Articles by Susan diRende

Hansel and Gretel at the LA Opera Review - An Empty Candy Box

The Los Angeles Opera production of "Hansel and Gretel" at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion is a triumph of design over content

Don Carlo at the LA Opera Review- Grand Drama Grandly Done

"Don Carlo" at the LA Opera is stellar from the marvelously balanced cast of singers to the emotionally vibrant orchestra.

The Trianon Palace and Spa - Review - Paris Luxury Hotel

The Trianon Palace and Spa in Versailles is a destination in itself. If you go to Paris, even if you want to stay in the center of town for your sightseeing, you should treat yourself to a weekend getaway to this five-star country resort twelve miles outside of the city.

Snow Pea Salads

Snow peas are often served as one of many ingredients in a soup or stir fry. But their fresh, grassy taste makes them wonderful as a cold salad all by themselves.

Dmitri Hvorostovsky at the LA Opera - review

Dmitri Hvorostovsky gave the audience at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion a double treat with a program of two very different, distinctive kinds of music.

Debauve and Gallais in Paris - The King of Chocolates

On the Left Bank of Paris in a small shop that has been selling chocolates in the same storefront for over 200 years, the elegant and magical Debaube & Gallais, official chocolate maker to the Kings of France, practices the alchemy that earned them the right to place the Bourbon crest on their boxes

Paris Postcards

I pass the merry-go-rounds set up at Christmastime all over the city. It is as if the holiday turns the town into one enormous fairground. Practically every square has one with its fairy-tale ornaments and pipe-organ tunes filling the air. I dont know any other place where Christmas celebration is so publicly a part of the daily life of the city.

The Wellness Spa - LA's Best Half-Hour Massage

Last week I was tired and stressed as I drove through Culver City on Washington Boulevard. I passed a row of little shops I have driven by a hundred times. But this time the word Spa in clean-lined letters over one of the doors worked its siren song into my brain.

Cecilia Bartoli at the LA Opera - Definitely Diva

Cecilia Bartolis vibrant recital of baroque arias last night rocketed the house to its feet with a roar. It took three encores and upwards of ten curtain calls before the packed crowd at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion was finished cheering.

WIFTI - Intrepid Kiwis

New Zealanders call themselves kiwis after their national bird. The birds may be flightless, but these two New Zealanders know how to give human dreams of adventure wings.

Death of a Saleswoman - A Plastic-Storage Spoof

Donna Wheelers Death of a Saleswoman screening at the WIFTI Summit proves that creativity and not cash is the basic ingredient of a good movie.

WIFTI Summit-Conference Opens

The Women in Film and Television International (WIFTI) Summit opens for four days of conference, panels and screenings at the Park Hyatt Hotel.

The Grand Duchess at the LA Opera - Opera a la Cartoon

The Grand Duchess at the Los Angeles Opera is a fluffy confection with as much icing as cake. Americans love their sweets sweet, and this production shamelessly delivers a veritable Candyland for the eyes and ears.

Mind Dancing

The Redcat Theater in the Disney Hall Complex opened its fall '05 season with the US premiere of a dance/theater piece by JoJI Inc.Erase-E(X) fuses choreography by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, Isabella Soupart and The Wooster Group for a mind-bending dance experience.