Arts & Culture in Universal City

Kinetic Theory helps aspiring clowns, acrobats, and plate spinners learn the dangling ropes of circus showmanship with its performance-training program. Led by veteran performers including Cirque du Soleil alums and professionally trained aerialists, the intro to circus arts course incorporates elements of aerial arts, acrobatics, physical training, and basic object skills such as clown-car repair to provide a well-rounded primer on big-top performance. Classes are kept small so students can focus on learning essential skills necessary for safe tumbling and performance, while also improving fitness with a dynamic workout. Kinetic Theory's spacious studio features sturdy safety mats beneath a variety of ropes, silk drapes, and trapezes that provide the playful nostalgia of a playground without the muckraking toddler politics. Introductory classes are held Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Sunday afternoons for adults, while youth sessions take place Thursday afternoons for children as young as 6 years old.

The Murder Mystery Company's talented troupe of improv actors performs live-action murder mysteries at public and private events to sharpen guests' latent detective skills. Throughout the play, the cast drops hints and misdirects blame, inviting audience members to get involved in a web of intrigue and hilarity. Besides public dinner parties, murder mysteries can unfold during corporate events, team-building exercises, and birthday parties for aging Sherlock Holmes impersonators.

Amid the bustle of Hollywood Boulevard stand two monuments to the silver screen. One, the TCL Chinese Theatre, oozes with history— imported Chinese stone lions, a 90-foot-tall copper roof, and concrete blocks that bear the handprints of Hollywood luminaries from years gone by each memorialize the celebrated role the building has played in Hollywood for more than eight decades.

Next door, Chinese 6 Theatres is a tribute to the cutting-edge. Six theaters, some with 3D capability, immerse viewers in ultra-realistic picture and sound better than sitting inside Steven Spielberg's android brain. Beyond the plush theater seating, a bar slings cocktails for in-movie sipping and a restaurant serves a full menu for cravings after the show. The service schedule varies for the bar and the restaurant but both will be open during Summer 2013. Whether they opt for the historic cinema or the ultramodern theater, visitors can catch a full slate of acclaimed new releases on their chosen big screen.

The storied history of TCL Chinese Theatre rivals those of the more than 200 celebrities whose handprints, footprints, and autographs are cemented into the theater's forecourt. Erected in 1927 and declared a historical and cultural landmark in 1968, the iconic theater stages movie screenings, premieres, events, and red-carpet ceremonies. Today, moviegoers walking through the theater's main courtyard can revel in the same opulence of those 1920s screen idols, craning their necks upward to take in the looming pagoda that frames the entrance. Inside, the theater's original 1927 screen towers high above the plush red-velvet seats, surrounded by wooden panels that rise to a ceiling with flowing Chinese-style drawings. This classic Hollywood setting is one of the reasons why the theater, in an echo of its origins, hosts celebrity-studded premieres, such as the 2012 opening for Life of Pi and the 2013 opening for Beautiful Creatures.

The Los Angeles Ballet is a group of more than two dozen dancers who prance across the stage like marionettes controlled by Santa's team of bethumbed reindeer. See this renowned company perform a holiday classic to the choreography of experienced husband and wife team Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary.

J.R.'s Comedy Club stocks an ever-crisp rotation of established and up-and-coming comedians. At both of the club's locations, longtime actress and regular host Diana Angelina ushers each new crop of comics into the spotlight and around the stages' knock-knock-joke-activated trapdoors. J.R.’s Comedy Club also schools aspiring stand-up jokesters with its six-week comedy workshop, and works closely with the community to host fundraisers that benefit schools, churches, medical facilities, and sports teams.

In 2008, South Pacific swept the Tony Awards®, capturing seven golden trophies, including Best Musical Revival and Best Director for Bartlett Sher. Based on James Michener's Pulitzer Prize–winning book, Tales of the South Pacific, South Pacific tells, dances, and sings the story of two couples—Navy nurse Nellie Forbush with French plantation owner Emile de Becque, and airman Joe Cable with lovely native lass Liat— torn by war and the temptations of tropical paradise. The original production won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 1950, with its frank depiction of racial prejudice as a central theme.