Theater West: Mini-Mass

Mini-Mass

There are not one, nor two, but three Leonard Bernstein Masses extant, it seems. California is presently rejoicing in version C, the mini-Mass, which Mr. Bernstein himself says “has the quality of a brand-new work.” A revamping and reduction of the grandiose A version which enthralled everyone but the critics at the dedication of the Kennedy Center has produced a spectacle that is probably quite loud and large enough for most tastes, although it deploys a mere sixty actors, singers, and dancers instead of the original cast of thousands (well, two hundred). It is, even in this form, the biggest project yet undertaken by Los Angeles’ theatrical pride and joy, the Mark Taper Forum.

WS

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W. I. Scobie

Mini-Mass

There are not one, nor two, but three Leonard Bernstein Masses extant, it seems. California is presently rejoicing in version C, the mini-Mass, which Mr. Bernstein himself says “has the quality of a brand-new work.” A revamping and reduction of the grandiose A version which enthralled everyone but the critics at the dedication of the Kennedy Center has produced a spectacle that is probably quite loud and large enough for most tastes, although it deploys a mere sixty actors, singers, and dancers instead of the original cast of thousands (well, two hundred). It is, even in this form, the biggest project yet undertaken by Los Angeles’ theatrical pride and joy, the Mark Taper Forum.