist in the book "The Renaissance" by Will Durant to help immerse himself in the character, he said.
"I think he was a proud man," Weintraub said.
"He had a real work ethic, so [acting] is basically trying to put into the show that kind of vigor."
The event was part of Forest Lawn's yearly History Comes Alive program, which features different artists at the cemetery's various locations, museum Executive Director Alison Bruesehoff said.
The program is specifically for students from kindergarten to sixth-grade, she said.
Third-grade teacher Carla Rieber said she has taken students to the program for the last 10 years as part of her curriculum.
Earlier in the week, the students read about the two artists and tried their hands at carving soap-bar sculptures, she said.
"It shows them the process of understanding the difficulty of creating these sculptures," she said.
ANTHONY KIM covers education. He may be reached at (818) 637-3238 or by e-mail at anthony.h.kimlatimes.com.
