ARTISTIC MOVEMENT ALL OVER L.A., THERE ARE CULTURAL VENUES FOR THE POPULACE TO ENJOY.

Byline: Sandra Barrera and Theo Douglas Staff Writers

Since its resurrection following the 1994 Northridge earthquake, Canoga Park's historic Madrid Theatre has served as a hotbed for performing arts.

It's a gem few people in the San Fernando Valley have yet to discover, and it's not the only one in Los Angeles County. But Saturday could be the day all that changes.

The Madrid, originally built in 1926 as a vaudeville theater, will offer free admission to an evening lineup of performances in conjunction with the annual L.A. Arts Open House.

Part of the celebration of National Arts & Humanities Month, the countywide open house is a way for the community to get to know - free of cost - what area museums, theaters and other venues have to offer. This could offer a boost to some arts centers, given that, in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, some have seen a slight decline in attendance.

That hasn't been too noticeable at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, where daily attendance averaged 877 visitors the week after, compared to 972 the year before.

``I don't feel that we've been in any major decline,'' said Keith McKeon, a spokesperson for LACMA, which normally draws 5,000 people during its open house. ``But it looks to me as though we are gradually building up to our regular attendance.''

Staff members at the Getty Center, another museum that saw a small drop-off of visitors following the attacks, are also hopeful attendance will return to normal, since admission is already free.

The Getty has lined up a day of family festivities (Oct. 20), evening concerts and openings like ``Manuel Alvarez Bravo: Optical Parables,'' which celebrates the works of the master Mexican photographer, months shy of his 100th birthday.

``In difficult times like these, museums can help provide a sense of continuity and community,'' said Deborah Gribbon, director of the Getty Museum and vice president of the J. Paul Getty Trust. ``Our galleries and gardens offer sanctuary, comfort and hope. The Getty extends a special welcome to all visitors.''

More than 36 communities are participating in the day of events, with certain areas serving as ``hubs,'' or major centers of activity.

``Los Angeles is hugely populated. Eighty-eight cities, we want to be in all of them,'' says Nicole Werner, manager of the Arts Commission Community Programs.

Valley variety

One of those hubs is the 450-seat Madrid Theatre, where audiences can spend the evening watching an East Indian woman struggle with her daughter's nontraditional career choice in the 15-minute drama ``The Family Legacy.''

The play is followed by an hour-long presentation of India's folk music and dance. A group called Fidgety Feet will tap dance to the music of George Gershwin, Duke Ellington and Cole Porter, and the San Fernando Valley Chorus will show ``Real Men Sing'' in a musical abbondanza of popular tunes ranging from opera to the Beatles. ``If you've never been to the theater, we want you to come check us out,'' said Anisa Hamdam, performing arts theater manager for the Cultural Affairs Department for the city of L.A. ``We want to invite everybody, and not just from this end of the Valley.''

The feeling is mutual over at California State University, Northridge, another hub site, where dance programs from all corners of the Earth dominate the happenings at the Performing Arts Center.

``One of our main emphases here is to have the programming that's on our stages look like our community,'' said Dave Pier, director of the Performing Arts Center. ``That's something we do all through the year anyway.''

Saturday's performances will include the Kultura Philippine Dance Company's interpretive dance of extremes - jealousy, death, catastrophe - from the islands' indigenous Tiboli tribe, fiery flamenco of Bailes Espanoles, Bodytalk Dance troupe and underground club moves with the Team L.A. Rave Dance Company.

An emphasis will be placed on understanding during the program ``Bali & Beyond: The Music and Culture of Bali Discussion.'' Choirs will perform renditions of American classics and gospel to big band of the '40s and '50s. The silent world of an African-American woman will be revealed in the humorous drama ``The Reflection of a Black Deaf Woman.''

Also on Saturday, North Hollywood's Group Repertory Theatre hosts a production of William Inge's classic ``Come Back Little Sheba.'' The Celtic Arts Center in Valley Village explores the Irish rebellion against British rule in a costumed presentation of ``The Irish 1916 Uprising.'' And Glendale's Alex Theatre features a children's performance and lecture of ``Ballet Jazz de Montreal.''

Santa Clarita's Canyon Theatre Guild offers up ``Les Sylphides,'' a romantic ballet, and Valencia's Town Center Mall plays host to the ``Bella Via - Valencia Italian Street Painting Festival.''

In the city

Over the hill at the Getty Center, museumgoers can watch artist Robert Cunningham demonstrate terra cotta sculpture techniques. They can also take in ``Romance and Ritual: Celebrating the Jewish Wedding'' at the Skirball Cultural Center in Brentwood.

The Museum of Television & Radio in Beverly Hills screens favorite episodes of America's zaniest redhead for ``I Love Lucy's 50th Anniversary.'' In downtown L.A., the California Plaza comes to life with Latin-American percussive music as well as stories of African people.

Much of what's happening in Santa Monica centers around the 18th Street Arts Complex. Here, Awele Makeba tells the story of the women behind the Montgomery Bus Boycott through oral history and music in ``Rage Is Not a One Day Thing.''

There will also be dancing and international music and a crafts fair, featuring workshops in face painting, mask making and balloon art. ``Fringe Benefits'' is a performance-art piece that explores the impact bigotry and homophobia have on children.

Westwood's Geffen Playhouse will be open for backstage tours and presentations by resident artists, while UCLA's Hammer Museum features exhibits such as the ``Armand Hammer Collection,'' ``Heavenly Visions: Shaker Gift Drawings and Gift Songs'' and works by emerging artists.

Elsewhere there's the spectacular ``L.A. Folk Arts Festival'' at the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre in Hollywood, a day of singing, dancing and puppet theater at the Palos Verdes Art Center, and the fascinating displays along Wilshire Boulevard's Museum Row.

Here, youngsters can gape and gawk at saber-toothed tigers at the George C. Page Museum, grown-ups can fantasize about '59 Cadillacs at the Petersen Automotive Museum, and families can view paintings and other works of art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Wilshire Boulevard will be closed to cars between Fairfax and Curson avenues to allow visitors to stroll from museum to museum.

The Los Angeles Arts Open House may not offer The Mouse - Mickey, that is - but short bursts of virtually every other cultural touchstone are there for the taking.

``L.A. ARTS OPEN HOUSE''

What: Part of the celebration of National Arts & Humanities Month, a free countywide open house to let the community get to know area museums, theaters and other venues.

Where:

Madrid Theatre, Canoga Park, [phone]

Museum Row on the Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, [phone]

Getty Center, Brentwood, [phone]

CSUN Performing Arts Center, Northridge, [phone]

Canyon Theatre Guild, Santa Clarita, [phone]

Skirball Cultural Center, Brentwood, [phone]

California Plaza's Spiral Court, downtown Los Angeles, [phone]

18th Street Arts Complex, Santa Monica, [phone].

Information: Call [phone], pick up schedules at your local library or visit www.lacountyarts.org.

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Photo:

Choreographer-dancer Lauren Winslow Kearns' Bodytalk Dance company essays ``Everywhere I Look'' at CSUN's Performing Arts Center, part of Saturday's L.A. Arts Open House.

Photography by Sallie DeEtte Mackie