This weekend is the annual Cinco de Mayo celebration at the El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument in downtown Los Angeles. Cinco de Mayo (May 5th) is the Mexican holiday commemorating an important victory against the French in 1862.
Festivities will take place around Olvera Street, the oldest street in Los Angeles, from 10 am to 10 pm on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, May 2-4. There will be live entertainment, educational activities, storytelling and crafts for children. Free.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Festival of Books
For you bookish types (and yes, they do exist here in Los Angeles, contrary to popular belief), this weekend is the annual L.A. Times Festival of Books at UCLA. Non-stop panels on all aspects of the literary world, from writing to publishing, will run both days, along with entertainment, children's activities, readings, book signings, famous authors, and of course, lots and lots of books for sale.
The festival takes place on the UCLA campus, Saturday and Sunday, April 26-27. Admission is free and parking is available at UCLA lots for $8. There will be free shuttles from outlying lots.
Outdoor events are free, but tickets are required for the indoor panels and speaker sessions. These can be purchased in advance for 75 cents at various locations and through Ticketmaster. Some tickets will be available on site. Click here for more info on ticketing procedures.
The festival takes place on the UCLA campus, Saturday and Sunday, April 26-27. Admission is free and parking is available at UCLA lots for $8. There will be free shuttles from outlying lots.
Outdoor events are free, but tickets are required for the indoor panels and speaker sessions. These can be purchased in advance for 75 cents at various locations and through Ticketmaster. Some tickets will be available on site. Click here for more info on ticketing procedures.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
ARTWATER in Atwater
This Saturday, April 26, is the ARTWATER Festival in Atwater Village. If you haven't been to Atwater Village lately, it's a vibrant, funky neighborhood with many new restaurants, galleries and boutiques. "A Celebration of Music and Arts" will take place along Glendale Blvd. between Brunswick and Glenfeliz from 2 to 10 p.m. There will be three stages for live music and dance performances, local artisan vendors and interactive art activities. Free.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Happy Earth Day!
The City of Los Angeles is having its official Earth Day celebration in the Mid-Wilshire district. Wilshire Blvd. between Western and Harvard is car-free today, and there will be an all-day street festival with live music, green vendors and demonstrations, and kids' activities. 10 am-5 pm. Free.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Free family arts festival
The next Getty Family Festival will be Sunday, May 4, at the Getty Villa in Malibu.
Held in conjunction with the exhibition The Color of Life, the all-day festival includes live performance, flamenco dancing, music by Fishtank Ensemble, storytelling and children's art workshops.
It's free but a ticket is required. (Parking is $8 per vehicle.) Tickets available beginning tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. Call (310) 440-7300 or visit the Getty website for more info or to make a reservation.
Held in conjunction with the exhibition The Color of Life, the all-day festival includes live performance, flamenco dancing, music by Fishtank Ensemble, storytelling and children's art workshops.
It's free but a ticket is required. (Parking is $8 per vehicle.) Tickets available beginning tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. Call (310) 440-7300 or visit the Getty website for more info or to make a reservation.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Mermaids, Poppies and Cheese
Wow, what a range of options you have before you this weekend. There's something for everyone! Or, if you're like me and can't choose, a little of everything.
For good old-fashioned family fun, head up to the Antelope Valley for the annual Poppy Festival. Held Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm in Lancaster City Park, the festival will have all the traditional attractions: live entertainment, arts & crafts, and food, as well as a "Healthy Living Pavilion" and an International Market. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children and seniors.
For more high-brow family fare, you can check out "Splash! A Celebration of Mermaids and the Sea" at the Fowler Museum at UCLA. Sponsored by Heal the Bay and held in conjunction with the exhibition "Mami Wata: Arts for Water Spirits in Africa and Its Diasporas," this water-themed festival includes a costume contest and procession, live music, children's art workshops, face painting, and a live touch tank. Saturday, April 19, 11:30 am-3:30 pm. Free admission, $8 parking. For more info, click here.
Finally, we have a festival dedicated to every schoolkid's favorite, that comfort-food staple, the humble grilled cheese sandwich. The Grilled Cheese Invitational has apparently been traveling the country, spreading the joy of melted cheese on bread to the masses. On Saturday, it arrives in Griffith Park. It's too late to register to be a competitor, but for free you can show up, sample the "sammiches" (as they're called on the official website) and be a judge.
All I can say is, any contest that advises its entrants to "Have sex with somebody before the competition - Let your hair down and relax, then come and grill cheese. You'd be surprised how much of a difference it really makes in the grill" must be fun. 5:00-9:30 pm, somewhere in Griffith Park.
For good old-fashioned family fun, head up to the Antelope Valley for the annual Poppy Festival. Held Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm in Lancaster City Park, the festival will have all the traditional attractions: live entertainment, arts & crafts, and food, as well as a "Healthy Living Pavilion" and an International Market. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children and seniors.
For more high-brow family fare, you can check out "Splash! A Celebration of Mermaids and the Sea" at the Fowler Museum at UCLA. Sponsored by Heal the Bay and held in conjunction with the exhibition "Mami Wata: Arts for Water Spirits in Africa and Its Diasporas," this water-themed festival includes a costume contest and procession, live music, children's art workshops, face painting, and a live touch tank. Saturday, April 19, 11:30 am-3:30 pm. Free admission, $8 parking. For more info, click here.
Finally, we have a festival dedicated to every schoolkid's favorite, that comfort-food staple, the humble grilled cheese sandwich. The Grilled Cheese Invitational has apparently been traveling the country, spreading the joy of melted cheese on bread to the masses. On Saturday, it arrives in Griffith Park. It's too late to register to be a competitor, but for free you can show up, sample the "sammiches" (as they're called on the official website) and be a judge.
All I can say is, any contest that advises its entrants to "Have sex with somebody before the competition - Let your hair down and relax, then come and grill cheese. You'd be surprised how much of a difference it really makes in the grill" must be fun. 5:00-9:30 pm, somewhere in Griffith Park.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Los Angeles Art Weekend
This is what happens when you don't have a computer or Internet access for a week. You find out about Los Angeles Art Weekend after it's already started!
This 4-day celebration of the visual arts, with events held all over the city, started yesterday and runs through Sunday. Today's events include the opening of an exhibition of photographs of Soviet cold-war architecture, at an L.A. outpost (or "pop-up storefront") of New York gallery Storefront for Art and Architecture. The new Broad Contemporary Art Museum at LACMA will offer extended hours and free live jazz from 6 to 8 p.m.
There's a nice overview of the whole weekend on the L.A. Times website.
Los Angeles Art Weekend is presented by ForYourArt. You can download their 16-page .pdf map and guide to arts in L.A. by clicking here.
This 4-day celebration of the visual arts, with events held all over the city, started yesterday and runs through Sunday. Today's events include the opening of an exhibition of photographs of Soviet cold-war architecture, at an L.A. outpost (or "pop-up storefront") of New York gallery Storefront for Art and Architecture. The new Broad Contemporary Art Museum at LACMA will offer extended hours and free live jazz from 6 to 8 p.m.
There's a nice overview of the whole weekend on the L.A. Times website.
Los Angeles Art Weekend is presented by ForYourArt. You can download their 16-page .pdf map and guide to arts in L.A. by clicking here.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Far East Film Festival Frenzy!
OK, I'm on my fourth hard drive in less than a year--my second in two weeks!--and the laptop is still acting strange. Let's see if I can get a post in before it goes back to the shop.
The Japan Film Festival starts tomorrow at the Imaginasian Center downtown, close to Little Tokyo, through April 17. Then it moves to Orange County, at the Starplex Cinemas in Irvine, April 18-20.
Highlights include contemporary offerings from Japan, anime, Kurosawa classics, and "Hula Girls," Japan's official entry for the 2007 Foreign Language Academy Awards and one of my favorite movies of last year. Everything is subtitled. $20 buys you a pass good for three screenings; individual tickets are $10.
Right after the Japan Film Festival ends, the Indian Film Festival begins. Held at the Arclight Hollywood, IFFLA runs April 22-27. The largest Indian film festival in North America, it will include four world premieres, five U.S. premieres, and nine features making their L.A. debut, as well as Bollywood musicals, documentaries and English-language films.
Purchase tickets from the Arclight box office or online.
You have a few days to catch your breath, and then the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival begins. Hosted by the Directors' Guild of America, it runs May 1-8, with additional screenings at the Laemmle on Sunset, the Aratani/Japan America Theater and the Imaginasian Center.
In addition to screenings of films from around the globe, there will be special events and seminars. Unfortunately, the website is difficult to navigate, and some links, as of this posting, are broken. I wasn't able to find any specifics on this event, mentioned in the official press release, but believe me, I'll be there:
The Japan Film Festival starts tomorrow at the Imaginasian Center downtown, close to Little Tokyo, through April 17. Then it moves to Orange County, at the Starplex Cinemas in Irvine, April 18-20.
Highlights include contemporary offerings from Japan, anime, Kurosawa classics, and "Hula Girls," Japan's official entry for the 2007 Foreign Language Academy Awards and one of my favorite movies of last year. Everything is subtitled. $20 buys you a pass good for three screenings; individual tickets are $10.
Right after the Japan Film Festival ends, the Indian Film Festival begins. Held at the Arclight Hollywood, IFFLA runs April 22-27. The largest Indian film festival in North America, it will include four world premieres, five U.S. premieres, and nine features making their L.A. debut, as well as Bollywood musicals, documentaries and English-language films.
Purchase tickets from the Arclight box office or online.
You have a few days to catch your breath, and then the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival begins. Hosted by the Directors' Guild of America, it runs May 1-8, with additional screenings at the Laemmle on Sunset, the Aratani/Japan America Theater and the Imaginasian Center.
In addition to screenings of films from around the globe, there will be special events and seminars. Unfortunately, the website is difficult to navigate, and some links, as of this posting, are broken. I wasn't able to find any specifics on this event, mentioned in the official press release, but believe me, I'll be there:
TOKE 2: THE HAROLD & KUMAR STORY – join the writers/directors of HAROLD & KUMAR: ESCAPE FROM GUANTANAMO BAY – Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Scholossberg - along with actor John Cho, as they discuss the films and its franchise which has now achieved "classic" status amongst a new generation.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Brewery Art Walk
Can you believe I just got my computer back today?! And the problem still isn't fixed... But at the moment, it seems to be working, so to celebrate, we have a new post!
This weekend, April 5-6, is the semi-annual Brewery Art Walk in downtown L.A. From 11 am to 6 pm on Saturday and Sunday, the resident artists of the "world's largest art colony" will open their studios to the public. Admission is free and many will have works for sale.
The Brewery is a community comprised of 21 former warehouses, including two former breweries, that now house 300 studios and about 500 people. There is also a restaurant on the premises. I found a good article about the Brewery on the L.A. Times website.
It's been many years since I did the Art Walk myself, but I remember it being a lot of fun, as much for the opportunity to explore the complex as for the chance to see local artists' work. Here's a nice review with lots of photos from the Spring '06 Art Walk.
This weekend, April 5-6, is the semi-annual Brewery Art Walk in downtown L.A. From 11 am to 6 pm on Saturday and Sunday, the resident artists of the "world's largest art colony" will open their studios to the public. Admission is free and many will have works for sale.
The Brewery is a community comprised of 21 former warehouses, including two former breweries, that now house 300 studios and about 500 people. There is also a restaurant on the premises. I found a good article about the Brewery on the L.A. Times website.
It's been many years since I did the Art Walk myself, but I remember it being a lot of fun, as much for the opportunity to explore the complex as for the chance to see local artists' work. Here's a nice review with lots of photos from the Spring '06 Art Walk.
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