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Home / Life! / Live / Things to do this week: March 11-20

Things to do this week: March 11-20

by F Diaz
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Can you believe it’s only the second week of March? Neither can I. If you too are looking for things to do that will allow you to disconnect for a bit without disassociating, then I hope you find this list helpful.

Caifanes Tribute

The Mixx | 443 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101 | March 11 | eventbrite.com

Dance and sing along to this live tribute to one of Mexico’s biggest, iconic rock bands. DJ Santi will provide other alternative rock en Español. 

Movie In The Park: ‘Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings’

Barnes Park Field | 350 S. McPherrin Ave., Monterey Park, CA 91754 | March 11 | montereypark.ca.gov

Watch Marvel’s “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” on a giant screen at Barnes Park. Pack your blankets, chairs and snacks to enjoy an evening with Marvel’s newest superhero. 

Club 1994 – A ‘90s Dance Party

Boardner’s by La Belle | 1652 N. Cherokee Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90028 | March 11 | eventbrite.com

Dance into the early morning hours to the tunes of Nirvana, Weezer, Blink 182, Pearl Jam, the Spice Girls, NSYNC and more.

Delfeayo Marsalis & The Uptown Jazz Orchestra 

The Broad Stage | 1310 11th St., Santa Monica, CA 90401 | March 11 | thebroadstage.org

When Delfeayo Marsalis and the Uptown Jazz Orchestra hit the stage, audiences are guaranteed to—as the lyrics go—have a jazz party, all night long! With influences from Louis Armstrong to Count Basie, James Brown to J. Cole, Marsalis and UJO performances help free the mind, warm the heart, and heal the soul. The addition of vocalist—and The Voice semi-finalist—Tonya Boyd-Cannon adds an electrifying element that engages audiences through call-and-response chants and gospel-inflected sing-a-longs.

626 Night Market Mini 

Lot 27 | 1324 5th St., Santa Monica, CA 90401 | March 12-13 | 626nightmarket.com

Starting a new series of events in Downtown Santa Monica from 1-10 p.m., 626 Night Market Mini will have food vendors like Shake Ramen, Tao’s Bao, Chick N’ Skin, Ghostix and Rockin’ Gyoza.

Pomona Artwalk + Alliance Black Marketplace

Alliance Community Cultural Center | 406 W. Second St., Pomona, CA 91766 | March 12 | eventbrite.com

Support Black businesses in Pomona and surrounding areas. Enjoy live performances, gallery visits, street art, and small business pop-ups throughout 10 blocks in Downtown Pomona

Spring Festival

West Covina Sportsplex | 2100 S. Azusa Ave., West Covina, CA 91792 | March 12-13 | westcovina.org

The City of West Covina has partnered with local nonprofit organizations for the very first annual Spring Festival featuring diverse food and drink vendors, live performances (including mariachi singer Arturo Vargas), carnival rides, a beer garden and more forms of entertainment. Tickets and ride wristbands can be purchased at eventbrite.com.

Rose Bowl Flea Market

Rose Bowl Stadium | 1001 Rose Bowl Drive, Pasadena, CA 91103 | March 13 | rgcshows.com

Known for its wide array of antiques, vintage clothes, and local art, the Rose Bowl Flea Market has been the flea market to visit for over 50 years.

Bellissima Serenata

Calvary Presbyterian Church | 1050 Fremont Ave., South Pasadena, CA 91030 | March 13 | eventbrite.com

Tesserae Baroque performs arias from famous Roman oratorios by Lulier, Pasquini, Scarlatti, and Handel.

Girl Scout Cookies & Whiskey Tasting

The Oaks Tavern | 13625 Moorpark St., Los Angeles, CA 91423 | March 13 | eventbrite.com

Forget about boring old brunch! Mix and match four types of Girl Scout cookies with four one-ounce shots of whiskey and a pint of craft beer.

St. Paddy’s Party

Stereo Brewing | 950 S. Via Rodeo, Placentia, CA 92870 | March 13 | stereobrewing.com

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day early with Irish rock band The Noble Ones, “Irish-ish” food, and beer from Stereo Brewing’s taproom.

Lizz Huerta Discusses “The Lost Dreamer

Vroman’s Bookstore Main Store | 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101 | March 14 | vromansbookstore.com

Writer and essayist Lizz Huerta discusses her young adult fantasy book, “The Lost Dreamer,” with LA Times staff writer and acting deputy food editor Daniel Hernandez. Huerta’s debut novel is inspired by ancient Mesoamerica and explores themes of patriarchal control and female resistance. 

Virtual Tour Of “City Of Cinema: Paris 1850-1907”

Online | March 14 | lacma.org

Curators Leah Lehmbeck and Britt Salvesen of LACMA and Vanessa R. Schwartz of USC examine cinema in the context of Parisian culture in the 19th century in conjunction with a tour of the exhibition “City of Cinema: Paris 1850-1907.”

St. Baldrick’s 

Matt Denny’s | 145 E. Huntington Drive, Arcadia, CA 91006 | March 15 | stbaldricks.org/events/mypage/126/2022

After a two-year hiatus, Matt Denny’s is once again hosting its St. Baldrick’s fundraising event in which participants shave their heads to encourage donations towards the biggest non-government funder of childhood cancer research grants.

Reyna Grande Discusses “A Ballad of Love and Glory”

Vroman’s Bookstore Main Store | 695 E. Colorado St., Pasadena, CA 91101 | March 15 | vromansbookstore.com

Reyna Grande, the author behind “The Distance Between Us,” “Across a Hundred Mountains, “A Dream Called Home,” discusses her newest book, “A Ballad of Love and Glory,” with Hector Tobar, author of New York Times bestselling book “Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine and the Miracle That Set Them Free.” “A Ballad of Love and Glory” is a historical fiction and romance set in 1846 during the Mexican-American war. It follows Ximena Salomé, a Mexican healer, and John Riley, an Irish immigrant who deserts from the US army to form the St. Patrick’s Battalion in Mexico, as they fall in love and fight for their future.

Elīna Garanča

The Broad Stage | 1310 11th St., Santa Monica, CA 90401 | March 15 | thebroadstage.org

Critically acclaimed and award winning mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča will present a glorious evening of arias and songs with Malcolm Martineau at the piano. She is particularly famed for her portrayal of Bizet’s “Carmen,” which she has sung in the majority of leading theatres, like Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Bayerische Staatsoper, Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía Valencia, or Metropolitan Opera to critical acclaim; The New York Times named her “the finest Carmen in 25 years …”.

Crazy Uncle Joe Show

The Groundlings Theatre | 7307 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046 | March 16 | groundlings.com

Unlike at other comedy shows, the audience gets to be a part of the set. The Groundlings Players take three suggestions from the crown and then weave the stories together, playing different characters in multiple situations. After a brief intermission, the players return and take three more suggestions for the rest of the 90-minute show. 

Family Paint Party

El Torito | 3333 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107 | March 16 | eventbrite.com

Set aside some time to spend with the family painting a beautiful canvas full of palm trees against a blue and orange cloudy sky. Artists Elizabeth Grebler will guide you through the whole process.

Los Angeles St. Patrick’s Day Pub Crawl & Block Party

Broadway Bar | 830 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90014 | March 17 | eventbrite.com

The annual St. Patrick’s Day Pub Crawl in Downtown LA grants you access to drink coupons at multiple locations, free welcome shot vouchers and a map of participating businesses. Participating bars include Golden Gopher, LA Biergarten, Pattern Bar, Broadway Bar, Beelman’s Pub, The Falls, Joe’s Pizza and more that will be announced.

Pagan St. Patrick’s

Muddy Heaven | 2033 N. Ave 52, Los Angeles, CA 90042 | March 17 | eventbrite.com

This isn’t your typical St. Patrick’s Day celebration. LA’s Shannon Lay and Lina Tullgren, and Minneapolis’ Humbird are coming together to celebrate St. Patrick’s with a subversive, sacred, and ancient spirit in an urban farm in the hills of Highland Park. Pack a blanket, beach towel or camping chair and be prepared for songwriting and lush ambience. Goods and services will be provided by Kitchen Sink, Johnathan Chriest, and Soft Fury.

“Mamma Mia!”

Arcadia Performing Arts Center | 188 Campus Drive, Arcadia, CA 91007 | March 17-19 | eventbrite.com

Directed by Steven Volpe, the award-winning high school theatre students of Arcadia Stage present their rendition of “Mamma Mia!,” a musical told through the music of Abba.

Luck O’ The Flambo

Silverlake Lounge | 2906 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026 | March 18 | instagram.com/p/Ca0AmLeP6yx 

Remember to wear green when you attend this stand-up comedy show featuring Sarah Shtern, John Luna, Mitchell Lamar, Carly Kane, Eilise Guilfoyle, and Dan Donohue. 

Mariachi Manchester’s Tribute To The Smiths & Morrissey

The Mixx | 443 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101 | March 18 | themixxclub.com

Mariachi Manchester isn’t your typical mariachi, they put their own twist on The Smiths’ and Morrissey’s greatest hits. On top of great music, enjoy an art show by local artists, giveaways, and DJs keeping you dancing.

LA Full Moon Meditation

Peace Point Meditation | 865 E. Monrovia Place, Azusa, CA 91702 | March 18 | eventbrite.com

At the end of a long work week, the last thing you may want to do is go out and socialize in loud, crowded venues. Detach, destress and immerse yourself in the positive, healing energy of a full moon. 

Pasadena Symphony and POPS Presents Mozart Symphony no. 40

Ambassador Auditorium | 131 S. St. John Ave., Pasadena, CA 91105 | March 19 | pasadenasymphony-pops.org

Mozart’s Symphony No. 40 will be the star of this program with Grieg’s Piano Concerto performed by Cuban pianist Aldo López-Gavilán. The orchestra will also perform Grammy-nominated composer Adam Schoenberg’s “Finding Rothko.”

Douglas Roegiers Tribute To Frank Sinatra

Cicada Restaurant and Lounge | 617 S. Olive St., Los Angeles, CA 90014 | March 19 | cicadaclub.com

Crooner Douglas Roegiers presents a tribute to “The Chairman of the Board,” ol’ blue eyes, Frank Sinatra from his time with Tommy Dorsey to the wild nights at The Sands hotel in Las Vegas.

Neighborhood Treasure Block Party

Canyon Learning Center | 1000 S. Canyon Blvd., Monrovia, CA 91016 | March 19 | eventbrite.com

Monrovia Area Partnership and Art in Public Places continues to celebrate historically significant Monrovians through public art installations in the community. The sixth installation in the series will honor civil rights activist, and former teacher and principal of Huntington School, Almera Romney.

The Takács Quartet With Julien Labro

The Broad Stage | 1310 11th St., Santa Monica, CA 90401 | March 19 | thebroadstage.org

The Takács Quartet, winners of the Grammy Award, Gramophone Classical Music Awards 2021, Chamber category, and Presto Music Classical Recording Award 2021, is joined by Julien Labro on bandoneón for two new commissions for the Takács by Brazilian-American composer Clarice Assad and Grammy-winner and The National rock band guitarist Bryce Dessner for quintet and three of Labro’s own works. The program concludes with Ravel’s String Quartet from 1903, the only quartet he ever composed.

The Martha Graham Dance Company

The Soraya | 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge, CA 91330 | March 19 | thesoraya.org

A lost 1952 dance creation by Martha Graham herself—a primal artistic force of the 20th century—is reborn with the Martha Graham Dance Company’s world premiere of “The New Canticle for Innocent Comedians.” This new “Canticle” is based on the same themes and format as the original and will be accompanied by Jazz pianist and composer Jason Moran performing his new music commissioned by The Soraya.

“Can’t Pay? Don’t Pay!”

The Actors’ Gang Theater | 9070 Venice Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232 | March 19-April 30 | theactorsgang.com

“Can’t Pay? Don’t Pay!,” written by Nobel Laureate Dario Fo and Franca Rame, follows Antonia who, fed up by rising prices and stagnant wages, joins a revolt of women at the local supermarket. “Can’t Pay? Don’t Pay!” questions why, in a world of bailed-out banks and overpriced prescription drugs, theft is only a crime when it is committed by those truly in need

‘Deborah Roberts: I’m.’

California African American Museum | 600 State Drive, Exposition Park, Los Angeles, CA 90037 | March 19-Aug. 20 | caamuseum.org

In a series of collages and paintings, artist Deborah Roberts “critiques notions of beauty, race, and identity in contemporary society through the depiction of Black children.” Roberts, in this traveling exhibit, investigates how beauty standards and violent racism impacts Black children. Among the works on display is a large mural, “Little man, little man.” 

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra

Ambassador Auditorium | 131 S St. John Avenue Pasadena, CA 91105 | March 20 | laco.org

Things to do: Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Randall Goosby
Randall Goosby. | Photo by Kaupo Kikkas

Two prominent musical artists, esteemed guest conductor Roderick Cox and 26-year-old violin phenom Randall Goosby, make their joint Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra debuts. Goosby performs Mendelssohn’s lyrical masterpiece Violin Concerto in E minor, considered a cornerstone of the violin repertoire. Cox, winner of the prestigious 2018 Sir Georg Solti Conducting Award, also conducts Wagner’s intimate and blissful Siegfried Idyll, a symphonic poem for chamber orchestra, and Brahms’ lilting Serenade No. 2 in A major.

Long Beach Antique Market

Long Beach Veterans Stadium | 4901 E. Conant St., Long Beach, CA 90808 | March 20 | longbeachantiquemarket.com

The Long Beach Antique Market bills itself as “The flea market with style” for its offerings of unique, vintage items. From 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. (you can pay to enter early at 5:30 a.m.), hunt down some treasures to take home. 

Spring Equinox

Online | March 20 | griffithobservatory.org

Mark the start of spring with a live online talks and a live broadcast at noon and sunset (weather permitting). Griffith Observatory staff will discuss how the sun’s changing trajectory causes seasonal changes.

13th Annual Celebration Of Nowruz

UCLA | 10745 Dickson Court, Los Angeles, CA 90095 | March 20 | farhang.org

The Farhang Foundation rings in the Iranian new year with this free event featuring musical performances, arts and crafts, activities for children, dancers, traditional musicians, stilt walkers, the Grand Haft Sîn display, a Persian tea house and much more. 

Butterfly Pavilion

Natural History Museum | 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90007 | March 20-Sept. 5 | nhm.org

Walk among hundreds of colorful, beautiful butterflies at this popular seasonal exhibit also featuring native plants.

“Full Circle: A Return To The Land” 

Descanso Gardens | 1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91101 | Through March 13 | descansogardens.org 

This exhibition chronicles human interaction with the land in and around Descanso Gardens from the Tongva through various cultures, up to today.

“Assassins”

East West Players | 120 Judge John Aiso St., Los Angeles CA 90012 | Through March 20 | eastwestplayers.org 

East West Players, the nation’s longest-running Asian American theater and the largest producer of Asian American theatrical works, is resuming in-person productions with “Assassins.” With music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and book by John Weidman, “Assassins” is a darkly comic Tony-award winner that examines the motives of the nine notorious Americans who took their shot at the President of the United States

Enrique Martinez Celaya “SEA SKY LAND: towards a map of everything”

USC Fisher Museum of Arts | 823 W. Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90089 | Through April 9 | fisher.usc.edu

This exhibit brings together 30 large-format paintings and sculptures created by Enrique Martinez Celaya. Each of the three galleries at the Fisher Museum will present the artist’s writings alongside paintings and sculptures dedicated to one of three motifs—sea, sky, and land. 

“Mixpantli: Space, Time, And The Indigenous Origins Of Mexico”

LACMA | 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036 | Through May 1 | lacma.org

LACMA is marking the 500th anniversary of the fall of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital and site of Mexico City. According to LACMA, the exhibition “subverts the traditional narrative of conquest by centering the creative resilience of Indigenous artists, mapmakers, and storytellers who forged new futures and made their world anew through artistic practice.”

Tupac Shakur. Wake Me When I’m Free

The Canvas at L.A. Live | 944 Georgia St.,Los Angeles CA 90015 | Through May 1 | wakemewhenimfree

Created in collaboration with the Shakur Estate, this exhibit delves into Tupac’s activism, music and revolutionary art through technology, art and artifacts from the rapper’s personal archives.

“Mapping Fiction”

The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens | 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, CA 91108 | Through May 2 | huntington.org

This new exhibit focuses on the ways authors and mapmakers have built compelling fictional worlds. The exhibit includes a first edition of James Joyce’s “Ulysses,” early editions of Lewis Carroll’s “The Hunting of the Snark, Robert Louis Stevenson’s maps from “Treasure Island” and “Kidnapped,” J. R. R. Tolkien’s map from the trilogy “The Lord of the Rings,” and science fiction writer Octavia E. Butler’s hand-drawn maps from notes for “Parable of the Talents” (1998) and her unpublished novel “Parable of the Trickster.”

“Archival Intimacies: Queering South/East Asian Diasporas”

ONE Archives at the USC Libraries | 909 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90007
| Through May 29 |
one.usc.edu

Three artists-in-residence at ONE Archives at USC Libraries, Prima Jalichandra-Sakuntabhai, Vinhay Keo, and Pamila Matharu were invited to develop new works in response to the archive. Jalichandra-Sakuntabhai and Keo’s work investigates the remnants of embodied history, migration, exile, and queerness. Accompanying these works is “Satrang at 25: Queer South Asian Diaspora(s) in Context,” on view at ONE, examining the history of Satrang, an organization supporting queer South Asian communities in Southern California and placing its evolution in the context of broader queer diasporic histories.

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