I don't know about you, but I wasn't able to get tickets to the Oscars this year. Did you know that, in addition to putting on the Academy Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences offers many other events throughout the year which are open to the public?
I got my Academy Foundation newsletter yesterday, both e-mail and print versions, and as usual, there are lots of great movie-oriented events happening next month.
For instance, on Saturday, March 8 at 7:30 pm, the Academy presents "The Art of Sound: An evening celebrating nominees and winners from the 80th Academy Awards." According to the newsletter, "The Art of Sound" will feature clips from each of the motion pictures nominated for a 2007 Academy Award in the Sound Mixing and Sound Editing categories. Academy Sound Branch governor and 20-time nominee Kevin O’Connell will moderate a panel discussion with the winners in each category.
This is a great opportunity to find out, once and for all, what the difference is between Sound Mixing and Sound Editing, and why they need two separate Oscars. To me, this is a continuing source of bafflement, year after year. But then I'm no sound engineer!
Tickets are only $3 but you should purchase in advance, as I'm sure this will sell out. For more information, call (310) 247-3600 or visit the Academy's website. You can also subscribe to the Academy's newsletter online.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
Unusual puppet and mask show
I've been to the Ford Amphitheatre a few times, and it's a wonderful outdoor venue, but I didn't know there was another performance space there called [Inside] the Ford, which is--you guessed it--indoors. At just 87 seats, it's smaller and more intimate than the outdoor theater.
This weekend, Ziggurat Theatre Ensemble presents three free performances of Fafalo, a fairy tale for adults incorporating custom-made Balinese masks and huge, spectacular puppets. The show is appropriate for children over 8, and times are Friday, Feb. 29 at 8:00 pm, and Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2 at 3:00 pm. For more info, visit the Ford's web site.
Fafalo opens March 14 at the Miles Memorial Playhouse in Santa Monica, with tickets costing $20, but you can see it this weekend for free at the Ford. For more information about the production, click here.
This weekend, Ziggurat Theatre Ensemble presents three free performances of Fafalo, a fairy tale for adults incorporating custom-made Balinese masks and huge, spectacular puppets. The show is appropriate for children over 8, and times are Friday, Feb. 29 at 8:00 pm, and Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2 at 3:00 pm. For more info, visit the Ford's web site.
Fafalo opens March 14 at the Miles Memorial Playhouse in Santa Monica, with tickets costing $20, but you can see it this weekend for free at the Ford. For more information about the production, click here.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Hot Cajun music in a cool setting
They say that the best things in life are free... Well, I can think of a few things in life that aren't free that are pretty darn great. Like food. But I digress. It's true that some of the best things in L.A. are free, like Friday Nights at the Getty.
This monthly concert series features diverse bands and musicians from around Los Angeles and the world. This Friday, for example, "3 Leg Torso's eclectic synthesis of modern chamber music, tango, and Middle Eastern and Eastern European folk traditions is coupled with a cinematic sense of musical storytelling." That's pretty darn eclectic.
Unfortunately, 3 Leg Torso is already sold out. (The series is free but reservations are required.)
However, the reservation line opens tomorrow for the next concert on March 14: The Savoy Family Band, a Cajun group from Louisiana. "The band brings the raw energy of the dancehalls of southwest Louisiana to the stage, peppered with humorous and informative anecdotes about life on the Louisiana prairies."
Call (310) 440-7300 or go to the Getty's web site to make reservations. Parking at the Getty Center is $8 per vehicle.
This monthly concert series features diverse bands and musicians from around Los Angeles and the world. This Friday, for example, "3 Leg Torso's eclectic synthesis of modern chamber music, tango, and Middle Eastern and Eastern European folk traditions is coupled with a cinematic sense of musical storytelling." That's pretty darn eclectic.
Unfortunately, 3 Leg Torso is already sold out. (The series is free but reservations are required.)
However, the reservation line opens tomorrow for the next concert on March 14: The Savoy Family Band, a Cajun group from Louisiana. "The band brings the raw energy of the dancehalls of southwest Louisiana to the stage, peppered with humorous and informative anecdotes about life on the Louisiana prairies."
Call (310) 440-7300 or go to the Getty's web site to make reservations. Parking at the Getty Center is $8 per vehicle.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
A day for (art) lovers
Well, tomorrow's Valentine's Day, and depending on how you feel about that fact, you're either trying to figure out what to do with your sweetheart to commemorate the occasion, or hoping that something will come along to distract you from its existence.
Luckily, I have just the thing--in either case! For the couple looking for an alternative to inflated Valentine's Day menu prices at upscale restaurants, and for the single (or couple) looking to escape the hearts, flowers and cupids, an evening of art appreciation could be the perfect answer.
As it turns out, Thursday happens to be free admission day at many local museums. Downtown, the Museum of Contemporary Art and its satellite location, The Geffen Contemporary, are free every Thursday from 5 to 8 pm, as is the Japanese American National Museum.
On the west side, both the Skirball Cultural Center and the Hammer Museum at UCLA are free and open until 9 pm every Thursday. The Fowler Museum, also at UCLA, and the Getty Museum's two locations (in Brentwood and Malibu) are always free.
Best of all, the Downtown Art Walk is the second Thursday of the month, which happens to be February 14th. Print out the map of participating museums and galleries, hop on the free DASH shuttle, and take this free self-guided tour of the downtown art scene between 12 and 9 pm. "DASH shuttles will be hosted by local historians Matt Goulet, Richard Schave and Mike the Poet, providing fascinating information on the history of downtown Los Angeles."
Best of all, the only cupids you're likely to see will not be the Hallmark variety.
Luckily, I have just the thing--in either case! For the couple looking for an alternative to inflated Valentine's Day menu prices at upscale restaurants, and for the single (or couple) looking to escape the hearts, flowers and cupids, an evening of art appreciation could be the perfect answer.
As it turns out, Thursday happens to be free admission day at many local museums. Downtown, the Museum of Contemporary Art and its satellite location, The Geffen Contemporary, are free every Thursday from 5 to 8 pm, as is the Japanese American National Museum.
On the west side, both the Skirball Cultural Center and the Hammer Museum at UCLA are free and open until 9 pm every Thursday. The Fowler Museum, also at UCLA, and the Getty Museum's two locations (in Brentwood and Malibu) are always free.
Best of all, the Downtown Art Walk is the second Thursday of the month, which happens to be February 14th. Print out the map of participating museums and galleries, hop on the free DASH shuttle, and take this free self-guided tour of the downtown art scene between 12 and 9 pm. "DASH shuttles will be hosted by local historians Matt Goulet, Richard Schave and Mike the Poet, providing fascinating information on the history of downtown Los Angeles."
Best of all, the only cupids you're likely to see will not be the Hallmark variety.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Fun with Oscar!
The Academy Awards ceremony is only 2 weeks away, and with the writers' strike almost over, it looks like we'll have a traditional, celebrity-stuffed production with all the glitz. Don't have an invitation? Not to worry! There are great Oscar-season events around town that are open to the public.
My favorite of these (not least because it's free) is the annual Art of Motion Picture Costume Design Exhibition at FIDM (the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising) in downtown L.A. Every year they showcase the best of the previous year's movie costumes, including all 5 Best Costume Oscar nominees. Open Monday through Saturday, 10 to 5, until April 12.
Also free, and new this year, is Meet the Oscars, an exhibition of all 50 golden statuettes that will be handed out on Feb. 24th, at Hollywood & Highland. Visitors will be able to hold an actual Oscar in their sweaty little hands! Open 7 days a week through February 23. For more Oscar-related events, check the Academy's web site.
Finally, if you haven't had a chance to see all the Best Picture nominees yet, AMC Theaters will hold a one-day marathon screening of all five films on Saturday, February 23. This special offer is available at several Los Angeles-area theaters for only $30 (that's $6 a movie, and includes a free popcorn!)
My favorite of these (not least because it's free) is the annual Art of Motion Picture Costume Design Exhibition at FIDM (the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising) in downtown L.A. Every year they showcase the best of the previous year's movie costumes, including all 5 Best Costume Oscar nominees. Open Monday through Saturday, 10 to 5, until April 12.
Also free, and new this year, is Meet the Oscars, an exhibition of all 50 golden statuettes that will be handed out on Feb. 24th, at Hollywood & Highland. Visitors will be able to hold an actual Oscar in their sweaty little hands! Open 7 days a week through February 23. For more Oscar-related events, check the Academy's web site.
Finally, if you haven't had a chance to see all the Best Picture nominees yet, AMC Theaters will hold a one-day marathon screening of all five films on Saturday, February 23. This special offer is available at several Los Angeles-area theaters for only $30 (that's $6 a movie, and includes a free popcorn!)
Friday, February 8, 2008
Gung Hay Fat Choy!
Welcome to my new blog. It's built upon an idea I've had for a while: a place to share information about free and cheap things to do in and around Los Angeles.
There's already plenty of information out there about the big-ticket shows, the headliner concerts, the swank new restaurants and the latest hot clubs... But I can't afford those things, except as an occasional splurge, and neither can a lot of people I know.
This is a blog for the rest of us: the non-Beautiful People, the below-the-line crew, the ordinary folks living in Tinseltown alongside the big spenders, but not among them.
Luckily, there are a lot of things to do in L.A. that don't cost a lot of money. The problem is finding them and even knowing where to look. My mission will be to sift through all the community calendars, museum newsletters, organization web sites, etc. and post the most interesting events for you to check out. I'll also be on the lookout for cheap but good eats around town.
And what better occasion to kick off this endeavor than Chinese New Year? Yesterday was the first day of the Year of the Rat, but the celebration in Chinatown begins tomorrow. The Lunar New Year Festival will take place at Broadway & Cesar Chavez from 10:00 am until 8:00 pm, with the 109th Annual Golden Dragon Parade scheduled from 2:00 to 5:00 pm. The festivities continue on Sunday from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm.
The Vietnamese also follow the lunar calendar, and will celebrate Tét (New Year) with a three-day festival this weekend in Little Saigon. The Southern California festival is the largest Tét Festival and the largest Vietnamese cultural event outside Vietnam. The event starts today at 2:00 pm and continues through Sunday in Garden Grove Park. Tickets are $5 for adults and $4 for children.
There's already plenty of information out there about the big-ticket shows, the headliner concerts, the swank new restaurants and the latest hot clubs... But I can't afford those things, except as an occasional splurge, and neither can a lot of people I know.
This is a blog for the rest of us: the non-Beautiful People, the below-the-line crew, the ordinary folks living in Tinseltown alongside the big spenders, but not among them.
Luckily, there are a lot of things to do in L.A. that don't cost a lot of money. The problem is finding them and even knowing where to look. My mission will be to sift through all the community calendars, museum newsletters, organization web sites, etc. and post the most interesting events for you to check out. I'll also be on the lookout for cheap but good eats around town.
And what better occasion to kick off this endeavor than Chinese New Year? Yesterday was the first day of the Year of the Rat, but the celebration in Chinatown begins tomorrow. The Lunar New Year Festival will take place at Broadway & Cesar Chavez from 10:00 am until 8:00 pm, with the 109th Annual Golden Dragon Parade scheduled from 2:00 to 5:00 pm. The festivities continue on Sunday from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm.
The Vietnamese also follow the lunar calendar, and will celebrate Tét (New Year) with a three-day festival this weekend in Little Saigon. The Southern California festival is the largest Tét Festival and the largest Vietnamese cultural event outside Vietnam. The event starts today at 2:00 pm and continues through Sunday in Garden Grove Park. Tickets are $5 for adults and $4 for children.
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