Alex Theatre

Regarding the redevelopment issue and the Alex Theatre, this historic landmark located right here in downtown Glendale is a large part of my life. Ever since I was a child, my parents brought us here. During my dad's tenure on the Glendale City Council and as mayor, I remember his passion and his commitment to this amazing theater. Outside all of these memories, it is where my brothers and I chose to celebrate his life and his legacy. This theater will always be the place where we said “Thank you, Dad.” The Alex Theatre is a place of memories, old and new. It needs to stay here for a very long time.

MARCH 19 MONDAY Sons of Norway hold a torsk and meatball dinner at 6:30 p.m. at the Lutheran Church of the Foothills, 1700 Foothill Blvd., La Cañada Flintridge. Tickets cost $20 for adults or $10 for children. Call (626) 303-6465. MARCH 20 TUESDAY Free social media workshop is from 7 to 8 p.m. at Robert Hall & Associates, 300 Glenoaks Blvd., Ste. 200, Glendale. Reservations: www.adteamla.com. San Gabriel Mountains Forever seeks artists and photographers. They are looking for paintings, drawings and photos that celebrate the beauty of the San Gabriel Mountains for a community art show held in Montrose on March 29. Call (213)

It is pitch black. Slowly a dark reddish glow lights the stage. A slim woman dressed in tight black shorts and a loose tank top walks out and, chest forward, dives to the floor, landing on her hands. She lies on her side, knees bent, and slowly rolls onto her back. She raises an arm, her fist clenched, and curls into a fetal pose on her knees. As she quickly rises, looks up and reaches out … it is as if she were being born. Or perhaps it is the memory of her birth. That is what dancer Lydia Zimmer says is the basis of “Memoriae,” a structured improvisation that played at Live Arts Los Angeles in November as part of the “Transient Truths, a collaborative dance show” - memory within the human body.

Who says classical music has to be a formal affair? Not PROJECT Trio, a classical chamber ensemble fueled by the sounds of rock 'n' roll, hip-hop and jazz, from Guns 'N Roses to Duke Ellington. With some 66 million hits on YouTube, appearances on Nickelodeon and MTV and gigs in major concert halls, coffeehouses, clubs and classrooms around the world, this Brooklyn-based ensemble - Greg Pattillo on flute, cellist Eric Stephenson and Peter Seymour on bass - has electrified audiences of all ages with its virtuosity and wild enthusiasm for making music.

Recent developments in Sacramento have resulted in the state closing redevelopment agencies which - for many municipalities - were vital sources of income to communities that allowed them to further their goals and lend support. Unfortunately, the way Assembly Bill 26 is written, it sometimes strikes at the heart of facilities, like Glendale's Alex Theatre, that have resonance and history within the community. Glendale Arts currently operates the Alex Theatre under a lease and management agreement with the Glendale Redevelopment Agency that is in effect through June 30, 2015.

Last December, Glendale's Alex Theatre hosted its first holiday concert with the resident Glendale Pops Orchestra. Less than a year old, the band is still in the process of finding its place in the tight-knit community and reaching out to the larger Southern California audience. But leader Matt Catingub, a skilled music veteran whose ability to see past the score paper, is giving this enterprise a good chance of survival. The show had a healthy attendance (less than 300 short of the Alex's 1,400 capacity)

Growing up in the San Fernando Valley area, I had the opportunity to see and hear the Glendale Symphony under the baton of the late, great Carmen Dragon. Later in life, I had an opportunity to work with Maestro Dragon, as well as his son, Darryl and his wife, Toni Tennille, for a number of years. As a result, Glendale has a special place in my life. Consequently, when the opportunity to continue this orchestral tradition and build a world-class pops orchestra in Glendale came my way, I considered it a career highlight, and a grand opportunity to keep Glendale on the map as an arts industry leader.

I have to say that I am truly sad to read the Jan. 29 commentary by Barry McComb titled “It's important to save the Alex” - not only for myself, but for all the future generations. How can this happen? How can we allow this? My grandmother moved to Glendale in the late '40s to raise her four daughters. Almost 50 years ago one of her daughters had a child, Cynthia, at Glendale Adventist Medical Center. This child, me, grew up with Grandma Garnet enjoying the arts at the Alex Theatre.

It is hard to believe that more than a decade has passed since I first arrived in Glendale in 2001 as the new executive director of the Alex Regional Theatre Board. I inherited a financially challenged organization that in that first year, came close to having to shutter the Alex Theatre. Fortunately, due to the perseverance of the board and staff, the ART Board not only survived, but has since grown into what is now known as Glendale Arts. Over the last 10 years, in addition to operating the Alex Theatre, Glendale Arts has founded the Glendale Pops Orchestra and Glendale Youth Chorus, and maintains a community arts website that attracts more than 50,000 visitors each month.

Strong communities are made up of strong, dedicated and visionary individuals, and one of those people here in Glendale has been Barry McComb with the Alex Theatre and Glendale Arts (“Glendale Arts chief to move on,” Dec. 15). As McComb moves on to Thousand Oaks for another chapter in his career, I wanted to stop for a moment and express our deepest gratitude to this very special person. I've had the privilege of working with Barry not only with Glendale Arts, but with the Glendale Educational Foundation in its formative years.