In an effort to raise awareness and support for ocean conservation, the public-private ocean institute at the Port of Los Angeles, AltaSea, has organized a drive-in experience featuring music, art and film, including a massive art installation projected on the USS Iowa and a recorded performance from a section of Peter Sellars latest opera, the ocean-inspired transformation of Mozart’s “Idomeneo.”
“The entertainment industry is one of the most powerful industries in the world, and when they speak out on an issue, people pay attention and listen,” said AltaSea CEO Tim McOsker in a statement. “These world-class artists, through their different mediums, will help amplify the important message that our oceans need our attention.”
The two-and-a-half-hour event on Saturday, Oct. 10, called “The Blue Hour,” will host 240 cars in the parking lot area next to the retired battleship while guests tune into an FM radio station to listen to many film and musical spectacles focused on the beauty and critical state of ocean ecology. All proceeds will go towards AltaSea’s Project Blue educational programs and conservation efforts.
Enlisting the talents of world-renowned, multi-media artists Annie Sperling, Mason Rothschild and Refik Anadol, the trio has created a dynamic, interactive visual display that will be projected onto the surface of the USS Iowa. Using projection mapping technology, similar to the “Dark Arts at Hogwarts Castle” show at Universal Studios, the USS Iowa projection will feature a timeline of the evolution of ocean exploration.
Several films will be shown on a 50-foot inflatable screen including footage of the great barrier reef marine park filmed by the Schmidt Ocean Institute, the debut of the Map of La Jolla Ocean Canyons, presented by the Walter Munk Foundation and a collection of “evocative and motivational” videos, provided by AltaSea, about the “wonders, dangers and solutions found at sea.”
A recorded “pivotal section” of award-winning opera director Peter Sellar’s latest opera, a climate change interpretation of Mozart’s “Idomeneo,” will be shown, and will include a few words by the director before its viewing.
Three individuals, considered pioneers in their efforts leading the charge in ocean preservation, will receive awards during the event. This includes Robert Ballard, a deep-sea explorer best known for his discoveries of the sunken R.M.S Titanic and the German battleship Bismarck and Dawn Right, chief scientist for the Environmental Systems Research Institute and the first African-American woman to dive to the ocean floor.
Also recognized will be Avantika Vijesh, a 4th grader who has lent her voice to AltaSea’s Project Blue initiative, helping lead her community towards greater ocean conservation education.
Tickets start at $250 for vehicles with four or less occupants and cap at $1,000 for VIP placement of a vehicle. Tickets also include two vegetarian “lite-bites” boxes from the San Pedro Brewing Company and one “swag bag” per attendee. To purchase tickets, click here.
The USS Iowa is located at 250 S. Harbor Blvd.
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