Jami Attenberg with Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney

Tuesday, March 21, 2017
8pm 
 
Jami Attenberg
in conversation with Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
 
discussing the writing life and her new novel,
All Grown Up


Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School

Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404

PURCHASE TICKETS 
$40 Reserved Section seat + a copy of All Grown Up
$20 General Admission Section Seat 
$55 Two Reserved Section Seats + one copy of All Grown Up

From the New York Times best-selling author of The Middlesteins comes a wickedly funny novel about a thirty-nine-year-old single, childfree woman who defies convention as she seeks connection.

Jami Attenberg  is the New York Times bestselling author of five novels, including The Middlesteins and Saint Mazie. She has contributed essays about sex, urban life, and food to The New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, and Lenny Letter, among other publications. She divides her time between Brooklyn and New Orleans.

“Jami Attenberg’s sharply drawn protagonist, Andrea, has such a riveting, propulsive voice that All Grown Up is hard to put down, but I urge you to resist reading it in one sitting. Both the prose and the author’s knowing excavation of one woman’s desires, compromises, strengths, and fears deserve closer attention. Like Andrea herself, this novel is beautiful and brutal, intelligent and funny, frank and sexy.”—Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, New York Times best-selling author of The Nest

“Hilarious, courageous, and mesmerizing from page one, All Grown Up is a little gem that packs a devastating wallop. It’s that rare book I’m dying to give all my friends so we can discuss it deep into the night. I’m in awe of Jami Attenberg.” —Maria Semple, author of Where’d You Go, Bernadette

Who is Andrea Bern? When her therapist asks the question, Andrea knows the right things to say: she’s a designer, a friend, a daughter, a sister. But it’s what she leaves unsaid—she’s alone, a drinker, a former artist, a shrieker in bed, captain of the sinking ship that is her flesh—that feels the most true. Everyone around her seems to have an entirely different idea of what it means to be an adult: her best friend, Indigo, is getting married; her brother—who miraculously seems unscathed by their shared tumultuous childhood—and sister-in-law are having a hoped-for baby; and her friend Matthew continues to wholly devote himself to making dark paintings at the cost of being flat broke. 

But when Andrea’s niece finally arrives, born with a heartbreaking ailment, the Bern family is forced to reexamine what really matters. Will this drive them together or tear them apart? Told in gut-wrenchingly honest, mordantly comic vignettes, All Grown Up is a breathtaking display of Jami Attenberg’s power as a storyteller, a whip-smart examination of one woman’s life, lived entirely on her own terms.
 
Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney is the New York Timesbestselling author of The Nest, which has been translated into more than 25 languages and optioned for film by Amazon Studios with Sweeney writing the adaptation. She has an MFA from the Bennington Writing Seminars. The Nest is her first novel.

Reza Aslan with Gotham Chopra

Thursday, March 9, 2017
8pm 
 
Reza Aslan
in conversation with Gotham Chopra
 
a conversation and featuring clips from the new CNN Original Series, 
Believer with Reza Aslan
  
Theatre at UTA
United Talent Agency
9336 Civic Center Drive
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
 
This event is presented in association with CNN. 
 
Believer with Reza Aslan is a CNN Original Series that follows best-selling author and scholar of religions Reza Aslan as he immerses himself in customs and faith rituals around the globe. In the six-part spiritual adventure series, Aslan explores Ultra-Orthodox Judaism in Israel, Scientology in the U.S., Hindu asceticism in India, Vodou in Haiti, Santa Muerte in Mexico, and an apocalyptic doomsday cult in Hawaii. The hour-long series premieres Sunday, March 5, at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
 
Reza Aslan is an internationally renowned writer. His books, including his #1 New York Times Bestseller Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, have been translated into dozens of languages around the world. 
 
Aslan’s first book, No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, has been translated into seventeen languages, and was named one of the 100 most important books of the last decade by Blackwell Publishers. He is also the author of Beyond Fundamentalism: Confronting Religious Extremism in a Globalized Age (originally titled How to Win a Cosmic War), as well as editor of two volumes: Tablet and Pen: Literary Landscapes from the Modern Middle East, and Muslims and Jews in America: Commonalties, Contentions, and Complexities.
 
In addition to his continuing role as a Consulting Producer on the acclaimed HBO series The Leftovers, Aslan is also the host and Executive Producer of the television program Rough Draft with Reza Aslan, which premiered on Ovation in February.  He served as an Executive Producer on the ABC drama, Of Kings and Prophets. 
 
Aslan received his Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies from Santa Clara University (Major focus: New Testament; Minor: Greek), a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard University (Major focus: History of Religions), a PhD in the Sociology of Religions from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Iowa.
 
Aslan is a tenured Professor of Creative Writing at the University of California, Riverside and serves on the board of trustees for the Chicago Theological Seminary and The Yale Humanist Community, which supports atheists, agnostics, and humanists at home and abroad. A member of the American Academy of Religions, the Society of Biblical Literature, and the International Qur’anic Studies Association.


Gotham Chopra
is a filmmaker, author, and entrepreneur.  Most recently, along with NFL icons Tom Brady and Michael Strahan, he created and launched the original documentary series The Religion of Sports, which was just renewed for a second season and will air later this year. He’s also currently working on TV projects with both LeBron James and Ronda Rousey. Chopra’s past TV credits include multiple ESPN projects and his critically acclaimed documentary Kobe Bryant’s Muse, which was the highest performing sports documentary ever on the Showtime Network. Gotham is also behind the feature film Decoding Deepak about his father, spiritual guru Deepak Chopra. As a former journalist, Gotham reported from countless warzones and interviewed a wide range of global leaders – from President Clinton to the Dalai Lama giving him a unique worldview. Gotham’s varied experience in journalism, publishing, and entertainment had him identified by Newsweek Magazine as one of the “most powerful and influential” South Asians worth watching. Gotham currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and son and is passionate about his hometown of Boston’s sports teams

 

Raghavan Iyer

Tuesday, February 28, 2017
8:00pm Talk
6:30-7:30pm  Reception
 

An Evening with
Raghavan Iyer

discussing his latest cookbook
Smashed, Mashed, Boiled, and Baked—and Fried, Too! a celebration of potatoes in 75 irresistible recipes

William Turner Gallery
Bergamot Station Arts Center
2525 Michigan Avenue,
Santa Monica, CA 90404 

PURCHASE TICKETS 
$35 Reserved Seat + Book
$20 General Admission Seat
$95 Reserved Seat + Book + Reception*
*Reception (6:30-7:30pm) includes selections prepared from the book

Raghavan Iyer received a 2016 James Beard Award for his online video series Indian Curries: The Basics & Beyond. He is the author of 660 Curries, Indian Cooking Unfolded, Betty Crocker’s Indian Home Cooking, and The Turmeric Trail. He is also the host of the Emmy Award–winning documentary Asian Flavors and a member and past President (2014–2015) of the International Association of Culinary Professionals.

A native of Mumbai who is fluent in six languages, Raghavan is a culinary educator, spokesperson, and consultant to numerous national and international clients including General Mills, Target, and Bon Appétit Management Company (BAMCO), where he helped launch an Indian meals program and trained all BAMCO chefs across the United States in Indian cuisine and global vegan cuisine through more than 75 national workshops. 

He has written for Cooking Light, Fine Cooking, Saveur, Weight Watchers Magazine, EatingWell, Gastronomica, and many others. Raghavan is also cofounder of the Asian Culinary Arts Institutes, an organization dedicated to the preservation, understanding, and enjoyment of the culinary arts of Asia. He has a line of roasted spice blends, Turmeric Trail, and an app, Raghavan’s Indian Flavors, available through iTunes and the Android Market. 

In Smashed, Mashed, Boiled, and Baked—and Fried, Too! A Celebration of Potatoes in 75 Irresistible Recipes, Raghavan pays tribute to his favorite ingredient in a continent-by-continent celebration of the amazing potato. Its recipes, inspired by a diversity of cuisines and accompanied by enticing full-color photographs, feature scrumptious starters, like Ecuadorean Llapingachos and Sweet Potato Samosas. Hearty mains: Canadian Lamb-Potato Tortiѐre, Moroccan Potato Stew with Saffron Biscuits, Potato Lasagna. Plus rich gratins, a boundary-defying Mojito Potato-Pomegranate Salad, luscious sauces and condiments, and even desserts.

Brad Stone with Nick Bilton

Wednesday, February 8, 2017
8pm 
 
Brad Stone
Senior Executive Editor, Global Technology
Bloomberg News 

in conversation with Nick Bilton,
Special Correspondent for Vanity Fair
 
discussing his upcoming book,
The Upstarts: How Uber, Airbnb, and the Killer Companies of the New Silicon Valley Are Changing the World


Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School

Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404

PURCHASE TICKETS
$45 Reserved Section seat + a copy of The Upstarts
$20 General Admission Seat 
$95 Reception (6:30-7:30pm) + Reserved Section Seat 
        + copy of The Upstarts

Brad Stone is senior executive editor of global technology at Bloomberg News and the author of the New York Times bestseller The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon. He has covered Silicon Valley for more than 15 years and lives in San Francisco.

“Brad Stone gives us a lively, fascinating picture of the new new thing in technology—startups like Uber and Airbnb that are disrupting old businesses across the world. He provides a much needed glimpse into the companies that fail as well as the ones that make it big. And he points to the broad policy issues raised by these new technologies, which are surely no fun for the people whose lives are being disrupted.”Fareed Zakaria, author of The Post-American World and host of CNN’S “Fareed Zakaria GPS”

New York Times bestselling author of The Everything Store Brad Stone takes us deep inside the new Silicon Valley.

In 2007, the crash had Wall Street and Silicon Valley reeling. The original renegades like Steve Jobs were now the establishment, and tech had become a way of life for suburban moms as much as for visionaries. The Valley was ready for a new revolution. Enter THE UPSTARTS. Genius entrepreneurs with no lack of self-confidence created companies that turned our expectations on their heads. Travis Kalanick of Uber and Brian Chesky of Airbnb are just two of the disrupters Brad Stone examines in this fly-on-the-wall look at the intersection of tech, business, and culture. With unprecedented access to all the key players, Stone illuminates the smart, driven, and often comically flawed people who are upending industries and changing the way we all live and work.

The world today is vastly different than it was even ten years ago, and it is due to the upstarts. In THE UPSTARTS, Brad Stone provides the rollicking narrative that shows the how our latest–and perhaps greatest–technological wave was born.

Nick Bilton is a Special Correspondent for Vanity Fair, where he writes about technology, politics, business and culture. He is also a contributor to CNBC, and a former columnist and reporter for The New York Times.

He has written three books, including The New York Times bestseller, Hatching Twitter, which chronicled the turmoil and chaos inside Twitter as it grew from a fledgling startup to a multi-billion dollar company. The book is currently being turned into a TV show for Lionsgate.

His next book, American Kingpin, will be published in May, 2017. The book tells epic story of the hunt for the Dread Pirate Roberts, who created The Silk Road marketplace, which sold guns and drugs on the dark web.

Over the years, Bilton’s columns and articles have led to investigations by the U.S. government, and helped press the Federal Aviation Administration to overturn a rule requiring people to turn off devices during takeoff and landing. 

T Bone Burnett with Jonathan Taplin

Monday, January 30, 2017
8pm 
 
T Bone Burnett
in conversation Jonathan Taplin
 
The Value of the Artist,
and the Value of Art


Ann and Jerry Moss Theatre
New Roads School

Herb Alpert Educational Village
3131 Olympic Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90404

PURCHASE TICKETS
$20 General Admission Seat
$30 Reserved Section Seat 
$95 Reception (6:30-7:30pm) + Reserved Section Seat

T Bone Burnett recently gave gave the keynote address at AmericanaFest convention of the Americana Music Association on the value of the artist and the value of art.  We felt the compelling speech needed to be delved into further and invited him to our stage. Read more about the speech.

T Bone Burnett is an Academy Award winner, a Golden Globe winner and 13-time Grammy Award winner. He’s worked and collaborated with musicians across many genres including Elton John, Robert Plant, Alison Krauss, B.B. King, Tony Bennett, k.d. lang, Elvis Costello, The Civil Wars, Taylor Swift, Ryan Bingham, Steve Earle and Leon Russell. With 50-years’ experience in music and entertainment, he has earned an unparalleled reputation as a first-rate innovative artist, songwriter, producer, performer, film and concert producer, record company owner and artists’ advocate.

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Burnett grew up in Fort Worth, Texas where he first began writing songs and making records. Burnett was traveling the country as a free-lance record producer when he was asked by Bob Dylan to play guitar in his band on the now-legendary Rolling Thunder Revue tour leading Burnett to form the Alpha Band with David Mansfield and Steven Soles. Burnett made three acclaimed albums with the group before making a string of solo records in the 1980’s at the end of which, he began to work in film, beginning with Roy Orbison’s, A Black and White Night.

Burnett’s first major foray into film was his collaboration with the Coen Brothers on The Big Lebowski, and has since held multiple titles for numerous films including The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Cold Mountain, The Hunger Games, Walk The Line, Inside Llewyn Davis and Crazy Heart, which he also produced. He also has multiple credits in television including as the Executive Music Producer and Composer for the HBO series True Detective, and he was Executive Music Producer and Composer for the first season of the ABC television series, Nashville. He is currently producing and narrating an animated series with Drew Christie called Drawn and Recorded.

Jonathan Taplin is an author and Director Emeritus of the USC Annenberg Innovation Lab. Taplin’s book Move Fast and Break Things: How Google, Facebook and Amazon Have Cornered Culture and Undermined Democracy will be published in April, 2017. Taplin began his entertainment career in 1969 as Tour Manager for Bob Dylan and The Band. In 1973 he produced Martin Scorsese’s first feature film, Mean Streets that was selected for the Cannes Film Festival. Between 1974 and 1996, Taplin produced 26 hours of television documentaries (including The Prize and Cadillac Desert for PBS) and 12 feature films including The Last Waltz, Until The End of the World, Under Fire and To Die For. His films were nominated for Oscar and Golden Globe awards and chosen for The Cannes Film Festival seven times. 

A graduate of Princeton University, Taplin was a Professor at the USC Annenberg School for Communications and Journalism from 2003-2016. He is a member of the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He was appointed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to the California Broadband Task Force in January of 2007. He currently sits on Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Council on Technology and Innovation. His commentary has been published  by The New York Times, Time.com, The Huffington Post, Medium and Talking Points Memo.

 

Thomas L. Friedman

Friday, December 9, 2016
Note this is a morning event!
7:45-8:15am Continental Breakfast
8:15-9:15am Forum

Thomas L. Friedman 

discussing his upcoming book, 
Thank You for Being Late:
Finding a Job, Running a Country, and Keeping Your Head in an Age of Accelerations

Gensler
Downtown Los Angeles
500 South Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90071

PURCHASE TICKETS:
$50 includes one copy of Thomas Friedman’s book
$65 includes attendance for two, and one copy of Thomas Friedman’s book
* includes continental breakfast

Thomas L. Friedman is a three-time recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for his work with The New York Times and the author of six bestselling books, including The World Is Flat.

Friedman’s new book is a field guide to the twenty-first century, written by one of its most celebrated observers

In his most ambitious work to date, Thomas L. Friedman shows that we have entered an age of dizzying acceleration–and explains how to live in it. Due to an exponential increase in computing power, climbers atop Mount Everest enjoy excellent cell-phone service and self-driving cars are taking to the roads. A parallel explosion of economic interdependency has created new riches as well as spiraling debt burdens. Meanwhile, Mother Nature is also seeing dramatic changes as carbon levels rise and species go extinct, with compounding results.

How do these changes interact, and how can we cope with them? To get a better purchase on the present, Friedman returns to his Minnesota childhood and sketches a world where politics worked and joining the middle class was an achievable goal. Today, by contrast, it is easier than ever to be a maker (try 3-D printing) or a breaker (the Islamic State excels at using Twitter), but harder than ever to be a leader or merely “average.” Friedman concludes that nations and individuals must learn to be fast (innovative and quick to adapt), fair (prepared to help the casualties of change), and slow (adept at shutting out the noise and accessing their deepest values). With vision, authority, and wit,Thank You for Being Late establishes a blueprint for how to think about our times.

Ticket sales are final.  No refunds.